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MARINE TECHNICIANTODAY | WINTER 2015
COVER YOUR ASSETS
A
lthough several AMTECH members have a shop and yard for
their repair business there are plenty of you who hit the road
from home every day in your mobile “office.” From a small
pickup truck to a fully loaded mobile parts department and everything
in between, many AMTECH members are the MASH units of engine
repair. However, just because you don’t have a fixed business address
doesn’t mean you get to avoid all the complications of dealing with
business insurance.
Your truck, being critical to your daily business life, is the #1 concern.
The obvious solution here is Auto Insurance but we would warn
against just buying any off the shelf (or over the internet) insurance
policy and assuming you have addressed all your insurance problems.
The “primary use” of your vehicle is of utmost importance when
obtaining auto insurance. Make sure you fully disclose and explain
the use of your business use vehicle to any insurance professional.
The following are just a few issues you should consider and explain
before buying coverage:
• What are you carrying on the vehicle? Tools? Parts?
Anything in tow?
• What is your radius of operation?
Do you go to job sites and park most of the day?
• Did you disclose any lettering on your truck?
Is it marked for business use?
How to insure a contractor’s repair truck varies by insurance company
and even varies state by state. Some underwriters may allow you to
use a Personal Auto Policy as long as the vehicle is titled in your own
personal name. Others may require you to purchase a Business Auto
Policy. If you have a small corporation or an LLC you will most likely
have to go with a Business Auto Policy to pick up the proper coverage
for the entity and any officers or partners.
Another issue to be aware of is that insurance underwriting and state
regulations don’t always match. You may be able to get away with a
Personal Auto Policy in your state with certain insurers but that doesn’t
necessarily mean that your state allows you to register your vehicle
with personal plates or tags. You may need to obtain commercial
plates depending on any numbers of factors. Make sure you ask, or
you may get pulled over with a properly insured truck only to find that
you improperly registered it and now you have a ticket, a fine or worse.
In prior AMTECH issues we went into detail about Business Liability
insurance for the marine repair technician. Simply purchasing Auto
Liability insurance doesn’t mean you now have full business liability
coverage. A repair that you complete this week that turns into a
customer fire or injury next week is not going to be covered by your
Auto insurance policy. Make sure to protect yourself with a complete
Marine General Liability policy that protects you for both on-the-
jobsite damages and claims arising from your completed work. With
a marine policy you can also protect your customer’s boat when it
is in your care, custody and control and even add watercraft liability
for any test drives you might perform on the water. If you do find a
Marine Liability policy just be sure it covers you beyond your shop or
home. Many marine underwriters will provide a Traveling Workman
rider to protect the road warrior wherever they go. That could be at
a customer’s dock or driveway or a local marina. Make sure you are
covered wherever your next job takes you.
And don’t forget about your tools and equipment. For the Road
Warrior working from a home base do NOT assume that you have
Homeowners Insurance and that will take care of everything. Quite the
opposite, it will take care of almost nothing. The property section of
most Homeowner policies excludes or limits coverage on any type of
property used in any business activity. If you are using your garage as
a “shop” you also need to make sure that your garage is still covered
due to that business use. Even if you don’t bring boats or engines
to your home your garage could be considered “business use” just
by storing small parts and tools. Don’t assume your Homeowners
Insurance will still cover that garage. Your Homeowners Insurance
also will not provide any business liability coverage. Seek out advice
on how to properly insure your house and the entire premises if you
use it as a base for your business.
If you do have tools and equipment worth quite a bit of money,
and many of you do, find a way to cover them properly. A Tool &
Equipment Floater can usually be added to a small business marina
policy and that will protect your investment much better than
any other option. Beware of what is known as a “Locked Vehicle
Warranty”. This rider, often added to many Tool Floaters, excludes
coverage for theft if your tools were not located inside a locked
vehicle at all times. Either lock your tools in your truck or ask if you
can remove the Warranty from the policy.
Whether you are a Road Warrior or a full fledged marina with 50’
service bays you will still need to pay close attention to both your
personal and business insurance needs. It is important to take the time
to fully discuss and disclose your marine business operations with an
insurance professional, preferably one with a marine background. You
might pay a little more for insurance, but isn’t that better than having
no insurance protection when that unhappy event eventually occurs?
James Kay, CIC, CRM is President of Stafford & Co Insurance, the
endorsed Insurance Professionals for AMTECH. Reach them anytime at
amtech@stafford-insurance.comor call 800-491-5347.
Insuring the Road Warrior
By James Kay, CIC, CRM, President, Stafford & Co Insurance, Endorsed Insurance Professionals for AMTECH