Why Insurance Matters to Bridging Lenders

In short-term property finance, speed is everything — but speed without accuracy can expose lenders to serious financial risk.

Many bridging lenders rely on borrowers to arrange insurance, only to discover later that the property was underinsured, non-compliant, or missing the lender’s interest notation.

At SRS Insurance, we work directly with bridging finance companies to ensure that every loan is properly protected from day one — through either lender-arranged policies or independent audits of borrower-provided insurance.

The Risks of Leaving Insurance to the Borrower

Borrowers using bridging loans are often:

  • Under financial pressure or credit stress
  • Working to tight completion timeframes
  • Managing renovations or conversions
  • Focused solely on funding rather than compliance

This creates a high chance that they:

  • Take out incomplete or unsuitable cover
  • Use non-specialist insurers unfamiliar with vacant or development properties
  • Underinsure the rebuild value
  • Fail to declare occupancy status or planned works
  • Omit the lender’s interest from the policy schedule

If a claim arises, that can mean:

  • The insurer refuses to pay out
  • The property is only partially reinstated
  • The lender loses direct claim rights or settlement control

How SRS Insurance Supports Bridging Lenders

Lender-Arranged Cover

Let SRS place insurance directly on your behalf for the duration of the loan:

  • Immediate cover for vacant, repossessed, or development properties
  • Protection against fire, theft, flood, and malicious damage
  • Lender’s interest noted automatically
  • Short-term or rolling 3–12-month terms

Borrower Policy Audit Service

If the borrower arranges their own insurance, we can:

  • Audit the policy for compliance and adequacy
  • Verify the building sum insured is accurate
  • Confirm lender interest is clearly noted
  • Highlight gaps (e.g. unoccupied exclusions or restricted perils)

This service gives risk and compliance teams added assurance before releasing funds.

Property Types We Cover

  • Vacant or unoccupied residential properties
  • Light to heavy refurbishment projects
  • Semi-commercial or mixed-use buildings
  • Auction purchases and distressed assets
  • Development sites awaiting planning or refinance

Our short-term property cover matches the loan term and can be converted to long-term insurance once the borrower retains the asset.

How SRS Helps Bridging Finance Firms

  • Acts as your dedicated insurance partner for all loans
  • Provides same-day quotes and documentation
  • Offers claims assistance and loss mitigation support
  • Audits borrower-supplied cover to prevent compliance issues
  • Reduces funding delays caused by incomplete insurance documentation

Protect Your Lending Book with Confidence

Whether you need urgent cover for a distressed site or want to standardise how borrower insurance is verified, SRS Insurance is here to help.

How SRS Helps Bridging Finance Firms

Yes — we can issue documents in advance, subject to your due-diligence checks.

We can audit their policy for compliance or provide a replacement if it’s unsuitable.

Absolutely. We manage grouped or portfolio bridging policies for multi-asset lenders.

Yes — we automatically include lender interest as standard unless advised otherwise.

We can immediately issue replacement cover and coordinate with your legal team to protect your asset.

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