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Working with heavy equipment is risky and the probability of an accident occurring is so high. This is where heavy equipment insurance coverage gets into the fray – tailored business insurance that mitigates costs associated with accidents and other exposures so that your business’s valuation won’t decrease.
This guide explains various policies we’re going to cover the details of business insurance for heavy equipment. Also, we’ll review the companies offering the best and cheapest heavy equipment insurance coverage.
Heavy Equipment Rental Insurance
Those who rent bulldozers, snow plow, backhoes, and other types of heavy equipment can never trust the owner to provide coverage if something goes wrong. The owner of rented heavy equipment has liability. However, this is only the case if injuries or deaths happen due to defects.
And so, it might be difficult to file a claim against the equipment owner’s construction equipment insurance coverage.
However, if it turns out that the accident was due to the mistake of those who rented the heavy equipment, there’s no legal responsibility on part of the heavy equipment owner.
Those who rent heavy equipment should get heavy equipment rental insurance. This policy provides coverage for the cost of accidents and injuries associated with rented heavy equipment.
Also, this insurance takes care of repair and replacement. A heavy equipment insurance policy providing comprehensive coverage offers the following:
This insurance will account for the costs of personal injury claims or property damage third parties file. By the way, many carriers commonly offer general liability as a primary inclusion in heavy construction equipment insurance policies.
The table below shows the injuries and their estimated settlement cost, which is very costly without construction equipment insurance policy and other related coverages.
| Type of Injury | Settlement Cost |
| Head and Neck | $85,000 |
| Spinal Cord Injury | $313,567 |
| Broken Bones | $13,452 |
| Concussion | $800.10 |
| Burns | $208,231 |
| Cuts and Lacerations | $5,423 |
| Amputation | $89,563 |
| Death | $1,000,000 |
Backhoes and dozers are the most common heavy equipment involved in road accidents. Injuries these machines cause are fractures, head injuries, amputations, cuts, lacerations, and deaths.
The table below shows the importance of earthmoving insurance with commercial auto coverage by outlining the cost of settlement according to the severity of injuries.
| Severity of Injury | Person-Injury or Per-Vehicle Cost |
| Death | $1,567,833 |
| Disabling | $83,023 |
| Evident | $21,445 |
| Possible | $21,321 |
| Cost per vehicle damage | $3,213 |
Workers’ compensation insurance is a common inclusion in heavy construction equipment insurance rates, which covers backhoes, dump trucks, bulldozers, compactors, pavers, tower cranes, excavators, and graders.
Heavy equipment might injure operators and technicians and workers’ compensation insurance will help with this. The coverages of workers’ compensation insurance are as follows:
| Coverage | Function |
| Employee Treatment/Medical Procedure | workers’ compensation insurance covers the surgeries and therapies of an injured heavy equipment technician or operator |
| Hospitalization | In line with this, workers’ compensation insurance takes care of hospital bills |
| Medication | Workers’ compensation insurance pays the expenses for a heavy equipment operator or technician’s medication |
| Rehabilitation | If rehab is needed to correct such impairment, workers’ compensation insurance will pay for the fees of the therapist |
| Lost Income Compensation | Workers’ compensation supplements lost income by providing a weekly allowance equal to two-thirds of the average weekly wage. |
Freighters, large trucks, and tractor-trailers are covered by bobtail insurance. The terms of this insurance apply the moment the said machines get involved in an accident while traveling with no trailer attached to get another load.
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Some businesses haul dump trucks, dozers, and other heavy equipment and take them to distant project sites. Inland marine insurance will reimburse losses of the owner if his or her heavy equipment got damaged during the trip.
This insurance covers destruction or damage due to fire, theft, vandalism, other types of malicious mischief, and acts of nature.
The cost of heavy machinery insurance varies since it depends on the type of equipment the business is looking to insure.
However,The average heavy equipment insurance cost is $256 per month or $3,072 per year for a $1 million general liability coverage. These are what you’ll have to pay for based on the coverages needed:
| Coverage | Insurance Rates per Month | Insurance Rates per Year |
| General liability+equipment breakdown | $108 | $1,296 |
| General liability+commercial auto | $156 | $1,872 |
| General liability only | $89 | $1,068 |
| General liability+commercial auto+equipment breakdown | $190 | $2,280 |
Let’s talk about contractors equipment insurance cost. On average, this is $17 a month or $204 a year. Pricing absolutely depends on the number of equipment needing coverage and how long a contractor was using them.
Here’s a review of some of the best heavy construction equipment insurance companies in America. Know about each company’s pros, cons, and pricing for a $1 million general liability coverage.
CoverWallet is an online insurance broker. With this company, you can get quotes and compare the pricing of different insurance companies offering tailored heavy equipment insurance coverage. CoverWallet allows you to buy any insurance products from any carrier at its website.
As soon as you get insured, CoverWallet grants you access to the MyCoverWallet app where you can pay premiums, check the status of insurance policies, and get certificates of insurance online.
Average Cost:$225 per month
Rating:10/10
Liberty Mutual provides heavy equipment policies through its contractor’s equipment insurance package. Heavy equipment covered are cranes, skid steers, dump trucks, bulldozers, backhoes,and loaders.
Liberty Mutual’s insurance for heavy equipment protects you from losses related to repair or replacement of crucial construction tools, as well as contractors plant and machinery insurance.
Average Cost:$268 per month
Rating:9/10
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Progressive’s heavy equipment insurance coverage is worth the try even though it only offers coverage for trucks. One reason why it’s great is that customers are sure to enjoy fast processing of claims.
Also, progressive offers federal and state filings – documents your business need to comply with to attract clients and initiate ambitious building projects.
Average Cost:$247 per month
Rating:8/10
The Hartford’s heavy equipment insurance coverage is very comprehensive. Aside from backhoe insurance, trucks, cranes, and other equipment, it also ensures handheld tools, rented equipment, and employee safety gear.
You’re also covered in cases of disaster too because.The Hartford’s heavy construction equipment insurance policies covers debris cleanup.
Average Cost:$268 per month
Rating:7/10
On the other hand, the State Farm Contractor insurance is what you need to get if you’re business is concerned with electrical services, plumbing, HVAC installation, interior decoration, or lawn care service.
Average Cost:$280 per month
Rating:6/10
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Disclosure: Insuranks.com is an independent educational comparison service and an advertising-supported publisher. Some of the companies/offers that appear on the website are from our partners which we may receive compensation from. This may influence which companies/offers we write about and where and how it appears on the site. However, this does not impact our assessments. We solely highlight companies, products, and offers that can help you make smarter insurance decisions.
