Any business offering their expertise should seriously consider getting professional liability coverage, commonly known as errors and omissions (E&O) insurance, to safeguard both their company and bottom line from customer claims of late completion, incompleteness or substandard work that could potentially lead to costly lawsuits.
Liability insurance provides coverage against damage claims caused by contractors when performing work on your property and injury claims that may arise should someone get injured while performing duty. It also covers court judgments or medical or funeral expenses should someone become seriously ill while on duty.
That means the general contractor must establish his or her own risk mitigation process that works closely with the construction project manager, conducting risk identification and analysis throughout the duration of the project, while creating a comprehensive risk management plan.
For effective risk management of construction projects, it is necessary to understand all four types of risks inherent within it - these could include financial, contractual, operational and environmental threats that come from both internal and external sources.
To determine how much professional liability coverage you require based on your industry, company size and risk profile it's wise to consult an independent insurance agent who can assist in selecting an adequate amount; limits typically range between $250,000-2 million for professional liability policies.
Professional liability policies fall into two broad categories, claims-made and occurrence coverages. Claims-made policies cover any incidents in which a policy was in force at the time of an event and lawsuit, while an occurrence policy will cover any incidents while the policy was active that qualify for coverage under that particular policy.