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Fire Alarm Business Insurance for Installers: Cost & Quotes From $11

As a fire alarm installer, you play a critical role in keeping people (and their properties) safe. A gas leak or fire outbreak can pose life-threatening risks, and by providing your solutions to the people that need them, you save dozens of lives and millions-worth of property.

Just like your clients can relax; knowing they'll be warned in case of an emergency, you also deserve peace of mind when performing your job. Whether you're installing a few alarms in a single residential property or fitting hundreds of alarm units in an apartment complex, there are always risks for errors, accidents, injuries, and property damage. That's why you need fire alarm business insurance.


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Why Do You Need Fire Alarm Business Insurance?

Usually, a fire starts as a manageable flame, but if the alarm system is defective or improperly installed, widespread property damage, injuries, and even death can occur. The injured victims can file lawsuits against your alarm installation company. Before you know it, you're out of business because you've depleted all your financial resources settling the legal defense, court costs,  and compensatory fees. 

 

You might have a clean record in installing fire alarms and smoke detectors . But this time, you forgot to connect just one alarm unit within the system. It didn't warn the property owners, and they ended up losing their property. To recover their damages, they file a negligence claim against your business. The legal process can take months to settle. The lengthy legal battle can dent your financial account significantly. 

 

That's a huge problem for your business, and it only worsens if there are multiple claimants against you. Don't let your business hang on the line; obtain fire alarm installation insurance and protect your company from unexpected costly risks. 

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Liability Insurance for Fire Alarm Installers & Businesses

You get exposed to many risks when installing smoke detection and fire alarm systems. While installing a fire alarm sister accidents might occur, and you'll be liable for:  

  • Third-party property damages

  • Third-party bodily injuries


You need a general liability policy just like bathroom and kitchen fitters. Basic general liability insurance is invaluable to your business as it protects against unanticipated occurrences. Let's now delve deeper into how this coverage can help. 

  • Third-party property damage – The liability coverage policy in your fire alarm business insurance pays for any repairs or replacement costs if you damage a client's property during installations. For instance, you bring a ladder to a client's house to access the ceiling, and as you're positioning it, it scrapes a two-foot section of a well-painted wall. The client will need you to restore the wall to its previous condition. In that case, your liability insurance will pay for new paint and labor costs

  • Third-party bodily injury – Picture this: You've installed a fire alarm and tested it without warning. Once people hear the warning sound, they scramble to get out, and in the process, they slip and fall on the wet floor, sustaining head concussions and minor cuts. They now hold you liable for their injuries. With liability insurance, you need not worry about the bill as it will help you pay for their injuries

 

Recognize that the alarm system you installed might have defects that manifest sometime later. A basic general liability only covers personal injuries or property damage third parties experience while you’re providing the service. It doesn’t cover claims filed after you’re done with the project. To get protection, consider adding products and completed operations coverage. 

 

Slander, defamation, and copyright infringement are other reasons why third parties might file a claim against you. Perhaps, you were unhappy with a client and made defamatory statements about him or her. It’s also possible for you to make an ad and copy the elements from another ad. 

 

Basic general liability insurance doesn’t cover slander, defamation, and copyright infringement. To protect yourself against these perils, consider adding advertising injury coverage to general liability insurance. 

 

Are you renting a commercial space for your fire alarm installation business? If that building gets damaged, know that the landlord can sue and demand you shoulder the repair costs or give reimbursements. Consider adding rented premises liability coverage to general liability insurance. By doing so, you can claim money from general liability insurance to reimburse the property owner or pay for the cost of repairs. 


 

What Other Types of Fire Alarm Business Insurance Do You Need?

Aside from general liability coverage, you might need other policies included in your fire alarm installation insurance for better protection. Some of these policies are:

 

Commercial Property Coverage

Commercial property insurance protects your fire alarm installation business’s building. You can claim it if extreme weather, fire, vandalism,  theft, and other named perils rendered the building unusable or damaged. With commercial property insurance, you’ll receive money from the insurance company to pay for repair or reconstruction expenses. 

 

Add business equipment and tools coverage to commercial property insurance to cover work tools and equipment. You can claim the money from this policy if business tools and equipment got lost or damaged because of fire, theft, vandalism, and other named perils. 

 

How about other valuable objects that are part of your business inventory? Business equipment and tools coverage doesn’t cover objects that do not classify as tools or equipment for work. To cover other valuables, consider adding business stocks and contents coverage to commercial property insurance. 

 

 

Commercial Auto insurance

This insurance covers the owned vehicle you use for business. The coverage pays for any financial implications if the vehicle is involved in an accident that caused third-party property damage and bodily injuries. Therefore, it will cover the repair and replacement costs of damaged property, as well as medical bills for the injuries sustained by third parties.  

 

The protection commercial auto insurance gives doesn’t end in your liability for vehicular accidents. If you decide to get physical damage coverage, commercial auto insurance can cover vehicle parts repair or replacement. 

 

Physical damage coverage has two forms - collision and comprehensive. As the name implies, collision physical damage coverage covers parts repair or replacement costs if your business’s vehicle collided with a vehicle or object and incurred damage. But just so you know, collision coverage might not provide help if you collide with an object or a vehicle while driving under influence, getting away from police authorities, and other criminal activities. 

 

How about comprehensive physical damage coverage? This one covers parts repair or replacement if your commercial vehicle incurred damage after colliding with a deer or any other animal. Damage due to fire, theft, vandalism, hail, windstorm, and other named perils is also covered. 

 

Another optional coverage in commercial auto insurance is medical payments. Auto liability insurance only covers injuries to third parties. This one doesn’t cover injured passengers.  That’s why add medical payments coverage because it will pay for injured passengers’ emergency treatment.

 

A Brief Note About Commercial Auto Insurance

Authorities only require you to include auto liability coverage in commercial auto insurance. Getting other policies we mentioned is up to your discretion. The minimum amount of auto liability coverage needed differs between states. For example, in Chicago, fire alarm installation businesses have to purchase auto liability coverage having $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident bodily injury sub-limit, and $20,000 property damage sub-limit.

 

Professional Liability Insurance

errors and omissions insurance (E&O)

  • Misrepresentation

  • Negligence

  • Personal injury (libel or slander)

  • Inaccurate advice


Workers' Compensation

You must have workers' compensation if you've employed a team of alarm installers. The insurance policy covers work-related injuries, illnesses, and lost wages. For instance, if one of your employees loses their footing when climbing down a ladder and dislocates a wrist, your workers' compensation covers the medical bills and their lost income. 

 

What if the employee dies? Does workers compensation provide coverage? The answer to this question is yes. If a workplace injury or sickness caused the employee to die, you can use workers compensation insurance to provide death benefits to the deceased's spouse and dependents. 

 

We just want you to know that getting workers compensation is a requirement for your fire alarm installation business to operate legally. Authorities sanctions employers who don’t have workers comp insurance for employees. The penalty depends on where your business is located. Say, for example, if your business is in Montana, you’ll have to pay twice the premiums you would have paid if you decided to get workers comp (meaning that if your premiums will cost  $600 then you’ll be penalized for $1,200). 


Employer’s Liability Insurance

Employer’s liability insurance covers costs if an employee sues your fire alarm installation business after experiencing a work-related injury. But know that this policy only kicks in if the work-related injury is caused by your negligence or alleged negligence. If the workplace injury is intentional, employer’s liability insurance can’t help. 

 

Crime Insurance

Consider situations where someone manages to steal or damage something valuable from your business.  Surely, you’ll have to replace that valuable possession and incur losses as a result. 


Get crime insurance if you’re afraid of what theft and burglary can do to your business. This policy is helpful because it will reimburse your losses. In fact, its coverage doesn’t only include theft and burglary. Other crimes are also covered such as:

  • Fraud 

  • Social engineering

  • Destruction of money, cheques, and other similar objects

  • Misrepresentation

  • Unauthorized use of business credit card


Crime insurance only covers criminal acts committed by third parties against your business. Employees can also steal or commit other dishonest acts. And if you want to get covered against the consequences, add employee dishonesty insurance to crime insurance. 


Cyber Liability Insurance

Does your fire alarm installation business accept credit cards and other related modes of payments? If so, get cyber liability insurance. The system you’re using for electronic billings might get breached. As a result, cybercriminals will have access to sensitive information such as credit card numbers, addresses, and more. Clients affected by the breach might file claims against your business, and the job of cyber liability insurance is to shoulder defense costs and settlements. 


Fire Alarm Installer Business Owner's Policy

A business owner’s policy bundles general liability insurance and commercial property insurance. In a nutshell, this automatically includes two of the most useful policies for business owners. If you’re not very familiar with insurance and don’t wish to talk with an agent, purchase a business owner’s policy as it provides comprehensive protection needed against business hazards. Also, its cost is cheaper than buying general liability and commercial property insurance separately. 

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Fire Alarm Business Insurance Cost

The cost of fire alarm business insurance varies widely because of various factors, and it's challenging to give a single figure as the standard insurance rate. Some of these factors include:

  • Your chosen insurance carrier

  • The type of cover 

  • The period of cover 

  • Company size

  • Company location

  • Your claims history

  • The clients you serve; Are they residential or commercial property owners?


If you're an independent fire alarm technician, you can pay as low as $56 in monthly premiums, which translates to $672 per year for a $1 million general liability insurance. However, a large, well-established fire alarm installation company pays $86 per month or $1,032 per year for a $1 million general liability coverage. 

 

For further reference, take a look at this table that shows the pricing of the best fire alarm installer insurance companies:


Cost per Month Cost per Year Best for
CoverWallet $53 $636 Fire alarm installer business insurance quotes comparison online
Thimble $56 $672 Short-term fire alarm installer insurance by the hour, days, weeks, or months
The Hartford $61 $732 Fire alarm and detector installation companies


How to Save Cost on Premiums?

Always decide to get a high deductible. High deductibles will lower your insurance premiums significantly. If the carrier requests you to have a $500 deductible, get twice the amount instead. 


Look for discounts. All insurance companies have customer discounts in place. Examples of common discounts in insurance are new customer discounts, business history discounts, and policy bundle discounts. 


Assess the risks that you’re facing. There are many insurance policies available. However, chances are, you don’t need all of them. For example, if you’re just an independent fire alarm installer, policies you’ll find really useful are general liability and commercial auto insurance. If you’re an owner of a fire alarm installation business, policies you’ll find handy are commercial property insurance, general liability insurance, and workers compensation. 

Compare Cheap Fire Alarm Installer Business Insurance Quotes Online

Get all the best quotes from leading providers in a click of a button!

Best Fire Alarm Insurance Companies

Fire alarm company insurance is an industry-specific coverage. When purchasing the insurance policy for your business, it's critical to partner with a company that can provide a personalized insurance policy. When looking for a fire alarm installer insurance company, nothing helps better than reading reviews. Speaking of reviews, here's a brief one that discusses the carriers we recommend. Read to know their pros, cons, and monthly pricing for a $1 million general liability coverage. 

 

CoverWallet Fire Alarm Installer Insurance


Pros

  • Fast claims process

  • File a claim online

  • Compare the quotes of different carriers 

Cons

  • Policy cancellation takes 30 days to process


CoverWallet is an insurance broker and an online quotes comparison website that’s a partner of reputable carriers such as Hiscox, Chubb, and Liberty Mutual.  With CoverWallet, you can purchase insurance, pay premiums, and get a certificate of insurance online. 


So what insurance products does CoverWallet offer to fire alarm installers? The company offers four plans to customers - general liability only, general liability and commercial property, business owner’s policy with workers compensation insurance, and a custom plan. 


So how long does it take for CoverWallet to process claims? According to the company, it strives to process claims of customers within 7 - 14 days. 


Best for: Fire alarm installer business insurance quotes comparison online

Average cost: $53 per month 

Our rating: 10/10


Thimble Fire Alarm Installer Insurance


Pros

  • Cheap short-term fire alarm installers insurance

  • Has an easy-to-use website

Cons

  • Some customers complained that Thimble purposely delayed their claims


Thimble fire alarm installer insurance only includes general liability coverage. However, you should still check this insurance company out. Thimble can cover you for only hours, days, weeks, or months. You can also purchase insurance online. This insurance company states that it strives to process claims within 24 hours. 


Best for: Short-term fire alarm installer insurance by the hour, days, weeks, or months

Average cost: $56 per month 

Our rating: 10/10


The Hartford Fire Alarm Installer Insurance


Pros

  • Above-average customer satisfaction rating

  • Lifetime renewability

  • Multiple discount options for people over 50 years

  • A+ financial strength rating by AM Best

Cons

  • More than customer complaints than most of its competitors

  • Doesn't allow for a separate deductible amount for wind damage


If you're a fire alarm installer looking for tailored business insurance - written by an experienced provider - The Hartford is the third option. The company has been in the insurance sector for more than two centuries, and you can rest assured that it understands the nitty-gritty of fire alarm installation coverage. 

 

The insurer has an extended insurance portfolio for alarm installation coverage, including general liability, commercial auto coverage, professional liability, property coverage, and umbrella liability coverage. Besides, The Hartford writes additional insurance solutions, such as:

  • Cybersecurity coverage

  • Third-party crime coverage

  • Property in transit (for business property under shipment)

  • Business income coverage

  • Data breach coverage; and many more


The insurance carrier also offers its General Liability Choice®, which not only protects you against third-party property damage and bodily injuries but also includes:

  • An aggregate policy limit that applies to each project instead of a coverage limit for all installation projects as a group

  • Automated additional insured status for your job, including products-completed works when required in a written contract.

  • Waiver of subrogation when needed in a written contract


Furthermore, the company provides exceptional workers' compensation through its XactPAY® with pay-as-you-go premium payments based on an employee's monthly payroll. That helps businesses better manage changes in their cash flow while minimizing audit adjustments. The upside is that it's offered at no cost. 

 

Best for: Fire alarm and detector installation companies

Average cost: $61 per month 

Our rating: 8/10

 

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Are you shopping around for fire alarm installation business insurance? Compare rates by clicking the "Get Quotes " button at the top of the page and get the cheapest rates from the best insurance carriers. 


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