Working in the trades and services industry often means operating in potentially dangerous work environments. A simple way to reduce some of these risks is to purchase trades and services insurance.
This type of insurance is suitable if you are a gardener, locksmith, bricklayer, roof tiler, carpenter, electrician or work in any occupation that requires you to undertake work on somebody else’s premises. Even if there is no great physical risk involved, trades and services insurance covers a number of other factors including lost or stolen tools.
Public and products liability and general property coverage
Trades and services insurance policies are generally designed to cover businesses with one to five employees (many insurers will cover more) that have an annual turnover of below $1 million. Most insurers offering this coverage also require the client to not have individual contracts that exceed $100,000.
There are two basic (but essential) covers available for trades and service businesses; general property insurance and public and products liability.
General property insurance provides coverage for tools used in the day to day function of the trade or service. This insures against theft, loss or damage to any such equipment. For trades people, having expensive tools stolen or damaged could result in the cancellation of work until they can afford to be replaced. Insurance will cover both repairs and replacements if specified in your policy.
Public and products liability insurance covers the trades person against personal injury and protects against claims of causing personal injury to a third party or to claims of damage to the property of a third party. Most major insurers will allow coverage up to $20 million for businesses that have one to five employees.
The value that you can be insured to depends on your industry, the size of your business, number of workers, areas serviced and many other factors. Someone who works in an area that has low crime rates will have a cheaper premium than those in high risk areas. Most major insurers including Allianz and GIO offer obligation-free quotes online.