General liability
Third-party injury and property damage from your operations — including damage caused by equipment in ordinary use.
Green in summer, plowing in January, covered in both.
Seasonal work changes what you need twice a year. A policy written for one season and left alone is the common failure in this trade.
What this trade actually faces
The exposures worth naming out loud
- Snow and ice removal — a distinct liability exposure that some carriers exclude outright.
- Property damage from mowers, trimmers, and thrown objects.
- Chemical and fertiliser application, where licensing and pollution exposure both apply.
- Trailers and equipment stolen from sites or from the yard.
- Seasonal and part-time staffing, which complicates payroll and work comp.
Coverages that answer them
What goes on the policy, and why
Snow removal liability
Often treated separately, and sometimes excluded. If you plow, this needs to be confirmed rather than assumed.
Equipment (inland marine)
Mowers, trailers, and attachments covered away from premises, which is where they spend their working life.
Commercial auto
Trucks and towed trailers, including plow-equipped vehicles.
Workers' compensation
Required for most Michigan employers, with seasonal payroll reported accurately so the audit holds no surprises.
Herbicide & pesticide applicator liability
Applies if you apply chemicals — a specific exposure a standard liability form may limit.
Coverage descriptions are general. What a policy actually covers depends on its own terms, conditions, and exclusions, and on the carrier issuing it. A licensed agent reviews the specifics with you before anything is bound.
A hypothetical worth thinking about
A tenant falls in a lot you plowed the night before and names your company. Whether your policy responds turns on whether snow removal is covered, excluded, or simply never discussed when the policy was written for a summer-only operation. This is the single most common gap in the trade, and it is entirely avoidable with a conversation in October.
Illustration only — not a description of an actual claim, and not a statement of what any particular policy would pay.
What we need from you
Have these handy and this takes a few minutes
- Annual revenue, split between seasons if it varies
- Whether you perform snow and ice removal
- Whether you apply chemicals, and under whose licence
- Equipment and trailer values
- Vehicles, payroll, and any losses in the last five years
Related trades
Excavation & Concrete
Site work carries the highest-severity exposures in the trades. The limits and endorsements should reflect that rather than default to a package built for a two-person shop.
General Contractors & Remodelers
General liability, tools, work comp, and vehicles reviewed together — with certificates issued when you need them, not three days later.
Rather talk?