One very obvious result of the economic downturn is how many times we notice once-thriving businesses we drive past every day are now sitting empty. This is troubling from an insurance perspective as well.
Vacant buildings are prone to certain types of perils. It's important to know that the majority of property insurance policies contain a vacancy condition that eliminates coverage entirely for vandalism, sprinkler leakage, building glass breakage, water damage, theft or attempted theft. This condition applies if the building that you own (or in which you are a tenant) has been vacant for more than 60 consecutive days. If another peril caused the loss, such as fire, the loss payment would be reduced by 15 percent.
Most policies apply the vacancy condition if less than 31 percent of the building's square footage is rented or used to conduct customary operations (note that buildings under construction are not considered vacant).
Wisconsin businesses, if you have a concern with vacancy, please contact a knowledgebroker so we can address the situation with your carrier. There are options - and we can help.