When the Replacement Builder Needs a New HBCF Certificate

A new principal contract is a new insurance question

Where the replacement builder enters a residential building contract valued above the threshold and no exemption applies, that builder generally must obtain project-specific HBCF cover before taking payment or starting work. The certificate should identify the replacement builder's exact legal entity and the project.

The original certificate remains relevant to the claim against the first builder's work, but it is not a transferable company policy for whoever later attends the site.

Define what the new certificate covers

The replacement contract may contain completion work, rectification, owner upgrades and new design. The HBCF certificate responds to the replacement builder's contractual obligations subject to its own policy and trigger, not retrospectively to defects solely attributable to the first builder.

This makes the responsibility schedule and initial condition report particularly important.

Verify before payment again

Apply the same controls used for the original contract: obtain the complete certificate, check the legal name, licence, address, issue date and HBC Check record, and retain it before paying a deposit. Do not assume insurer-approved work is exempt from ordinary HBCF compliance.

Where icare authorises a replacement scope, ask how the contract and certificate are to be structured. The insurer's approval of a claim amount and the builder's obligation to insure the new contract are separate matters.

Consider staged and split scopes carefully

Investigation or emergency work may be contracted separately from the main completion project. Multiple contracts should be assessed together where required, and artificial splitting does not necessarily avoid insurance.

Obtain advice if different contractors will perform insured residential work directly for the owner. The project needs clear coordination and certificates for each applicable principal contract.

Practical takeaway: Treat the replacement contract as a fresh compliance event. Valid HBCF cover for the first builder does not remove the new builder's insurance obligations.

How ARK Houses can help

ARK Houses obtains the project-specific HBCF certificate required for its own replacement contract before taking payment or starting insured work. The new certificate is kept distinct from the original certificate that supports the claim against the first builder.

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