Compared to being a regular employee, being a contractor offers a lot of advantages.

The money, for one, is so much better. Once you become a contractor and a good and reputable one at that, it’s only a matter of time before you prosper financially with the steady stream of jobs that land at your feet.

The fact that you’re the boss means you can also work flexible hours, which, for many, is one of the biggest perks of being a contractor.

However, all the good things that come with being a contractor don’t come for free. You have to work hard at establishing your reputation as a contractor that delivers excellent service.

The responsibilities that come with being one are no picnic either. You have to provide your people with their rightful wages and other benefits. You also have to protect your company when untoward incidents that happen at the job site trigger claims that could shut its operations down.

To shield your company from such claims, you must make sure you have contractors insurance coverage. Check out the different types of contractors insurance listed below.

General Liability Insurance

Accidents could happen at work sites at any time and cause bodily injuries or property damage. General liability insurance is the type of coverage that will pay for any claims of that nature.

Not only will general liability insurance cover bodily injury or property damage claims, but it will also shoulder legal costs you might incur if someone files suit against your company.

Workers’ Compensation

There is always the risk of your workers getting sick, sustaining an injury, or even losing their lives while working on your contracting project. That’s why your workers must have workers’ compensation insurance coverage at all times.

With workers’ compensation, your employees will receive financial benefits should they go down with an illness, get injured, or in some cases, perish while doing their jobs.

Workers’ compensation will cover medical treatment and rehabilitation costs, compensate for wages lost because of the illness or injury, and in cases where a worker dies while performing his or her job, provide death benefits.

By providing your employees with workers’ compensation insurance, you get to show your employees that you care for their well-being. It’s also a good way of reducing the risk of getting sued by affected employees or their families.

Builders Risk Insurance

General contractors and subcontractors can benefit from the protection that builders risk insurance provides. Considering how common the loss of equipment and materials due to neglect, theft, or damage is at construction sites, contractors responsible for them can protect themselves with builders’ risk insurance coverage.

Automobile Liability Insurance

In all likelihood, your contracting company has a vehicle used for delivering equipment and materials, as well as transporting workers. Like all vehicles, the one you use for your company’s operations could get involved in an accident that may cause bodily injury, property damage, or death. When that happens, you can expect claims to come your way. Getting automobile liability insurance is the best way of ensuring you won’t have to pay for those claims out of pocket.

Roofers Insurance

The job of a roofer is considered one of the most dangerous in the world, and rightly so. Roofing contractors could fall off and injure not only themselves, but someone on the ground as well. The same thing can happen if one of their tools fly off their hands and hit someone or damage something below.

With the claims that will surely come their way, roofing contractors will discover how handy having insurance tailored for them can get. Roofers insurance, after all, covers bodily injury or property damage claims.

With the coverage that contractors insurance can provide, it would be very smart for a contractor to purchase such policies, particularly workers’ compensation and general liability insurance.

Sure, contractors insurance means added costs for your business, but the money you will spend for premiums will always be a lot less than the money you can potentially lose when you get sued for injury or property damage, or experience loss due to theft or negligence.

There is no substitute for the protection that a contractors insurance policy can give. With contractors insurance, you have an assurance of continued operation despite claims made against you or losses you have incurred.

As with all other types of insurance, contractors insurance is subject to certain limits, exceptions, and restrictions, so get acquainted with the details of your contractors insurance policy so that everything will be clear.

About the Author
Rachel Porter is the content specialist for Custom Contractors Insurance, LLC, an Arizona roofing and contractors insurance company. When not writing, she enjoys reading and mountain biking with her friends.