A hotel is not a single risk. It is a substantial building, a trading business with seasonal income, an employer, a food and drink operation and, in many cases, a venue for events and functions. Each of those exposures is underwritten differently, which is why the choice of broker has more effect on the outcome than the choice of insurer.
This guide sets out what UK hotel owners and operators should look for when appointing a broker, and the questions worth asking before an appointment is made. For wider context, read our hotel insurance guide and our hotel insurance specialism page.
Why the choice of broker matters
Hotel insurance programmes are assembled rather than bought off the shelf. The buildings section, contents and stock, business interruption, employers' and public liability, food safety exposures, guest property and cyber cover all interact, and gaps tend to appear at the joins between them.
A broker who understands hospitality presents the risk in the terms underwriters use: occupancy patterns, trading periods, kitchen protections, function and events activity, listed fabric, and the realistic time to rebuild and return to trade. A broker who does not tends to submit an incomplete presentation, which produces either an inflated premium or terms that fail at claim.
Experience in the hotel sector
Sector experience is the single most useful indicator. A broker who regularly places hotel risks will recognise the features that change underwriting appetite before they become a problem at renewal.
- Familiarity with hotels, guesthouses, inns and boutique properties, not just general commercial premises.
- Understanding of listed buildings, conversions and older fabric, and their effect on reinstatement cost.
- Awareness of kitchen and cooking risk controls, including extract cleaning and fire suppression.
- Knowledge of function, wedding and events exposures, and how they affect liability cover.
- Experience with leisure facilities such as pools, spas and gyms.
- Comfort with seasonal trading patterns and how they affect business interruption sums insured.
Our guides to hotel and guesthouse insurance and hospitality insurance explain how these exposures are usually structured.
Access to the right insurers
Not every insurer writes hotels, and among those that do, appetite varies sharply by size, location, construction, trading style and claims record. Ask directly which insurers the broker can approach for your type of property, and whether the placement route is a specialist hospitality facility or a general commercial scheme.
Where a hotel has unusual features, a listed structure, a large events operation, extensive leisure facilities or a multi-site portfolio, access to specialist and leading UK insurers matters more than the number of quotations obtained. Volume of quotes is not the same as market coverage.
Ask about portfolio structuring
Getting the valuation right
Underinsurance is the most common and most damaging failure in hotel programmes. The buildings sum insured should reflect the full cost of reinstatement, including demolition, site clearance, professional fees, debris removal and compliance with current building regulations. For listed or period properties, reinstatement using appropriate materials and methods can be substantially higher than a standard rebuild.
A good broker will press for a professional reinstatement cost assessment rather than accept a rounded figure, and will keep the sum insured index-linked between formal reviews. Contents, stock, fixtures, fit-out and computer equipment should be assessed separately, since fit-out in a hotel often exceeds the value of loose contents.
How average applies
See our guide to hotel insurance cost for how declared values feed into the premium.
Business interruption analysis
Business interruption is where hotel claims most often fall short, and it is the clearest test of a broker's technical ability. The indemnity period must cover the realistic time to obtain consents, rebuild or repair, refurbish, remarket and return to previous trading levels. For a hotel with listed fabric or a specialist fit-out, twelve months is rarely sufficient, and 24 or 36 months is a common conclusion.
The sum insured should be based on gross profit or gross revenue as defined by the policy, projected forward across the indemnity period rather than taken from historic accounts alone. Seasonality matters: a loss immediately before peak season has a different financial effect to one in a quiet month, and the cover should account for that.
- Confirm how the policy defines gross profit or gross revenue for a hotel.
- Check whether increased cost of working and additional increased cost of working are included.
- Ask about loss of attraction and denial of access, which matter for location-dependent trade.
- Consider supplier and utility failure extensions where trade depends on them.
- Check book debts and outstanding accounts where relevant to the operation.
Comparing quotations properly
Two quotations for the same hotel can differ by a wide margin and still be sound, because they may be covering materially different things. A broker should set out the differences clearly rather than presenting premiums side by side.
| What to compare | Why it matters | What to ask |
|---|---|---|
| Buildings and contents sums insured | Drives both premium and claim settlement | Is each figure supported by an assessment? |
| Business interruption basis and indemnity period | The most common cause of shortfall | How was the period justified? |
| Excesses | A lower premium often reflects a higher excess | Are there separate excesses by peril? |
| Warranties and conditions | Breach can prejudice a claim | What must we do, and by when? |
| Exclusions and restrictions | Where cover quietly narrows | What is excluded that the alternative includes? |
| Liability limits | Contractual and venue requirements vary | Do the limits meet our obligations? |
Subjectivities and risk improvement requirements deserve particular attention. If an insurer requires extract cleaning certification, fixed wire testing or fire alarm upgrades within a set period, the cost and timeline of that work forms part of the real price of the quotation.
Claims and ongoing service
A hotel claim is rarely simple. Damage to bedrooms reduces available inventory, kitchen damage can close food service, and a major loss involves guests, staff, forward bookings and often a loss adjuster. What matters is who manages that process and how quickly it moves.
- Who handles a claim day to day, and whether you have a named contact.
- Whether the broker advocates on your behalf with the loss adjuster.
- How mid-term changes are handled, for example refurbishment works or a change in trading.
- Whether the programme is reviewed before renewal rather than simply invited.
- What risk management support is offered between renewals.
- How the broker handles FCA disclosure obligations and remuneration transparency.
Ongoing engagement also protects cover. Refurbishment, a new function suite, a change in occupancy or a period of closure are all material changes that should be notified when they happen, not discovered at renewal.
Questions to ask a prospective broker
- How many hotel and hospitality risks do you place, and of what size?
- Which insurers would you approach for a property like ours, and why?
- How would you establish our buildings sum insured and declared values?
- What indemnity period would you recommend for our business interruption cover, and on what basis?
- How do you handle listed fabric, kitchens, pools or events exposure in the presentation?
- Who will handle a claim, and what is your involvement once an adjuster is appointed?
- How is your remuneration structured on this placement?
- What will you review with us between now and renewal?
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a specialist hotel insurance broker?
For most hotels, yes. A hotel combines property, liability, trading income, employment and food safety exposures in one risk, and each is underwritten differently. A broker who regularly places hospitality risks will present those exposures in the terms underwriters expect and is more likely to secure appropriate terms.
How do I know if a broker has real hotel experience?
Ask how many hotel risks they place, which insurers they would approach for your property and why, and how they would set your business interruption indemnity period. Specific, reasoned answers on valuation, kitchens, listed fabric and events exposure indicate genuine sector experience.
Should I choose the cheapest hotel insurance quotation?
Not on premium alone. Compare sums insured, the business interruption basis and indemnity period, excesses, warranties, subjectivities and exclusions. A lower premium frequently reflects a higher excess, a shorter indemnity period or narrower cover, which surfaces at claim rather than at inception.
How is a hotel insurance broker paid?
Usually by commission from the insurer, by a fee agreed with you, or by a combination of both. Under FCA rules the arrangement should be disclosed, and it is reasonable to ask how remuneration is structured on your placement.
How often should a hotel insurance programme be reviewed?
At least annually at renewal, and whenever something material changes: refurbishment, a new food or events operation, a change in occupancy or trading pattern, an acquisition, or a period of closure. Reinstatement valuations should also be revisited periodically rather than left index-linked indefinitely.
Speak to a specialist hotel insurance broker
We arrange hotel and hospitality insurance for UK owners and operators, from single properties to multi-site portfolios, working with leading UK insurers and specialist hospitality markets.
Request a hotel insurance quote or contact our team to review your current programme.
