3 Things Roofers Need To Address With Their Insurance Program

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Roofing has become a very popular and lucrative profession for many contractors. Roofing companies are one of the many contractors we insure at the Roberts Insurance Group. Roofers present a unique risk to insurance companies and can be a little tougher to insure than most artisan contractors. 

Through our experience and expertise in working with roofers, we have highlighted 3 things that Roofers and Roofing Companies need to address when structuring their insurance program:

Subcontractors

Using subcontractors is very common in the construction industry. For one reason or another, roofing companies tend to rely on subcontractors more than most types of artisan contractors. 

When hiring subcontractors, there are steps roofing companies can take to help protect themselves and their business:

Written Contracts

It's important to have a written contract in place when hiring subcontractors. One of the items to include in your contract is in regards to insurance requirements. Your contract should state that the subcontractor needs to carry Commercial General Liability (CGL), Commercial Auto, Workers Compensation, and Commercial Umbrella coverage with limits equal to or greater than the limits on your policies. 

It is also important to state in the contract that the subcontractors are not allowed to use non-standard policies or policies with specific exclusions you identify as being necessary. 

Another item to address in your contract is that the subcontractor is required to provide certificates of insurance for their policies to you before work is started. In addition, you should make sure that your subcontractors are naming your company as an additional insured on all of their policies and that this is outlined on the certificates of insurance.

Open Roof Exclusions

Open roof exclusions are common with non-standard commercial general liability policies for roofers, which is why it is important to make sure your policy does not have the open roof exclusion. This exclusion essentially states that there is no coverage for property damage or bodily injury while the roof is "open" and under construction. When setting up your company's insurance plan or reviewing a subcontractor's, make sure there is not an open roof exclusion. 

Audit Premium

Having your policy rated properly when setting up your insurance program will prevent your company from having a major unexpected expense at the end of the year. Rating factors for general liability and workers compensation are based on projected revenue and payroll. For instance, if you estimate your total sales to be $100,000, your policy will be billed at the "estimated" premium based on $100,000 in sales. At the end of your policy period, your sales will be audited. After the audit, if sales end up being much higher, let's say $500,000, then your company will be responsible for a rather large additional premium. 

From our experience, it makes much more sense to have the policy rated correctly (or over-stated) on the front-end when the policy or program is getting set up. This prevents an unexpected bill for thousands of dollars at the end of the year. 

Predictable premiums and pricing is something you will receive from the Roberts Insurance Group. 

How Can You Make Sure Your Roofing Business Is Protected And You're Getting The Best Value?

Give us a call at 678-250-8133 or click below and one of our licensed advisors will help tailor a plan for your company that properly protects your business from the unexpected and gives you reliable and predictable pricing. We work with roofers and roofing companies throughout the state of Georgia and have the knowledge and insight to help grow and protect your business.

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