The Importance of Hiring A Contractor with The Proper Insurance

Congratulations! You finally purchased your dream home!… Ok… Now What?  

  

After a few years, things tend to get outdated. Maybe your bachelor(ette) pad no longer matches the demands of your ever-flowing lifestyle, a.k.a. time for a grown up house. It’s time to add an addition or build a coach house where you can have your own space and not have to worry about hearing your in-laws snoring or making other funny noises you would rather not think more into.  

 

You finally have the ideas, can see the colors, and even hired an architect to draw up some plans. It’s time to decide on the contractor you are going to use for this important project. So you get a couple estimates and they are ALL over the place. Some are 25% over budget and some are WAY under budget by almost 30%!!! Hmmm, what to do, what to do….  

 

This is the moment where you stop and think about INSURANCE. I know that’s not what you thought I was going to say BUT this is the most important time to consider this when making such an important decision. Here are some of the things you want to look for:  

 

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WHICH CONTRACTORS HAVE GENERAL LIABILITY COVERAGE  

 

This coverage protects you from any lawsuits that arise from bodily injury and or property damage. An example of a bodily injury claim would be: your contractor starts your project and your exceptionally curious neighbor decides to take a peek and gets clocked in the head by a two by four. If your contractor has no GL (General Liability) guess who that falls on… That’s right! YOU. Or let’s say while the contractor is tossing the trash from the demo, he hits a car with a metal pole. With General Liability coverage, the policy would protect the contractor and you.  

 

DO THEY HAVE WORKERS COMPENSATION 

 

There are more than 40,000 workers comp claims filed in IL every year. If one of the workers of the contractor you hired is injured and your contractor has no work comp, then the claim falls on YOU. Now you’re responsible for this worker’s medical bills, rehabilitation and wage. This coverage is crucial and if you ever hire anyone to do anything in or on your home, they should have workers compensation coverage.  

 

There are more policies/coverages your contractor can and should have to ensure that if anything goes wrong there is something backing the both of you up. Here is a list of coverages to consider:  

• Performance Bond 
• Commercial Auto  
• License & Permit Bond 
• Umbrella Policy  
• Cargo  

You can feel free to contact our agency with any questions 😊 773-917-6688 or email at info@winmoreinsurance.com