Garbage Collection insurance – what kind and at what cost

Whenever you budget the expenses of your business, Garbage Collection insurance must be included in the list because you can’t always know exactly what could happen in the future.

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With the protection provided by general insurance and all the other kinds of insurance we will tell you about, you can protect your business and yourself in case something unwanted happens.

Like any business owner, for your Garbage Collection enterprise, you must consider how much financial risk you are taking on.

If your Garbage Collection business runs without proper insurance, you are taking a giant chance not just of losing some money but of a total wipe-out.

This is because the laws in every state are very strict in enforcing liability on the owners of businesses for the results of their actions. 

Garbage Collection Insurance

In this article, we are giving very general guidelines for startup businesses to highlight what the main kinds of insurance that you need are, and where we can, a rough guide to how much you can expect to pay.

The question is, can you afford to NOT have insurance for your Garbage Collection business?

What this means, for any Garbage Collection business owner, is that if some customer claims that your actions caused them some physical or economic damage, a court can award damages far beyond the total size of your business.

Your Garbage Collection business is not protected by laws in the same way as states are, where edicts can place a “cap” on the maximum level of liability.

In some states, like Texas, there are specific monetary levels that limit the amount a court can award in any case against the state.

In a court case, it’s purely the duty of the jury to award whatever amount they deem appropriate, even sometimes giving a person more than they have sort.

When you are running your Garbage Collection operations, you can’t escape responsibility for the results of your actions.

Even more importantly, unless you have spent beforehand the money necessary to have your business running as an LLC, all of that liability belongs to you as a person.

What does Garbage Collection insurance protect you from?

For your Garbage Collection business, the most important sorts of insurance are meant to cover the risks to your business from accidents, from unexpected events, and from mistakes.

As well there are some legal kinds of insurance that various states require.

In the next few paragraphs, we will explain the most important points any Garbage Collection business owner should know when negotiating the insurance needed.

The main headings of insurance for your Garbage Collection businesses are liability insurance, commercial insurance, asset insurance and workers compensation insurance.

Liability insurance

General liability insurance

Any Garbage Collection business is dealing directly with other people, and that means you generally have the danger that some accident can happen to them themselves or else something of theirs can be spoiled.

In such a case, they can sue you for compensation.

General liability insurance policy for your Garbage Collection business protects you against claims coming from injury to visitors or damage to their property.

It protects your Garbage Collection business from the claims themselves and as well to any resulting court costs and legal fees of the lawsuits.

In many cases, it can also help you to qualify for extra business from city and state organizations, where contracts insist on proper liability insurance.

The normal level of general liability insurance for your Garbage Collection business would be with a boundary of $1 million for a single event and a total of $2 million for the whole year.

See the table in the costing section below for average prices of general liability insurance for your Garbage Collection insurance operations.

Professional liability insurance for your Garbage Collection business

In the event where a client alleges some negligence, errors, or omissions in how you conducted your Garbage Collection business for them, you can quickly be involved in a monetary claim.

Even if the lawsuit against you is ruled in your favor, the cost of defense can be high, and the impact on your reputation can be damaging.

Almost all small Garbage Collection business should have enough professional liability insurance to cover a once-off claim of $25,000, with annual cover of $50,000.

See the table in the cost of Garbage Collection insurance section below for average prices of professional liability insurance for your Garbage Collection operations.

Product liability insurance

Whatever goods you sell or advice you give about the goods, you are running a risk that buyers may claim that what you delivered didn’t meet your description of function, or that your guidance was basically incorrect.

You need to understand the particular laws of product liability in your own state.

For example, in California, all businesses in the supply chain can be held responsible for results caused by products claimed to be defective.

To cover yourself against any possible lawsuit, you need Product liability insurance for Garbage Collection

Only you can determine exactly how much insurance you need.

Best advice is to contact experienced insurance agents, brokers or company representatives for help.

Commercial insurance

Commercial vehicle insurance for your Garbage Collection business

Be careful! – practically all policies for private vehicle insurance do not cover any occurrence like theft or accidental damage when the van is being used for business purposes.

The proper way to make sure that your vehicle is insured for both its own value, and the valuable contents, is by taking out a direct commercial vehicle insurance package.

Commercial truck policies cover the value of any vehicle in case of accident, malicious damage, fire, or theft.

Also, in case of any accident, the van itself, the content and any legal bills, medical expenses, and property damage is guaranteed if your van is involved in a collision.

Most states, other than Virginia and New Hampshire, insist on this type of insurance.

The necessary value of the insurance depends on the depreciated value of the vehicle, and your requested level of cover of contents. 

Tools and Equipment insurance

Since your Garbage Collection business needs specialized and expensive equipment, you will realize how much it can cost to replace it in case of any damage, loss, or theft.

The equipment may be subject to malicious damage, deliberate fire, theft, other such unpredicted acts.

In addition, acts of nature like lightning strikes, hurricanes, earthquakes, and other highly damaging natural events can destroy your whole business in one stroke.

Unless you can afford to immediately replace such specific gear quickly out of your own pocket, you must have full-level equipment insurance so that you can immediately buy any equipment needed to keep your Garbage Collection business running.

It is hard to advise how much equipment insurance you need – it’s really dependent on how much you have invested in your Garbage Collection business’ equipment.

Commercial Property insurance

Any Garbage Collection business that owns or rents space in a building should have a commercial property insurance policy.

If you own the property, you probably have a substantial capital investment, in addition to a big liability if there’s a mortgage.

Your physical building location needs to carry insurance coverage for the value of the premises and contents against unexpected occurrences like fire and storms, and against man-made damages like theft and vandalism.

If your Garbage Collection business works in areas of high risk, like California or South Carolina, supplementary coverage may be needed for earthquakes and hurricanes or tornadoes.

In other states like Washington, where extreme cold snaps can cause damage to outer coverings of Garbage Collection business premises, there is a need for more extra cover than in warmer climes.

Although the level of cover depends entirely on the value of the property, it’s not possible to say what cover your need, but we have been able in the table in the cost of Garbage Collection insurance section below to give some estimate of the average prices per million dollars of property insurance for your Garbage Collection business.

Temporary insurance by month, week or day for your Garbage Collection business

Is your Garbage Collection business working part-time or casually, or is the level of business fluctuating?

Using short-term insurance makes perfect sense. Business insurance by the month, day, or week – temporary insurance for Garbage Collection – are special policies where you can cover a nominated period when you want to be covered.

By only paying for that period of cover, you will save by having less premiums but still having adequate risk cover.

The key feature of short-term insurance is that you purchase the cover for a defined period – a designated date, or a week or month starting on a specific date, for example for 30 days beginning on the specified date.

When you are expecting periods of better business activity, get the existing cover improved.

Talk to your insurance agent, broker or the company’s representatives to see what options you have.

Business Owners Policy BOP for your Garbage Collection business

You have the choice to combine most of the important kinds of small business insurance in one policy that is known as the business owner’s policy – BOP.

A BOP integrates commercial property and public liability insurance by amalgamating these coverages into one insurance policy, which can save you money.

BOP insurance will shield you if any claims of injury or property damage are made.

It is often the right choice for small and medium-sized Garbage Collection businesses, such as yours.

There are some limits that will dictate whether BOP is suitable for your own business.

BOPs cannot cover your professional liability or commercial vehicle cover.

Also, the size of your business will rule whether you are permitted to take out BOP cover.

The typical business that is allowed to take a BOP policy must have less than one hundred employees, and under five million dollars in annual turnover.

Plus, you must separately take out the required worker’s compensation, health and disability insurance as determined for your state.

Workers Compensation insurance for your Garbage Collection business employees

In many states, it is mandatory to have workers compensation insurance when your Garbage Collection business has one or more employees.

Workers compensation insurance covers the business against any costs that arise if a worker experiences an injury or becomes sick as a result of work.

The benefits cover medical expenses, death benefits, lost wages, and vocational rehabilitation.

Failure to meet a state’s requirements in this regard can leave you as the employer having to pay penalties levied by the states.

Some states, such as North Dakota, Ohio, Washington, West Virginia, and Wyoming only permit coverage from the government-run monopoly state funds.

In these states, you can’t get your workers compensation obligations from private insurance companies.

Workers compensation premiums are worked out based on the employee’s pay, and usually come out at around $1.00 per $100 per month.

However, you must see the relevant authorities in your state.

Average costs of these types of insurance

Although every Garbage Collection insurance level is unique, there are enough examples of average quotes from insurance companies for us to give approximate guidelines, including what are the cheapest rates offered.

Of course, you should always check with a broker what’s relevant for your business.

The list below is of annual premiums we have gathered for the main types of insurance your Garbage Collection businesses needs.

Types of insurance Price range
Commercial vehicle insurance $1619 – $3119
General liability insurance $673 – $1016
Commercial insurance $1026 – $2262
Public liability insurance $368 – $677
Product liability insurance $205 – $586
Equipment insurance $396 – $1139

Cost of insurance for your Garbage Collection operations depends on many different factors.

We have calculated these figures for small independent Garbage Collection businesses.

In larger states like California, premiums are generally about 20%-30% higher than national averages, but in smaller states like Oregon, they usually are about 20%-30% less.

The location and size and type of your Garbage Collection business can have a big effect on the cost of different policies.

You should consult with professional insurance agents and brokers, or insurance company representatives.

Also you can let the internet do the work for you by enquiring about insurance companies near where your business is located.

Another good source of information is the local Better Business Bureau in your city.

FAQ

What is small business insurance for Garbage Collection operations?

This is a wide term used to describe standard insurance policies designed to protect Garbage Collection business owners from risks like bodily injury, property damage, claims of negligence.

Does my Garbage Collection business have to have insurance?

Some of the types of insurance are not mandatory for you to operate your business, but they can protect you from risks in your business operations.

Certain other forms are required by state law, such as workers compensation and vehicle insurance.

What does a small Garbage Collection business insurance policy cover?

Liability insurance provides coverage against lawsuits or claims filed by a third-party for bodily injury, property damage, or negligence.

The specific cover will vary based on your own operations.

See the table in the costing section above for average prices of the recommended policies for Garbage Collection insurance.

How much will Garbage Collection business insurance cost?

In addition to the size of the business, several other factors, such as location and claims history, are used to determine your policy’s cost.

You should talk to professional insurance agents and brokers, or insurance company representatives.

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