There are a lot of variables you should factor into the cost of starting a carpet cleaning business. As a DryMaster Affiliate, you won’t need to pay for marketing or cover franchising fees, but you’ll still need to purchase carpet cleaning business insurance to make sure that your interests are protected in the event of an unexpected issue.
Some types of insurance for your carpet cleaning business are essential, while others provide you with additional coverage that will help you respond appropriately to unforeseen events. In this guide, learn about the different types of small business insurance for carpet cleaning that are available, and find out how to properly protect the DryMaster business that will help you make your financial dreams come true.
What is general liability insurance?
At the bare minimum, you should invest in commercial general liability insurance (CGL) before you clean your first carpet. A good CGL plan covers most of the risks you might face on the job. Here are some examples of the risks that commercial general liability insurance covers:
- Injuries
- Damage to property
- Payments for medical expenses
- Legal expenses
- Advertising injuries
Most of these risks are self-explanatory, but it’s worth taking a moment to explain advertising injuries. These types of injuries are legal expenses that might come about as you advertise your business. Advertising injuries can include, but are not limited to, slander, libel, and copyright infringement. Without advertising injury insurance, you will be held accountable if your advertisements cross unexpected legal boundaries.
Carrying CGL insurance is not a legal requirement. This type of insurance does, however, protect you from potential medical and legal expenses that could bankrupt your business. Lawsuits commonly have penalties in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, and CGL protects you from these onerous financial burdens in exchange for a monthly fee.
How much does general liability insurance cost?
Commercial general liability insurance varies in cost depending on your location and your line of business. Carpet cleaning businesses can generally expect to pay around $500 – $1,500 for this type of coverage every year or approximately $40 – $125 per month. Businesses in the cleaning and repair industries generally pay the highest CGL insurance fees with businesses in other industries paying less.
You may be able to negotiate a lower CGL rate if you bundle your plan with other common forms of business insurance. Here are some examples of the factors that can impact the monthly cost of your CGL insurance:
- Location: Depending on your physical location, you may not have access to the most affordably priced CGL plans.
- Deductible: The amount you choose for your deductible will either raise or lower your monthly CGL fees.
- Employees: The more employees you have, the more you will pay for CGL insurance.
- Per-occurrence limit: This limit refers to the total amount an insured business can claim for a particular event regardless of the extent of the bodily injuries or property damage that occured.
- General aggregate limit: This factor limits the amount that an insured business will pay for all of the losses covered by a CGL plan.
Speak with a local commercial insurance agency to find general liability insurance for a carpet cleaning business near me.
Other types of coverage you should consider
While commercial general liability insurance should cover most of the risks that you might encounter as a DryMaster Affiliate, there are certain types of risks that CGL will not cover. To make sure that you’re ready for any type of adverse event that might befall you on the job, you should also consider investing in the following additional types of liability insurance for carpet cleaning businesses:
Professional liability insurance
Any time that you enter a client’s home to clean their carpets or perform another service, you put yourself at risk. Regardless of how competent you may be, it’s always possible to make mistakes, and whether you were actually in error or not, your client could claim that you did. You never know when one of your clients might file a lawsuit against you for real or perceived bodily injury or property damage, and professional liability insurance will cover your legal fees in the event that you are sued by a disgruntled client.
Worker’s compensation insurance
Depending on where you live, worker’s compensation insurance may or may not be necessary if you want to run a carpet cleaning business with employees. Worker’s compensation is a type of coverage that an employee can apply for if they were injured on the job. This type of coverage usually pays for the injured employee’s medical bills and covers wages lost during recovery. Even if it isn’t required by law in your state, operating without worker’s compensation insurance could make you liable to pay for your employee’s injuries out of pocket.
Commercial auto insurance
If you decide to hire employees as a DryMaster Affiliate, you should invest in commercial auto insurance. This type of car insurance covers your employees while they are driving your carpet cleaning vehicles. Commercial auto insurance will prevent you from being held liable if your employee causes an accident while on the job, and it will cover your employee’s medical bills if they sustain driving-related injuries while also covering any vehicle damage incurred.
Commercial property insurance
Your carpet cleaning equipment represents a significant investment. Commercial property insurance pays for the repair or replacement of property that was damaged as the result of a covered event, such as a flood or a fire. Instead of worrying about paying for new carpet cleaning equipment if it is destroyed or otherwise harmed, invest in commercial property insurance to rest assured that you’ll never have to do without the equipment you need to get the job done every day.
Protect your carpet cleaning business properly
Your new DryMaster business is your lifeline and your doorway to financial success. Putting your business at risk would run counter to your goals of stability and prosperity, so investing in insurance is an absolute must.
If you plan to go it alone without having any employees, you’re free to skip some of the types of insurance we’ve listed in this guide. Commercial general liability insurance, however, is absolutely necessary if you want to protect yourself against unexpected risks, and insuring your equipment or protecting yourself against professional liability could be safe moves that deliver unexpected rewards.
However you decide to protect your business, just remember that DryMaster is here to help. By skipping all of the franchising and marketing fees, we provide you with plenty of bandwidth to comprehensively insure your new Affiliate business.
