Why your contractor’s liability insurance is not enough!

If you ever hire people to work around your house, you need to read this. It does not matter if they are putting on a new addition or staining and sealing your deck and driveway. It can even be something as simple as cleaning out your gutters.

Everyone knows that you need to protect yourself or your property when it comes to hiring contractors. We do this by ensuring that the contractor has liability insurance. This only covers accidents that are the cause of the contractor and either damage property or injure someone.

This is great, you are protecting yourself. Or are you?

Did you know that if you hire someone to work on your property that you are responsible for that person’s well being? Did not realize that did you? I know what you are thinking, this is a bunch of bull and it is not right. I would have to agree with you on that point but the law is the law and we have to live with it as long as it remains in effect.

I had a story relayed to me about a home owner that was seriously injured. Here’s the story....

“The homeowner was an architect and the gutters needed cleaning on his home. Well being that he was self reliant and knew what he was doing, he decided to save few dollars and clean the gutters himself. I the process of cleaning the gutters the ladder fell and he caught himself with his hands when he landed breaking both arms severely. Six months and 4 surgeries later he was back at work.”

Now you say, I’m glad he was alright. Well that is not the end of the story. You see, these surgeries added up to over $250,000 and he was out of work for 6 months with no income. Since he was doing the work himself, he only had medical insurance that covered only part of the cost.

What does this have to do with you hiring someone to work around your home? Well now we get to the reason for me to write this article.

I previously eluded to, if you hire someone to work on your property, you are responsible for that person’s well being. How do you eliminate this responsibility you ask? That is the easy part, you hire someone that has workmans compensation insurance. That way you and they are covered should something happen to them.

Now let’s play devils advocate. Say he had hired this work out and the same accident or worse happened. (i.e. severe head injury) Now the worker may or my not come after your homeowners insurance for compensation. You tell me that would never happen as the people that I hire would not do that to me. You may be right, but is that worth the risk of everything that you own? Would you send your teenage son or daughter out driving in vehicle that is un insured?

It may not even be the worker that comes after you for compensation. What is to stop their spouse, children or parents from suing on their behalf if they are in vegetative state? Or a personal injury lawyer convincing them they could get a lot of money for the injury? Why nothing at all. That is unless they had workmans compensation coverage.

Don’t take chances with everything that you have worked for all you life. Hire people/companies that have the proper insurance coverage. Weigh the risks against maybe saving few bucks. Is the risk to your family worth it? Is your financial future and that of your family worth the risk? Why would you put your financial future in the hands of a complete stranger?