Construction Insurance

Construction Liability Insurance

Protect your construction business and your assets with a comprehensive construction insurance policy.  

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Trusted by over 300,000 Canadian small business owners!
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Instant price and coverage in just a few clicks!
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Zensurance - Construction Contractor

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Construction Business

Insurance for construction companies

Construction is a complex business with many working professionals, tools, and technology used for multiple types of building projects. There are inherent dangers associated with the work you do. Getting a tailored construction insurance policy can protect your business, tools and equipment, and the projects you are working on from the cost of damage or loss resulting from matters beyond your control. That includes coverage for an unexpected accident or damages and losses suffered because of severe weather during construction.

Construction liability insurance is a policy custom designed for construction contractors to protect them against specific risks they may encounter, such as third-party injuries and property damage. Mistakes can happen, and potential lawsuits against your business can leave your operations damaged beyond repair.

As a construction company or contractor, your projects could range from building a townhouse to repairing a major highway. It is essential to have insurance coverage specifically designed for the risks you encounter and the equipment you own. A comprehensive construction liability insurance package will typically include the following:

  • Commercial General Liability (CGL) Insurance: A must-have for all kinds of businesses, CGL, also known as general liability insurance, protects your business from third-party bodily injury and property damage claims. It is designed to cover legal, medical, and repair or replacement costs for third-party injuries or damages that occur in relation to your business’s activities whether on your business’s premises or at the construction sites where you work.
  • Builder’s Risk Insurance: Builder’s risk insurance protects your project from start to finish, including the building, the building materials you have onsite, and losses or damages suffered following an insured event like a fire, theft, or vandalism.
  • Commercial Property Insurance: Also known as business contents insurance or business property insurance, commercial property insurance protects your place of business or office and its contents from damage or loss related to severe weather, natural disasters, fire, theft, and vandalism.
  • Tools and Equipment Insurance: Think of tools and equipment insurance as a form of property coverage for the tools and equipment you transport and use at a construction site. It is designed to reimburse you for damages or losses to your equipment if they’re stolen, vandalized, or damaged by a fire or flood. It covers a broad range of tools and equipment from handheld tools and safety gear to heavy construction vehicles such as bulldozers and backhoes.

Addition coverages:

  • Pollution Liability Insurance: It’s not uncommon for construction businesses to be exposed to liabilities related to pollution while working at a job site. Pollution liability insurance helps to safeguard you from those risks. It covers third-party bodily injury and property damage as well as environmental damage resulting from your work, including clean-up costs, civil fines and assessments, and emergency response expenses.
  • Commercial Auto Insurance: Construction companies typically have several vehicles to transport materials, tools and equipment, and people. A personal car insurance policy is unlikely to cover any accident or damage claims for a vehicle that’s used for business purposes. A commercial auto insurance policy protects you from costly third-party bodily injury or property damage claims involving your company’s vehicles.

The cost of insurance for a small-to-medium construction company typically starts at around $540 per year for a commercial general liability insurance policy with a $2 million limit.

There are several factors considered when determining a price for your insurance policy package, including:

  • Project types (commercial, residential, or industrial)
  • The kinds of operations you perform like demolitions, tunnelling, drilling, or mining
  • Whether structural work is required such as raising or moving built structures
  • If you use flammables or explosives
  • Years of experience
  • Number of employees and their levels of experience
  • Location
  • If the construction projects you do are in areas that have a high crime rate
  • The tools and equipment you own
  • Previous insurance claims
  • Annual and projected gross revenue

We shop more than 50 Canadian insurance providers in our partner network to offer you different options that suit your business needs at the best price.

Whether you provide commercial, industrial, or residential construction, there may be risks of third-party injuries and property damage resulting from work-related accidents. Construction liability insurance is needed to provide financial protection should you or your employees be named in a lawsuit.

We’ve helped thousands of Canadian construction companies and trade contractors get insured. Some of our clients include:

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Common claims scenarios

Construction Building Damage

Problem: While constructing a commercial office building, one of your subcontractors mishandles a support beam, which collapses a portion of the building structure onto a neighbouring property.

Outcome: Your commercial general liability insurance may cover the cost to repair the damages to the neighbouring property.

Construction tools

Problem: An overused cordless power tool is left to bake in the sun, in turn triggering a fire at the jobsite. The fire destroys the wood materials needed to complete the residential construction project.

Outcome: Your tools and equipment insurance policy may cover the cost to replace the damaged tool and materials destroyed by the fire.

Sewer cover hole pollution

Problem: While constructing a new underground road cross, your crew accidentally digs through a sewage line, rupturing it, and causing a massive toxic spill onto the site.

Outcome: Your pollution liability insurance policy may cover the cost to clean-up the spill and repair the ruptured sewage line.

Frequently asked questions

Are there other types of coverages my construction business requires?

Depending on what your construction business does, the work it performs, and projects it has, there may be additional types of insurance you need to form a comprehensive policy. For example, if you provide advice or consulting services as part of your business, you may need to add professional liability coverage to your overall policy. Speak to a Zensurance licensed broker about your business’s needs and get their advice on what you need to be adequately protected.

Do all members of my construction crew need to be licensed and insured?

Yes. It is advisable for every member of your construction crew to be fully licensed, and they should each carry their own liability policy to protect them from expenses related to accidents, mishaps, or third-party lawsuits.

What is wrap-up liability and what benefits does a wrap-up liability policy provide?

A wrap-up liability policy is a one-time, project-specific liability policy that is designed to cover everyone involved in a construction project and who work at the project site. Although all contractors and subcontractors involved in your project should carry their own liability insurance, wrap-up liability coverage is a time-saving way to guarantee every professional involved in your project is insured against the risk of third-party bodily injury or property damage claims.

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