General Liability Insurance for Plumbing Businesses

It’s important to get a countermeasure in case your employee or your business is held liable for accidents that result in bodily injuries or property damage to third parties.

Consider getting general liability insurance for plumbers.

Also called plumbing liability insurance, general liability insurance grants protection if a claim for bodily injury or property damage is filed because:

A client or supplier slipped and fell while in your plumbing business’s office
An independent contractor experienced an occupational accident while working for you
The client’s pipe exploded while you were cleaning it

Your plumbing company gets a minimum of $300,000-$2 million from general liability insurance. This can be used to cover:

The claimant’s medical treatment
The claimant’s property damage reimbursement
Defense costs
Court judgments

The general liability insurance in plumbers insurance packages is a broad-form policy. It will also help if you face these exposures:

Slander, copyright, and libel claims
Damage to a rented commercial space
Claims for bodily injuries or property damage filed against a completed plumbing service

Plumber’s General Liability Insurance Quotes Comparison Table

This table compares the quotes of the companies that underwrite general liability insurance for plumbers. The figures come from online quotes that the companies below issue to prospective customers:

	CoverWallet	NEXT (Best)	Thimble	Hiscox
Per occurrence limit	$1,000,000	$1,000,000	$1,000,000/$2,000,000	$300,000/$2,000,000
Aggregate limit	$2,000,000	$1,000,000/$2,000,000	$1,000,000/$2,000,000	$300,000/$2,000,000
Products and completed operations aggregate limit	$2 ,000,000	$1,000,000	$1,000,000	$1,000,000
Personal and advertising injury coverage aggregate limit	$1,000,000	$1,000,000	$1,000,000	$1,000,000
Tenant legal liability coverage aggregate limit	$100,000	$1,000,000	$100,000	$100,000
Non-owned/hired auto liability coverage limit	Excluded	Excluded	Excluded	Excluded
Equipment breakdown floater	Excluded	$2,500-$5,000	$2,500-$5,000	Excluded
Employment benefits liability floater	Included	Excluded	Excluded	Excluded
Name additional insureds?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Waiver of subrogation included?	Yes	No	Yes	Yes
Deductible	$0	$0	$0	$500-$2,500

Plumbers Public Liability Insurance

Plumbers public liability insurance covers bodily injuries or property damage sustained by third parties because of your business. This doesn’t grant protection against other exposures. In the USA, public liability insurance is included in the language of general liability insurance.

Professional Liability Insurance for Plumbing Contractors

Comprehensively designed plumber insurance programs offer professional liability insurance aside from general liability insurance. It's because plumbing projects, similar to water restoration projects, can have leakage and other defects caused by errors and mistakes.

Professional liability insurance grants protection if a client files a claim because your business or its employee caused issues while working.

You can use this insurance to cover settlements, defense costs, and court judgments if you’re held liable for:

Negligence
Misrepresentation
Violation of good faith
Violation of fair dealing
Breach of contract

Most plumbing company insurance packages offer professional liability insurance with a $250,000-$2 million per occurrence limit.

Moreover, this is underwritten as a claims-made or per occurrence policy.

Plumber’s Professional Liability Insurance Quotes Comparison Table

This table compares the features and limits of the professional liability insurance of companies that underwrite small business insurance for plumbers. Figures, you see below, are based on online quotes:

	CoverWallet (Best)	NEXT	Thimble	Hiscox
Per occurrence limit	$1,000,000	$10,000/25,000	$1,000,000/$2,000,000	$250,000
Aggregate limit	$2,000,000	$20,000/$50,000	$1,000,000/$2,000,000	$250,000
Name additional insureds?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Waiver of subrogation included?	Yes	No	No	Yes
Deductible	$0	$0	$500	$500

Commercial Property Insurance for Plumbers

Aside from lawsuits, the damage or destruction of your office, equipment, and other commercial property can result in significant drawbacks for your plumbing business.

Commercial property insurance protects your business’s tangible assets. This will reimburse your losses and helps you recover if these exposures happen:

Fire
Theft
Vandalism
Civil commotion
Riot
Volcanic action
Lightning
Impact
Vehicle
Aircraft
Rain
Winds
Snow
Hail

Note that commercial property insurance doesn’t only cover the equipment and building of your business. This inclusion in plumbing contractors insurance packages can also reimburse your losses if pipes to be sold and installed get damaged or destroyed while in the business premises.

Remember that commercial property insurance doesn’t grant protection against floods, mudslides, landslides, and earthquakes. You need to purchase floaters to enjoy protection against these.

Plumbing Commercial Property Insurance Quotes Comparison Table

This table compares the limits and features of commercial property insurance from the recommended companies. The figures provided below are based on the respective quotes we collected online.

	CoverWallet	NEXT (Best)	Thimble	Hiscox
Building coverage limit (minimum)	$50,000	$110,000	$100,000	$15,000
Contents coverage limit (minimum)	$50,000	$15,000	$100,000	$15,000
Outdoor signs	Excluded	$2,500	Excluded	Excluded
Accounts receivable	Excluded	Excluded	$5,000/10,000	Included
Money and securities	Excluded	$2,500	$1,000	Included
Lock and keys	Excluded	$2,500	Excluded	Excluded
Business interruption floater	Excluded	Included	Included	Included
Equipment breakdown floater	Excluded	Included	Excluded	Excluded
Inland marine insurance floater	Excluded	Excluded	$10,000	Excluded
Employee dishonesty floater	Excluded	$5,000	$2,500	Included

Business Owner’s Policy for Plumbing Contractors

Commercial plumbing insurance packages might offer a business owner’s policy.

Getting a business owner’s policy is a good idea if you only plan to get commercial property insurance and general liability insurance.

A business owner’s policy combines general liability insurance and commercial property insurance into one coverage that’s cheaper and easier to manage.

It might also allow you to get optional policies such as business interruption and employee dishonesty insurance.

Workers Compensation Insurance for Plumbing Contractors

You can’t only insure business property but also employees too. This is done by purchasing workers' compensation insurance.

Workers' compensation is a plumbing insurance coverage that provides a helping hand when an employee experiences a work-related injury or disease.

So how does it function? Workers' compensation insurance provides the money your business can use to pay an employee’s:

Medical treatment
Hospitalization
Medication
Rehabilitation and retraining
Lost wages
Funeral expenses and allowance to dependents in case of death

Employer’s Liability Insurance for Plumbing Contractors

Employer’s liability insurance is offered as part of commercial plumbing insurance plans. This plumbing business insurance covers settlements, defense costs, and court judgments if an employee holds your business liable for occupational disease or injury.

You can choose to remove or add employer’s liability insurance to workers' compensation insurance.

It’s also possible for workers' compensation insurance to automatically have this. In such a case, employer’s liability insurance can’t be removed.

Tools And Equipment Insurance for Plumbers

Tools and equipment insurance is offered as a stand-alone policy or as a floater to commercial property insurance or general liability insurance of plumbing company insurance programs.

Also called plumbers tools insurance, this protects the drills, wrenches, welding machines, and other implements for fixing or installing plumbing systems.

Tools and equipment insurance kicks in when plumbing equipment and tools you own get damaged or lost because of:

Fire
Theft
Operator error
Electrical breakdown
Electrical shorts
Mechanical breakdown

Plumbing Insurance Cost

	Cost per Month	Cost per Year
General liability insurance	$50.08	$600.96
Professional liability insurance	$60	$720
Commercial property insurance	$53.08	$636.96
Workers compensation insurance	$80.25	$963
Business owner’s policy	$52	$624

General liability insurance for plumbing contractors costs $50.08 per month or $600.96 per year for a $1 million coverage. This plumbing liability insurance cost estimate assumes that you have 5 employees and make $500,000-$750,000 per year. Get cheap plumbing insurance by:

Having high deductibles
Removing floaters if they’re useless
Getting policy bundle discounts

To determine plumbing insurance cost, carriers use your location, business history, claims history, annual revenues, and number of employees.

In connection, here’s a table showing the cost of the recommended companies:

	Cost per Month	Cost per Year	Best for
NEXT	$29.50	$354	Best overall; Fastest general liability insurance for plumbing businesses
CoverWallet	$32.75	$393	Plumbing insurance quotes comparison online
Tivly	$33	$396	Comparing plumbing insurance quotes over the phone
Thimble	$34.91	$418.92	Short term plumber’s insurance
Hiscox	$49.39	$592.68	Independent contractors looking for comprehensive coverage that’s tailored to their industry at affordable rates
State Farm	$50	$600	Customizable plumbing insurance
GEICO	$59	$708	Commercial auto insurance for plumbers

Best Plumbing Insurance Companies

Read the reviews below to know the pros, cons, and $1 million general liability insurance rate of the best plumbing insurance companies.

NEXT Plumbing Insurance

Insuranks rating	7/10
Best for	Best overall; Fastest general liability insurance for plumbing businesses
Average cost	$29.50 per month
Year Founded	2015
CEO	Guy Goldstein
Headquarters	75 California Ave, Palo Alto, CA 94304, United States

Why Get Insured by NEXT?

Best overall
Get an online proof of insurance and send as a text message, email, or social media post
Fastest general liability insurance for plumbing businesses
Great customer service and reputation
Issues an online proof of insurance instantly
Outstanding value for money
Bundle two or more insurance policies and get a 10% discount

Why Take NEXT with a Grain of Salt?

No reason to

NEXT offers streamlined online solutions in its plumber's insurance. Through its platform, the company allows customers to add or remove insurance policies, pay premiums, and get instant proof of insurance. Policies included in NEXT’s plumbing business insurance are general liability with tools and equipment coverage, workers compensation, commercial auto, and commercial property insurance. Get a 10% discount if you buy more than one policy from NEXT.

CoverWallet Plumbing Insurance

Insuranks rating	10/10
Best for	Plumbing insurance quotes comparison online
Average cost	$32.75 per month
Year Founded	September 2015 and acquired by AON at 2020
CEO	Inaki Beringuer (former)
Headquarters	101 Avenue of the Americas 18th Floor New York, NY 10013 United States

Why Get Insured by CoverWallet?

Has an online quotes generator that allow you to compare the offers of different insurance companies
Get insured online
Offers more than 17 types of business insurance products

Why Take CoverWallet with a Grain of Salt?

Not an insurance company. Therefore, the policies CoverWallet offers are underwritten by its partners

CoverWallet isn’t really an insurance company. It’s an insurance broker selling plumbing insurance to its partners such as CNA and Progressive. Nonetheless, we included it in our list because it also offers tailored plumbing insurance by customizing the insurance products of partners.

Plumbing businesses can choose between four insurance options. Customers can get plumbing business insurance having general liability only, general liability and professional liability, general liability with professional liability and workers comp, or a customized insurance plan which can be added with any insurance policies needed.

Tivly Plumbing Insurance

Insuranks rating	10/10
Best for	Comparing plumbing insurance quotes over the phone
Average cost	$33 per month
Year Founded	2009
CEO	Mark McClure
Headquarters	Norman, Oklahoma

Why Get Insured by Tivly?

Responsive customer service
Call and compare quotes over the phone
A partner of many reputable insurance companies

Why Take Tivly with a Grain of Salt?

You need to call to get a quote

Tivly (formerly CommercialInsurance.NET) grants coverage through its contractors insurance program. Policies you can get are general liability, workers compensation, commercial property, and other business insurance policies.

To get covered, you need to call a representative who will discuss the details of the policies you wish to purchase. That said, call Tivly now to compare quotes over the phone.

Thimble Plumbing Insurance

Insuranks rating	9/10
Best for	Short term plumber’s insurance
Average cost	$34.91 per month
Year Founded	2015
CEO	Jay Bregman
Headquarters	New York City

Why Get Insured by Thimble?

Get covered online
Insurance for plumbers by the hour, day, week, or month

Why Take Thimble with a Grain of Salt?

Some customers reported that Thimble took long to respond upon being asked about the status of claims

Thimble offers short-term general liability insurance for plumbing businesses and independent plumbers. Coverage can last for hours, days, weeks, or months. You can also get a long-term plumbing contractor insurance plan consisting of general liability, commercial property, and workers' compensation insurance.

Hiscox Plumbing Insurance

Insuranks rating	6/10
Best for	Independent contractors looking for comprehensive coverage that’s tailored to their industry at affordable rates
Average cost	$49.39 per month
Year Founded	1901
CEO	Aki Hussain
Headquarters	Atlanta, Georgia

Why Get Insured by Hiscox?

Offers hefty limits on its liability insurance for plumbers
Worldwide coverage
14-day money-back guarantee

Why Take Hiscox with a Grain of Salt?

Complaints from customers are considerably high

Hiscox offers general liability, business owner's policy, and professional liability insurance for plumbing businesses. This company is great for customers who want to get $300,000-$2 million worth of coverage with waiver of subrogation included.

State Farm Plumbing Insurance

Insuranks rating	5/10
Best for	Customizable plumbing insurance
Average cost	$50 per month
Year Founded	1922
CEO	Michael L. Tipsord
Headquarters	Bloomington, Illinois, United States

Why Get Insured by State Farm?

Affordable general liability coverage
Wide range of policies
Customizable policies

Why Take State Farm with a Grain of Salt?

Pricey public liability policies

State Farm is one of the largest insurance companies in the United States, and the company was founded in 1922. State Farm is known for using exclusive agents, ensuring that only their agents are the only ones who can sell State Farm insurance products.

State Farm plumbing coverage includes property coverage, installation insurance, mobile equipment coverage, and general liability. Also, the company allows clients to fully customize their policies.

Geico Plumbing Insurance

Insuranks rating	7/10
Best for	Business owner’s policy for plumbers
Average Cost	$59 per month
Year Founded	1963
CEO	Todd Combs
Headquarters	Chevy Chase, Maryland, United States

Why Get Insured by Geico?

Cheap prices for commercial auto insurance
Offers personal and advertising injury, cyber liability, and other business insurance coverage for small and big plumbing companies in partnership with Hiscox

Why Take Geico with a Grain of Salt?

Doesn’t have its own insurance for plumbers and offers policies from its partners

GEICO was founded in the 1930s as the Government Employees Insurance Company, and they are known for their marketing campaign that features their signature Geico. While the company mainly deals in auto insurance, they also specialize in business coverage.

GEICO plumbing commercial insurance is available to customers in partnership with Hiscox. This policy will cover plumbers in case of property damage, physical injuries, and advertising injury.