As a mobile cleaning contractor, this knowledge is essential to protect yourself from financial disaster.
If you are like most people, your company, is next to your family, your pride and joy. It is also the major source of financial security for you and your family; perhaps your greatest asset. In many ways, your business is your life and someday your retirement.
Your business can also be, unfortunately, your greatest liability. There are no shortages on potential disasters: accidents, vandalism, dealing with employees, dealing with sub-contractors, shoddy workmanship, and unreasonable deadlines. Let’s not forget dealing with some clients.
There is not enough time to talk about everything that can go wrong, but it is not really all that bad.
A longtime friend and insurance broker, Tom Svrcek from Joe D Walters Insurance Agency, has shared a few secrets for protecting your business and achieving peace of mind.
“I am going to share with you a few secrets for protecting your business and achieving peace of mind; it is a little tricky, and it is important to do it right to ensure that you protect yourself and your business, and have the protection you need. I want to do this because I have found that time and time again, generosity and the willingness to provide really great service comes back to me ten times over. This information is all about your business, the unusual risks you face, and how our exclusive mobile cleaning contractor insurance program was designed to cover most, or even all of these risks.
First imagine a disaster. One day as you get to your work site, you are the first one there as usual. As you get there you know something is wrong. You see the fire trucks are just leaving and the house you were working on has burned. The house is a disaster and nearly gutted. The house was scheduled to be finished and the owners who are on vacation will be back in town in 2 days. It may take months to rebuild and remodel the damage. The water damage was almost as extensive as the fire damage. What do you do besides freak out? You were the only contractor on the site. Would your insurance program cover the loss and the additional cost you will incur? The material? The labor? Will you get paid for this job? What about all the other jobs you bid on and need to start? What if this fire is your fault and what about the lawsuit that is probably coming? What do you tell the family who will be coming home from vacation to see their house burned, and will not be able to move anytime soon?
You need insurance that can cover anything that can hamper your business and endanger your revenue stream. Anything less than that is inadequate! How do you get adequate coverage? How do you know what to buy and what risks face you and your business?
We have heard every horror story under the sun. If they were my clients, we would take care of their problems, quickly and easily. Why, you say? Because we know what mobile cleaning contractors need and we give them the important and necessary coverage to protect them. We have studied and worked with every type of power washer imaginable. I will tell you how to get properly insured, I will tell you how to get peace of mind.
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- Have a business insurance specialist conduct a risk analysis of your company and its operations. No two companies are the same; even two that are in the same business. No other contractor does what you do or how you do it. You need an experienced agent familiar with your industry to assess your company and your specific risks; then put together a comprehensive insurance plan to protect you.
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- Use an independent Insurance Agent. As a business owner, you want options. As such, don’t call on an agent who is an employee of an insurance company. You want someone who will work for you, and who has access to a variety of insurance carriers. You want an agent that specializes in what you do.
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- Don’t trust your business to an agent who does not specialize in the mobile cleaning contractor business. Most agents don’t have a comprehensive understanding of the special problems contractors like you face every day. Whether you call yourself a power washer, roof cleaner, soft washer, or window washer, you want and need a specialist.
Many kinds of contractors fall under the broad definition of Artisan Contractors: Plumbers, Electricians, Cabinet Makers, and even Power Wash contractors. They all need property coverage for their building and business contents. General Liability and a commercial umbrella are the insurance contracts typically written for these types of contractors. Very few agents know how to order proper coverage for their Artisan contractor clients, especially power wash contractors.
Care Custody and Control is by far one of the most important and necessary coverages a power wash contractor might need, but is sometimes hard to obtain. Accidents do happen. This coverage protects you for damage to a customer’s property that you are working on. Sometimes referred to as the Faulty Workmanship coverage, it protects you from mistakes you make. There is an exclusion in most general liability policies that takes “Accidents Happen” or “Faulty Workmanship” out of the policy. The problem is this: How does a new guy in business even know to ask for this important coverage? How do you know what you don’t know? And if you are not dealing with a specialist in the mobile cleaning business, you are probably not going to get the coverage you need.
A real-life example of this, is a loss regarding a power wash contractor from Illinois. An employee of the power wash service was power washing an expensive floor in a customer’s building, and the power washing nozzle flew off and ruined the floor. The insurance carrier for the power wash service denied coverage sighting care, custody, and control exclusion. Without this vital endorsement, there is NO coverage for the item you work on.” –Tom Svrcek, Joseph D Walters Insurance Agency
Insurance is always one of those necessary evil’s in most contractor’s minds, but it doesn’t have to be. As a legitimate contractor who is building security and providing for their family it makes sense to be properly covered and not exposing yourself to liabilities that can quite frankly sink your business. I hope Tom’s information is great food for thought on your own coverage and what you may or may not be exposed to.
