Do you need insurance for your excavators? The answer is yes. Why? Here’s the answer; diggers/excavators are dangerous. In fact, 346 excavator-related deaths were recorded between 1992 - 2000 by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health . Furthermore, a review the agency conducted in 2000 - 2001 showed that deaths were mainly caused by being hit by the machine itself or through its quick disconnect buckets.
In addition, the cost of injuries caused by excavators tallied at $1,100 on average for each worker. But this isn’t the overall picture. If we take a further look, we’ll see that injuries requiring professional medical service costs $42,000 and in case of death, the costs increase up to $1 million.
If you want to make sure that there isn’t a gaping hole in your wallet when something bad happens, get an excavator insurance a.k.a digger insurance.
This guide will cover everything that you need to know about getting your hands on heavy equipment insurance for an excavator you’re renting or owning. If you’re interested in doing an excavator insurance online quote comparison, just click the 'Get Quotes' button at any time, complete the questionnaire and you'll receive custom quotes from the best excavator insurance companies in the market online.
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Excavator liability insurance shields from claims filed against you by third parties. This can include the developer running the project, the business or person who owns the land that you’re working on, or even casual strangers.
Liability coverage for excavators can be classified as general liability insurance and public liability insurance
Similar to bulldozers and dump trucks, excavators are very dangerous. Excavators can cause accidents and those who get involved rarely survive without a scratch. This is why companies always include general liability coverage in their specialized excavators insurance.
General liability insurance for excavators will help if your unit causes damage while being used. The language of this small business excavation insurance covers the following perils:
Third-party personal injuries-General liability insurance covers costs if your excavator overruns a person or hits someone with its bucket or arm. If a claim is filed, this excavation liability insurance will take care of the aggrieved person’s medical expenses
Third-party property damage-Your excavator is also covered by general liability insurance if it causes an accident that results in the possessions of third parties incurring damage. If a person files a claim, this excavating insurance will reimburse the value of the damaged property
Legal expenses-In personal injury claims and property damage claims, general liability insurance takes care of your attorney fees, administrative costs, and the settlements to be given if ever aggrieved third parties win the lawsuit
Understand that general liability insurance for excavator is very crucial not only as a protection but as a tool to scale your business. Most won’t work with you if you can’t show proof that you have this coverage ready and waiting.
Public liability insurance is an alternative to general liability insurance. This type of excavator company insurance has a more limited scope. Excavator public liability insurance only covers personal injury claims or property damage claims. Unlike general liability, this commercial excavators coverage can’t be added with optional business insurance policies.
An excavator hire insurance policy will reimburse the losses of the property owner if an excavator you’re renting or leasing becomes lost or damaged due to fire, theft, vandalism, and other covered perils.
Excavation contractors insurance policy is a tailored coverage for businesses that provide excavation services for different ventures in the construction industry. Included in this specialized insurance plan are numerous types of business insurance for excavation contractors, namely:
General liability insurance
Professional liability insurance
Workers compensation insurance
Commercial property insurance
General liability insurance for excavation contractors covers personal injury claims and property damage claims third parties file. Moreover, it provides further protection against other exposures through the following optional coverages:
Advertising injury coverage-Advertising injury coverage is an optional insurance for excavation that will cover settlements, administrative costs, and other legal expenses in slander, libel, and copyright infringement claims filed against you as an excavator contractor
Rented premises liability coverage-This optional insurance for excavation business, which you can add to general liability insurance, functions to provide reimbursements to the property owner if the space you’re renting becomes damaged due to a fire
Products and completed operations coverage-When the service you completely delivered caused personal injuries or property damage, this optional excavation contractor insurance will cover medical expenses, reimbursements, as well as legal defense costs if a claim is filed
As a contractor, you’re surely working with operators hired to take charge of the excavators owned by your business. Such employees might commit a mistake or be negligent while operating a unit. As a result, accidents might happen and affected parties will sustain economic or financial losses.
This excavation business insurance provides help in such a situation. Professional liability insurance will cover attorney fees, settlements, administrative costs, and other related expenses if aggrieved third parties, who suffered economic or financial losses due to your excavator, sues for:
Negligence
Misrepresentation
Violation of good faith
Violation of fair dealing
Breach of confidentiality
Missed deadlines
Inaccurate advice
Other causes of action considered errors and omissions
Note that excavation insurance companies underwrite professional liability insurance as a claims-made policy or occurrence policy.
Your excavator insurance quote will offer commercial property insurance. Commercial property insurance functions to cover tangible business assets. When bought as a basic business policy, commercial property insurance provides coverage for:
Building damage-Commercial property insurance will take care of repair expenses if your business’s covered building sustains damage due to fire, theft, vandalism, and other covered perils.
Building destruction-If your business’s covered building is destroyed by fire or extreme weather, commercial property insurance provides the money you can use to cover reconstruction costs
Equipment breakdown insurance is very useful in your work as an excavator contractor. This will recoup losses if a covered excavator sustains damage while being used. The theft of the entire unit or its parts is also covered. Note that equipment breakdown coverage is an automatic inclusion in excavator hire insurance policies. Another thing, this coverage isn’t only useful for excavators but also other equipment such as skid steers and dump trucks too.
Workers compensation insurance is a coverage for your excavators’ operators. This will cover expenses if ever they sustain a work-related injury or disease. Particular things covered are:
Surgeries, therapies, and other medical treatments procedures
Medication
Hospitalization
Lost income compensation
Rehabilitation
Death benefits
Mini digger insurance is a specialized coverage for those using small excavators for projects. Inclusions in tailored mini excavator insurance are general liability, equipment breakdown, and theft insurance.
This micro digger insurance covers expenses if a third party sues you for personal injuries or property damage. Unlike the general liability insurance for excavators, the general liability insurance for micro-diggers can have an additional equipment and tools coverage, depending on the carrier that underwrites it.
You can cover your micro digger with equipment breakdown insurance. This cover costs if the micro digger sustains damage due to fire, usage, theft, and other covered perils. Note that, depending on the carrier underwriting it, equipment breakdown insurance can provide a replacement if your micro digger gets damaged or stolen and is deemed unusable. Note that equipment breakdown coverage is a common inclusion in tailored forklift insurance.
Mini digger theft insurance kicks in when your mini digger becomes damaged or lost due to theft. This will cover the replacement and labor costs of parts stolen. If ever the thief left off with your digger, theft insurance will refund your loss.
Mini digger hire insurance will cover losses if you need to refund a rented or leased mini digger that got lost or damaged because of theft, fire, vandalism, and other covered perils.
Short term mini digger insurance is a general liability insurance policy you can avail for only hours, weeks, days, or months. Optional policies can be added such as equipment breakdown insurance and theft coverage.
Excavators are different from backhoes though both are related. Backhoes are slightly smaller and can be used for other tasks aside from those which an excavator usually does. And so, you can find insurance companies providing backhoe loader insurance. Inclusions in tailored backhoe insurance are equipment breakdown coverage, commercial property insurance, commercial auto insurance, and general liability insurance.
Excavator insurance cost starts at $83 per month or $996 per year for a $1 million general liability insurance coverage.
Rates depend on your business’ safety record as well as other factors such as the cost of the diggers you’re using, your business size, claims history, location, gross income, and more.
To further answer your query, we’ve compiled the following rates based on an under 3 years old excavator owned by a company that has a stellar safety record:
| Company | Monthly | Yearly | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coverwallet | $80 | $960 | Excavation business insurance online quote comparison |
| Thimble | $90 | $1,080 | On-demand excavation contractor insurance policies |
| Next | $300 | $3,600 | Fast excavation insurance policy |
| JCB Insurance | $375 | $4,500 | Excavator contractors only using JCB units |
| The Hartford | $397 | $4,762 | Excavators looking for a coverage having a waiver of subrogation |
| Caterpillar Insurance | $402 | $4,824 | Tailored coverage for Caterpillar excavators |
| Progressive | $408 | $4,896 | Excavator contractors who already have a commercial auto insurance from Progressive |
| Zurich | $415 | $4,980 | Excavator contractors that rent their units to other businesses |
| State Farm | $419 | $5,028 | Customer service |
| AIG | $444 | $5,328 | Inland marine insurance for excavators |
| Liberty Mutual | $456 | $5,472 | Excavator contractor tools and equipment insurance |
Keep in mind that this digger insurance cost list is only for a full-sized excavator, which is the main reason why you can expect to pay so much for it. If you’re not trying to perform a job that requires a full-sized piece of equipment, you can expect to pay significantly less.
So how much does excavation insurance cost? Carriers determine rates based on the type of project, your location, business history, and more. Excavation insurance rates differ between large contractors and small contractors. But know that small business excavation insurance cost is $84 per month or $1,008 per year for a $1 million general liability insurance for projects. This is just an estimate by the way. Your own excavation insurance cost will be cheaper or more expensive.
Mini excavator insurance cost is determined by a lot of factors. For instance, while machine size is a major determinant of your mini excavator insurance cost, there are also secondary factors, like the decreased probability of an accident happening, and scale of the damage done. Here’s our mini digger insurance cost table showing the rates of the top companies:
| Company | Monthly | Yearly |
|---|---|---|
| The Hartford | $178 | $2,136 |
| Nationwide | $197 | $2,364 |
| Chubb | $205 | $2,460 |
| Progressive | $219 | $2,628 |
| State Farm | $238 | $2,856 |
| Liberty Mutual | $260 | $3,120 |
| Zurich | $276 | $3,312 |
| AIG | $290 | $3,480 |
Mini excavator insurance is usually made part of business owner's policy of construction insurance for subcontractors. You can also choose to get excavation contractors insurance from carriers catering to the needs of large businesses. However, you will only find a few who will approve your insurance application right then and there.
Insuring a backhoe is cheaper than insuring an excavator. Premiums start at $72 per month or $864 per year for a $1 million general liability coverage. But note that depending on how it’s used, rates can be more expensive than usual. When determining backhoe insurance cost, carriers consider the year, make, and model of the backhoe as well as how it’s used.
Bobcats or skid steers are sometimes used in tandem with excavators and mini-diggers. So how much does insurance cost for these machines? Based on our research bobcat insurance cost is $67 per month or $804 per year for a $1 million general liability coverage.
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Nothing makes purchasing insurance faster than when you already know the carriers that provide the most reasonable rates. Here are reviews that talk about excavator insurance top carriers pros, cons, and pricing for a $1 million general liability coverage.
Has terrorism coverage
Get insured, pay premiums, and manage your insurance online
Cancel a policy anytime
Not an insurance company but a broker
CoverWallet is an insurance broker that covers excavators and contractors online. This company sells commercial property insurance and general liability insurance for excavator contractors. Excavators, the machine themselves, can be insured with equipment coverage and other insurance policies that cater to equipment damage. CoverWallet is one of the excavating insurance companies that provide you with a free certificate of insurance.
Best for: Excavation business insurance online quote comparison
Average cost: $80 per month
Our rating: 10/10
Add additional insureds for free
Cheap deductibles
Has an online quotes system but customers buying excavator insurance from Thimble can’t get quoted
Excavator insurance sold is underwritten by a partner
Thimble also provides digger insurance online. However, you must know that the company doesn’t underwrite it. The excavator insurance you’ll get from this company is underwritten by Tivly. Policies you’re sure to avail are general liability, commercial property, professional liability, and commercial umbrella insurance.
Best for: On-demand excavation contractor insurance policies
Average cost: $90 per month
Our rating: 10/10
Live certificate of insurance
10% discount when buying two or more policies from Next
Doesn’t sell stand-alone theft coverage for excavator contractors
Next provides coverage for excavator contractors consisting of general liability insurance, professional liability insurance, tools and equipment insurance, workers compensation insurance, commercial property insurance, and commercial auto insurance. Next is a great option if you’re planning to buy a lot of coverage because it provides 10% if you bundle two or more insurance policies.
Best for: Fast excavation insurance policy
Average cost: $300 per month
Our rating: 9/10
Enjoy a discounted rate if you already have a Progressive commercial auto insurance
Doesn’t have a specialized excavator business insurance policy
Doesn’t sell short term mini digger insurance
Progressive insures excavation businesses through its construction insurance plan. Inclusions are general liability, workers compensation, and commercial auto insurance. Alternatively, you can opt to get a business owner’s policy. If you already have commercial auto insurance from Progressive, you’ll enjoy a discounted rate on excavator business insurance policies.
Best for: Excavator contractors who already have a commercial auto insurance from Progressive
Average cost: $408 per month
Our rating: 9/10
Deductibles for excavator equipment insurance is set at $1,000
Provides coverage for extra costs
Don’t provide generous insurance policies to excavators registered to businesses in the logging industry
Caterpillar does more than just selling excavators; they insure them too! Keep in mind that their policies are only offered in the United States, but they allow you to insure both your equipment and your business before you get started on a job.
In all industries except for logging, Caterpillar insurance offers a relatively low deductible of only $1,000 and they protect you against partial and total equipment losses. They even cover extras that may come into play, like the cost of transporting excavators that have been damaged and renting replacement gear to get the job done.
Best for: Tailored coverage for Caterpillar excavators
Average cost: $402 per month
Our rating: 9/10
Fast to handle claims
Dedicated customer service channels for different complaints and issues
Doesn’t provide excavator insurance online quote; get in touch with an agent
State Farm provides coverage for excavation businesses. However, this depends on the nature of business operations. That said, contact a State Farm agent if your business can be covered because the company doesn't provide an online quote. And if it is, you’ll get to enjoy the protection of commercial property insurance, equipment insurance, general liability insurance, and other policies the company is selling.
Best for: Customer service
Average cost: $419 per month
Our rating: 8/10
Rental reimbursement coverage
Covers repair or replacements of your excavator’s parts
Has fuel coverage for excavators
Equipment insurance for excavators doesn’t have theft coverage
Zurich only covers the excavators of excavation contractors with its equipment and machinery insurance coverage. But still, you can ask the representatives of the company if your business can avail its other business insurance policies. Contractors equipment insurance from Zurich covers excavators you own, rent, or lease. Coverage also takes effect if others rent or lease your excavators.
Best for: Excavator contractors that rent their units to other businesses
Average cost: $415 per month
Our rating: 8/10
Excavator contractor insurance comes with waiver of subrogation
Name additional insureds for free
Numerous endorsements for your excavator contractor policy for more protection
Doesn’t sell commercial auto insurance for excavators
The Hartford's excavator contractor insurance provides you with a waiver of subrogation, free naming of additional insureds in your policy, and products and completed operations coverage. Endorsements can be added for more protection such as contractual general liability coverage, limited professional liability coverage, and more.
Best for: Excavators looking for a coverage having a waiver of subrogation
Average cost: $397 per month
Our rating: 8/10
Online claims tracking
Cons
Doesn’t sell a specialized excavator insurance quote
Insurance is only available by excavation businesses in Alaska
AIG provides excavator contractors with stand-alone business insurance policies. You can choose to get inland marine insurance, equipment insurance, etc. But note that you have to consult a representative to truly know if your business can be covered.
Best for: Inland marine insurance for excavators
Average cost: $444 per month
Our rating: 7/10
Work with in-house team of insurance adjusters when buying a policy and filing a claim
Doesn’t sell a tailored excavator insurance quote
Contractors like you can insure your excavators with Liberty Mutual through its contractors equipment and tools insurance. Coverage applies to excavators you own, lease, or rent.
Best for: Excavator contractor tools and equipment insurance
Average cost: $456 per month
Our rating: 7/10
Proactive customer support
Helps you find the best excavator and backhoe loader insurance based on your machine’s size, make, and model
Only caters to companies in the construction industry
Vehicles like excavators and tractors are covered under JCB’s Commercial Vehicle Insurance policies, which are available for competitive rates and geared towards construction companies looking to keep their investments safe.
Due to its specialized nature, you can rest assured that JCB knows a lot about the machines that they’re working with, so that you can get the specific coverage options that you need.
JCB also has a nationwide network of Territory Managers that will be able to meet up with you in person to discuss the details of your policy. This allows you to ask your questions in person and get firm answers instead of having to deal with countless forms that are far too opaque for comfort.
Best for: Excavator contractors only using JCB units
Average cost: $375 per month
Our rating: 7/10
Your excavators can be insured by any commercial insurance company. However, if none is willing to provide coverage, you can insure those yourself. Ask the insurance department of your state if they have a self-insurance program for business equipment.
Insurance companies will offer discounts if they see that your construction firm is doing its best to avoid the possibility of accidents happening.
In legal terms, due diligence is the practice of implementing the necessary steps required to prevent accidents causing death, personal injuries, or property damage.
Construction firms are exercising due diligence when there’s strict protocols that require workers to wear safety equipment (such as helmets, harnesses, and vests) when working. Also, when the excavator is at work on public roads, there’s due diligence when someone keeps watch a few meters away from the excavator to warn third parties that there’s a project up ahead.
Carriers won’t grant a claim if it’s established by the adjuster that the excavator-related accident was caused by failure to exercise due diligence. Examples are when no helmet is worn, no signage is put in place, and there are no scheduled checks done on the excavator before it’s used.
Bundle coverages to get discounts and save money. Coverages available for excavators and mini diggers range from repair coverage, PIP coverage, commercial equipment coverage, umbrella insurance coverage, and others we mentioned. You might want to consider including commercial auto insurance that isn't only useful for tractors but also for your excavator if you’re going to take it through public roads.
To get cheap digger insurance quotes online from the best digger and excavator insurance companies, simply click the 'Get Quotes' button below, follow the process and enter the required information, and you will receive countless excavator insurance quotes online from the best carriers in America so that you know how much bobcat insurance cost as well as the premiums for other excavator brands.
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Use anyone except Employers. Period. They are non-transparent and shameful. After I complained long enough to warrant a call from a supervisor, the supervisor called back from a PRIVATE NUMBER (no caller ID), left a message that they are not reversing their decision (without any communication with me), and failed to leave a phone number for me to call back. She was hiding! They also fact find via email and phone calls, which is terrific for speed and communication. However, after setting a precedence of email or phone calls, they send time sensitive information via email, without any heads up... they are hoping you miss it and forfeit via expiration. Evil policies. Go elsewhere.
This place is an absolute joke of a company and should be ashamed of the way they conduct business. I was hurt on the job at the end of July and it took them just shy of 7 weeks to issue out a paycheck to me. Yes the amount was back dated but still. Not many have the luxury of not receiving a paycheck for almost 2 months. To top it all off, the original adjuster marked me down for the wrong state which caused a problem from the get go, I've had 3 different adjusters now since each one can't seem to figure out the simplicity of my claim. All my paperwork which includes, my job, house, and drs visits all are from the same state and city but yet some how I have been filed under a completely different state 1500 miles away. They do not answer your phone calls or emails no matter how many you leave. I've had to escalate my frustrations to the supervisors of each of these individuals in order to even get some kind of response. I've had more communication and information given to me about my claim from the customer service representatives then the actual adjusters.......... please tell me how that works?! A serious overhaul needs to happen here in order to serve your clients the way they deserve to be taken care of. 10/10 do not recommend this company to a single soul on earth
I have never had the displeasure of working with a more incompetent and disrespectful person in my life. I’m an injured worker and the adjuster that was assigned to my case was named Carrie Furgeson. In the past 6 weeks that I’ve been injured and out of work I have only been able to get ahold of her twice, not for lack of trying. I have left countless voicemails, countless emails, and she ignores them all. When I am finally able to get ahold of her I’m greeted with terrible customer service. She is rude, she talks over me and I’m hardly able to get a word in edgewise. She spelled my name wrong on my documents even after I spelled it for her properly countless times, this caused a whole new issue with my bank. I have bill collectors from the hospital calling me demanding payment and Carrie Furgeson won’t do a single thing to help, or to get them paid. All of my documentation is in Colorado, my job is in Colorado, my address is in Colorado, all my Dr offices and appointments have been in Colorado and Carrie still managed to hold my claim because she wasn’t sure what state she needed to file it under. It’s been 6 weeks since my Injury and my company still hasn’t received the wage paperwork to fill out so they can get me my correct wages. When she’s not ignoring me she’s answering my questions with “I don’t know” well I don’t know how she got this job, because apparently she doesn’t know anything about it. She is a disgusting morose individual inside and out and I genuinely wish her the worst in all of her future endeavors. I highly recommend you don’t use this company. Please if you are a business owner and your looking into this company please don’t use them. I’m sure they have the cheapest payment and that’s why companies use them in the first place, but you will be doing your employees a grave disservice by forcing them to venture into this absolute dumpster fire of a company. I would rate 0/5 if possible but 1 was the lowest I was allowed.
Their general liability insurance purchase process is simply the best online experience I've ever had in my life!
As long as they cover your line of business, you're literally covered! best rates, best coverage, best online experience, best professionals, can't be happier that I chose them!
Not all those who wander are lost.
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