Replies

1. 
   MojoMan | Dec 27, 2003 04:35pm | #1

   I just re-upped with my policy for just over $1200 per year - an increase of over $200 from last year. So much for the story that insurance rates are tied to what's happening in the financial markets. I'm a one-man operation with no employees and little sub-contractor work doing smaller residential projects.

   Rates keep climbing and fewer companies are writing contractor's policies.

   Al Mollitor, Sharon MA

1. 
   Ruby | Dec 27, 2003 05:42pm | #2

   Contractors here carry a general liability but not specific for any one house.

   None of the contractors here will carry any general liability for the construction of this house. I mean that if someone sues, they are the only ones covered, not the HO.

   All say that I need to do so on my end. They quit carrying such a few years ago, can't afford it. 

   Sub contractors have also quit workmen's comp. They say that the premiums were impossible to handle because of the abuses, like people working a few weeks and then saying they were injured, etc.

   Now, since they don't carry it, magically, injuries are minimal and some of the kind of people that were "working the system" are not around anymore.

   I am checking with my own insurance about some kind of coverage on my end.

   You may want to check what all your insurance covers and notify the HO's of the need to do so on their part, if it is like that in your area.

1. 
   RIPVW | Dec 27, 2003 07:00pm | #3

   hi, you mentioned in your response that sub's may not have workman's comp. and that general liability seems like an option?   both of these insurances are required to keep my license here in oregon - same for washington.  of course if i don't have employees i am not required to have workman's comp.  is licensing different where you are?

1. 
   Ruby | Dec 27, 2003 08:24pm | #4

   ---"is licensing different where you are?"---

   I will ask the builder Monday about that, don't know. I know that there are some rules he has to abide by as a member of the Builder's Association but don't remember which ones, except that they have an absolute guarantee on their houses for one year and partial for ten years and that they are supposed to carry some insurance for it.

   That would be different from liability insurance, like for any damages that may happen while building or any injuries.

   I assume it is not legally necessary here or so many would not stay off it, according to several of the builder I talked to.

   I was trying to clarify liability questions in the contract, that is when all this came up, last Wednesday, so I have not found out exactly where any of us stand on this yet.

   Maybe after a certain number of employees workmen's comp may be mandatory? Our accountant would know that, I will ask.

   We used to carry it when we had the race horse training stable because that labor pool is very migratory and insuring on and off employees continuously was a nuisance thru the regular insurance plus it had a waiting period before it kicked on.

   For the ranch, we use the insurance thru our cattlemen's association for ourselves and any employees. It is very expensive and we pay for it twice, once in dues to the association and again in premiums, but can't hardly find any other insurance.

   Any kind of insurance for agricultural business is extremely hard to find. Most companies have quit the field because so many lawyers saw $ signs when suing farmers, that are cash poor but look like if they sell, resource rich (they forget that most of those resources are under heavy mortgages) thus seemed an easy target that is not able to fight back.

1. 
   brownbagg | Dec 27, 2003 09:20pm | #5

   too bad thet not some way for each employee to carry his own workman comp. That way the accident prone one could not afford to get hurt.

   The best employee you can have but you wouldn't want him as a neighbor " He the shifty type"

2. 
   Ruby | Dec 27, 2003 09:39pm | #6

   ---"

    

   too bad thet not some way for each employee to carry his own workman comp

   "---

   That is why we need some kind of national insurance program for each individual. The devil is in the details.

   Some that now abuse the system will still do so but at least all that are really needy will be able to get the proper help without today's problems.

   We were lucky that we never had a worker's comp claim, all people stayed healthy, but once one fellow quit and asked me to sign that he got hurt so he could have some extra money until he found a new job. He honestly thought that it was ok to do so. I told him that he had to have a doctor verify it. He moved on.

2. 
   Isamemon | Dec 28, 2003 08:58pm | #7

   Also here in oregon

   so you have seen rates skyrocket.......me too......... it seems that soon  contractors ,like big box stores , only the mega companies will survive.

   this is not just my feelings but also my attorney who works for several contractors in the area

   and you know it is all driven by the sue happy public. sueing for  "what they deserve"

   this is why he has set us up as a LLC and the family farm on a trust

   with many companies dropping insurance ocverage for contractors it is getting harder to find a good policy.

   So it gets harder to make competative bids when your insurance jumps from say 100 a month to 700 a month with no cliams filed against us in 9 years.

   In our area of oregon as well as many parts of the us I bet, i run into many "contractors" running now without insurance or bonds or workers comp, who are bidding lowball just to keep work coming in

   makes it tough for us "honest'guys

   but here is a true , sad and yet  funny example of a recent lawsuit in Oregon

   to protect myself from a lawsuit  I wont mention names or locations

   a builder friend of mine builds nice homes on the oregon coast. a family came from California and fell in love with a coastal piece of oceanfront property. Bought it and had a custom home built (500k+). Afte ther first winter tried to sue the realestate agent, the former land owner and the builder because no one told them how much it rained on the oregon coast in the winter

   they could not find an attorney to represent them on the coast so got some new inlander

   the case of course was lost by the califronians, but the builder and his insurance had to pay a lot of money out until they went to court.

   gee I think ill buy some land in california and sue  the builder when the sun comes out