Window Cleaning insurance – what kind and at what cost

Whenever you budget the expenses of your business, Window Cleaning 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 liability insurance and all the other types of insurance we will tell you about, you can protect your business and yourself in case something unforeseen happens.

Like any business owner, for your Window Cleaning enterprise, you must consider how much financial danger you are taking on.

If your Window Cleaning business runs without proper insurance, you are taking an enormous chance not just of losing some money but of a final wipe-out.

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

Window Cleaning Insurance

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

The question is, can you afford to NOT have insurance for your Window Cleaning business?

What this means, for any Window Cleaning business owner, is that if some person 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 Window Cleaning business is not harbored by laws in the same way as states are, where legislation 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 judge can award in any case against the state.

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

When you are running your Window Cleaning operations, you can’t deny responsibility for the outcomes of your actions.

Even more importantly, unless you have spent up-front the money necessary to have your business running as a corporation, all of that liability belongs to you as an individual.

What does Window Cleaning insurance protect you from?

For your Window Cleaning business, the most important sorts of insurance are designed to cover the risks to your business from accidents, from unexpected events, and from mistakes.

In addition there are some mandatory kinds of insurance that various states require.

In the next few paragraphs, we will outline the most important points any Window Cleaning business owner should know when negotiating the insurance needed.

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

Liability insurance

General liability insurance

Any Window Cleaning business is dealing directly with other people, and that means you generally have the danger that some accident can happen to them personally or else something of theirs can be ruined.

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

General liability insurance policy for your Window Cleaning business covers you against claims coming from injury to customers or damage to their property.

It protects your Window Cleaning business from the claims themselves and in addition 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 require proper liability insurance.

The normal level of general liability insurance for your Window Cleaning business would be with a upper limit of $1 million for a single claim 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 Window Cleaning insurance operations.

Professional liability insurance for your Window Cleaning business

In the event where a client alleges some negligence, errors, or omissions in how you conducted your Window Cleaning business for them, you can quickly face a court case.

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

Most small Window Cleaning business should have enough professional liability insurance to cover a single claim of $25,000, with annual cover of $50,000.

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

Product liability insurance

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

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

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

To cover yourself against any following lawsuit, you need Product liability insurance for Window Cleaning

Only you can know exactly how much insurance you should get.

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

Commercial insurance

Commercial vehicle insurance for your Window Cleaning business

Take care! – most policies for private vehicle insurance do not cover any event like theft or accidental damage when the vehicle is being used for business purposes.

The best 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 insure the value of any vehicle in case of accident, malicious damage, fire, or theft.

In addition, in case of any accident, the truck itself, the content and any legal bills, medical expenses, and property damage is guaranteed if your truck is involved in a crash.

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

The wanted value of the insurance is worked-out for the depreciated value of the vehicle, and your intended level of cover of contents. 

Tools and Equipment insurance

Since your Window Cleaning business needs specific and costly equipment, you know how much it can cost to replace it in case of any damage, loss, or theft.

The gear may be subject to malicious damage, deliberate fire, theft, other such unexpected acts.

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

Unless you can afford to immediately replace such specialized gear quickly out of your own pocket, you should have full-level equipment insurance so that you can immediately buy whatever needed to keep your Window Cleaning business running.

It is difficult to advise how much equipment insurance you need – it’s really dependent on how much you have invested in your Window Cleaning business’ equipment.

Commercial Property insurance

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

If you own the space, you probably have a substantial capital investment, along with a big liability if there’s a mortgage.

Your physical building location should carry insurance coverage for the value of the premises and contents against accidental occurrences like fire and storms, and against deliberate damages like theft and vandalism.

If your Window Cleaning business works in areas of high risk, like Florida or Georgia, additional coverage may be needed for earthquakes and hurricanes or tornadoes.

In other states like Illinois, where extreme cold snaps can cause damage to outer coverings of Window Cleaning business premises, there is a need for more additional cover than in warmer climes.

Although the level of cover depends mainly 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 Window Cleaning insurance section below to give some indication of the average prices per million dollars of property insurance for your Window Cleaning business.

Temporary insurance by month, week or day for your Window Cleaning business

Is your Window Cleaning business working part-time or casually, or is the level of business variable?

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

By only paying for that period of cover, you will save by having lower premiums but still having the same risk cover.

The essential feature of short-term insurance is that you purchase the cover for a defined period – a specific 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 higher 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 Window Cleaning business

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

A BOP merges 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 mostly the right choice for small and medium-sized Window Cleaning 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 dictate whether you are allowed to take out BOP cover.

The usual business that is eligible for a BOP policy must have no more than one hundred employees, and not more than five million dollars in annual revenue.

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

Workers Compensation insurance for your Window Cleaning business employees

In most states, it is mandatory to have workers compensation insurance when your Window Cleaning business has one or more employees.

Workers compensation insurance covers the business against any costs that arise if an employee 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 regulations in this regard can leave you as the employer obliged to pay penalties levied by the states.

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

In these states, you may not get your workers compensation obligations from private insurance corporations.

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

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

Average costs of these types of insurance

Although every Window Cleaning insurance requirement is unique, there are enough examples of standard quotes from insurance companies for us to give appropriate guidelines, including what are the cheapest rates offered.

Of course, you should always check with an insurance representative what’s relevant for your business.

The list below is of annual premiums we have collected for the main types of insurance your Window Cleaning businesses needs.

Types of insurance Price range
Commercial insurance $988 – $2435
Equipment insurance $406 – $1351
General liability insurance $688 – $926
Public liability insurance $274 – $797
Product liability insurance $205 – $523
Commercial vehicle insurance $1933 – $2858

Cost of insurance for your Window Cleaning operations depends on many different factors.

We have calculated these figures for small self-employed Window Cleaning businesses.

In larger states like Texas, premiums are generally about 20%-30% higher than national averages, but in smaller states like Utah, they can be about 20%-30% less.

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

You should discuss 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 reliable source of information is the local Better Business Bureau in your suburb.

FAQ

What is small business insurance for Window Cleaning operations?

This is an umbrella term used to describe standard insurance policies designed to protect Window Cleaning business owners from risks like bodily injury, property damage, claims of negligence.

Does my Window Cleaning business have to have insurance?

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

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

What does a small Window Cleaning business insurance policy cover?

Liability insurance provides protection against lawsuits or claims filed by a client for bodily injury, property damage, or negligence.

The precise cover will vary based on your own operations.

See the table in the costing section above for average prices of the most common policies for Window Cleaning insurance.

How much will Window Cleaning business insurance cost?

On top of 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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