Biz Insurance..

[premierlawncaremi]

Do all commercial accounts require you to have insurance? and if so what are you guys paying for it?

[GreenGuysLC]

Most all do require it. And even if they dont you should have it. Throw one rock through a window of a 500k home and see how much you pay. Or nail that BMW and see who has to cover the cost there. As far as what it cost ... I cant remember exactly but I think I am paying Around 2k for liability and auto. Then I have another 1k in workers comp. And WC is also usually required on commercial if you have employees.

[premierlawncaremi]

very true! is it 2k/year?

[GreenGuysLC]

Yeah, I think it is actually more like 2400 on the year but cant remember for sure. My yearly insurance including auto, equipment, liability, and WC is 3000-3500. WC depends on your payroll in most cases.

[cpllawncare]

From what I've seen on here the Hartford has the best rates. One question for you guys though do you carry insurance in the off season?

[clayslandscape]

I pay around 1800 a year for business and auto Insurance. Whenever I land a new commercial job, I have to add a rider to the policy that runs roughtly $25 a year. I do not have workmans comp because of no employees.

I keep my insurance year around for I have year around contracts in place.

[SSmith]

My 2 mil liability only policy thru Erie Ins. costs approx. $450 a year.

I do NOT insure equipment (mowers, trimmers, etc). Waste of money IMO.

[Duekster]

GL / WC is based on Payroll. Right now it is fairly cheap but figure 11% of your payroll. The GL will often add about 15K to the payroll to cover the owner but owners are not covered by WC.

[mlavin73]

I would highly recommend having insurance if you are cutting ANY lawns (Business or Commercial). Thankfully I have been fully insured since day 1 because my business is involved in a lawsuit because of an accident in front of an account I maintained. I was nowhere near the accident when it happened (was actually still home in bed at the time). I'm sure if the case went before a jury (which it may at some point) I would be found innocent. Anyway my insurance company has footed the bill for this lawsuit since 2008. I'm definetely getting my money's worth from my insurance. I think my total insurance bill is about $1500 a year for $1 million dollar coverage and about $1400 a year for the auto insurance with full coverage. No WC because I work by myself.

I have been in business for 6 years on my own and am confident that the $9K I gave them for insurance is less than what they have paid my attorney.

[APLUS LAWN CARE]

I have a $2 million in liability coverage and it costs me about $600 a year if I remember right. That price does not include auto coverage, equipment coverage, or worker's compensation. I would highly recommend that you have some kind of liability insurance before doing any mowing.