What Is Construction Liability Insurance?
If you’re in construction, liability insurance is essential to protect your business’ financial health. Whether you’re a construction contractor overseeing a small project or a consultant on construction health and safety issues, your clients could accuse you of failing to meet the professional standard of care required by your profession. They could see you as responsible for errors of others that occurred under your direction. Whether the accusations are justified or not, if you are served with a civil claim, you’ll have legal costs. When coverage is triggered under your Construction Professional Liability Insurance, these expenses will be covered.
Unfortunately, standard Construction or Builder’s Risk Insurance and Commercial General Liability Insurance policies don’t cover financial losses resulting from service-based or advice-based claims causing financial loss. Without Professional Liability Insurance, you or your business could be held responsible for expensive litigation fees – even if you’re not found legally liable
Fortunately, EasyCover offers Construction Professional Liability Insurance (also known as Errors and Omissions insurance or E&O). This coverage goes beyond standard Builder’s Risk Insurance and Commercial General Liability Insurance, offering protection for claims of financial loss due to allegedly faulty advice or a service-based error or omission
EasyCover’s Construction Liability Insurance
With EasyCover, you get the critical coverage you need quickly and easily. We sell insurance directly to you and with our online tool you can purchase a policy in less than 5 minutes.
Step 1: Enter your information for your free Construction Professional Liability quote.
Step 2: Select the policy features and limits that works for you.
Step 3: Pay online and receive your policy documents.
Our coverage is comprehensive and affordable. Work with confidence knowing you’re covered by EasyCover Canada. You can protect yourself, your business, and your finances with Construction Professional Liability Insurance.
What is covered by EasyCover’s Professional Liability Insurance for Construction Professionals
If you are sued for financial damage as a result of a mistake, failure to provide proper advice or service, or misrepresentation, your Professional Liability Insurance will cover your legal expenses, so long as you didn’t engage in any deliberate dishonesty, criminal act or fraud. This coverage includes costs associated with judgements, settlements and legal defense. These expenses can be astronomical, making Professional Liability Insurance critical for protecting your financial security as a construction professional.
There are three levels of construction liability insurance coverage offered by EasyCover:
- $1 million
- $2 million
- $3 million
This is the maximum amount you would receive for all professional liability claims you make in the 12-month policy period, including settlement, judgement, and defense costs. Consider any contract requirements as well as your business and industry risks when choosing your level of coverage, including:
- The type of clients you work for
- What industry your clients are in
- The overall value of your projects
- The size of any potential legal claim that could be made against you
Your deductible will vary based on your revenue and applies to each claim. For example, if your deductible was $250 and you had two claims within a policy period, you would pay a total of $500 in deductibles.
Read More:
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What can construction professionals expect from Professional Liability Insurance Coverage ?
Construction Professional Liability Insurance in Action
There are many scenarios where having Construction Professional Liability Insurance comes in handy. Here are a few of the most common claims:
In these scenarios, Construction Professional Liability Insurance would cover your legal costs.
- A sub-contractor fails to deliver on time. If your sub-contractor fails to meet the deadline for their work, the client could hold you responsible for the delay.
- The project exceeds the original estimate. It often happens that a project unexpectedly exceeds the original budget. This could be because of a third-party change or an obstacle encountered in the construction process. A client could hold you liable for the financial loss.
- A staff error. Mistakes happen. If an employee under your supervisions installs a component of the project incorrectly, you could be held liable for the error.
How to Manage Your Risk as A Construction Professional
While Professional Liability Insurance protects construction professionals, it’s always best to avoid getting sued in the first place. Employing good risk management strategies will help keep your insurance premiums down and avoid the stress of litigation. Here are some tips to mitigate your risks as a construction professional:
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Communication
Clear and direct communication is so important. Ensure you communicate with your clients and subcontractors regularly and openly. Often, claims arise because a client had no idea there were any problems and are surprised by a financial loss. Subcontractors need to be properly managed and encouraged to communicate any potential issues. Ensure there is regular communication about all aspects of the project’s feasibility, design, and funding.
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Record Keeping
Keeping accurate records is critical. Contracts, receipts and communications should all be documented. Verbal conversations should be confirmed with a follow-up email or correspondence. This process assists with tracking project goals and procedures as well as provides potential defence evidence against errors and omissions claims.You should also be protecting your digital records by regularly backing up all data on computer systems and phones.
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Contracts
Clear, properly drafted contracts can help to manage all parties’ expectations and help protect you. Construction contracts should address such issues as delays and additional costs and outline each parties’ roles and responsibilities.
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Quality Control
Make sure you have properly vetting all subcontractors. Choosing competent subcontractors will minimize the likelihood of mistakes or delays. Use best practices for quality control and safety processes, including regular professional inspections of all work over and above the regulatory minimum requirements.Mistakes happen. Delays may be inevitable, especially with construction projects. Using best practices and proper risk management can prevent or mitigate many losses.
Construction Professions Covered
EasyCover offers liability insurance for many different construction professionals, including:
- Architects
- Architectural Technologist
- Contracts Manager
- Construction Safety Contractors
- Document Control
- Electrical Engineers
- Fire Safety Auditors
- Health and Safety Consultants
- Maintenance Managers
- Operations Managers
- Planning Engineers
- Project Managers
- Site Engineers
- Technical Engineers
Protect yourself from the unexpected.
Get Construction Liability Insurance from EasyCover today.
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