Tradespeople and other professionals who perform services in homes regularly complete their work without incident. Occasionally, however, there is an accident and they get hurt. When they do, they may look to an insurance policy to compensate them for their injury. If you hire a carpenter, plumber, roofer or any other professional to do work in your Williston, VT home, here’s how to reduce the likelihood that they’ll file a claim against your homeowners insurance policy if they’re hurt while on your property.
Make Sure You Won’t Have to File a Homeowners Insurance Claim When You Hire a Williston Professional
Williston, VT Professionals May File an Insurance Claim for Injuries
Minor nicks and scrapes are common in many trades, and call for little more than a bandage many times. Professionals who suffer more significant injuries may decide to seek financial compensation from an insurance company for their medical bills and potential lost income.
Because of the nature of some trades, these claims can be sizeable. For instance, any of the following scenarios could lead to a significant insurance claim:
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An electrician could be shocked while rewiring a house and have to go to the emergency room
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A roofer could fall off a roof and have injuries that prevent them from working for months
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A carpenter could step on a rusty nail and need treatment for tetanus
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An arborist who is working with a partner could be hit by a falling tree branch
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Any professional could be bit by a dog (yes, this does happen)
Claims May Be Filed Against the Professional’s or Your Insurance Policy
While professionals take steps to reduce the risk of injury, potential hazards can’t be completely eliminated from many of these lines of work — which is why there are insurance policies. If you hire a professional and they’re moderately or severely injured while working at your house, there’s a good chance they’ll want to file an insurance claim. Which insurance policy they file a claim against will likely depend on what insurance they have.
If the professional you hire has their own insurance, they’ll probably file a claim against their policy. Policies that protect tradespeople from incidents like those listed above are widely available to tradespeople. These policies often provide protection for injuries sustained while working, so there’s typically no need to look to another policy for compensation.
Some professionals, in order to save a little money, don’t purchase their own insurance policy. If the professional you hire doesn’t have their policy, they may want to file a claim against your homeowners insurance policy — and they might be fully within their rights to do so. Should they file a claim, you might be required to pay a deductible, and the insurance rates for your Williston home may increase.
Check Professionals’ Insurance Certificates and Your Homeowners Insurance
There are two things you can do to protect yourself from having to pay a deductible and having your premiums go up.
First, make sure you only hire tradespeople and professionals who have their own insurance. When you’re getting quotes, ask a professional to bring a copy of their insurance certificate. This document proves that a professional has insurance, and anyone that has insurance should be happy to furnish a copy of the certificate.
Second, review your homeowners insurance policy with your insurance agent. If a professional does file a claim, it’ll probably be against the liability portion of your homeowners policy. To make sure you’re sufficiently protected against such a claim, ask your agent to help you check how much liability coverage you have. Having adequate liability coverage won’t just protect you from professionals’ claims, but it may also protect you if anyone else is injured in your Williston home.
If you’re with Nationwide and have been notified of a rate increase, find an independent insurance agent who can help you compare policies. A good independent agent will be able to look at policies from several insurance companies, often including Nationwide along with others. This makes it easy to find out how much each insurer will charge for the specific auto coverage, homeowners coverage or other insurance you need.