Fully insured???

redoakneck · Sep 16, 2018

I have been cutting trees down for friends and family for 15 years. Word has gotten around that I do good work.

Now it has gotten to the point I have strangers wanting work done.

I have no insurance and I'm not a business.

How does one go about getting insurance and how much does it usually cost???

Any advice is greatly appreciated!!!

redoakneck · Sep 17, 2018

Anyone???

Dub11 · Sep 17, 2018

@teacherman can you give some insight please?

huskihl · Sep 17, 2018

I have a blanket liability policy through my local insurance agent. There's a few sizes of coverage and you pick one. Mine covers me for $1m and is I believe $750 per year.

redoakneck · Sep 17, 2018

Thanks, I really appreciate the input

Ryan Browne · Sep 17, 2018

Probably should start with calling your insurance agent. They'll be able to give you some pricing options. One option may be to be insured as a landscaper, though they need to know that you're doing tree work. An agent would be able to give you the pros and cons of being an LLC, at least in the insurance capacity.

An LLC is a popular option, and you can set one up yourself. Being a sole proprietor works too. Unless an LLC is properly set up and maintained, it doesn't actually do much to guard your assets. And even if it is set up right, if you do something worth being sued over, expect a lawsuit against yourself and the llc. Having a tax ID number is one nice thing about starting an LLC or a different corporation. as sole proprietor you will find yourself writing your SSN on a lot of paperwork.

teacherman · Sep 17, 2018

I just started a tree business, and a condition of a city license was that I be insured for professional liability. I contacted my American Family agent, who put the request out on the brokerage site for bids. Came back with one for 625.00/year that covers only me. If I have a helper he needs his own insurance. But if I buy insurance for another person, it's hard not to call him an employee for tax purposes and withholding, work comp, and all the rest. Right now I'm in limbo land with that part. We'll have to see how and if it grows, I guess. Good luck!

redoakneck · Sep 18, 2018

I'm Stihl researching, now I have some numbers and a starting point!!!

Dub11 · Sep 18, 2018

teacherman said:
I just started a tree business, and a condition of a city license was that I be insured for professional liability. I contacted my American Family agent, who put the request out on the brokerage site for bids. Came back with one for 625.00/year that covers only me. If I have a helper he needs his own insurance. But if I buy insurance for another person, it's hard not to call him an employee for tax purposes and withholding, work comp, and all the rest. Right now I'm in limbo land with that part. We'll have to see how and if it grows, I guess. Good luck!

Would a "subcontractor" still be considered an employee?

hseII · Sep 18, 2018

redoakneck said:
I have been cutting trees down for friends and family for 15 years. Word has gotten around that I do good work.

Now it has gotten to the point I have strangers wanting work done.

I have no insurance and I'm not a business.

How does one go about getting insurance and how much does it usually cost???

Any advice is greatly appreciated!!!

Mine was $2,900 the first year & after that is based on your gross & Your damages.

Dub11 · Sep 18, 2018

hseII said:
Mine was $2,900 the first year & after that is based on your gross & Your damages.

Wow that's up there. Do you have alot of equipment or have employees?

Ryan Browne · Sep 18, 2018

Dub11 said:
Would a "subcontractor" still be considered an employee?

No. Though if something goes wrong that distinction will be scrutinized. Typically i think of a subcontractor as another person or business tasked with an entire part of the job, like hiring another party with a stump grinder to come in and grind stumps after you remove the trees. An independent contractor might be more like an employee, and work side by side with you. In either case though, if one of them is negligent or gets hurt on the job you may find yourself doing a lot of paperwork and maybe writing some checks that you don't want to.

Hiring someone as an independent contractor can be a good tool, and if everything goes well it can be a win win for everyone, but you need to familiarize yourself with the distinction between a contractor and an employee. In short, an employee is someone you tell when to show up and leave, and someone you watch over and tell them how to do their job. A contractor either gets the job done within your specifications and gets paid or doesn't. There's more to it than that, but that's kinda the basics. If you're paying someone as a contractor but treating them as an employee you may encounter problems.

redoakneck · Sep 18, 2018

I don't think sub contractors are employees, but I don't know for sure???

Ryan Browne · Sep 18, 2018

redoakneck said:
I don't think sub contractors are employees, but I don't know for sure???

They aren't. Unless someone wants to prove otherwise. If you're paying someone as an independent contractor (I don't know the distinction if any between independent contractor and subcontractor) and they get hurt, their attorney may sue you and claim you were treating them as an employee and that they should have been entitled to workers comp, etc.

Skeans1 · Sep 18, 2018

This might help
https://www.upcounsel.com/subcontractor-vs-independent-contractor

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isaaccarlson · Oct 17, 2018

The last time i priced insurance it was about $500 for the year.

Willard · Oct 17, 2018

I solo operate my tree service doing tree removal, stump removal and pruning with $ 2 million liability.
Here in Manitoba you can't operate for profit pruning or trimming trees (diease issues) without a government license along with $2 mil insurance.
But you can remove trees without insurance or license at your own risk.
All commercial jobs require workers on site to have workers compensation insurance.

For $2 K I'm insured for $2 mil plus all my equipment is also insured in that package.
My pickup is ensured for an additional $2K.

Tjstampa · Jan 17, 2019

If you direct a subcontractor at all you will be deemed an employer and need to pay employment taxes and workers comp.

hseII · Aug 6, 2019

Dub11 said:
Wow that's up there. Do you have alot of equipment or have employees?

Not a lot.

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Fully insured???

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