With a second site, the insurance question doubles – but with a third, it no longer does: from there on it's not a matter of numbers, but of structure. A well-built multi-site portfolio handles all locations in one contract, on one list.
- The goal is a single master contract with a site list – not a collection of independent policies.
- Every site is a different risk – by value, function, security – but the list can still be uniform.
- Opening, closing and moving a site should be a routine event: a list update, not a new insurance project.
Separate policies or one master contract?
Historically, at most companies, sites get their cover the way they opened: one at a time, at different points, sometimes with different insurers. This works, but expensively: multiple renewal dates, different terms, and premiums that can't be compared. In a master-contract solution, a single policy lives with a site schedule: identical terms, one renewal date, a clear overall picture – and the full asset mass together gives a better negotiating position when going to market. The natural moment to switch over is at renewal: switching at renewal.
The sites differ – the order is uniform
One master contract doesn't mean uniformity: a warehouse, a shop and an office are different value, different risk, different protection. What matters is that all of it is described on one list, with the same logic: value per site (building, furnishings, stock), function, and level of security. This list is the site dimension of the cover map – and at claim time, it's what decides whether that particular location was properly covered. Security requirements (alarm, bars, cameras) can differ from site to site – burglary cover is tied to these.
Opening, closing, moving: the list routine
At a multi-site company, change is constant – so the insurance routine should be simple: when opening a new location, add the site to the list before moving in; when closing, remove it (so no premium runs needlessly); when moving, follow the leased-premises rules. All of this falls under change notification – five minutes of admin that's worth weeks at claim time. And the central question stays the same: someone – an internal owner or the broker – needs to see the whole thing at once: renewal table.
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This article is deliberately an overview: the detailed information – covers, exclusions, practical examples – lives on the area's own specialist site.
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