ICW
ICW is a Belfast-headquartered provider of 10-12 year structural insurance warranties and BSR-regulated building control services for developers, builders, housing associations, and homeowners across the UK and Republic of Ireland, backed by A-rated insurers.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2020
- HeadquartersBelfast, United Kingdom
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What ICW does
ICW is a Belfast-headquartered specialist in structural insurance warranties and building control services, operating as a multi-product MGA-style platform across the UK and Republic of Ireland. The company issues 10- and 12-year latent defect insurance policies covering residential, commercial, social housing, and high-value schemes (up to £50 million reinstatement value), with premiums based on build cost rather than sale price and A-rated underwriting from Accelerant. ICW also operates as a Registered Building Control Approver regulated by the Building Safety Regulator in England and Wales, providing plan checking, site inspections, and regulatory compliance services as an alternative to Local Authority Building Control. The product portfolio extends into surety bonds, insurance backed guarantees (IBGs), and the CTSI-approved ICW Consumer Code for New Homes.
The technology backbone consists of a bespoke in-house client portal providing 24/7 access to warranty documents, inspection tracking, certificate downloads, and surveyor booking, alongside internal inspection software enabling real-time project reporting. Distribution combines direct enterprise sales (Sales Director, Direct Sales Manager, Broker Team Manager, regional Account Executives), self-serve online quote applications, and strategic channel partnerships — notably with the Federation of Master Builders reaching thousands of SME builders. The company maintains offices in Belfast (HQ), London, South Shields, and regional operations across Ireland, with a national network of 60+ chartered surveyors progressing through professional charterships.
ICW's business model generates revenue through one-time warranty premiums (10-12 year contracts), professional services fees for building control, insurance premiums on IBGs and bonds, and ancillary fees from the ICW Endorsed accreditation scheme for Modern Methods of Construction partners including ZED PODS, British Offsite, and TALO. Customer segments include property developers, builders (including SMEs via FMB), housing associations, and homeowners, with warranties accepted by 97% of UK mortgage lenders by volume. The company is privately held, FCA-regulated via ES Risks Limited, and ISO 9001 certified across its building control division.
ICW firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- ICW
- Legal name
- ICW Insurance Services Limited
- Website
- https://i-c-w.co.uk
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2020
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- ICW is a Belfast-headquartered provider of 10-12 year structural insurance warranties and BSR-regulated building control services for developers, builders, housing associations, and homeowners across the UK and Republic of Ireland, backed by A-rated insurers.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
ICW industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Building Warranty Services
- NAICS
- Direct Insurance (except Life, Health, and Medical) Carriers (52412), Direct Property and Casualty Insurance Carriers (524126), Building Inspection Services (54135)
- SIC
- Fire, Marine & Casualty Insurance (6331), Insurance Carriers, Nec (6399)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Home Warranty / Residential Service Contracts (Systems & Appliances) (FSAJALAG)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Warranty & Service Contract / Mechanical Breakdown Insurance (FSAJAMAM), Builders Risk / Course of Construction Insurance (FSAJACAF), Homeowners Insurance (FSAJACAA)
Keywords
Where ICW is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Belfast
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices4 records
Markets served
ICW business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others
Revenue model
- Structural Building Warranties: 10 or 12-year latent defects insurance policies for residential, commercial, and social housing new builds, conversions, and renovations. Premiums based on build cost, not sale price. Includes residential warranties, commercial warranties, social housing warranties, and high-value schemes (up to £50 million reinstatement value).
- Building Control Services: Registered Building Control Approver services regulated by Building Safety Regulator in England and Wales. Covers residential, commercial, and minor domestic projects through plan checking and site inspections.
- Surety Bonds and Guarantees: Comprehensive bond products including performance bonds, highway bonds, sewer bonds, advance payment bonds, retention bonds, development bonds, bid bonds, and contractual/infrastructure bonds. Launched in 2023 with dedicated division under Nathalie Gordon, Managing Director Bonds and Surety.
- Insurance Backed Guarantees (IBGs): Coverage for contractor insolvency and guarantee fulfillment. Covers roofing, basements, piling, damp treatments, windows, solar panels. Underwritten by A-rated insurers for up to 10 years.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Multi-year contract | Residential Warranty - 10-year policy for new builds, renovations, and retrospective cover |
| Unit Pricing | Multi-year contract | High Value Scheme - for projects with reinstatement value exceeding £25 million |
| Unit Pricing | Multi-year contract | Social Housing Warranty - 10 or 12 year cover for housing associations |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels7 records
ICW product offering
Product offeringCore offering
ICW underwrites and issues 10- and 12-year structural insurance warranties (latent defects cover) for new builds, conversions, renovations, and retrospective cover across residential, commercial, social housing, and high-value schemes (up to £50 million reinstatement value), with premiums based on build cost rather than sale price. Alongside warranties, ICW Building Control provides BSR-regulated Registered Building Control Approver services in England and Wales, complemented by surety bonds, insurance-backed guarantees, and the CTSI-approved ICW Consumer Code for New Homes.
Product overview
ICW is a building warranty and building control services provider operating as a single-platform, multi-product insurance and compliance company. The core offering centres on structural warranty products (Residential, Commercial, Social Housing, and High Value Schemes) underwritten by A-rated insurers, complemented by Building Control services, Surety Bonds and Insurance Backed Guarantees. The portfolio also includes the CTSI-approved ICW Consumer Code for New Homes, an online Client Portal, and ICW Endorsed Accreditation for MMC/offsite construction systems. All products are backed by a national network of chartered surveyors and supported by in-house technical teams, offering builders, developers, housing associations, and contractors an integrated compliance and risk management solution.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- ICW Consumer Code for New Homes: CTSI approved consumer code providing protection for homebuyers through the purchase of their new home
- High Value Scheme
- ICW Endorsed
Products and services
- Residential Warranties A 10-year latent defect insurance policy for new builds, renovations, and retrospective cover, providing structural element protection against defects. Premiums based on build cost rather than sale price. Target customers: residential developers, housebuilders, and SME builders (including via FMB Insurance channel).
- Commercial Warranties Bespoke commercial building warranty providing defect cover for commercial or mixed-use projects, with flexible policies tailored to specific development requirements. Target customers: commercial property developers and mixed-use development sponsors.
- Social Housing Warranties A 10 or 12-year latent defect insurance policy for housing associations covering new builds and conversions of social and affordable homes. Target customers: housing associations and local authorities developing social and affordable housing.
- High Value Schemes Structural warranty cover for projects with reinstatement values exceeding £25 million, offering 10 or 12-year protection for residential, commercial, and mixed-use developments with bespoke coverage and dedicated in-house RICS-regulated Chartered Surveyor support. Target customers: large-scale developers and sponsors of complex, high-value projects.
- Building Control Registered Building Control Approver services regulated by the Building Safety Regulator in England and Wales, providing residential, commercial, and minor domestic building control inspections as an alternative to Local Authority Building Control. Target customers: developers, builders, and housing associations requiring building regulation approvals.
- Bonds and Sureties Surety bond services including performance bonds, highway bonds, road bonds, section bonds, sewer bonds, advance payment bonds, retention bonds, development bonds, bid bonds, and contractual/infrastructure/commercial bonds for the housebuilding and construction industry. Target customers: contractors, developers, and construction firms requiring performance and compliance security.
- Insurance Backed Guarantees (IBGs) Insurance backed guarantees for contractors, builders, and developers covering specific work types including roofing, basements, structural waterproofing, piling, underpinning, damp treatments, timber treatments, windows, glazing, and solar panels. Underwritten by A-rated insurers with up to 10-year coverage. Target customers: contractors and installers needing to back workmanship guarantees against insolvency.
- ICW Consumer Code for New Homes A CTSI-approved consumer code providing protection for homebuyers through the purchase of new homes, offering access to independent dispute resolution through CEDR. Target customers: developers offering new homes (must register sites) and the homeowners they sell to.
- ICW Client Portal Online platform providing secure access to warranty documents, site inspection information, project management, certificate access, surveyor visit booking, and quotation retrieval for clients and brokers. Target customers: existing warranty clients and broker partners.
- ICW Endorsed Accreditation Bespoke accreditation scheme for Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) offsite systems, pre-approving systems for use with ICW structural warranties following rigorous technical assessment. Target customers: MMC/offsite construction manufacturers seeking warranty-eligibility for their building systems.
Quantifiable outcome
- Accepted by 97% of UK mortgage lenders based on volume
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use ICW
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
ICW technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature2 records
ICW partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Ten partnerships are on record, tiered minor, core and strategic.
- Air Ambulance Northern IrelandminorCharitable partnership and donation to support vital helicopter emergency medical service operating 365 days a year across Northern Ireland.
- Federation of Master Builders (FMB) / FMB InsurancecoreStrategic partnership signed September 2024 offering 10-year A-rated new home warranties to FMB's thousands of SME member builders across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. FMB members gain access to ICW's bespoke residential warranties backed by industry-leading customer service. Partnership aligned with FMB's commitment to maintaining highest standards in construction industry.
- Ulster HockeyminorTwo-year sponsorship deal supporting Ulster Hockey's U15 Talent Development Programme covering 200+ young athletes across 5 regions including Newtownabbey, Banbridge, Coleraine, Lisburn and Belfast.
- UK FinancecoreICW is an Associate Member of UK Finance, actively supporting and engaging with the financial services industry. ICW complies with UK Finance New Build Warranty guidance and lender requirements.
- ZED PODSstrategicICW Endorsed accreditation awarded to ZED PODS for their modular housing system following rigorous technical assessment. Partnership for sustainable modular housing projects including Fortis House social housing scheme in Kent.
- British OffsitestrategicICW Endorsed accreditation for British Offsite's UNisystem advanced manufacturing system. Partnership supports adoption of modern methods of construction across UK housing sector.
- TALOstrategicICW Endorsed accreditation for TALO's timber superstructure offsite manufacturing system developed in Finland. Partnership supports expansion into UK market with zero-energy housing solutions.
- Chartered Association of Building Engineers (CABE)coreNeil Horsfall, MD of ICW Building Control, elected as Ordinary Board Member. CABE is corporate partner of ICW Building Control.
- Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB)coreICW holds Chartered Building Consultancy status from CIOB. CIOB senior leaders visited ICW headquarters. ICW joined CIOB Training Partnership scheme to support professional development.
- Foot Anstey LLPstrategicCollaboration on MMC article exploring structural defects warranties in modular construction context. Michael Halfpenny (Head of Business Development, ICW) co-authored with Foot Anstey construction legal experts.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves10 records
Expansion highlights5 records
ICW competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Bureau Veritas: Global testing, inspection and certification firm that competes in UK building control and construction compliance. A broader incumbent that overlaps with ICW Building Control but operates across many verticals beyond housing.
Direct peers
- Premier Guarantee: Major UK structural warranty provider (part of the Barrett Corp & Chambers Group) offering 10- and 12-year latent defect policies to residential and commercial developers. Closely comparable product set, distribution model, and target customer as ICW.
- LABC Warranty: Building control and warranty provider linked to Local Authority Building Control. Competes directly with ICW on residential warranties and on the registered Building Control Approver proposition in England and Wales.
- NHBC (National House-Building Council): UK's dominant provider of structural warranties and building control for new homes. Directly competes with ICW across residential warranties, building control, and consumer code offerings, and sets the lender-acceptance benchmark that ICW is measured against.
- Protek Group: UK provider of structural warranties, building control, and consultancy to housebuilders and developers. Overlaps directly with ICW's warranty and building control offerings and targets similar SME and volume-builder segments.
- BLP Insurance: UK structural warranty and building control provider offering latent defect cover and inspection services to residential and commercial developers. Comparable product mix and customer base to ICW, including high-value schemes.
- Build-Zone: UK provider of structural warranties and building control inspections for new-build and conversion projects. Direct competitor in the residential and commercial latent-defect insurance market with similar quote-based pricing.
- Checkmate (Lockton Group): Structural warranty MGA formerly operating as Checkmate and now part of Lockton. ICW's UK Sales Director Lloyd Williams previously led Checkmate's national sales team, underscoring direct overlap in product, channel, and customer segment.
Others
- Atradius: Global trade credit and surety insurer where ICW's Bonds MD Nathalie Gordon previously ran Surety. Comparable as a surety/insurance partner for ICW's newer bonds offering, though not a direct UK warranty competitor.
- Accelerant: Specialty insurance platform that provides the A-rated capacity backing ICW's structural warranties. Functionally an enabler and capacity partner rather than a competitor, but central to ICW's underwriting proposition.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
ICW social profiles
Digital presenceICW compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance8 records
ICW financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
ICW leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles13 records
ICW subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
ICW funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
ICW M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about ICW
What does ICW do?
ICW underwrites and issues 10- and 12-year structural insurance warranties (latent defects cover) for new builds, conversions, renovations, and retrospective cover across residential, commercial, social housing, and high-value schemes (up to £50 million reinstatement value), with premiums based on build cost rather than sale price. Alongside warranties, ICW Building Control provides BSR-regulated Registered Building Control Approver services in England and Wales, complemented by surety bonds, insurance-backed guarantees, and the CTSI-approved ICW Consumer Code for New Homes.
Is ICW a public or private company?
ICW is a private company. It is classified as management employee owned and is currently operating.
When was ICW founded?
ICW was founded in 2020. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is ICW based?
ICW is headquartered in Belfast, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does ICW make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Structural Building Warranties are the primary driver. The others are building Control Services, surety Bonds and Guarantees and insurance Backed Guarantees (IBGs).
Who are ICW's main competitors?
Bureau Veritas is listed as a broad incumbent. Direct peers are Premier Guarantee, LABC Warranty, NHBC (National House-Building Council), Protek Group, BLP Insurance, Build-Zone and Checkmate (Lockton Group). Others are Atradius and Accelerant.
Does ICW have an API?
No public API is recorded for ICW.
What industry is ICW in?
ICW's product category is Building Warranty Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAJALAG, Home Warranty / Residential Service Contracts (Systems & Appliances), with a secondary code of FSAJAMAM, Warranty & Service Contract / Mechanical Breakdown Insurance. Its NAICS code is 52412 and its SIC code is 6331.