Landlord Building Insurance Sprinkler Coverage
Landlord Building Insurance Sprinkler Coverage: Security Mutual states “Sprinkler Leakage coverage pays up to the Coverage A amount of insurance for sprinkler leakage to the insured's covered building.” PropertyCasualty360 states sprinkler leakage “covers loss resulting from direct damage to insured property caused by leakage or discharge of any substance from an automatic sprinkler system, including collapse of a tank that is part of the system.” Insuranceopedia states: “Commercial landlords in particular should confirm whether sprinkler leakage is included before a malfunction happens, since landlord policies for commercial buildings vary in what they cover by default.” ISO endorsement CP 10 56, the Sprinkler Leakage Exclusion, states: “The following is added to the Exclusions section and is therefore not a Covered Cause of Loss”, followed by “Sprinkler Leakage, meaning leakage or discharge of any substance from an Automatic Sprinkler System, including collapse of a tank that is part of the system.”
Last updated: September 14, 2026
Landlord Building Insurance Sprinkler Coverage
| Claim | Listed | URL |
|---|---|---|
| Definition of sprinkler leakage insurance | Sprinkler leakage insurance covers property damage caused by an automatic sprinkler system that leaks or accidentally discharges water, rather than activating in response to fire or smoke. | Insuranceopedia: Sprinkler leakage definition |
| Clause in standard policy or endorsement | This coverage can be included as a clause in a standard policy or added as an endorsement by the policyholder. | Insuranceopedia: Clause or endorsement |
| Usually sits inside commercial property (not residential) | this coverage usually sits inside a commercial property insurance policy rather than a residential one. | Insuranceopedia: Commercial property |
| Fire-response discharge excluded from sprinkler-leakage coverage | damage caused by a properly functioning sprinkler system, discharging water in response to a fire, is excluded from sprinkler leakage insurance coverage. | Insuranceopedia: Fire-response excluded |
| Commercial landlords should confirm sprinkler leakage is included | Commercial landlords in particular should confirm whether sprinkler leakage is included before a malfunction happens, since landlord policies for commercial buildings vary in what they cover by default. | Insuranceopedia: Commercial landlords confirm |
| Coverage A pays for sprinkler leakage to covered building | Sprinkler Leakage coverage pays up to the Coverage A amount of insurance for sprinkler leakage to the insured's covered building. | Security Mutual Custom BOP: Coverage A building |
| Coverage B pays for sprinkler leakage to business property | Sprinkler Leakage coverage pays up to the Coverage B amount of insurance for sprinkler leakage to the insured's covered business property. | Security Mutual Custom BOP: Coverage B business property |
| Includes loss caused by sprinkler leakage | Loss caused by sprinkler leakage | Security Mutual Custom BOP: Loss from leakage |
| Collapse or fall of tank part of automatic sprinkler system | Loss caused by collapse or fall of a tank which is part of an automatic sprinkler system | Security Mutual Custom BOP: Tank collapse |
| Freeze or breakage to system that results in sprinkler leakage | Loss to an automatic sprinkler system when damage is caused by freezing or breakage that results in sprinkler leakage | Security Mutual Custom BOP: Freeze / breakage |
| Tear-out: remove and replace building parts to repair system | The reasonable cost of removing and replacing those parts of the building necessary to repair the automatic sprinkler system that has caused the sprinkler leakage | Security Mutual Custom BOP: Tear-out |
| Sprinkler leakage definition incl. tank collapse | covers loss resulting from direct damage to insured property caused by leakage or discharge of any substance from an automatic sprinkler system, including collapse of a tank that is part of the system. | PropertyCasualty360: Leakage / tank collapse |
| System includes heads, pipes, valves, tanks, pumps, mains | heads and discharge nozzles, ducts, pipes, valves, fittings, tanks (including component parts and supports), pumps, private fire protection mains, connected with and forming part of the system. | PropertyCasualty360: System components |
| Damage from landlord-maintained sprinklers is covered | maintained by the landlord, if the insured is a tenant, or by other tenants, or even damage from sprinkler leakage in another building, is covered. | PropertyCasualty360: Landlord-maintained systems |
| Building additions/fixtures; repair if leakage or freezing + tear-out | the cost to repair or replace damaged parts of the system is covered if the damage results in sprinkler leakage or is directly caused by freezing. The insurance also applies to the tearing out and replacing of any part of the building or structure to repair damage to the system. | PropertyCasualty360: Freeze repair / tear-out |
| Personal property: furniture/machinery/equipment/stock/improvements | furniture, machinery, equipment, stock, improvements and betterments, and all other personal property owned by the named insured and used in the named insured's business. | PropertyCasualty360: Personal property list |
| Vacancy > sixty consecutive days unless freeze-protected | If the building where loss or damage occurs has been vacant for more than sixty consecutive days before that loss, the insurer will not pay for any loss or damage caused by sprinkler leakage unless the named insured has protected the system against freezing. | PropertyCasualty360: Vacancy / freeze |
| Pays to repair or replace building and business property | Commercial property insurance pays to repair or replace your building and business property damaged by a fire, storm, or other event covered by the policy. | TDI: Repair or replace building |
| Basic form usually covers sprinkler leakage | Basic form policies provide the least coverage. They usually cover damage caused by fire, windstorms, hail, lightning, explosions, smoke, vandalism, sprinkler leakage, aircraft and vehicle collisions, riots and civil commotion, sinkholes, and volcanoes. | TDI: Basic form sprinkler leakage |
| Special form policies provide the most coverage | Special form policies provide the most coverage. These policies usually cover damage from all causes of loss, except those specifically listed in the policy. | TDI: Special form |
| Ordinance or law coverage for code upgrades | Ordinance or law coverage pays extra construction or repair costs to meet current building codes. | TDI: Ordinance or law |
| Lost income if business unable to operate | It can also pay some of your lost income if your business is unable to operate normally. | TDI: Lost income |
| CP 10 56 Sprinkler Leakage Exclusion | The following is added to the Exclusions section and is therefore not a Covered Cause of Loss | CP 10 56 06 07 (Woods at Anderson Park policy) |
| Vacant owner’s building under 31% used | Such building is vacant unless at least 31% of its total square footage is | IRMI: Vacancy condition |
What landlord building sprinkler coverage is
Insuranceopedia states that sprinkler leakage insurance covers property damage caused by an automatic sprinkler system that leaks or accidentally discharges water, rather than activating in response to fire or smoke, and that commercial landlords in particular should confirm whether sprinkler leakage is included before a malfunction happens, since landlord policies for commercial buildings vary in what they cover by default.
Security Mutual's Custom BOP states that Sprinkler Leakage coverage pays up to the Coverage A amount for sprinkler leakage to the insured's covered building and up to Coverage B for covered business property. PropertyCasualty360 lists the same leakage-or-discharge peril, including collapse of a tank that is part of the system, and lists heads, ducts, pipes, valves, fittings, tanks, pumps, and private fire protection mains as system components.
Coverage A building vs Coverage B business property
Security Mutual lists Coverage A for sprinkler leakage to the covered building and Coverage B for sprinkler leakage to covered business property, and includes freeze or breakage to the system that results in sprinkler leakage, tank collapse or fall, and the reasonable cost of removing and replacing building parts necessary to repair the system. PropertyCasualty360 lists building coverage for additions and permanent fixtures plus cost to repair or replace damaged parts if leakage or freezing, and tearing out and replacing building parts; personal property can include furniture, machinery, equipment, stock, and improvements and betterments.
| Damaged item | Typically Coverage A / building | Typically Coverage B / personal property | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sprinkler leakage to covered building | Yes — Coverage A | — | Security Mutual Custom BOP |
| Tank collapse / system freeze or breakage + tear-out | Yes — system repair / tear-out | — | Security Mutual; PropertyCasualty360 |
| System components (heads, pipes, valves, tanks, pumps, mains) | Yes — part of automatic sprinkler system | — | PropertyCasualty360 |
| Furniture / machinery / equipment / stock / improvements | — | Yes when Coverage B / BPP applies | Security Mutual Coverage B; PropertyCasualty360 |
Sources: Security Mutual Custom BOP, PropertyCasualty360, and Insuranceopedia.
Cause-of-loss form and vacancy
Texas Department of Insurance states that basic form policies usually cover sprinkler leakage and that special form policies provide the most coverage—usually all causes of loss except listed exclusions (floods, earth movement, and similar). PropertyCasualty360 states that if a building has been vacant for more than sixty consecutive days before the loss, the insurer will not pay for sprinkler leakage unless the named insured has protected the system against freezing.
| Loss / form shape | What sources list | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Accidental leak / discharge (not fire-response) | Covered as sprinkler leakage peril | Insuranceopedia; PropertyCasualty360; Security Mutual |
| Basic form | Usually covers sprinkler leakage | TDI |
| Special form | Most coverage; all causes except listed exclusions | TDI |
| Vacancy > sixty consecutive days | No sprinkler-leakage pay unless freeze-protected | PropertyCasualty360 |
| Fire-response discharge from properly functioning system | Excluded from sprinkler-leakage coverage | Insuranceopedia |
Can a landlord’s building policy exclude sprinkler leakage?
ISO form CP 10 56 06 07 (the Sprinkler Leakage Exclusion), as printed in the Woods at Anderson Park Condominium Association commercial property policy, states: “The following is added to the Exclusions section and is therefore not a Covered Cause of Loss”, followed by “Sprinkler Leakage, meaning leakage or discharge of any substance from an Automatic Sprinkler System, including collapse of a tank that is part of the system.” It applies “With respect to the location(s) indicated in the Schedule”.
The same endorsement states: “But if Sprinkler Leakage results in a Covered Cause of Loss, we will pay for the loss or damage caused by that Covered Cause of Loss.”
IRMI’s “Vacancy—What Does It Mean for Commercial Property Coverage?” quotes the ISO vacancy condition for an owner’s building: “Such building is vacant unless at least 31% of its total square footage is: (i) Rented to a lessee or sublessee and used by the lessee or sublessee to conduct its customary operations; and/or (ii) Used by the building owner to conduct customary operations.” It also quotes: “if the building has been vacant for more than 60 consecutive days before the loss or damage occurs, no coverage applies for loss or damage by the following perils”, which include “Sprinkler leakage, unless you have protected the system against freezing”, and “Payment for damage by any other covered cause of loss is reduced by 15 percent.” Under a Vacancy Permit, IRMI notes, “the insurer still has the option to specifically exclude vandalism and sprinkler leakage losses.”
| Landlord policy provision | What the source prints | Source |
|---|---|---|
| CP 10 56 06 07 Sprinkler Leakage Exclusion | “is therefore not a Covered Cause of Loss” | CP 10 56 06 07 (Woods at Anderson Park policy) |
| CP 10 56 carve-back | “But if Sprinkler Leakage results in a Covered Cause of Loss, we will pay for the loss or damage caused by that Covered Cause of Loss.” | CP 10 56 06 07 (Woods at Anderson Park policy) |
| Vacant owner’s building | “Such building is vacant unless at least 31% of its total square footage is” | IRMI: Vacancy condition |
| Vacancy over 60 consecutive days | “Sprinkler leakage, unless you have protected the system against freezing” | IRMI: Vacancy condition |
| Vacancy Permit (CP 04 50 07 88) | “the insurer still has the option to specifically exclude vandalism and sprinkler leakage losses” | IRMI: Vacancy Permit |
Ordinance or law when repairing covered damage
Texas Department of Insurance states that ordinance or law coverage pays extra construction or repair costs to meet current building codes, and that commercial property insurance pays to repair or replace your building and business property for covered events. It can also pay some lost income if the business is unable to operate normally.
What is Landlord Building Insurance Sprinkler Coverage?
Landlord Building Insurance Sprinkler Coverage is the building-side sprinkler-leakage peril on a landlord commercial property policy. Security Mutual states that Sprinkler Leakage coverage pays up to the Coverage A amount for sprinkler leakage to the insured's covered building, including freeze or breakage to the system, collapse or fall of a tank, and the reasonable cost of removing and replacing building parts to repair the system. Insuranceopedia states that commercial landlords should confirm whether sprinkler leakage is included before a malfunction.
Does Coverage A pay for sprinkler leakage to the building and sprinkler system?
Yes when sprinkler leakage applies. Security Mutual says Coverage A pays for sprinkler leakage to the covered building and includes loss caused by sprinkler leakage, collapse or fall of a tank that is part of an automatic sprinkler system, loss to the system from freezing or breakage that results in sprinkler leakage, and tear-out to repair the system. PropertyCasualty360 likewise lists building repair if leakage or freezing plus tearing out and replacing building parts.
Should commercial landlords confirm sprinkler leakage is included?
Yes. Insuranceopedia says: Commercial landlords in particular should confirm whether sprinkler leakage is included before a malfunction happens, since landlord policies for commercial buildings vary in what they cover by default. Sprinkler leakage can be a clause in a standard policy or added as an endorsement.
What cause-of-loss form usually covers sprinkler leakage on commercial building policies?
Texas Department of Insurance states that basic form policies usually cover sprinkler leakage, and that special form policies provide the most coverage—usually all causes of loss except listed exclusions. PropertyCasualty360 states that sprinkler leakage covers leakage or discharge from an automatic sprinkler system, including collapse of a tank that is part of the system.
Does ordinance or law coverage help when sprinkler repairs trigger code upgrades?
Texas Department of Insurance states that ordinance or law coverage pays extra construction or repair costs to meet current building codes. Use it only when repairing covered damage triggers code upgrades.
Can a landlord’s commercial building policy exclude sprinkler leakage?
ISO endorsement CP 10 56 06 07 (the Sprinkler Leakage Exclusion) states: “The following is added to the Exclusions section and is therefore not a Covered Cause of Loss”, followed by “Sprinkler Leakage, meaning leakage or discharge of any substance from an Automatic Sprinkler System, including collapse of a tank that is part of the system.” It applies “With respect to the location(s) indicated in the Schedule” and states: “But if Sprinkler Leakage results in a Covered Cause of Loss, we will pay for the loss or damage caused by that Covered Cause of Loss.”