Over the last few years, contents cleaning and restoration has become an important service for restoration and remediation contractors to provide. Not only can it be profitable, it also offers contractors the opportunity to set themselves apart from their competitors. Innovations in methods and new technology have made it not only easier, but also less expensive and safer to perform these services. As you consider adding this as something your firm offers, I strongly encourage you to consider how this will affect your insurance situation. More specifically, it’s important that you confirm your business is adequately covered should you add this service, because many restoration and remediation firms are not!
Like standard fire, water, and smoke restoration of structures, contents cleaning and restoration comes with liability loss exposures, because you’re working on and restoring someone else’s property. There is always the risk of damaging that property during work or storage, leaving you liable or responsible to pay for repairs or replacement. Similarly, both structural restoration and contents restoration operations are often not fully or properly covered by standard liability insurance policies such as a Businessowners Policy (BOP) or a Commercial General Liability (GL) policy.