A Surrey construction company pioneered a new type of insurance

A Surrey based construction company has launched a pilot project to help it avoid the risk of subcontractor default.

Subguard provides insurance against subcontractors failing to deliver on a construction project.

The Wates Group is the first company in the UK to use this type of insurance, which is common in the US.

The product was launched by Zurich Global Corporate UK (Zurich) and Jardine Lloyd Thompson Ltd (JLT).

Andrew Laird, group commercial director for Wates, said: ‘With the current economic climate, we see an opportunity to provide our clients with even greater peace of mind that they are protected in the extreme event of a key subcontractor failing on their commitment on a project.’

Subguard protected over US$35bn billion of subcontract works in the US in 2007.

Zurich expects the take-up of this product to grow in the UK over the next 12-18 months.