Building insights in under 1 minute
Insurance talk can be a snooze... but this 45-second read might actually help you sleep better knowing your project is properly covered.
Insurance coverage for your repair project is vital, and your existing Master Policy on your community is a key player in addition to the Contractor’s General Liability Policy. These two will cover a lot of your repair project needs for both damage and liability, but there are times to consider a Builder’s Risk policy, which is a project-based policy that covers all the other typical gaps in coverage. (Tune into this month’s Building Doctor Show as we dive deep into Builder's Risk coverage.)
There are other ways to cover these risks as well, such as:
- Being named as "Additionally Insured" on the contractor’s policy.
- Identifying risk issues like theft, weather, and vandalism in the contract and shifting it to the contractor’s responsibility (and understanding they will charge more for it).
- Resident policies, also called HO6 policies or riders to the unit owner’s insurance, emphasize to owners they should have “rental or homeowner’s insurance” and these HO6 policies, with assessment insurance coverage.
- Work with your consultant, HOA attorney, and insurance agent/broker to identify proper coverage, or gaps in coverage and make a contingency plan for additional insurance or financial contingency to cover these risks.
- Understand the insurance policies have “limits” and the most common contractor policies only have $1M in coverage. Larger more experienced general contractors may have additional insurance coverage limits and can offer more insurance if asked.
- Gaps always exist between policies and need to be understood and managed prior to repairs starting.
Project risks can be managed with insurance policies, good contract language, a good set of plans, and as always, a good, experienced team around you.
For a deeper dive into insurance coverages, realities, and myths watch this quick video on insurance and find out the answer to the question, “Will My Insurance Drop Me If I File a Claim?” – enjoy.