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A local community college system is changing its name and needs several (5) new sandblasted signs. All are 4x8, gold leaf, nice looking signs. One is also of the monument category and will be outsourced. I get the bid papers the other day and on one of the pages they inform bidders that we must carry 1,000,000 comprehensive general owners, landlords and tenants insurance. Also, statutory workers compensation. These will all be installed on existing posts, etc. Very little time will be used for installation and will be relatively simple. No digging, no setting posts, just installing them on the posts. I cant understand this much crap being added to the job. No doubt it will run some off. I have a local insurance company getting me a quote on the insurance, but I expect it to be high? I dont know, never bought that much insurance. The last time the job was done, a friend of mine did it, and none of this crap was in the bids. Sometimes I think these people sit around and think up ways to make things more stressful. Boneheads.
-------------------- Maker of fine signs and other creative stuff. Located at 109 N. Cumberland ave. Harlan, Ky. 40831 606-837-0242 Posts: 4172 | From: Ages-Brookside, Ky. Up the Holler... | Registered: Jul 1999
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John, if you subcontracted the installation to a general contractor with that type of insurance, that might be an option. We don't do much installing anymore. We don't like heights and are too old to deal with the heavy stuff! We have a couple guys we can call. One installs fencing and does a real nice job. He has all the equipment and we just visit with him on how we want it done. Maybe you can find someone in your area to help you out. We find it frees us up to do the thing we ENJOY doing, and from all the grunt work we DON'T like doing!
-------------------- Jane Diaz Diaz Sign Art 628 W. Lincoln Ave. Pontiac, Il. 61764 815-844-7024 www.diazsignart.com Posts: 4102 | From: Pontiac, IL USA | Registered: Feb 1999
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Actually John I am in the middle of such fiasco myself, I am going to produce a job with no instalation at all on the job site. I thought the same thing about being boneheads but in the process of insurance I was asked if I sub to anyone who does NOT have liability insurance.
When aksed why, I was told my policy would be much higher.
Soooo if I sub out to anyone in the future I will be the same bonehead.
-------------------- Bob Rochon Creative Signworks Millbury, MA 508-865-7330
"Life is Like an Echo, what you put out, comes back to you." Posts: 5149 | From: Millbury, Mass. U.S. | Registered: Nov 1998
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$1,000,000 Liability Shouldn't be too Much I pay around $550 a Year for $3,000,000. I am required by the City to carry that much just to be in Buisness. As for the workmans comp thingy I don't know since I have no employees.
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A lot of insurance agents around here will up your liability for 3 or 6 months or whatever if you need a big amount for a certain job, then drop it back down to your normal amount.
-------------------- Chris Welker Wildfire Signs Indiana, Pa Posts: 4254 | From: Indiana, PA | Registered: Mar 2001
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John, Can't remember the specifics but I know we have called our agent and requested a "rider" be added to the policy for such-and-such job. Hope this helps.
-------------------- Gene Golden Gettysburg Signs Gettysburg PA 17325 717-334-0200 genegolden@gettysburgsigns.com
"Art is knowing when to stop." Posts: 1578 | From: Gettysburg, PA | Registered: Jun 2003
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We carry liability insurance. Not too bad. But, I have had to post a "bid bond" before. Talk about overkill for a little company. But, insurance makes the world go round!
""Good judgment comes from experience; and a lot of that comes from bad judgment" - Will Rogers Posts: 3503 | From: Beautiful Newaygo, Michigan | Registered: Mar 2003
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Thanks everyone for the help and replies. Im still waiting on info from my insurance company. The bid has to be in by sept. 1st.
-------------------- Maker of fine signs and other creative stuff. Located at 109 N. Cumberland ave. Harlan, Ky. 40831 606-837-0242 Posts: 4172 | From: Ages-Brookside, Ky. Up the Holler... | Registered: Jul 1999
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We pay around $1000 per year for $1000000 coverage, completed operations and to cover about $25,000 in replacement costs for our business equipment. We are exempt from Work Comp insurance. I was just thinking today how expensive our signs have gotten. It's a shame but with all the insurances and regulations we have to comply with we have to pass these costs on to our customers. I try my best not to raise prices but the numbers don't lie.
-------------------- Jean Shimp Shimp Sign & Design Co. Jacksonville Beach, Fl Posts: 1290 | From: Jacksonville Beach, Fl. USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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I'm also in the middle of getting quote for liability policy. As far as for workers comp. on big jobs or for cities or counties that require it for all working on the site, I pay myself and subs min. wage through manpower and since we become employees of manpower their insurance pays for the insurance as well as any medical expenses incurred by anyone on the site.
Something you might want to look into, however the insurance ends once the job is over.
-------------------- Dave Levesque Angelo Sign 3014 Hemlock San Angelo, TX 76904 Posts: 82 | From: San Angelo, TX | Registered: Jan 2004
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We carry 3 million dollars liability insurance. It's required by many of our customers.
Insurance to cover our tools, office equipment and such adds some expense to our premium but not a lot. We dropped insurance from our tools while on the road. While this is when our tools are the most vulnerable it proved to be too costly to even consider. Added to that was the insult that anything more than five years old wouldn't be covered while on the road. We take good care of our many tools and as a result most are more than five years old. (buy the best - buy once) The solution is to keep everything chained and locked in our big tool chests except when its in one of the crews's hands and being used. Because of liability concerns (as well as continued ownership of our own tools) we NEVER lend out tools to other trades on the worksite.
Worker's Compensation insurance is another significant business expense. Here at home it's not too bad (less than 1% of wages) but on the road we find different. In Alberta where we just worked it was almost 11% ... a real choker!
Regulations require that if we want to be exempted from a possible lawsuit from employees over an accident that we have to pay Workers Comp coverage for ourselves as well. Sounds like a scam to me, but cheaper than a lawsuit in any event.
Two things get me fairly worked up in a hurry these days... high insurance and higher taxes. But both are far, far from my control.
-dan
-------------------- Dan Sawatzky Imagination Corporation Yarrow, British Columbia dan@imaginationcorporation.com http://www.imaginationcorporation.com
Being a grampa is one of the the most wonderful things in the world!!! Posts: 8765 | From: Yarrow, B.C. Canada | Registered: Nov 1998
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Public Liability Insurance ... 1 million, 2 million? You Americans started the crazy "sue for anything trick". We, down here, have followed. And it sucks.
I was forced last year to increase my Insurance from $5M to $10M just to put a ladder on the sidewalk downtown
Tonight I have been finishing a mural in a shopping mall. They wanted $20M ($20,000,000)cover!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Only way I got round that was to be a "sub-contractor" to their regular painter who has that policy cover. Otherwise the Insurance company wanted $xxx to give me a tempory cover. Damn it ... I was only using water based paints at ground level, after hours.
"...there are no limits when you aim for perfection..." Jonathan Livingston Seagull Posts: 7016 | From: Highgrove via Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia | Registered: Dec 2002
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