Insurance costs

[Bob Rooks]

Thanks Bob, but no help here. They don't do business in Texas.
hugs, Brandi

It was just to give you an idea of costs. I don't recommend the company at all.

Here is what a landscaper can and can't do (legally) in Washington state. Texas must have similar policies.
http://www.lni.wa.gov/TradesLicensing/PrevWage/files/Policies/LandscapeConstructionPolicy.pdf

 

[MarkV]

Keep in mind that it is not only business liability for the tractor that you need. You will also have to get business insurance for your truck and trailer plus you may need a DOT number displayed on the truck. I don't no about your area but in mine I would need a contractors license which is another whole mess to go through. It is awful hard to do a small business completely legal these days. I looked into doing the same thing at one time and it just wasn't going to pay off on a part time basis.

MarkV

 

[bindian]

Keep in mind that it is not only business liability for the tractor that you need. You will also have to get business insurance for your truck and trailer plus you may need a DOT number displayed on the truck. I don't no about your area but in mine I would need a contractors license which is another whole mess to go through. It is awful hard to do a small business completely legal these days. I looked into doing the same thing at one time and it just wasn't going to pay off on a part time basis.


MarkV

Thanks Mark. That is a subject I'm not going to bring up here. I got that figured out.
hugs, Brandi

 

[kootch88]

It is the insurance folks that have this industry and the country in their high pockets. Oh yeah...........and lawyers!
hugs, Brandi View attachment 272023

Since it appears the insurers are so corrupt, and the lawyers, why don't you take the risk yourself and post a bond? That way you won't have to deal with someone you obviously feel is ripping you off. I wouldn't want to deal with someone I felt is screwing me. I get a kick out of folks slamming the insurers yet the same people do not have the gonads to take responsibility on their own, and it is a viable option.

 

[meburdick]

I need to find a company willing to work up a composite policy. Majority of the work will be land clearing and stump removals, moving and leveling dirt. Oh yeah, don't forget mucking out koi ponds. (See attached photo) I'll need to specifly that pond digging will be done on ranches or farms and not in surburan areas. I heard from an online friend you can itemize it down by percent of each kind of work with the company he had.

Find a good local *agent* to work with. And, be sure that they have access to a variety of carriers. From there, you will be able to explore different companies with different options and find what is truly the best price.

Keep in mind that insurance premiums are part of the cost of operating the business and should be handled as such for tax time. Here, a good tax account is necessary.

The other part of this is that you may be able to get better rates on your home, auto, liability, etc with a business policy. So, spending in one area could end up bringing you savings in another. Be sure to evaluate all options as "total solutions" against one another.

Anyway, I do know before I dig anywhere unknown to me I can call 811 for utilities to come out and mark everything. Simple. I have done that twice and the next day the rep from the pipeline up the road showed up.

Be sure to understand the laws surrounding this. In CT, CBYD (Call Before You Dig) is required. And, it is the PROPERTY OWNER'S responsibility to make the call. Can you call? Maybe (don't know how those folks handle non-property owners making requests in your area). And, that would be good for yourself. But, if the responsibility lies with the property owner according to local laws, be sure that you put that in your contracts that THEY need to make the calls and YOU need to have an opportunity to review the outcome before starting any work.

Here's a general statement about insurance that you might find useful in your hunt... What the large print giveth, the fine print taketh away.

Be sure to READ and FULLY UNDERSTAND what is explicitly covered and not covered by your policy. More explicit coverage will likely have a higher premium.

 

[kootch88]

Just a general statement correction listed above. All print in an insurance policy is the same size, and it has been in almost every state for many, many years.

But the correct answer is yes, read your policy, question your agent and respond in writing or email on questions regarding your policy.

 

[meburdick]

Just a general statement correction listed above. All print in an insurance policy is the same size, and it has been in almost every state for many, many years.

But the correct answer is yes, read your policy, question your agent and respond in writing or email on questions regarding your policy.

Can I at least use "fine print" in its more colloquial sense then?

 

[kootch88]

Can I at least use "fine print" in its more colloquial sense then?

I know what you meant, it is just one of those threads where I feel like I am getting baashed because this is what I do for a living, and we are easy targets, just like lawyers. There are a lot of professionals out there that do a good job and a lot of consumers out there who make accusations and generalizations about the industry that are baloney, but everyone buys it for some reason.

Just like when buying a house or any other business transaction, educate yourself and deal with people who have a solid reputation and you won't have a problem. If you want to get garbage, go buy your insurance from a 1-800 number and best of luck to you. If you treat insurance as a commodity you will certainly be treated as a commidity on the back end. Just like tractors, if you go in and buy without educating yourself I would wager you will be getting a product that doesn't exactly fit your needs.

 

[Storm56]

Just a general statement correction listed above. All print in an insurance policy is the same size, and it has been in almost every state for many, many years.

But the correct answer is yes, read your policy, question your agent and respond in writing or email on questions regarding your policy.

You know Kootch that we are/were in an industry that many love to hate. I have stated this before on this forum: In my 22 years of owning an independent agency I have witnessed only a few times when I felt an insurer was unfair, on the other hand it was at least a weekly occurence where the insured was trying to get their deductible covered or attempting to get the company to pay for things that were outside of the contract covered or my favorite, trying to get everything bad that happened in the last 5 years covered under the loss.

Sadly those not working in the industry just have no clue how badly and often insurers are defrauded. Another sad fact is that many people think it is just fine to defraud an insurer. No doubt they have would have quite different opinions if someone was trying to defraud them! And of course this type is the first to complain about a high insurance rate. Do they not realize that the fraud they encourage and approve of factors into the rates?

I could go on but I would rather discuss tractors n stuff!!

 

[kootch88]

Everything you said above is true, but the change from agency based selling to 1-800 based selling has also really hurt the industry because there is no one other than a 1-800 number to call when there is a problem, and people have no relation to the 1-800 number and have no qualms about ripping it off. The industry has changed so much since I first started as a complex BI adjuster. Back then we estimated 30% of all injury claims were fraud in houston, TX. I wonder what the percentage is now? I know it is costing all of us a heck of a lot of money.