Insurance - what do you recommend?

[nolanola]

Hello Forum,
We are in the process of updating our company insurance and wanted to see how other companies have been faring on this front.

We currently have a small team with some W2 and some 1099 workers.
We have good enough insurance to work with nation wide companies - $1M coverage for most things.
We have 2 work vehicles and a 39' towable boom lift trailer.

We currently feel like we might be getting hosed a bit for insurance costs. Its by far our highest bill.
Are there any insurance companies that you all recommend or think we should avoid? Good / bad experiences?

Not sure where to start looking for answers.

 

[Notarealsignguy]

Go to a broker and they will shop it for you and make sure you get what you need

 

[WYLDGFI]

I agree with NSG above...get a broker and go thru a coverages review. We did that here and saved $5k annually.

 

[nolanola]

We already work through a broker and unfortunately their service is not what it used to be since they were bought out about a year ago.
Does anyone know about switching brokers while maybe maintaining insurance?
I wouldn't mind the cost as much if there were quick responses to simple requests.

 

[Notarealsignguy]

You just call another broker, tell them what you want and when your policy ends. They may ask for a copy of your current policy so they can quote equal coverage. I think that slow response to non-critical things is kinda the nature of the beast with insurance brokers. It seems like a very busy job with tons of customers.

 

[signage]

cheapest insurance and good attorney like "Deuwy, Cheatem and Howe"

 

[Evan Gillette]

From my experience the last couple years dealing with similar questions I would get ahold of a broker who is experienced with BOP (business owner policy) or TPP (tailored protection policy). The recommended coverage really depends a lot on who you trust, what you do most, and what risk you want to take. You can obviously over insure, but you will also over pay. It sounds like you would be doing the typical small sign shop mix of business and require enough coverage to work as a sub for contactors and national companies. I would start with the COI requirements for those jobs that you would like to do and then work with the broker to add any applicable coverage for equipment, inventory, facilities, vehicles/lifts, and any other higher risk activities you might do on a regular basis (for example wrapping exotic cars or putting graphics on sky scrapers).

The main thing is to walk your broker through the type of work you do MOST, you might fall more into a "print shop" category or an "electric sign manufacturer" and see where you get the best price for the coverage.

One more thing, have the broker look at specific things that are NOT covered by a policy, for example some policies might not cover claims for work done "above the second floor" or silly things like that.

 

[Jester]

Trade groups you belong to might have some recommendations for knowledgeable brokers, or even co-op insurance programs.