If you’re in the construction business, you should always have commercial insurance. Many businesses are required by their clients to carry specific coverages before they can work for them. Businesses involved in construction work often specialize in trades like:
- Excavation
- Home Improvement
- Land Clearing
- Remodeling
- Home Building
- Framing
- Welding
- Sprinkler Installation
- Electrical Work
- Fence & Deck Building
- Concrete Laying
- Stone & Granite Work
- Roofing
- Windows & Siding
How much does it cost?
The different trades that do construction work are exposed to different types and degrees of risk. This variety of exposure is one of the many factors used to calculate a business’s construction insurance cost.
For example, an excavator might risk damaging underground water or power lines, while a roofer might risk falling from a roof or ladder. Those are different kinds of risk, so you could expect their insurance rates to differ.
Basic Construction Coverage
- General Liability: This common construction liability coverage protects your business if it’s responsible for events like property damage, bodily injury or defective work.
- Contractor’s Bond: A contractor’s bond must be in place before CSLB can issue an active license, reactivate an inactive license, or renew an active license. (Business and Professions Code Section 7071.6). The bond is filed for the benefit of consumers who may be damaged as a result of defective construction or other license law violations, and for the benefit of employees who have not been paid wages that are due to them.
- Commercial Auto: Protects vehicles used in your business including those that transport your tools and equipment. Adding physical damage coverage to your policy gives you the choice to cover permanently attached equipment such as bolted tool boxes or ladder racks.
Other coverages You Might Need
- Business Owners Policy (BOP): A package policy that combines General Liability with coverage for your commercial buildings and personal property.
- Workers’ Compensation: Covers employee medical costs and a portion of lost wages if they become ill or injured while at work.
- Inland Marine (Tool Coverage): In general, commercial Inland Marine insurance covers any property that is movable, transportable, or involved in transferring information.