Insurance question

[ArnoldFarms]

Hey everyone,  well I've been down with the worst sinus infection I've ever had so I haven't got to even run my new lt40 :(.  But it has allowed me to work on ther things like insurance.  My ins. company said it's to risky to insure!  (What the Heck is that all about).  My question is what do you portable and stationary guys pay for insurance.  I want liability and theft coverage.  I may have to go outside of my traditional ins. company. Any suggestions who has reasonable coverage for a reasonable cost??

[Shotgun]

Look at the ads in the left margin of most any page on the Forestry Forum for insurance.

[Ljohnsaw]

By "liability", do you mean when towing and it breaks loose?  If so, you should already have that with your tow vehicle coverage.  And theft - if it is hooked to your TV, then that should cover it.  If it is around your house, I would suspect your homeowners policy would cover that.

I'm basing that on what my pop-up camper would have (talking with my insurance agent).  But I went ahead and insured for comprehensive for $90/year.

[AdamT]

Get ahold of DJ Rossi at Margeson and Associates. They're a sponsor on the left side of the page, and my insurer as well

[Woodkiller]

+1 for DJ. I called him before I left my house with it. Too many variables when you go mobile to NOT get insurance.

[JohnM]

Get ahold of DJ Rossi at Margeson and Associates. They're a sponsor on the left side of the page, and my insurer as well

I'm looking for insurance as well but unfortunately (the last I knew anyway) M&A did not cover us swingmill guys. :(  Need to figure out something soon. :-\

[WDH]

I have been unable to get insurance to protect me from potential accidents of a customer being around the mill and hurting themselves.  You can insure the mill itself, fine, no problem.  The problem is the liability of other people around the mill.

[logboy]

John, I have coverage for my Lucas through another company. I believe M&A directed me to them after they said they couldnt cover me. Shoot me a PM if you want his name and number.

[delvis]

I got insured through one of the local insurance companies where I live and it cost me about $1,000 a year for comprehensive and liability.  Other than a fire or the mill coming away from the truck when towing it, I don't worry much about something happening to the machine but I would never be able to cover the cost of a customer or someone else getting hurt while I am on site.

I feel like a grand is a lot of money but, I have been to every northeast forest products expo in Bangor for as long as I can remember and I have asked about insurance every time I go and it is always about $1,000 a year for liability and comprehensive. 

I would also be ineterested to know what other people pay for insurance because I would like to keep a good policy but save some money if I could.  I am just a part timer in this and it plain doesn't make sense to spend 5-10% of your yearly gross intake on insurance you'll most likely never use.

[wwsjr]

I was very pleased with D J after I lost my mill to fire. Had everything settled within about a week.

[WDH]

I pay $975 for liability for people coming onto the property to buy wood.  Homeowners will not cover that as it is deemed a business.  It covers me if anyone gets hurt while coming onto the property to look at lumber or buy wood.  However, it does not include liability for anyone around the sawmill itself, so I have to keep people away from the sawmill.

[AdamT]

WDH, have you talked with DJ?  I have both liability and comprehensive. The comp was mandatory in order for me to take my mill home since I borrowed the money for it. Liability wasn't much more so I went ahead and put it on in the event someone does get injured working around the mill.

[WDH]

Yes I did.  They will insure the mill itself at my location and on the highway, but will not insure for liability of people who might get hurt around the mill as it operates. 

[AdamT]

Hmmm... I guess I'll have to get out my policy and double check it

[YellowHammer]

As a business owner who had to search for many months to get desired coverage, "liability insurance" means many things, each with different coverages and rules.  There is a huge difference if you are using the mill to make money, or if its a hobby.  My advice is to personally ask your insurance agent to see if you are protected under the specific scenarios that you believe are possible to happen to you and your business specifically. I asked these questions many, many times of many different insurance carriers, and here are the usual answers.  Here is a good link to a previous post on the subject.
https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php/topic,68549.msg1027876.html#msg1027876

"Am I covered if the mill is operating and a bystander gets hurt"  If a "safety zone" with traffic cones or signs was not used to keep bystanders at a distance, it is usually considered negligence by the insurance underwriter and almost always not covered.  The bystander is not educated or trained to be around a sawmill, and nothing was done to protect them.  Remember the signs at the tire store or local garage that says "Due to insurance reasons you are not allowed in the work area"? 

"Am I covered if the mill is operating and a bystander gets hurt by flying debris outside of the marked safety zone?"  Proper precautions were taken, so it is probably not negligence, but still 50/50 if there is coverage.

"Am I covered if a bystander trips on the log loader arms walking by the mill when it is not operating?"  This will depend if you are using the mill as business owner or for hobby purposes.

"Am I covered if someone is loading lumber that they just bought from me and drops a board on their foot?"  Generally not, because that injury is a result of the business product, not the sawmill, and sawmill insurance only covers the sawmill, not anything related to the rest of the business.  This would be covered under a separate business liability policy.

Ask hard questions of your insurance agent.  Don't become someone's winning lottery ticket.

YH

[Sixacresand]

I was enlightened by the fact that the local, high profile insurance companies will not insure a mill.  Nathan Collins at Woodmizer, Newnan, GA referred me to DJ at M&A who has been very helpful with getting my mill insured.