Why Toronto Plumbers Need Business Liability Insurance
You repaired a pipe, but it leaked and caused major water damage to your client’s bathroom and hall ceilings. Your client has sued you. Do you have the right business liability insurance to financially handle a lawsuit?
Business liability insurance helps cover legal costs and any legal settlements that Toronto plumbing contractors or plumbing businesses could face as the result of a lawsuit.
Western Financial Group, a 100% Canadian company, can help you navigate your business, car, and home insurance during this period of economic uncertainty.
Wherever your small business is located in Toronto, the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), or elsewhere in Ontario, a Western Financial Group business insurance broker will get you commercial coverage that uniquely protects what you do.
Western is a trusted, national insurance brokerage that has partnered with Canada’s top insurance companies to provide commercial insurance. We work with our insurance partners to find the best business coverage at the best rate for you.
We make the process easy by getting insurance quotes for you to choose from and giving you policy coverage options that suit your Toronto business’s specific needs at the right price for you.
What is plumbing insurance?
Plumbing insurance is a package of insurance coverages for plumbers that protects against risks they face on the job, like third-party bodily injury and property damage usually involving customers or suppliers.
Liability insurance is needed as part of your Toronto plumbers’ insurance.
Here are the types of business liability insurance you need to protect your plumbing business from lawsuits.
Commercial general liability insurance (CGL)
CGL insurance is also known as plumber’s liability insurance. It’s necessary if you work in skilled trades, like plumbing, and construction-related businesses.
CGL insurance usually covers damages awarded against you and helps pay your legal defense costs, regardless of the lawsuit’s outcome.
Without commercial liability insurance, you would be responsible for paying any liability costs out of your own pocket.
What kind of risks does commercial general liability insurance cover?
- Injury to a third party who is not your employee
- Damage to someone’s property
- Damage to rented property
- Medical bills if someone is injured
- Legal costs and settlement costs of liability lawsuits filed against you
- Liability lawsuits related to slander and libel
It would not be unusual to have $2 million or more in CGL coverage, depending on the size of your Toronto plumbing business.
Pollution liability insurance
Pollution liability insurance is a specialized type of coverage that will protect you against pollution-related accidents that cause third-party injury or property damage. Pollution liability insurance is recommended for Toronto plumbers, especially when working on waste disposal lines and water systems. CGL policies usually will have an exclusion for any liabilities caused by pollution.
Cyber liability insurance
If your Toronto plumbing business stores your customers’ names, addresses and credit card information digitally and your computer system is hacked, cybercriminals can sell this information.
Without cyber insurance, you will have to pay out of your pocket for the cost of restoring your system. You may also be liable for damages to third parties whose information has been stolen.
Professional liability insurance
This type of insurance is also called errors and omissions (E&O) insurance. Professional liability insurance protects against lawsuits by covering legal expenses, settlements, and judgments arising from claims of professional negligence or mistakes.
For example, professional liability insurance may help cover a faulty plumbing installation that caused a financial loss or breach of contract to a client.
What other types of insurance do Toronto plumbing contractors need?
Tools and equipment insurance
You can’t do your job without your tools, which makes equipment and tools insurance necessary for your work as a Toronto plumber. Tools and equipment replaces or repairs damaged or lost equipment and tools, accessories, or other property. Anything valued at less than $1,500 is considered a tool and anything above $1,500 is considered equipment.
Commercial auto insurance
Your personal car or truck insurance usually won’t cover your Toronto plumbing business. If you have a business car, truck, or van that you use as part of your plumbing business, it needs commercial coverage as part of your plumbing insurance package.
Commercial property insurance
Commercial property insurance can cover losses due to fire, vandalism, or lightning, including removing property to protect it from further damage. You can also include vandalism and malicious mischief in your commercial property insurance in your plumber’s insurance package.
Surety bond
When you accept a job, you are obligated to complete it. A surety bond, or contractor bond, will pay your customer if your Toronto plumbing business does not complete a job. You can obtain a surety bond for a specified amount from your Western insurance business expert.
If your Toronto plumbing business has a surety bond, it gives potential customers confidence that you will finish the job and that they will receive financial compensation if you go out of business, or do not finish the job for other reasons.
Business interruption insurance
You may want to consider adding business interruption insurance to your plumber’s insurance package. If there is an insured loss at a job site or other work premises that is severe enough to stop your business operations, the expenses associated with getting your business running again will be covered.
This type of policy usually covers vandalism, fire, wind, flooding, and other risks (make sure to understand what your policy covers). Your policy will help compensate you for lost income and expenses that you will need to continue paying even while you are unable to work.
Business interruption insurance can help with these expenses:
- Payroll
- Rent
- Utilities
- Property taxes
- Alarm monitoring
- Relocation of your business
How much will my Toronto plumbing business insurance cost?
Every Toronto plumber has unique requirements so it is unlikely that all plumbers would pay the same monthly or annually for their coverage. Ask your Western business insurance expert to help you get the right coverage at the right value for you.
What do I do if I have a claim against my Toronto plumbing business?
Contact your broker immediately after any business-related mishap. Waiting to file a claim can confuse insurers about the severity of the damages to your business.
- Know your policy so that when you contact your broker you are familiar with what will be covered or not.
- Document the damage. Take photos right away and write down what happened.
- Do not throw away damaged goods after taking photos. Keep the physical evidence so that your adjustor can see it.
- Do not invite lawsuits. Don’t say anything that could be used against you, especially if you aren’t sure what happened.
- Be honest about what your damaged property is worth. Damaged commercial property is generally valued according to its actual cash value or replacement value.
Here’s an insurance checklist:
- Do you have the best Toronto business insurance rate that suits your work?
- Do you have the right amount for your deductible and regularly review it to make sure it’s the right amount for you?
- Are you or your employees using personal vehicles for work?
Western Financial Group has licensed BUSINESS INSURANCE EXPERTS to get you the right insurance coverage as a Toronto plumber or plumbing contractor. Our experts are available now to help you navigate the business insurance journey to protect your Toronto business.
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