REINSTATEMENT COST ASSESSMENTS

Reinstatement Cost Assessments (RCA's) are an important tool when calculating the total re-build cost in the event of destruction for insurance purposes. The rebuild cost should consider allowances such as statutory and professional fees, demolition and removal of debris and specific site factors such as access, listed buildings and buildings within conservation areas.

An accurate RCA is important to ensure that the property is adequately insured. If your assessment is too low, you run the risk of underinsuring your asset. However, if your assessment is too high, your premiums will be unnecessarily high.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) recommend that an RCA is carried out every 3 years or when significant changes have been made to a property and a desktop evaluation is carried out on an annual basis. Given the recent increase in materials and construction costs, it has never been more important to ensure you are keeping up to date with your reinstatement cost assessments.