Roofing-related injuries lead 150,000 Americans to the emergency unit every year. With so many potential dangers, what is the best insurance for Roofers? Even if your company is tireless with health and safety procedures, accidents will happen occasionally.
Roofing contractors face a huge amount of possible physical risks. In this guide, we’ll look at why Workers Compensation is required by law in all 50 states if you have employees. This is a quick reminder about why Workers Compensation Insurance for roofers is so important.
1. Slips, trips and falls
Unsurprisingly, slips and falls account for the vast majority of roofers’ accidents. Even when weather conditions are perfect and the job simple, basic human errors occur. 76% of fatalities in the roofing industry are caused by falls. Given their typical workspace, your workers are always at risk of falling. Even same-level falls can cause serious injury. Fatigue, hunger, even poor depth-perception can increase the risk of someone making a false step. With such a high danger level, there is also a chance that a tumbling worker or piece of equipment could damage property, too. This potentially makes you liable for medical and legal costs. (Workers Compensation Insurance does not cover accidents and injuries to someone visiting the site. For this you need third party liability coverage, like your General Liability coverage)
Safety training and precautionary steps will offset risk. But nothing is foolproof. It is essential to carry Roofing Insurance that includes General Liability and Workers Compensation, no matter how small your company.
2. Electricity
Above your workers’ heads are power lines. Nearby there may be house wiring or rooftop transformers. Even lightning strikes pose a far higher risk to roofers than the average person. Electrocution may not be the first hazard you consider, but it is a real threat to roofers. Carelessness around electrical systems can be fatal. At best, it could cause serious damage to the worker or to the property.
Even with diligence about grounding requirements, labelling power lines and keeping scaffolding and ladders away from electric cables, accidents happen. Workers Compensation insurance for roofers covers freak electrical accidents.
3. Burns
Though the numbers may be lower, the danger for roofers of getting burned is not negligible. The hot tar used for projects like low-slope roofs can be seriously dangerous. In Oklahoma alone, between 1988 and 2006, 105 roofing workers burned themselves badly enough with tar to require hospitalization. Unfortunately, the number of accidents have only gone up since then.
Most roofers are in frequent, close proximity to tar. It pays for you to anticipate this. Worker’s Compensation Insurance is a policy which will provide effective bodily injury coverage for roofers that work for you.
Protection From Workers Compensation Insurance For Roofers
These potential roofing hazards are all worth taking seriously – and this is only to name three. Toughness on safety precautions can go some way towards protecting your workers and your business. But you have to do more — by law.
Workers Compensation is an insurance contract that you, as an employer, buys to protect your employees if they receive an injury at work. It covers health insurance costs and 2/3 wages while they cannot work. It also provides for retraining for another job if they are not able to do the work they were doing before being injured.
Without Workers Compensation insurance for roofers, if one of your employees is injured at work without it, you could face huge fines and even criminal penalties. You will also be liable for all health bills and lost wages to the employee.
Dealing With The Dangers
Even though the law requires Workers Compensation Insurance, this doesn’t mean that you have to pay high rates. Our insurance advisors are construction industry specialists. Our job is to find our clients the best insurance coverage for your needs at the best rates. We’d like to help you find the best possible protection. Call Contractors Liability on 888-676-0923 for a free quote.
