Crane Insurance
A crane earns its money in the air, and that is exactly where the money is at risk.
We arrange crane insurance for mobile slewing, all-terrain, pick-and-carry and tower cranes, the machine itself and the liability every lift carries.
One specialist broker who understands lifting risk, not a call centre script.
Insurance for Mobile, Slewing and Tower Cranes
Cranes are the highest-value and highest-consequence machines on most sites, and insurers price them accordingly.
One bad lift can write off the crane, the load and whatever it lands on, and the liability usually dwarfs the machine.
We place cover built around what you lift, where you set up and who signs the lift plan, rather than treating a crane as ordinary plant.
“The crane is rarely the biggest number in a crane claim. What the load lands on usually is.”
What Crane Insurance Typically Covers
Cover is assembled around the machine and the work it does, and a crane policy generally includes the following.
- Accidental damage, collision and overturning of the crane
- The boom, jib, hook block, rigging and fitted lifting gear
- Fire, theft and attempted theft, including from an open site
- Damage while the crane is being erected, dismantled or climbed
- Transit cover while the crane and counterweights are floated in
- Public liability for injury and property damage from a lift
- Damage to the load being lifted, where that cover is arranged
- Cover for cranes you hire in, and for cranes you hire out
Cover varies by insurer and how you operate. We confirm exactly what is and isn’t included before you rely on it.
The Risks a Crane Faces
Lifting concentrates the whole day's risk into a few minutes, and the claims follow that shape.
Overturning on Soft Ground
An outrigger that punches through fill or a pad that was never engineered puts the whole machine over, usually onto something expensive.
Dropped and Swinging Loads
A failed sling, a snatched lift or a gust can drop or swing a load into property, vehicles or people in seconds.
Powerline and Structure Contact
Booming near overhead lines or a building face is a constant strike risk, and the consequences run well past the crane itself.
Cover Types That Work With Crane Insurance
Crane owners usually pair the machine's cover with one or two of these so there are no gaps.
Get Crane Insurance Sorted Properly
Talk to a specialist transport and plant broker who knows what your asset is worth and how it works.
Call 1300 78 78 25Other Vehicles & Equipment We Cover
Most operators run more than one type of asset. These are the ones most often insured alongside it.
Get a Crane Insurance Quote
Tell us about your asset and how you use it. We’ll arrange cover that fits and respond within 1 business day.
Call us1300 78 78 25Crane Insurance: Frequently Asked Questions
It generally covers accidental damage and overturning of the crane, the boom, jib and rigging, fire and theft, damage during erection and dismantling, transit while the crane is floated in, and public liability for the lift. Cover for the load being lifted can be arranged as well.
A crane truck is a registered road truck with a crane mounted on it, so it is insured as a vehicle that also lifts. A mobile, slewing or tower crane is a standalone machine, usually insured as plant, and the lifting exposure is the dominant part of the risk. They are underwritten differently.
Yes. Pick-and-carry cranes are one of the most common machines we are asked about, and they carry their own quirks because they travel loaded and are worked hard in tight yards.
Not automatically. Damage you cause to someone else's property is a liability question, and the load itself can be picked up under a separate cover. We map out which policy answers what before you need to find out.
That is a specific exposure and worth confirming rather than assuming. Erection, dismantling and climbing are high-risk phases for tower and large mobile cranes, and we make sure the policy responds during them.
Transit cover responds while the crane, its counterweights and its boom sections are floated in and out. Moving a crane is a genuinely risky phase, so we confirm the cover follows it.
Yes. If you hire cranes out, with or without an operator, the exposure changes and the policy has to follow the hire agreement. That is the same work we do on dry hire cover.
There is no flat rate. Premiums depend on the crane, its capacity and value, what you lift, where you set up, your claims history and how the lifts are planned and supervised. We build the risk properly and put it to the market rather than quoting a number off a website.
Almost always. On a crane the liability is usually the larger exposure, because what a dropped or swung load hits can be worth far more than the machine that dropped it.
Compliance Disclaimer: This information is general in nature and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. Please consider the relevant Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) before making any decision.