Eddie, Man I hate this. .... Bear in mind I'm no Attorney or Insurance Agent. You may want to contact a professional if you have a need for professional advice. **** disclalimers!
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Darren gave great advice and you could probably skip all of this. However, I'll throw this out for general consumption as everyone here seems to learn me something most nights......There are various types of bonds. Bid, Payment, and Performance bonds are the most common in construction related fields. Generally, they are to guarantee that anyone you contract with will hold to their initial bid (bid bond) (change orders could still add to the cost if the scope of work changes), payment bond which guarantees that the contractor will pay his materialmen and employees and that you and your assests shall suffer no liens or attachments, and finally performance bonds which insure that the work shall be satisfactorily completed in a measured amount of time. I agree with Darren. I don't think you need any of the bonds listed above. Just don't get too far out of pocket until the work is started and hold plenty back until it's done. If you are working within striking distance of existing power lines, and the state or utility commission has a bonding requirement, then a different kind of bond may be required by the Contractor performing the work. Finally, on insurance you need to be named on a Certificate of Insurance, which lists General Liability, Automotive, and Workman's Compensation limits. Generally, there is an Umbrella portion to these policies too. It's the insurance co. that is liable for any non-payment related matters should a mistake be made and/or damages incurred. Make sure the Contractor has at least $500,000.00 in General Liability coverage (that's low these days) , has Workman's Comp, and Automobile insurance. The Certificate of Insurance should name you as the "Certificate Holder". Also request that the Certificate have you named as "Additionally Insured". That puts you in a better legal position. The issuance of a Certificate of Insurance is common everyday practice. Again, anyone who balks at the request isn't worth using. If you have any Business Insurance call your Agent. Your policy may have particular thresholds any Contractor or Subcontractor must meet which would supercede what I said above.
I don't remotely take you as the timid type, so the insurance should be adequate from what I can see in the photos. Actually having watched your projects, I'm kind of suprised you didn't knock them down, stop traffic, and have a little wreckless fun in the process. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif You're certainly better for it though. Now if we were 25 again????, no tellin. /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
Good Luck, that is some serious wood.
