Landscaping Insurance in Maine
Allen/Freeman/McDonnell Agency
Landscaping Insurance
- What Is It?
- Who Needs It?
- Coverages Offered
Landscape insurance is a specialized solution for landscapers and lawn care businesses. Policies may help protect equipment, vehicles, and more.
- Individuals mowing yards on their own
- Residential landscapers
- Commercial landscapers
- General Liability Coverage
- Errors and Omissions Coverage (E&O
- Product Liability Coverage
What is landscaping insurance?
Running a landscaping business can require significant investment in equipment and vehicles, and it’s important to protect such investments when possible. Landscape insurance may help landscapers in Maine protect their assets and their business.
Landscape insurance is a specialized solution for landscapers and lawn care businesses. Policies may help protect equipment, vehicles, and more.
What Maine businesses need to have lawn care insurance?
Lawn care insurance policies are generally the right choice for those offering lawn care and/or landscaping services. Most doing this work ought to have coverage. For example, all of the following might want to purchase a policy:
- Individuals mowing yards on their own
- Residential landscapers
- Commercial landscapers
- Seasonal landscapers
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Should individuals who mow yards get lawn care insurance?
Whether mowing other people’s yards calls for a lawn care insurance policy depends.
Individuals who mow a friend’s, neighbor’s, or family member’s yard as a favor generally don’t need lawn care insurance. Most homeowners policies have personal liability coverage that would apply in such cases.
Individuals may need a lawn care policy if they charge for mowing, regardless of whether it’s someone they know who pays. Sometimes sufficient protection is available through a homeowner’s personal liability coverage, but other times a lawn care policy is needed in these situations.
What insurance protections should landscapers get?
Landscaping and lawn care policies can come with a variety of liability and property coverages, many of which may be important depending on the situation.
Liability coverages are primarily for situations where a landscaper could be sued for unintentionally causing someone else harm. Some liability protections that might be important to have are:
- General Liability Coverage: Could cover common accidents (excluding auto accidents) for which a landscaping or lawn care business is held responsible.
- Errors and Omissions Coverage (E&O): Could cover mistakes made while advising customers on the planning or management of their landscaping features.
- Product Liability Coverage: Could cover harm that’s caused by the pesticides, fertilizers, herbicides, or other treatments that a landscaper uses.
- Environmental Liability Coverage: Could cover environmental damage that’s caused by leaks, spills, or over-application of the chemicals a landscaper uses.
- Commercial Auto Coverage: Could cover accidents and other incidents involving a landscaper’s commercial trucks and vans.
- Commercial Umbrella Coverage: Could provide additional coverage against costly liability lawsuits.
Property coverages are mainly for situations where a landscaper’s assets could be damaged or lost. Some different property protections that might be needed for different assets include:
- Commercial Building Coverage: Might insure an office building, garage, or storage facility owned by a landscaping or lawn care business.
- Commercial Contents Coverage: Might insure landscaping and lawn care equipment at an owned facility, including lifts, chippers, mowers, trimmers, spreaders, as well as plants and seeds.
- Inland Marine Coverage: Might insure landscaping equipment, chemical treatments, seeds, and plants during transportation to and from customers’ locations.
- Equipment Breakdown Coverage: Might insure essential landscaping equipment, such as lifts, chippers, and commercial mowers, in case of breakdown.
Are landscaping policies able to cover snow plowing?
Many landscaping policies can be customized so that they include coverage for snow plowing. Insurance companies understand that seasonal landscapers often plow during the winter.
An insurance agent who specializes in landscaping policies should be able to find a solution that covers both mowing and plowing.
Are landscaping policies able to cover architectural landscaping design?
Whether a landscaping policy is able to cover architectural landscaping services depends largely on the policy’s errors and omissions coverage. Landscape architects should check each of a policy’s coverages with a knowledgeable agent. Checking E&O is especially important, though, since landscape architects regularly advise clients on major projects.
Where can businesses in Maine find landscaping insurance?
If you’re a landscaper in Maine and need insurance, reach out to the independent insurance agents at Allen Freeman McDonnell Agency. Our agents will work with you to identify coverage needs, and then check what insurance companies offer landscaping insurance policies that meet your needs well. We can show you the best policies regardless of what company offers them since we’re an independent agency. Together, we can make sure your business is well-insured.
