Commentary on provisions of Act Claims for compensation Section 2: Property in respect of which claims may be made
The 1886 Act provides for compensation to be claimed only in relation to damage to a house, shop or building. Section 2 encompasses a wider class of property damage and loss in respect of which claims may be made. Under the Act, this now includes a building, a motor vehicle which falls within the Schedule to the Act, or property which otherwise falls within subsection (3).
	Subsection (1) provides that a person claiming compensation under section 1(1) may make a claim only in relation to specified types of property. Subsection (2) extends the same principle to an insurance company making a claim under section 1(2).
	Subsection (3) identifies other types of property in respect of which claims may be made. In addition to property kept within a building, claims may also be made for property which was kept at the time of the riot within the curtilage of a building or on land being used for the purpose of the claimant’s business.
	Subsection (4) allows the Secretary of State to make changes, via regulations, to the property identified in subsection (3) in respect of which claims may be brought. This enables provision to be made about the meaning of terms used in that subsection – this could, for example, be used to supply a wider definition of types of buildings in respect of which claims may be made.
	Subsection (5) supplies a definition of "buildings" and "motor vehicles" for the purposes of section 2 and the Schedule to the Act.