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Defend the insuring covenant.

When the declared value is too low, the insurer pays out pro rata - the shortfall falls on everyone in the building. A RICS-regulated assessment protects freeholders from liability and gives leaseholders an independent basis to challenge.

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Freeholder Reinstatement Cost Assessment

RICS-regulated assessments for freeholders, RMC directors and leaseholders across the UK.

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Managing AgentsRTM CompaniesFreeholdersBlock ManagersPortfolio LandlordsManaging AgentsRTM CompaniesFreeholdersBlock ManagersPortfolio Landlords
The Insuring Obligation

What freeholders owe leaseholders - and what can go wrong.

Most leases place the insuring obligation squarely on the freeholder or the residents management company. That obligation is not simply to arrange insurance - it is to insure to the full reinstatement cost of the building.

Setting the figure without a professional assessment exposes the freeholder to personal liability if an underinsured claim arises. Leaseholders who suffer a shortfall can pursue the party responsible for the declared value, not the insurer.

How the declared value is set

No professional assessment

Figure taken from a previous schedule, an online calculator, or an estate agent's market valuation. Build-cost inflation, professional fees and demolition are routinely missed.

RICS-regulated assessment

Independent, defensible figure prepared to RICS guidance. Covers structure, communal areas, professional fees, demolition, VAT and loss-of-rent provision - and satisfies the insuring obligation.

80%

of UK residential blocks carry an inaccurate sum insured

!

Build costs have risen 30 %+ since 2020 (BCIS) - old figures are rarely adjusted

!

Professional fees (architect, engineer, QS) are commonly omitted entirely

!

Demolition and site clearance - often left out of the declared value

!

Loss-of-rent and alternative accommodation provision frequently overlooked

For Leaseholders

How to challenge an inadequate sum insured.

Leaseholders do not need the freeholder's permission to commission their own independent Reinstatement Cost Assessment. The report provides a factual basis for raising a formal concern with the freeholder or managing agent.

If the matter is not resolved, the assessment can be submitted as evidence in a service charge dispute at the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber). Tribunal panels give weight to RICS-regulated figures over unsubstantiated schedules.

Acting early - before a claim arises - is far stronger than trying to recover a shortfall after an event.

How We Help

Protection for every party in the building.

Freeholder Protection

A defensible, RICS-regulated figure discharges your insuring obligation and protects you from personal liability if leaseholders suffer a shortfall on a claim.

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Leaseholder Rights

Commission your own independent assessment without the freeholder's permission. Use it to raise a formal concern or support a service charge challenge with credible, impartial evidence.

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Tribunal Evidence

Our reports are prepared to withstand scrutiny at the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber). RICS-regulated figures carry weight with panels reviewing service charge reasonableness.

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Our Services

Pick the assessment that fits your property.

Desktop Reinstatement Cost Assessment service

01. Desktop

RICS RegulatedRICS

Desktop Reinstatement Cost Assessment

BCIS-indexed rebuild cost modelling without a site visit. Delivered within 24 hours of instruction. Accepted by all UK insurers.

  • RICS-regulated, broker-ready report
  • BCIS-indexed rebuild cost modelling
  • Delivered within 24 hours of instruction
  • Accepted by every UK insurer
Request Desktop Assessment

Listed or non-standard property? An On-Site Survey may be required instead.

RICS surveyor conducting an on-site Reinstatement Cost Assessment

02. On-Site

RICS RegulatedRICS

On-Site Rebuild Cost Assessment

A RICS surveyor attends in person for full measurement and construction analysis. Required for listed, heritage and complex buildings.

  • RICS-regulated, broker-ready report
  • Surveyor attends in person, full measurement
  • Required for listed, heritage & complex buildings
  • The insurer-preferred option for high-value risk
  • Accepted by every UK insurer
Request On-Site Survey

Managing more than one property? Ask about the 3-Year Protection Plan.

Best Value
3-Year RICS Reinstatement Cost Assessment protection plan

03. Recommended

RICS RegulatedRICS

3-Year Reinstatement Cost Assessment Plan

One instruction covers three years of RICS compliance — full Reinstatement Cost Assessment in year one, annual BCIS-indexed renewal reports before each renewal date.

  • RICS-regulated, broker-ready report
  • Full assessment year one, indexed updates years two & three
  • One instruction, one invoice - no re-instructing
  • The preferred choice for agents & portfolio landlords
  • Accepted by every UK insurer
Enquire About Protection Plan

Saves the cost and admin of re-instructing every year.

FAQ

Common questions.

Common questions from freeholders, RMC directors and leaseholders about Reinstatement Cost Assessments and buildings insurance.

The declared value is the reinstatement cost the full cost to rebuild the property from scratch. That is what a Reinstatement Cost Assessment (rebuild cost assessment) establishes, and it is what the freeholder or managing agent is legally responsible for setting correctly. The sum insured shown on the policy schedule is higher: the insurer adds an inflation buffer of typically 20–50%. Confusing the two figures is one of the most common causes of underinsurance.

Your lease sets this out. In most blocks the freeholder, RMC or RTM company holds the insuring obligation and the duty to arrange a current Reinstatement Cost Assessment but the practical work is often delegated to a managing agent. Whoever is responsible for setting the declared value carries the personal liability if the figure is wrong and a claim shortfall arises.

The insurer applies the average clause and pays out only in proportion to how much of the true reinstatement cost is covered. If the rebuild cost assessment shows the true reinstatement cost is £1.5m but the building is only insured for £1m, a £300,000 claim pays out just £200,000. The leaseholders and freeholder must fund the gap. A current RICS-regulated Reinstatement Cost Assessment is the primary protection against this.

Yes. You do not need the freeholder's permission to commission an independent Reinstatement Cost Assessment. The report can be used as evidence in a formal challenge to the declared value, a service charge dispute at the First-tier Tribunal, or a complaint to the Property Ombudsman.

RICS guidance requires a formal Reinstatement Cost Assessment (rebuild cost assessment) at least every three years. Annual BCIS-indexed inflation adjustment between assessments is good practice but does not replace a full reassessment it only adjusts the existing figure without catching structural changes or errors in the original declared value.

Just the address, property type, approximate gross internal floor area, and any previous Reinstatement Cost Assessment report if you have one. We can work with estimates at enquiry stage and will let you know if we need anything further before instruction.