Electricians
Are you an electrician or electric contractor? Make sure your policy has you completely covered.
Are you an electrician or office manager for an electrical contractor? Your business may be years, decades or even generations old. Maybe you just finished your vocational program and are now starting a small venture in the field. No matter how long you have been in business, you likely know by now that working in the field is not your only task. You spend time thinking about how to better market your brand, how to better manage your budget, and how to protect yourself if your business gets shocked! You are no stranger to hazard, but have you ever considered just how risky your business really is? Electrical contractors work with one of the most dangerous and potentially hazardous systems of a building, and accidents happen even with expert electricians with years of experience. Having a trusted risk advisor can make all the difference when your business short circuits.
You wake up at 6 am on a Thursday morning, ready to take on a full day of supervising several residential sites. Your crew meets for coffee a half hour later to go over the schedule and project specs. One of your new employees doesn’t show up, and is not answering his phone. You are going to have to fill in and won’t be able to meet with that referral you just got from one of your favorite clients. As your crew heads out to their job site, you jump in your car, slam the door, and frustrated, call your new employee again and again, only to get the same voicemail. Hours go by… and no phone call. As you are finishing up some wiring at your first site, your phone rings and you quickly reach for it ready to blow up and fire the tardy employee. Instead, it’s the hospital administrator calling you as the ’emergency contact’ to let you know your employee was brought in the night before after getting seriously injured from a shock. Suddenly, you smell smoke. You forgot to turn off the main circuit breaker. You left live wires too close and a spark has set the house on fire. You’re all alone and rush out the back door to call 911. The fire department gets to the house in time to save only a small part of the new construction. You left over $50,000 of equipment and supplies in the house, and when you call your insurance agent, he informs you that you only asked for $10,000 of property coverage, which is only covered if damaged or stolen on your own property. Did you remember to ask your agent about the performance bond that the owner asked you to buy? Your $50,000 loss in equipment and supplies is going to put you out of business, and the homeowner is now suing you for failure to complete the project.
You probably cannot imagine a worse day in business, but these events happen to electrical contractors every day, and most contractors do not carry the correct amount of insurance to protect themselves from disaster scenarios like this. If you are not 100% sure that your insurance advisor has covered all the angles for your business, you may need a second opinion from an electrical contractor insurance specialist. Our agency has a specialist on staff who will consult with you to help understand your potential risk and how to best insure against catastrophe.
Some common insurance policies secured by electrical contractors include:
Performance, Payment, and Bid Bonds
Tools and Equipment Coverage
Workers Compensation
Typically required by a project owner or General Contractor, these contracts guarantee the satisfactory completion of a job by a subcontractor. The insurance company guarantees the payment of necessary costs to complete a job if a contractor fails to fulfill the requirements set forth in the original outline. The most common reason for a contractor’s failure to perform is bankruptcy. Contractors must consider how they will absorb the cost of the bond or include the expense into the bid.
Specifically with specialty contractors, tools and equipment can be extremely expensive and perhaps your largest business investment. Many insurance policies limit how much property coverage a contractor can have on property that is moving from place to place. In some cases, policies have no coverage for mobile property and equipment. Because such property is so valuable, it is also the target of many thieves, who could even be one of your current or former employees. You should carefully consider whether or not you have an accurate amount of property coverage, and if your policy provides this coverage while your equipment, tools and supplies are moving from place to place. Your auto policy will not cover stolen or damaged tools and equipment, and your business owner’s policy may have several exclusions for property in transit.
You and your employees likely work around dangerously high voltage electrical lines, which could lead to serious accidents and injury. Your state probably also requires you to secure Employer’s Liability Coverage for your employee’s accident, injury or illness. Many electricians are under the impression that because the state government controls this area of insurance, there is no change in price from one company to another. This is not the case, and in fact, some insurance companies offer up to a 30% discount for electrical contractors’ workers compensation policies.
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Boynton Insurance Group will help you identify the specific risks to your business and find solutions for managing and transferring those risks to a leading insurance company that specializes working with electrical contractors. We can help you secure insurance from competitive insurance companies that know your business inside and out. Our agency can provide various types of insurance for your business, including General Liability, Workers Compensation, Tools and Equipment, Business Auto, Bonds and more. A detailed and custom review of your current coverage, business operations, and plans for future expansion will guide us toward insurance strategies to protect your business. Our Electricians’ Insurance Specialists are ready to introduce themselves and show you how to rewire your insurance package.