by Ben Rickard | Feb 10, 2025 | Guarantees
Builtin is excited to announce the launch of a new completion guarantee for residential construction projects. The policy covers up to 10% of the contract value, to a maximum of $100,000. It provides peace of mind to homeowners (and their mortgage lenders) if their...
by Ben Rickard | Oct 23, 2024 | Guarantees
This is an opinion piece by Ben Rickard, director of a construction-focused risk adviser and insurance broking firm Builtin. Ben and Builtin have been providing insurance and risk advice to thousands of building businesses for more than a decade. He has made...
by Ben Rickard | Jul 1, 2021 | Bonds, Guarantees
The protection of retentions has been an issue in the construction industry for years, not just in New Zealand but globally. Amendments to the Construction Contracts Act a few years back put obligations on head contractors to protect those retentions by holding them...
by Ben Rickard | Mar 8, 2021 | Bonds, Guarantees, Insurance
A lot of insurance is tied to contracts, so it’s critical you understand what’s in your contract and comply with the requirements in there. Even if you use a standard contract, things might change and you need to be on top of this, or you might end up in hot water....
by Ben Rickard | Sep 10, 2020 | Guarantees
A COVID-19 related policy change earlier this year saw Kainga Ora begin to accept surety-backed bonds rather than just bank-backed ones. This has great benefits for contractors and accelerates a trend seen across the market towards bonds in lieu of retentions. If you...
by Ben Rickard | Jun 8, 2020 | Guarantees
There are always two sides to every story. It’s no different when it comes to payment schedules in a building contract. Customers (and their lenders) generally prefer to pay for work after it has been supplied. On the other hand, many builders would like to get...
