Insurance For Junk Removal Business

Are you getting into the work of hauling away junk? To keep your business running smoothly, you are going to need junk removal business insurance.

In this post, we go over the different types of junk removal insurance, as well as what you need to know about the costs. We also will help you find a competitive quote on junk removal business insurance. But first, let’s explain why it is so important to insure your junk removal business.

Do You Need Special Insurance For A Junk Removal Business?

There are two reasons you need junk removal business insurance. The first is to satisfy legal requirements. The second is to protect your business.

Junk removal requires you to operate a commercial vehicle. You cannot protect that vehicle with your personal auto insurance policy. But you are legally required to be insured on the road. That means that a commercial auto policy is a legal requirement to run a junk removal business.

In addition, if you have any employees, you are legally required to pay for workers’ compensation insurance.

Beyond these legal requirements, there are many things that can potentially go wrong when you are removing junk from a residence or business. 

Junk removal insurance can help you pay for repair costs, medical costs, legal expenses and more if the worst should happen.

Types of Insurance For Junk Removal Company

Here are some common types of junk removal business commercial insurance.

• General liability insurance: This is a type of insurance that is used to protect other people and their property. So, let’s say for example that while hauling junk out of someone’s house, you accidentally scratch their wall. Your general liability insurance would pay for the property damage to the wall, instead of it coming out of your own pocket. It would also pay out if, for instance, you knocked into one of the home’s residents, and injured them, resulting in medical bills. 
  
• Commercial property insurance: While general liability insurance protects other peoples’ property, it does not protect your business’s property. You have to get commercial property insurance to do that as a small business.
  
• Inland marine insurance: When your supplies and equipment are in transit, or when they are being stored away from your own site, you need inland marine coverage to protect them. 
  
• Commercial auto insurance: You can use a commercial auto insurance policy to cover the vehicle you are using to haul the junk. Remember, your personal auto policy will not cover this vehicle and your business needs dedicated commercial auto coverage.
  
• Worker’s compensation insurance: If you have any employees, you need to get workers’ compensation insurance for them. Workers’ comp can pay out to cover medical expenses and bills for missed time at work if one of your employees injured on the job. 
  
• Pollution liability insurance: One specialized type of insurance policy that you should look into when operating a junk removal business is a pollution liability policy. If you spill any waste on other peoples’ property, this policy can help pay for cleanup, damages, and legal expenses.  This is especially important if you move hazardous materials. 

How Does Junk Removal Insurance Cost?

Now you know about the different types of junk removal insurance coverage. But how much does it cost?

For general liability insurance for this industry, we have seen costs ranging from $40 up to $100 per month. Every additional type of policy will add to your monthly costs. So, the more types of policies you buy, the more expensive your overall monthly costs will be.

Here are some additional factors that can raise or lower the costs of insuring a junk removal business:

• Where your business operates: Depending on the geographic area in which you operate, the cost to insure your junk removal business could be higher or lower. 
  
• What you do: The exact nature of your work will impact how much it costs to insure your business. This can include the types of junk you haul (some may be more hazardous than others), as well as the types of sites you remove junk from. For example, it might cost more to insure a junk removal business that works at active construction zones for debris removal than one that removes junk from residences. 
  
• How many vehicles you are insuring: If you have a larger fleet of vehicles hauling junk away from sites, then you will pay more overall to insure them every month. 
  
• Value of commercial property: The value of the tools, supplies and equipment you want to insure will have an effect on the cost of the insurance. The more valuable the equipment is, the higher the cost will be. 
  
• Payroll: If you have employees, the size of your payroll will be one of the factors that determines how much you need to pay for workers’ compensation. A larger payroll will be more expensive to insure. 
  
• Maximum coverage amounts: A lower maximum coverage account means lower monthly premiums, and vice versa. 
  
• Deductibles: A higher deductible means lower monthly premiums. If you lower the deductible, your monthly premiums will be higher. You will have to consider the pros and cons of raising or lowering your deductible and coverage cap and the effects on your monthly premiums to decide what is best in your scenario.
  
• Bundling and discounts: Bundling multiple policies with one carrier may give you a discount. Having no claims on your record and an established history with a carrier also sometimes can result in a discount. There may be other types of discounts offered by some insurance companies as well. 
  
• Underwriting: Since every carrier has a unique underwriting process, this can account for further cost differences between insurance companies.

Where to Get Junk Removal Business Insurance Coverage?

We recommend that junk removal business owners shop for insurance through Tivly. At Tivly, you can quickly and easily compare quotes from top insurance carriers like The Hartford, Liberty Mutual, Progressive, and others. 

Tivly has extensive experience with insurance for junk removal business and companies, and understands how to navigate the process efficiently and find you great rates. Click below to get your personalized quotes.