Congratulations on your new contractor’s license, now ready, set next steps.
- Licensed
- Bonded
- Insured …
- But what does that mean?
We have all heard the terms licensed, bonded and insured. Sounds great right? You are ready to take on the whatever new job comes your way. You are the Best General Contractor in town, every realtor, homebuyer, investor, and subcontractor are ready to work with you because you are licensed, bonded and insured!!
You get your first job and it is a massive remodel, you could not be more pleased. You are the plumber that scored your first job right out of the gate, remodeling a 10,000 sqft home with 4.5 baths. The homeowner wanting all bathrooms remodeled, from top to bottom. It is enough to keep you going for the next 4 months and then some.
You a few months later complete your masterpiece and have done such a good job the GC on the job has offered you the next remodel they are working on, with promises to be the go to plumber on all the remodels.
Life could not be better, then you receive a phone call from your GC you work with asking about your insurance and if you have “Completed operations” as part of your insurance policy and if you could have your agent send over a copy to them right away. The massive remodel you did a few months ago is having some plumbing issues and it looks like you may have installed a toilet incorrectly and it has now caused tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of damage to the homeowner.
You tell the GC you will get back with him right away. Problem is you decided that the insurance the academy offer was better then the quote you got from your buddy who sells commercial insurance for a living because it was cheaper, and the academy said it was what you needed to have a valid contractor’s license. You finally find a copy of your policy and after spending 10 minutes looking through the policy, you are completely confused. You decide to email a copy to your buddy, asking for a favor to look over your policy for “Completed Operations,” coverage.
After looking over the policy you are told, “Bad news, you don’t have “Completed Operations Coverage”. What this means”? Your buddy tells you to sit down and explains why it is so important to have this endorsement as a contractor.
What is “Completed Operations?”
Completed operations insurance covers a contractor’s liability for property damage or injuries to a third party once contracted operations cease. Construction products and the manufacturing of consumer goods and medicines will usually carry completed operations insurance.
How long does “Completed Operations” last?
Up to 10 years
*One of the regional school system’s insurance requirements as the school’s owner is that the general contractor must purchase completed operations coverage for a period of 10 years beginning after the project is completed
