Tile Contractor Insurance

What insurance do tile installers need?

Tile installation is all about making things look pretty. With great craftsmanship and good attention to detail, you love putting out a high quality product. But even if you’re a master craftsman, accidents can still happen. So whether you’re working on new construction, a small home improvement job, or a large home addition, you’ll need the right insurance protection.

Whether you mainly do terrazzo work, mantel work, backsplashes, flooring, mosaic work, or anything in between — one thing is for sure: You’re working with heavy inventory, sharp tools, and potentially hazardous materials. Risk naturally comes with that. That’s what makes insurance so important. We’d recommend you start by considering workers’ compensation, general liability, and commercial auto insurance for starters.

Tile Contractors We Love

• Terrazzo Work Contractors
• Mantel Work Contractors
• Interior Finishing Contractors
• Marble Installation
• Mosaic Work Contractors
• Ceramic Tile Installation Contractors
• Tile Contractors and Installers
• Flooring Contractors
• Stone and Tile Installers

Tile Contractor Workers’ Comp

You handle heavy materials like stone, tile, and marble every day. And you size them with very sharp and powerful tools. Because every day you work is physically risky, you need the proper protection. For example, skydiving is an exciting thing to try, but you wouldn’t make the jump without a parachute, would you? Workers’ comp is somewhat similar. Entering a jobsite without the right insurance protection isn’t a good idea in case an accident happens. Workers’ comp protects you and your employees each day.

If you’re not familiar with workers’ comp, here’s a quick overview. This policy protects your and/or your employees in the event of a workplace injury.

Workers’ comp claims examples:

• You’re moving a large stack of tiles and it slips and breaks your foot
• You accidentally slice a finger off while cutting marble
• You strain your back after lifting too heavy of inventory
• You trip over a power cord and sprain your wrist

If an employee faces a workplace injury and you do not carry workers’ comp insurance, they may hold you liable. You could still be held responsible even if you aren’t at fault. It’s not fair, but worker’s comp will help. If you face a lawsuit, your court costs, legal fees, and settlements will be taken care of by this policy.

In the unfortunate event your injury is so severe that you require time off work to recover, your workers’ compensation policy will supplement your lost wages. So rather than laying on the couch for three weeks worrying about your loss of income, you can rest assured knowing that you will be financially taken care of.

Should your employee file a claim against you regarding negligence or an unsafe work environment, this policy will protect you. And, in the extreme event you or an employee dies from a workplace accident, your workers’ comp policy will cover funeral expenses.

Tile Contractor Liability Insurance

General liability is a form of commercial insurance created to cover businesses from a wide array of things that could go wrong– such as third-party bodily injury and property damage.

Flooring contractors typically install things like tile, linoleum, hardwood and carpeting into new and existing structures. When you’re dealing with heavy materials and dangerous equipment, the level of liability you face definitely increases. General liability insurance protects others (such as clients and the general public) from property damage and bodily injuries that could happen as a result of your operations.

• You’re cutting tile when your client walks by, tripping on the power cord. They fall and fracture their wrist. Without general liability, you would be held liable, and would be responsible to cover the medical bills associated with the accident. With the right protection, your commercial coverage will handle the expenses.
• You’re working on a claw foot tub surround. The tub is historic and has been at the property for decades. While laying the tile, a piece slips, cracking the tub. Without general liability, you may be expected to cover the damages personally. With this policy, all replacement and repair costs would be covered.

Additional benefits of general liability include advertising injury, copyright infringement, libel, and slander. For example, if you make an advertisement or logo that’s too similar to something already out there, or write (or even say) something inappropriate about your client and they press charges, you will be covered.

Auto Insurance

Any tile contractor who owns a commercial vehicle used for work purposes (like hauling hundreds of pounds of marble) should have a business auto insurance policy in place. Off to the bank? You’re covered. Headed to a client’s? Covered. Popping into Floor & Decor? You’re covered!

It’s important to note, your personal auto policy does not cover you while driving a work vehicle for work related purposes. To be covered while driving for work. You’ll need hired and non-owned auto insurance. This policy also applies to vehicles you hire, rent, or borrow for work related purposes. This commercial policy extends liability protection for non-owned vehicles. If you have employees that use their personal vehicle on behalf of your business, this coverage extends protection to them, as well.

Property Insurance

You wouldn’t be able to cut tile and stone without the proper equipment. And the tools that are required to do this type of work can be pretty expensive. If you’d like to cover your gear in the event it’s damaged, lost, or stolen, consider business property insurance. This covers your business property while on your business premises. It also includes any office furniture, electronics, and the building itself.

Since most of your work is done away from your business premises, you may want to also consider inland marine insurance. This protects your property on jobsites and while in transit.

Commercial property covered:

• Equipment
• Tools
• Supplies
• Inventory
• Furniture

Umbrella Policy

A little extra cushion never hurts, right? That’s where umbrella insurance comes in. Umbrellas were created to place on top of existing policies to provide extra protection. All policies have limits — which means the amount of money an insurance carrier will pay for a claim has a limit. If the cost of your accident exceeds that limit, you will be responsible to pay for the remaining balance.

So, let’s say you’ve been working on bathroom suites at a local hotel nearby. You get into a car accident, severely injuring two others. The total claim amounts to $600,000, but your policy limits are $500,000 (which is the average). Your insurance carrier will pay for the $500,000 in damages, but the remaining $100,000 would be your responsibility.

That’s why umbrella insurance is so great. 56% of small businesses pay less than $1,000 per year for an umbrella policy. So would you rather pay $100,000, or $1,000? We’ll let you do the math!

Liability Insurance Costs

Many small tile contractors can expect to pay somewhere around $675/year for a general liability policy with a policy limit of $1 million per occurrence. But several factors will determine the price of a tile contractor GL policy. These include your:

• Location
• Deductible
• Per-occurrence limit
• General aggregate limit
• Number of employees

Want more bang for your buck? Why not consider a packaged deal? Business owner’s policies, or BOPs, bundle general liability and commercial property. With a BOP, you get more coverage, and at a lower price than purchasing each policy separately.

Workers’ Comp Costs

As a tile contractor, you want the proper protection without breaking the bank. Basically, the fewer employees you have, the more affordable your policy will be. This is because the primary factor that dictates the cost of workers’ comp is your payroll. If you are a solo operator with no employees, you’re in luck. You might be eligible for a very affordable product — a minimum premium workers’ comp policy where the owner is excluded from workers’ comp coverage.
Here’s a quick breakdown on what elements impact the cost of workers’ compensation insurance.

The primary factors are:

• Your state: Rules and regulations regarding the coverage ebb and flow from state to state. This can impact the price of the policy.
• Your profession: This form of coverage is all about risk. The riskier your industry, the greater your assigned classification rate. It’s not like you’re a trucker hauling oil and gas, or a tree trimmer working several stories in the sky, but you’re also no accountant or graphic designer.
• Your number of employees: This is a key factor in pricing your policy, because workers’ comp is based heavily on payroll. The more employees you have, the higher the price of your policy.
• Your loss history: Your experience modifier, or mod, is what tracks your loss history. If you haven’t had any workers’ comp claims in the past, your mod should be around a 1.0. The more claims you have had, the higher your mod will be. So, if you have a mod of 2.0, your policy will be double the cost.

Lastly, there is the expense constant. This cost is around $200 and covers administrative fees.

Compare Tile Insurance Quotes

We compare rates from over 30 insurance carriers to ensure tile contractors are getting the best coverage at the lowest price. Apply Now.

Looking to save further? Make sure you let your Pogo Representative know and you may be eligible for an upfront discount as well as money back.