Property preservation contractors maintain and ensure the security of a foreclosed property. As such, employees - and even potential clients are at risk of injuries while visiting such properties.
Protecting your business with property preservation insurance is key to avoiding the financial burden that can result from accidental damages, injuries, and other claims and lawsuits that can arise from unfortunate events.
Why Do Property Preservation Contractors Need Insurance?
As with any profession, property preservation contractors also encounter risks in their day-to-day job. Accidents that result in injuries can come from dilapidated houses or even by simply tripping over a broken staircase.
Situations like these can overwhelm your property preservation business in different ways ranging from the loss of manpower, medical expenses, and in some cases, legal fees and financial reimbursements.
Properties are sometimes left vacant for a long time, and the natural deterioration of a building will inevitably set in. This might cause serious injury to a client looking to buy a home, and can end up as a lawsuit against you should anything happen to them while visiting the property.
Other hazards can also be detrimental to the operation of your business. Employees using company cars can get into accidents while driving to and from work. Contractors sometimes lose or damage their equipment or tools, or their items are stolen from job sites.
Without an insurance policy in place, the contractor will have to pay out of pocket for any accidents or injuries that may incur.
What Types of Insurance Do Property Preservation Contractors Need?
Property preservation contractors have a number of insurance policies to choose from. The level of coverage will depend on various factors, such as the state where the business operates, the number of company cars and employees the business has, the clients and properties the contractor works with, and more.
Please take a moment to take a look at some of the most recommended insurance for property preservation contractors.
How Much Does Property Preservation Insurance Cost?
There are a lot of factors to consider when choosing insurance policies for your property preservation contracting business. As a result, the premium you’ll end up paying will likely vary from other contractors within your field.
But, as a general rule of thumb, property preservation contractors pay an average of $140 per month on general liability insurance, which amounts to around $1,680 per year.
If your property preservation business has employees, then you’ll need to take out a worker’s compensation insurance as it is a legal requirement in a lot of the states within the U.S. This policy will cover your staff’s medical bills, lost wages, hospital expenses, and more in the event of an accident at work. It will cost you approximately $200 per month or $2,400 per year.
Road accidents can happen while contractors drive to and from work, which is why it’s important to have an insurance policy that protects company-owned cars and the staff within. Commercial auto insurance costs $150 a month, or $1,700 per year, and covers costs related to vehicular damages from road accidents, theft, and vandalism.
In certain cases, property preservation contractors also make use of tools and equipment. To secure the financial standing of the company in the event of lost, damaged, or stolen tools and equipment, a contractor’s tools and equipment insurance would be beneficial. Such policy costs the average property preservation contractor $15 per month or $180 per year.
Typical Property Preservation Insurance Claims
Vacant properties need to be regularly maintained to ensure they don’t fall into total disrepair. As such, property preservation contractors have an important - and oftentimes risky job.
Property preservation contractors typically make insurance claims related to general workplace accidents including injuries from doing maintenance work. In more rare cases, property preservation contractors also make insurance claims related to road accidents, property damage, and more.