Adding yourself to roofers liability insurance policy?

I was told to have the roofer add my name and my wifes name as additionally insured on the roofers liability insurance. Does this sound right? What are the benefits or liabilities in doing this? Do you contractors get asked to do this?

Thanks in advance,

Joe

what they mean is to have a certifacate made out with you and your wife as the policy holder. should be done on every job…also more importantly workmans comp.

So what do I ask the roofer? To name us as additionally insured or for a certificate with us as the policy holder? If he says no do I walk away?

As far as workmans comp, I asked for a certificate but do we also need to be named on it?

Thanks for the answer…People I spoke with said I’m crazy and its NEVER done like this. I just want to cover myself the proper way.

It’s normally the MUNICIPALITY that is listed in that way if I understand you correctly. It’s required for filing a building permit. If you have any doubts about the process then go file for the permit yourself. Aquiring a permit is not difficult, just annoying. At the very least your local municipality will be able to tell you exactly what their requirements are.

Permits??? I need a permit to have my roof done? I just called the town and they said I don’t need a permit to rip and replace the shingles.

I am a new homowner and I have never had a contractor come into my house to do work so I am trying to find out how to get things done right and protect myself and my home from hiring someone who is not licensed or insured.

I had 8 roofers come out and they all basically gave me the same sales pitch using the GAF roofing system. I narrowed it down to 3 roofers and I checked that they have current licenses to do home repair. They all said they have liability and comp insurance but none mentioned that they will add us to the policy so I am trying to find out exactly how this works. The first roofer I just spoke to says he doesnt do it that way so I guess he is off the list.

I am trying to educate myself before I speak to the others. So do I need both the liabilty and comp insurance policies ammended to include our names? I assume the contractor just calls up his insurance company and gives them our names and they fax or email him or us a copy??

Thanks in advance,

Joe

it is not really adding you to the policy…it is just making you the certifacte holder. basically by putting your name on it, it means you know they are covered. also dont take thier word for it. call the ins. company and ask if this policy covers roofing. 80% or so off them have a fake policy that just covers siding or windows. permits vary by towns.

Marshall,

You are spot on with your answer. I just spoke with my broker for my home owners insurance and he said:

Have the contractors BROKER send me a certificate of insurance with my wifes name and my name with our address on it. He said if they won’t do it…walk away. He also said to call and confirm the insurance.

Here are some responses from people about this as I asked this question in a few forums:

"Nonsense.

How can a professional roofer add a non-professional husband and wife to his insurance policy?

Cannot be done.

You have been mislead,lied to, or both.

A homeowner cannot be added to a contractor’s professional liability policy…period…"

"But you then become in a sense a partner of the roofer…is he doing any other jobs? We just had a plumber cause $45 million in damage here on a project. Anyone and everyone who is involved in the company in a legal fashion is now being sued because the insurance wasn’t enough to cover the damage (and of course no plumber would have that much insurance anyhoo).
Insurance does not prevent you from being sued. It covers costs in loss (or pays benefits to someone injured on your property etc). Your homeowners insurance should cover YOUR liabilities in this area, and a quick call to your agent will take care of adding any riders necessary during construction (we added one) but putting your name on the contractors insurance just isn’t necessary, or very smart. He may think so, but if he doesn’t pay his insurance bill and someone falls of someone elses roof…you can be sued because as a policy holder, you should have ensured that the insurance was kept in place. You’re increasing your liability, not decreasing it.

Your GC should have L&I on his employees, which will cover them if they slip off the roof. He also should have insurance for any major disasters that could happen to his workers. An insurance policy on your roof job isn’t a replacement for this. It’s part of his business costs.

Call your agent and get yourself updated for all coverages necessary during construction, and then check to see that the GC has appropriate coverages (L&I on labor, bonding etc) and you’ll be fine.

My GC kind of giggled when I mentioned this idea to him today (I was just curious if any other contractors tried this). He said “Well if the client is dumb enough to sign the policy, heck go for it” (And I’m not trying to call you dumb, I’m just saying your GC might be a bit goofed on the legal aspects of this). Think about it…how do you get your name off the policy? Is this policy for your roof only or his work in general? You don’t take out special policies for each client, you take out one big liability policy for your company and workers. And that’s never the homeowners job, it’s the GC’s responsibility, and your responsibility is to ensure that the GC is up to date on his paperwork so you will be protected by your homeowners policy. "

So apparently many contractors aren’t even aware of the proper procedure …let alone a homeowner.

Thanks for your timely responses.

…another satisfied customer