Our Story

IBHS was formed by the property-casualty insurance industry in 1979 to help coordinate emerging property insurance plans. As the 1970s and 1980s unfolded, new problems and issues related to natural hazards arose. In response, the organization began providing the industry with technical information about building codes, effective land use controls, new building designs and retrofit applications. These activities became our prime focus in the 1990s. 

From 2005 to 2010, the organization evolved still further becoming a more robust, world-class applied research and communications organization. 

In 2010, IBHS opened the Research Center in Chester County, South Carolina. This facility is a unique, state-of the-art, multi-risk applied research and training campus. The IBHS Research Center helps to significantly advance building science by enabling researchers to more fully and accurately evaluate various residential and commercial construction materials and systems using both full-scale and small-scale testing.

In 2011, the organization became known as it is today when “Insurance” was added to the name—Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety—so that IBHS members receive public credit for the Institute’s work.