Deposit protection if your builder becomes insolvent, 2 years warranty cover from your builder and insurance cover from NHBC until the end of the policy
Buying a home is typically the largest investment people make and Buildmark provides a builder warranty and insurance protection for particular types of of defects and damage caused by defects to newly built or newly converted homes. Cover also includes deposit protection from exchange of contracts to legal completion. Please read your policy schedule and policy booklet for the details of the cover (and financial limits) that apply to your property.
Select which stage of the home-buying process you are in below to read more information about Buildmark.
The information below is for guidance only. Please refer to your policy schedule and policy booklet for full details of the cover provided on your specific property.
Buildmark provides insurance protection if, due to the builder's insolvency, you lose your deposit or the builder does not complete the home. Please refer to your policy schedule and policy booklet for more information.
If you don't have your policy information, please contact 0344 666 1000.
This is the builder warranty period. In NHBC we sometimes refer to this as "section 2". Your builder will provide this initial warranty and agrees to repair defects that do not comply with NHBC's Technical Requirements. This would not include wear and tear or maintenance issues.
Resolution service
We provide an independent resolution service should the builder not meet their obligations under Buildmark.
Before we can consider offering our Resolution service, you must have:
There may be circumstances where our Resolution service isn't suitable. If that is the case, we will explain why.
If you believe your builder is insolvent, please contact us for further advice.
In this period of the policy, (in NHBC we sometimes refer to this as "section 3") cover is provided where there is damage caused to specified parts of the property because the builder did not comply to NHBC's Technical Requirements.
The damage or issue must have occurred and be notified to NHBC during this period of the policy.
The parts of the property that are typically covered:
Some parts are not covered such as plumbing, electrics and gardens.
Please note this is for guidance only. Please refer to your policy schedule and policy booklet for full details of the cover provided.
Contaminated land cover
We also provide insurance cover for contaminated land if you receive a statutory notice for your land or a statutory notice could be issued because of the condition of your land.
Building Regulations cover
This cover will only apply if we provided the building control service for your property. If we did, this will be stated on the Buildmark certificate for your property.
The cover applies if there is an imminent danger to someone’s physical health or safety because the builder failed to meet certain parts of the Building Regulations when building the main structure of your property.
We ceased offering Building Regulation cover from 1 October 2019.
The above is for guidance only. Please refer to your policy schedule and policy booklet for the full details of the cover provided on your property.
Buildmark is designed to provide insurance for your home, where the property has not been built to NHBC Technical Requirements by the builder.
Your policy document sets out the parts of your home that are covered, the conditions, limits and exclusions that apply.
If you make a valid claim, we will at our option either pay the cost of any necessary repairs or arrange for the work to be done.
There are some things that are not covered by Buildmark. These can include but are not limited to: wear and tear, neglect or damage caused by fire or smoke. Also excluded are items or incidents covered by other insurances such as buildings or contents insurance or by warranties such as on domestic appliances or boilers.
We don’t apply a policy excess to Buildmark (years 3-10) so you don’t have to pay the first part of any claim.
Instead, we operate a minimum claim value (MCV) which means we will calculate the cost of the required remedial work and if it exceeds the MCV, you will not be required to make a contribution. However, if the cost of your claim does not exceed the MCV we will not do any work or pay any costs.
The precise MCV applicable to your home will depend on how old your policy is.
NOTE: There are certain conditions, limits and exclusions that apply, which you will find explained fully in your policy document.
If you are not the first owner of your home, the financial limits of your policy may already have been partly or fully used up by claims from earlier owners. Please contact NHBC or your conveyancer to ensure that you have adequate cover remaining.
Download the latest IPID (insurance product information document) which gives a quick (in 2 pages) overview of the Buildmark policy for newly built and newly converted homes in the UK and Isle of Man.
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