Insurance is something that we all need at some point or another. For those that have a business of any sort, insurance is a critical part of any successful business model. Especially for those that work in artisan and specialty contracting situations, insurance is necessary to protect both the customer and the contractor.
What is an Artisan or Specialty Contractor?
In order to understand this type of insurance you should first know what a specialty or artisan contractor is. This does make a difference in how we understand the terms of this type of specialty policy. It is helpful to first look at what a contractor is. A contractor is any company or individual that is contracted or hired to finish a project. These projects can range from something as complicated as building an entire house to simply finishing or repairing a completed building. An artisan or specialty contractor is a contractor that is not a general contractor.
General contractors can complete a wide range of projects and generally are the ones that contract artisan contractors to help with very specific finishes on their projects. An artisan contractor is going to be any worker or company that specializes in one specific area that might not be your run of the mill project. This could be something like a contractor (or sub-contractor as the case may be) that only creates vintage style kitchens, one that creates natural stone bathrooms, or one that creates one of a kind pieces of artwork for living spaces. Specialty contractors are not going to be able to complete entire projects but instead are able to complete one difficult or very specific part of a larger project.
What is Artisan or Specialty Contractors Insurance?
Since artisan contractors are generally not going to be part of a larger contracting firm and are not going to hold a general contracting insurance policy, they need specific insurance that is going to help cover their projects and their customers. Since they are working in specialty projects, their costs and overhead are likely to be much higher than a general contractor that is simply putting in contractor grade items and not really doing anything special. These highly skilled craftsmen are trained in these special projects and they know how much they cost to get right the first time.
Since artisan or specialty projects are going to cost more than your typical contractor projects, these professionals need special insurance policies to help protect their projects, their livelihood and their customers. Artisan or specialty contractor insurance is a policy that is tailored to the specialty and to the specific artisan
project or sub category that it involves. A good example would be someone that does specialty pipe work or specialty plumbing; they would have a special policy in order to help cover the cost of repair for that special project, insurance for their special tools, and insurance to cover anything that might go wrong with that project.
What does Specialty Contractors Insurance or Artisan Contractors Insurance Cover?
For starters, insurance of this type is going to first and foremost insure the work that has been done. It helps to cover the cost of repair of the work if something were to happen to it after it was completed, it helps to insure that the customer cannot go back and say that the work is not what they wanted after the contract was agreed upon and so forth. It also helps cover any damage that might occur to other property while the work is being done. It is helpful to look at an example in this case. Say you are a specialty iron worker that makes garden fences. You are working on a fence on the property perhaps installing it and a sculpture in the garden is damaged in the process. The insurance policy would help cover the cost of the damage that was done.
Another item that these policies cover is of course any claims that are made against the artisan or specialty contractor on the part of the customer. This means that it will help with any claims that something was damaged or not made right. It also covers helps to cover the cost of any damages that are done to your
equipment while it is being used. Things like damages to the equipment that come through the course of work can help you to make the most of your equipment and can help you to replace the items if they are damaged or destroyed while working or on a work site. If you have equipment that is damaged on the work siteyour policy can also help you to replace or repair it.
On top of all of that, this type of policy is also going to help to protect the business if you have one from any claims that may end up costing you money. It is going to help protect what you have put into the business and what you have worked to add to your business.
Who Needs Specialty Contractors Insurance or Artisan Contractors Insurance?
For those that work in a general contracting position, you are not going to need worry about looking into a specialty contractor policy. In most cases, if you have a general contractor policy it is going to cover any issues that you might have. For those that are specialty contractors or that do not have a general contractors policy, you may very well need a specialty policy. If you work on any special type of project that requires special equipment, special processes, or special skills that are not general contracting or that are not common skills, you are likely in need of a specialty contracting policy.
Not all contractors are in need of a specialty policy and not all specialty contractors might need a policy. If you work for a general contractor you may be covered under their general contracting policy. It is helpful to take the time to talk with your employer, if you do not work for yourself, to see just what the policy
covers and to see if you need a secondary specialty contracting policy for your own work. Again, if you work for a general contractor you are likely covered under their policy while if you work for yourself you may need a policy for yourself.
Why Do You Need Specialty Contractors Insurance or Artisan Contractors Insurance?
Since not all contractors are in need of a special policy, it is helpful to find out just why you might need this type of policy. Specialty or artisan contracting is not something that all contractors can do. Since this is a specialized skill and a specialized task, this means that you need a policy to protect this special skill and this special work. Since this is going to be something that not all workers can complete, your work is going to be worth more in some terms than a general contracting job. This also means that your equipment and your finished work is going to cost more to repair and is going to cost more to replace in the case that something happens to it.
If you are a specialty contractor you need a policy to help protect your specialty projects, your specialty equipment, and your skill that you have worked so hard to hone and perfect. Since a specialty contract is likely going to cost more than a general contract, you want to have enough insurance in place to protect and keep your work secure and safe.
Another reason to have a specialty contract is to help protect your work after you have completed it. When you take the time to do a great deal of work and you take the time to really figure out what skills you have, you need to have a policy in place to protect them and to make sure that the work you have put in is not wasted. Still another reason to get a specialty policy is to help protect your work against any issues or any claims that may be made against you or against your firm or business. A specialty policy is going to help keep your work and your business safe even if something does go wrong and even if there is a claim filed against you.
Specialty equipment is expensive and having a policy to help keep your expensive equipment safe and secure is a must. In most cases, any specialty equipment has the potential to be into the thousands as far as price is concerned and if your equipment is damaged or destroyed on any sort of job site you want to have a policy that is going to help you repair or replace so that you can get back to work and so that you can keep using your skills.
How to Determine What Coverage You Need?
The first step to determining what coverage you need is to look at the actual business that you are in. If you are working all week at specialty projects you are going to want to have a policy that is going to cover that amount of work. If you only do one specialty project a year you are not going to need as big of a
policy. You also want to look at the specific projects themselves. If you are completing large specialty projects you are going to need a larger policy than if you only do hundred dollar projects. You want to look at what materials and what skills are being used as well.
Is what you do dangerous? Do you have to use a lot of very expensive material? Is the equipment very expensive and hard to repair or to buy? These are all going to help you to determine how much insurance you need. On top of all of that, you also want to consider how much your business is worth. If you have a several hundred thousand dollar business, you are going to want to insure it accordingly so that you can make sure your business is covered no matter what.
For those that have business that are worth more or less, you should tailor your coverage accordingly. The last thing you want to consider is how many customers you come in contact with each year. Usually, the more clients you have leads to you needing more protection (insurance coverage). These are all considerations thatcan make a huge difference in the overall scope and range of the policy that you ultimately end up taking out.
Getting Started
The best place for everyone is to start with talking to an agent, someone that understand your specific business insurance needs. There are specific insurance considerations that you have to make based on where you live, what the unique requirements of you area are and so on. You also want to make sure that you take the time to really look at the fact that agents are going to know all the laws, the regulations and any possible discounts that you might be able to get on your policy. They can also help you to tailor your policy to fit your particular needs so that you can make sure there
are no gaps in your policy and that you have all the coverage that you need no matter what.
In some cases, you can start to determine how much coverage you might need on your own but finalizing any sort of policy is going to be much easier and far more lucrative if you take the time to talk with an agent. They can tell you how much coverage you need for the projects that you do, for the equipment that you use, and for any risk that you might take when you set out to do your specialty or artisan contracting jobs each day. An insurance agent can make the process simpler and can help you to make sure you have all the coverage you need.