Shopping centers & retail strip centers
Shopping center and retail strip insurance
Strip centers, neighborhood shopping centers and standalone retail buildings. Busy parking lots and a mix of tenants bring their own risks, and we put together coverage that holds up across all of them.
What it can cover
- Building property for every storefront, plus the roof, signs and glass
- Loss of rents / business income when stores close for covered repairs
- General liability for parking lots, sidewalks and common areas
- Umbrella limits above your primary liability
- Equipment breakdown for HVAC, electrical and building systems
- Flood coverage for centers in flood-prone areas
- Ordinance or law, plus help reviewing tenant insurance requirements
Who it's for
- Owners of retail strip centers
- Neighborhood and community shopping centers
- Standalone retail buildings and rows of storefronts
- Centers with restaurant, medical, fitness or service tenants
What affects your price
- Tenant mix, especially restaurants and cooking
- Square footage and number of storefronts
- Parking lot size, lighting and snow removal
- Sprinklers and fire separation between units
- Lease insurance requirements and certificates on file
- Loss history, limits and deductibles
Coverage depends on the policy and underwriting. We'll explain exactly what your estimate includes.
The main risks
What can go wrong at a shopping center
These are the losses we plan the policy around. Every building is different, so we look at yours before we take it to market.
- Slip-and-fall claims in parking lots, sidewalks and walkways, especially in snow and ice
- Fire spreading between connected storefronts, including from restaurant cooking
- Tenants who don't carry the insurance their lease requires
- Lost rent when a fire or storm closes several stores at once
- Damage to glass, signs, parking lot lighting and paving
- Flooding, sewer backup and roof leaks across a large footprint
- Break-ins, vandalism and theft
FAQ
Shopping center and retail insurance questions
Who is responsible for a slip and fall in the parking lot?
It depends on your leases and who maintains the lot, but owners are often named in these claims. Solid general liability, an umbrella, and leases that require tenants to carry their own coverage all help protect you.
How do restaurant tenants affect my insurance?
Cooking adds fire risk, so insurers look closely at restaurants and their fire suppression systems. Tell us which tenants cook so the building is written correctly.
Should my retail tenants name me on their policies?
Usually, yes. Most retail leases require tenants to carry liability insurance and name the owner as additional insured. Keeping current certificates on file matters when a claim comes in.
What happens to my rent if a fire closes the center?
Loss of rents coverage can replace the rent you lose while covered damage is repaired. The limit and how long it pays depend on the policy, so we size it to your rent roll.
Do you insure one retail building or only large centers?
Both, from a single storefront building to a full shopping center.
Why us
Buildings are the whole job.
Markets not everyone has
Access to insurance markets and programs for real estate that aren't available everywhere — more options to compare for your building.
A sharper price
We shop your building so you see what the market will really offer, and we look for savings without cutting the coverage you need.
Buildings. Only buildings.
Buildings are what we do: multifamily, mixed-use, brownstones, HDFC and co-ops, office, industrial and retail buildings, vacant buildings and renovations.
A human on every file
Every request is reviewed by a person on our team, not a pricing robot. You get an estimate you can actually rely on.
Own a commercial building? Send us the details.
Office, industrial or retail: one form, a few minutes. We shop our markets and email you an estimate after a real review.