California Contractors Insurance Agents In LA Understand The Necessity Of A General Liability Policy

By April Blessing

Getting into the construction business requires more than a talent for building and a good set of tools. You will have to get licensed and show proof of bonds and insurance. It may be tempting to skimp on your coverage because of the expense. This is always a mistake. If something unexpected happens, you will be held liable. This can have catastrophic consequences. That's why California Contractors Insurance Agents In LA always advise their clients to take out, and keep current, a good general liability policy.

General liability is what will protect you if a worker gets injured on the job. You'll be protected against personal liability if property is damaged before the project is completed. It may even give you protection when a claim is filed years after the project is finished if the policy was in place when the incident occurred. To be considered for a lot of jobs, potential clients require that their contractor have a policy in place.

What the policy costs you depends on several factors. It depends on where you are in the country, your payroll, receipts and cost of subcontractors. A contractor without employees can expect to pay somewhere in the range of eight hundred and thirteen hundred dollars a year. Contractors who have payrolls in excess of one hundred thousand dollars will spend more the two thousand dollars a year.

The cost of monthly premiums will vary as well. You might get discounted rates if you haven't filed a claim recently for instance. Experience and credit ratings are factored in. Your deductible, and other types of policies you have, can also affect the monthly cost.

General liability will cover a number of instances. That includes illness, injury, and death. Damage to property is included. If the property involved is damaged to the point there is loss of use, you are covered.

You will be covered if someone claims injury, illness, or property damage, after a project is completed. If you are accused of copyright infringement or publish material that slanders or libels another individual, the policy will cover that. This is not something most contractors will have need of.

You can buy either of two general liability policies. You can choose to purchase an occurrence policy. This covers claims made up to ten years after an incident. In this case, your policy covers claims made even after the policy was dropped. Your policy must have been in place during the time of the incident however. Claims made policies will only pay if the incident and the claim occurred during the time the policy was in place.

Insurance companies have the right to conduct a premium audit. They check if they see a discrepancy between what the contractor puts on an application and the exposure to themselves they actually see. Audits may be conducted at any time.

About the Author:

You can get an overview of the benefits of using California Contractors Insurance Agents In LA and more info about reputable California Contractors Insurance Agents In LA today.