As an insurance agent that specializes in the landscaping industry, I am often asked about the importance of equipment floater insurance. "Why can landscape or lawn care equipment not be covered by regular property insurance or other coverage?"
Here are three facts to consider about your operations in the lawn care business:
1. Lawn Mowers and other equipment travel to the properties of multiple clients each day.
2. This equipment therefore has a higher risk of not only theft but other causes of loss and damage.
3. This equipment also includes some of the most valuable assets of your landscaping and lawn care business.There are many insurance implications to this information.
Industrial Lawn Mowers
A typical property insurance policy will only cover your equipment while it is in your office building or other place of storage. A commercial auto policy may cover damage to your trailers, but it will not protect your equipment while on the trailer. To protect this equipment with insurance, a policy needs to be written and rated to cover valuable items while away from the premises of a building.
Equipment floater insurance is a type of inland marine policy. It is specifically designed to cover your lawn care equipment and tools while located anywhere in the broad coverage territory. Virtually any type of mobile articles, tools, machinery, and equipment (other than motor vehicles designed for highway use) can be insured under an equipment floater policy.
The price of equipment floater insurance is a good value for lawn care businesses with annual premium rates ranging from one to four percent of the total value of the insured equipment. Some insurance carriers also provide discounts when this coverage is packaged into one insurance policy with general liability or commercial auto coverages. Other premium discounts may be available for safe storage techniques, theft deterrent systems, claims history, and equipment maintenance procedures.