Glossary

A browse-wrap agreement is a non-negotiated contract, often posted inconspicuously on a website, that contains the terms and conditions governing how a visitor can use the website but does not require any express conduct on the part of the visitor to manifest assent to the terms. Judicial interpretation of browse-wrap agreements has been less favorable than judicial interpretation of click-wrap agreements.

A buffer layer is any layer of insurance (or risk retention) that resides between the primary (burning) layer and the excess layers. For example, if the primary layer is $100,000 and the excess layer attachment point is $500,000, a buffer layer of $400,000 is required.

A builders risk policy is a property insurance policy that is designed to cover property in the course of construction. There is no single standard builders risk form; most builders risk policies are written on inland marine (rather than commercial property) forms. Coverage is usually written on an all risks basis and typically applies not only to property at the construction site but also to property at off-site storage locations and in transit. Builders risk insurance can be written on either a completed value or a reporting form basis; in either case, the estimated completed value of the project is used as the limit of insurance.

The building and personal property coverage form is the key Insurance Services Office, Inc. (ISO), direct damage commercial property coverage form. This form (CP 00 10) covers buildings, business personal property, and personal property of others for direct loss or damage, subject to the limits shown in the declarations for each of these categories. It also provides additional coverages and coverage extensions, including debris removal, pollutant cleanup, preservation of property, fire department service charges, increased cost of construction, electronic data, newly acquired or constructed property, personal effects and personal property of others, off-premises property, valuable papers and records, outdoor property, and nonowned detached trailers.

The Building Codes Effectiveness Grading Schedule (BCEGS), developed by Insurance Office Services, Inc. (ISO), categorizes communities according to the adequacy of their building codes and the effectiveness of building code enforcement. Communities are graded from 1 (indicating exemplary commitment to building code enforcement) to 10. In states where all of the communities have been graded and the BCEGS system has been implemented, the BCEGS grade for the community where the property is located is used in developing the premium for windstorm and hail coverage for buildings constructed during or after the year in which the community was graded. Building code effectiveness grades for communities are published in ISO's Public Protection Classification service.

Building construction categories are established by Insurance Services Office, Inc. (ISO), in its Commercial Lines Manual (CLM) for purposes of developing rates for insuring commercial property based on susceptibility to damage by fire. The six ISO CLM building construction categories and the associated ISO construction codes, from the least fire-resistive category to the most fire-resistive category, are as follows. Frame. Exterior walls of wood, brick veneer, stone veneer, wood ironclad, or stucco on wood (Construction Code 1) Joisted masonry. Exterior walls of masonry material (adobe, brick, concrete, gypsum block, hollow concrete block, stone, tile, or similar materials) with combustible floor and roof (Construction Code 2) Noncombustible. Exterior walls, floor, and supports made of metal, asbestos, gypsum, or other noncombustible materials (Construction Code 3) Masonry noncombustible. Same as joisted masonry except that the floors and roof are of metal or other noncombustible materials (Construction Code 4) Modified fire resistive. Exterior walls, floors, and roof of masonry or fire-resistive material with a fire resistance rating of at least 1 hour but less than 2 hours (Construction Code 5) Fire resistive. Exterior walls, floors, and roof of masonry or fire-resistive materials with a fire resistance rating of at least 2 hours (Construction Code 6) The American Association of Insurance Services (AAIS) uses nearly identical building construction categories in its materials addressing the development of rates for insuring commercial property in several of its programs.

Building information modeling (BIM) is an integrated technology for creating a pre-construction three-dimensional digital model of the physical and functional aspects of a building from initial design planning through operation. Created and used by all project participants, BIM allows a building to be "virtually" constructed using real data, which allows potential problems to be foreseen and avoided, with the goal of improving efficiency and minimizing waste.

Building ordinance coverage is for loss caused by enforcement of ordinances or laws regulating construction and repair of damaged buildings. Older structures that are damaged may need upgraded electrical; heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning (HVAC); roofing materials; fences; and plumbing units based on city codes. Many communities have building ordinances requiring that a building that has been damaged to a specified extent (typically 50 percent) must be demolished and rebuilt in accordance with current building codes rather than simply repaired. Unendorsed, standard commercial property insurance forms do not cover the loss of the undamaged portion of the building, the cost of demolishing that undamaged portion of the building, or the increased cost of rebuilding the entire structure in accordance with current building codes. However, coverage for these loss exposures is widely available by endorsement. Standard homeowners policies include a provision granting a limited amount (e.g., 10 percent of the dwelling limit) of building ordinance coverage; this amount can be increased by endorsement.

Building rate is the rate charged for property insurance on a building as opposed to the rate charged for property insurance on the contents of a building.

A bulk carrier is a ship used to transport bulk cargo, such as coal, ore, and grains. A bulk carrier could be transporting either dry cargo (such as grain) or wet cargo (such as petroleum). Most lakes are too small to accommodate bulk ships, but a large fleet of lake freighters has operated in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway for over a century.