Construction in Ireland is entering a period of sustained activity, driven by housing targets, infrastructure investment, and renewed commercial development. With that activity comes a sharper focus on risk, from funders, from main contractors assessing subcontractor exposure, and from customers reviewing insurance compliance before awarding work.

Brown & Brown works with contractors, developers, and subcontractors across the country to manage that risk, drawing on years of experience in the sector combined with the resources of one of the largest insurance intermediaries in the world.

A sector under pressure

Irish construction faces a distinct set of business pressures. Labour shortages, volatile material and input costs, and intensifying margin pressure are shaping how contractors plan and price work. Against this backdrop, getting insurance right matters more than ever, from contractual risk transfer and latent defects to professional indemnity. More recently, emerging issues such as PFAS liability have added a new consideration for the sector, with potential implications for product liability and environmental cover.
These are not abstract risks. They affect tender viability, subcontractor relationships, project financing, and ultimately the bottom line of every job on site.

Cover built for construction
Brown & Brown provides a programme of insight, guidance, and cover designed for the realities of building in Ireland today. Surety and bonds sit at the centre of this. As the public and private sectors tighten requirements around performance bonds, retention bonds, and advance payment guarantees, contractors need a broker who understands both the construction process and the bonding market. Brown & Brown works directly with surety providers to secure terms that reflect the true risk profile of a contractor’s business, not a generic assessment based on turnover alone.

Beyond bonds, our construction team helps customers access insurance solutions, including Contractors All Risks, public and product liability, professional indemnity, plant and machinery, and directors and officers liability, backed by a claims service that supports our customers when it matters most.

Why this matters now

Getting insurance right is no longer a task completed once a year at renewal. It is part of how a construction business demonstrates it is in a position to win work, prepared to deliver it, and able to stand behind it once it is built. As scrutiny increases across the supply chain, the businesses that can show robust, well-structured cover will have an advantage.

A team that knows the sector

Brown & Brown’s construction team includes over 20 specialists with experience supporting firms across the construction sector. They understand the pressures of site delivery, tender deadlines, and contractual obligations. That experience sits within a global network, giving Irish construction businesses local relationships backed by international capability and access to specialist markets.

Get in touch
To review existing cover, talk through risks specific to your projects, or discuss how your business is positioned for the year ahead, contact Brown & Brown’s construction team.
Graham Power has nearly three decades of experience in the insurance industry having worked with Brown & Brown (formerly O’Leary Insurances) since 1997.
He advises developers and contractors across Ireland and the UK on complex construction risks, including Casualty, CAR, PI, Latent Defects & Surety Bonds. He has supported major residential and commercial projects, helping customers structure effective risk transfer solutions.

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construction-ireland@bbrown.com
01 660 8211

Brown & Brown Insurance Brokers (Ireland) Ltd., trading as Brown & Brown, is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland

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Michael McDonnell Managing Editor of Irish Construction Industry Magazine & Plan Magazine

Email: michael@irishconstruction.com      WWW.MCDMEDIA.IE