Avoiding Material Theft on Construction Sites

Construction takes materials, and it usually involves a budget. You therefore don’t want to have to worry about running out of hard assets while also running out of money. Nevertheless, you can’t predict every instance of asset loss. One frequent occurrence that you don’t want to happen on your site is theft or vandalism. This might result in property damage, lost time and lost money. What can you do, therefore, to prevent these threats?

A degree of security will likely help you better protect yourself. Builder’s risk insurance might also be able to help you in these situations.

Theft and Vandalism Risks on Properties

Think of a construction site for what it is—a work in progress. It won’t have full operating capacity the way it will when you finish the job. In most cases sites won’t have the comprehensive security of a finished job either. Certain parts and portions of the property might face a risk of theft of vandalism. During such occurrences, criminals might:

• Damage structures under construction
• Steal building materials
• Steal or damage fixtures waiting for installation in the house
• Damage construction materials or equipment
• Create damage that causes a personal safety risk to workers, the property owner or others

After these occurrences, the project’s success might prove uncertain. You might have to spend significant funds to try to clean up the damage, make repairs and replace lost items. That’s a big cost that most contractors can’t afford.

Preventing Theft Losses in Businesses

If you have a type of commercial insurance called builder’s risk insurance, you might have a degree of help. This coverage applies to works in progress. It will often cover property and materials damaged or lost to theft or vandalism. However, all policies will have restrictions. Therefore, you will want to do what you can to protect your materials on your work sites.

• If possible, install security mechanisms throughout the worksite. These might include cameras, alarm systems and motion-activated lighting.
• Keep small items like paint, building materials and electrical items in a locked area. For example, you might keep a locked storage container on the property.
• Never leave major equipment unsecured on the property. Keep power tools, vehicles and computer systems under lock and key at all times. If possible, transport these items off of the property and back to your office at the end of each day.
• Keep a close eye on anyone with access to your property. Require an inventory to know where each item goes, and when.
• Check employees’ backgrounds carefully before hiring. Coverage likely will not apply to instances of employee theft.

The more care you take, the better you can protect yourself and your property from theft risks during the construction process.