Construction companies have significant risks, and it is one of the most accident-prone fields for employees to work in. Throughout the development and construction phase, contractors, property owners, and developers acquire various types of insurance to protect their projects. Construction liability insurance is a business insurance that enables contractors to manage risk factors and comply with legal requirements.
So, if you want to learn more about construction liability insurance then you are on the right path. In this article, I will wrap together the basics of construction liability insurance, why construction liability insurance is essential, the key components of construction liability policies, how to choose the right construction liability insurance policy for you, and the steps to follow to claim the construction liability insurance policy.
Let’s dive into the deep!
Table of Contents
The Basics of Construction Liability Insurance
Construction insurance policies are a broad category of insurance policies that provide complete protection during the entire construction process. The liability insurance protects the contractors from the risks of potential lawsuits that may arise from any accident, injury, illness, or damage to other people. The term “construction insurance” refers to such insurance that generally relates to construction projects.
construction liability insurance is purchased by contractors that offer design and building services including coverage of mistakes made by the contractors. This policy also provides coverage for mistakes made by any third party hired by the contractors.
Types of Construction Liability Insurance
A property owner undertaking a construction project may seek coverage of plenty of things related to the project such as materials in transit, the building, etc. Depending upon the type of work, the contractors may seek different types of construction insurance. Here, I am going to provide four types of construction insurance, including.
1. General Liability Insurance
General liability insurance is sometimes called commercial general liability. For contractors, general liability insurance is a type of insurance that provides liability protection to businesses in case of property damage or bodily harm. General liability insurance is a third-party insurance containing features of Product and Public liability insurance. General liability insurance will usually cover:
- faulty workmanship
- Job-related harm or injury
- advertising injury and defamation
2. Professional Liability Insurance
Professional liability insurance protects professionals such as lawyers, accountants, and physicians against negligence. Also, a PLI provides coverage to the professional with expertise in a specific area. Any professional needs to have this type of insurance because General Liability Insurance does not offer protection against claims arising from negligence, mistakes, misrepresentations, and malpractice.
The liabilities covered by PLI are:
- legal liability to which the contractor is exposed because of professional services such as engineers, architects, construction management, and other consulting bodies. If these bodies are related to the construction project
- Mistakes, errors, and oversights in services provided
- Missed deadlines
- Undelivered services
- Negligence or failure to meet standards
- breach of contract
3. Product Liability Insurance
Product liability insurance is a category of insurance policy that provides coverage for legal liabilities arising out of damage or injury done by your business. The injury may caused by a third party hired by you. This insurance policy helps your business from a claim that a building or product you made or sold caused bodily injury or property damage to someone else’s belongings.
Without Product liability insurance, your business may be required to pay out of pocket for costly types of general liability insurance claims related to product defects. Product liability insurance covers:
- injuries, damages, and accidents happen because of using the products
- defect in the product including building construction, delivery specification, and more
- protect an insured against liability for death/bodily damage or property damage. The injury occurs because of the use of defective products in a construction project
4. Public Liability Insurance
Public liability insurance for construction provides cover for personal injury, damage, or death to any third-party property. it also provides coverage for the claimant’s costs and the insured’s defense costs. builders public liability insurance typically includes a clause requiring the contractor to carry insurance to cover loss, expense, liability, or proceeding for personal injury, damage, or death if the damage/death happens from the carrying out of the construction works, damage, loss, the property other than the works.
Public liability insurance may cover against claims including:
- people taking part in the event of construction
- clients
- customers
- Independent sub-contractors
- People watching the constructions or activities related to the construction
Why Construction Liability Insurance is Essential?
One of the primary reasons why liability insurance for construction is crucial is that it provides coverage for different risks that may happen in the course of the construction. these risks may include injury to workers, damage to property, and even legal liabilities. With the construction liability insurance, the construction companies can protect themselves from potential financial losses. These losses may result from these risk factors.
Another important aspect of construction liability insurance is that it helps to mitigate the risks associated with the construction project. Insurance companies sometimes encourage construction companies to identify potential risks and attempt measures to mitigate them. These may include implementing safety measures and improving construction practices. It will ensure that the workers are much more trained.
Construction liability insurance also helps to ensure that construction projects will be completed on time and within the budget. By having construction insurance, the companies can avoid delays and disruptions that may happen from unwanted circumstances, So, construction insurance is essential for the construction companies.
The Key Components of Construction Liability Insurance
1. Coverage Limits and Exclusions
Construction liability insurance covers:
- Lighting and fire
- Impact, collision, and Collapse
- Flooding, storms, inundation, and typhoons
- Theft and Burglary
- Landslide, Rockslide, Subsidence
- damage that happens accidentally due to poor craftsmanship or materials, a lack of negligence, competence, or human mistakes
Exclusions:
- war, civil war, revolution, conspiracy, civil commotion, and insurrection
- cessation of work
- Act of terrorism
- The willful act of negligence
2. Deductibles and Premiums
In the insurance field, the deductible is the amount that you need to pay at the time of claim. You must pay the amount before the insurers settle the remaining claiming amount. you can seek for the higher deductible limit and enjoy your lower insurance premium. While raising your deductibles, be discreet. There is no point in having insurance if you would have to pay a substantial claim amount from your home.
3. Additional insurance and endorsement
An additional insured is a separate party that may be added to another party’s business insurance policy. The additional Insured benefits from some or all of the liability coverages provided to the policyholder. Additional Insured endorsements are often required as part of the construction contract.
How to Choose The Right Construction Liability For You?
If you built, installed, or repaired, you need to cover your business under construction insurance. This policy is versatile enough to protect you against property exposures, crime, liability, and loss of income. Contractor policy generally covers:
- Contractor tools and equipment
- Installation coverage
- Your contents
- Commercial Liability
- crime coverage
- Business interruption loss of income
Before choosing construction insurance, you need to consider the following factors. These include:
Assessing your business coverage needs
Evaluate the specific risk factors associated with your business or construction projects. You need to consider the size of the project, the number of employees, the types of tools and equipment used, and any other unique aspects related to your construction operations. these assessments will help you to determine what type of insurance policy and the amount of coverage you need.
Researching Insurance Providers
You need to look for reputable insurance providers with experience in the construction industry. You can seek recommendations from your colleagues, and check the industry ratings online. reputable insurance provider must have a solid financial standing and a history of timely claims processing. it should have a comprehensive understanding of the construction business.
Comparing Different Insurance Policies
Once you have identified potential insurance providers, you need to put some time into comparing their policies. Pay attention to coverage limits, premiums, deductibles, and any additional endorsements that may benefit your business. Also, you can consider the flexibility of the policies and whether they can be customized to meet your business goal.
Evaluating insurance costs
you need to evaluate various insurance costs. Although, the costs may not be the sole determination, however, you must assess the value of coverage provided by the policy. You can check for long-term benefits of comprehensive coverage compared to any pocket investment at the time of claim.
Steps to Follow To Claim A Construction Liability Insurance Policy
Step 1: Immediately Notify the insurance company
the insured must immediately notify the insurer of the happening of any damage, injury, or harm. the insurance company should be notified either through a broker telephone or telegram. it is crucial to notify the insurance company within a stipulated time frame that is mentioned in the policy document.
Step 2: Provide a Written Notification
You must provide a written notification to the insurance company regarding the event of loss or damage. This written notification must include the nature of the occurrence of the cause of loss and damage.
Step 3: Minimize The Loss as much as possible
It is most important that there insured take all the necessary steps to prevent any further loss or damage. He can take the steps that are included within his power to minimize the extent of loss or damage.
Step 4: Inform the Police Authority
If the loss or damage happens because of theft or burglary, the insured must immediately inform the nearby police authority about the loss or damage.
Step 5: Prevent the affected parts of the property
In the course of the occurrence, the insurance company will send one representative to the spot to inspect the situation. So, the insured person must make sure that the affected parts of the property are secured. The representative can survey the affected parts.
Step 6: Extend full cooperation to the surveyor
The insured person must provide full cooperation to the surveyor for the investigation process. The insured person must provide all the relevant documents or information required for the investigation.
Step 7: Submit the Claim Form To the Insurance Company
the insured person must provide all these below information to the insurance company for making the claim:
- Date and time of the occurrence
- Probable cause of the loss or damage
- Details of the damage to the contract work, construction plant, part, and equipment related to the construction project
- Details about the repairs of the damaged items
- Progress of the construction at the time of occurrence
- damage to the surrounding property if any
- The essential cost of repairs to the loss or damage
- Any additional remarks
Conclusion
Construction liability insurance provides financial security in the face of unexpected events. The construction insurance also helps the construction projects to ensure the successful completion of the project and safeguards against potential liabilities.
Whether insurance protects the owner, contractors, or third parties, insurance serves as a vital tool to manage the inherent risks of construction projects. Insurance policies foster confidence, encourage investment, and contribute to the growth and sustainability of the construction company.
Here, in this article, I have wrapped together every detail of construction site insurance, you can go through my article. Hope, this guide will help you in acquiring more knowledge about construction liability insurance.
