Framing Contractors Business Insurance

Framing contractors can use Insuranceopedia to review business insurance policies from leading carriers. This platform helps you secure the best coverage for general liability and property damage. It also assists in finding plans that protect your crew.

Why Do Framing Contractors Need Business Insurance?

Framing structures is inherently risky work. Your team operates heavy power tools while balancing on uneven surfaces or working at significant heights. These conditions create a high potential for workplace accidents. Unfortunately, injuries to staff or bystanders and damage to property are common risks in this trade.

Proper insurance coverage shields your business from the financial fallout of these accidents. If a mistake or negligence leads to an incident, your policy steps in to help. It covers the cost of legal fees if a lawsuit is filed against you. It also pays for property repairs and can even replace your tools if they are stolen or broken.

Beyond safety, you usually need insurance to remain compliant. Project owners and local licensing boards generally require proof of coverage before you can start a job.

General liability insurance is the most common requirement. It protects framing contractors from expensive claims involving bodily injury and property damage. Carrying this coverage also boosts your reputation. Clients are far more likely to trust and hire a framer who can show a certificate of insurance. Whether you are a solo operator or manage a large crew, the right policy allows you to work with confidence.

What Insurance Do Framing Contractors Need?

Framing contractors face distinct hazards every day. You deal with heavy lumber, power tools, and heights. Accidents happen, and mistakes can lead to expensive lawsuits. To keep your business running smoothly, you need the right coverage. Here is a guide to the types of business insurance policies that matter most for your trade.

General Liability Insurance

What it is: This is the starting point for protecting your business. It covers common accidents involving people who do not work for you.

What it covers: It pays for legal defense, medical bills, and repairs if your business causes injury or property damage to a third party.

Example: While carrying a long 2×4 through a client’s home during a renovation, you accidentally smash an expensive window. General liability insurance pays for the replacement window.

Workers’ Compensation Insurance

What it is: Framing is physically demanding work. This policy protects your crew if they get hurt on the job.

What it covers: It pays for medical treatment, recovery costs, and lost wages for injured employees. Most states require this coverage by law.

Example: An employee falls from a ladder while installing a header and breaks a leg. Workers’ comp covers the hospital visit and pays a portion of their wages while they heal.

Surety Bonds

What it is: A bond is a financial guarantee that you will fulfill your contract obligations. It is often required for government or commercial bids.

What it covers: It ensures the client is compensated if you fail to finish the job, fail to pay subcontractors, or do not follow local codes.

Example: You land a contract for a municipal building, but go out of business before finishing the frame. The surety bond pays the city so they can hire a new contractor to finish the work.

Inland Marine Insurance

What it is: This covers your property when it is on the move. Standard property insurance usually stops coverage once items leave your main office.

What it covers: It protects materials and equipment while they are in transit to a job site or temporarily stored there.

Example: You are hauling a trailer full of lumber and compressors to a new housing development. The trailer is involved in a crash, ruining the materials. Inland marine helps replace the load.

Professional Liability Insurance (Errors & Omissions)

What it is: Professional liability insurance covers financial losses caused by the quality of your advice or your work.

What it covers: It protects you if a client sues because your work was negligent, late, or did not meet the blueprints.

Example: Your crew frames a wall three inches off from the architectural plans. The drywall and electrical teams cannot start until it is fixed, causing a costly delay. The client sues you for the lost time and money.

Commercial Auto Insurance

What it is: Personal car insurance rarely covers accidents that happen while driving for work. You need a commercial policy for company vehicles.

What it covers: It pays for liability, medical costs, and vehicle repairs if your work truck gets into an accident.

Example: You are driving the company truck to pick up nails and rear-end another car at a stoplight. Commercial auto insurance pays for the damage to the other driver’s vehicle.

Contractor’s Tools and Equipment Insurance

What it is: This is specialized coverage for the gear you rely on to build.

What it covers: It pays to repair or replace tools that are stolen, lost, or damaged. This applies to both owned and rented equipment.

Example: You leave a generator and two nail guns locked at a job site overnight. Thieves break in and steal them. Contractor’s tools and equipment insurance provides the funds to buy replacements.

Umbrella Insurance

What it is: This acts as a safety net when your other policies hit their maximum limit.

What it covers: It provides extra funding if a claim exceeds the limits of your general liability or auto insurance.

Example: A collapsing wall injures a third party, resulting in a lawsuit for $1.5 million. Your general liability policy only covers up to $1 million. Umbrella insurance pays the remaining $500,000.

Business Owner’s Policy (BOP)

What it is: A BOP is a cost-effective package that combines general liability and commercial property insurance.

What it covers: It protects your business assets and covers liability risks in one single premium.

Example: A windstorm damages the roof of your workshop, and a customer slips on ice in your parking lot the same week. A BOP helps cover both incidents.

Hired And Non-Owned Auto (HNOA) Insurance

What it is: Sometimes your crew drives their own vehicles for work tasks. This policy covers the liability gaps.

What it covers: It protects your business if an employee causes an accident while driving a personal or rented vehicle for work.

Example: You send a foreman to the hardware store in his own pickup truck to grab saw blades. He causes an accident on the way. HNOA covers the lawsuit against your business.

Commercial Property Insurance

What it is: This protects the physical location where your business lives, such as a warehouse, office, or shop.

What it covers: It pays for damage to your building and the contents inside due to fire, theft, or weather.

Example: A fire starts in your lumber storage warehouse. Commercial property insurance pays to repair the building structure and replace the destroyed inventory.

Cyber Liability Insurance

What it is: Framing contractors increasingly use software for bids and billing. This protects your digital data.

What it covers: It helps with legal fees, data recovery, and notifying clients if you suffer a data breach or hack.

Example: Hackers get into your computer system and steal the credit card information of your clients. Cyber liability insurance helps pay for the required credit monitoring services for those customers.

Business Personal Property (BPP) Insurance

What it is: This covers the movable items located inside your primary place of business.

What it covers: It pays to replace office furniture, computers, and inventory if they are damaged or stolen from your office.

Example: A pipe bursts in your office ceiling, destroying your desktop computer and your office furniture. BPP pays to replace these items.

Cheapest Framing Contractor General Liability Insurance

Next Insurance is the cheapest carrier for standalone general liability, with an average estimated cost of $1,640 annually.

Note: These figures represent a policy with a $1 million per occurrence / $2 million aggregate limit for a framing contractor with roughly $150,000 in annual revenue. Actual premiums will vary based on your location (state liability laws) and the specific nature of your projects (residential vs. commercial).

Cheapest Framing Contractor Workers’ Compensation Insurance

BiBERK is typically the most affordable option for direct workers’ compensation coverage, with an average estimated cost of $3,185 annually for a small framing business.

Note: These estimates are based on a small framing operation (class code 5645) with one full-time employee and an annual payroll of approximately $45,000. Actual premiums will vary significantly based on your state’s specific rates, your claims history (EMR), and payroll size.

Cheapest Framing Contractor Business Owner’s Policy

Next Insurance offers the most cost-effective bundled BOP (General Liability + Commercial Property), averaging $2,150 per year.

Note: These estimates are based on a standard BOP package including General Liability and $10,000–$20,000 in business personal property (tools/equipment) coverage. Actual premiums will vary based on the total value of the equipment insured, the deductible chosen, and the security of your storage location.

How Much Does Business Insurance For Framing Contractors Cost?

You can expect to pay an average of $179 per month for framing contractor insurance. However, this rate varies based on your specific operations. Insurance companies look at your location, your equipment, and exactly what kind of framing work you do.

Projects with higher risks lead to higher premiums. For instance, framing a multi-story commercial structure costs more to insure than a simple one-story home.

Your local environment plays a big role, too. Business insurance rates often increase in areas with frequent natural disasters, such as wildfires in California or flooding on the East Coast. Local crime rates can drive up the price of tool and equipment coverage. Furthermore, driving in high-traffic cities like Manhattan often increases commercial auto insurance costs.

Insurers also review your business details. They consider your payroll size, claims history, and whether you haul high-value tools. The total amount of coverage you select affects the final price as well. While saving money is good, you must ensure your policy fully covers your specific business risks.

Note: The estimates above are based on 2025 national averages for a small-to-medium framing business (approximately $500,000–$1,000,000 in annual revenue with 3–5 employees). Actual premiums will vary based on your specific location, payroll size, claims history, and selected policy limits.

How Is Your Framing Contractor Business Insurance Cost Calculated?

Insurance companies look at several specific details to decide your premium. They want to know exactly how much risk your framing business carries. Two of the biggest factors are where your projects are located and the type of structures you build.

Imagine a small residential framer working in a calm area with good weather. They will usually pay less than a commercial framer working on high-rise buildings in a zone prone to hurricanes. The chance of damage is simply higher in the second case.

Your claims history is also important to underwriters. You may see higher rates if you have made insurance claims in the past. Other details include the total value of your tools and whether you drive company vehicles. The price also changes based on your coverage limits and your specific business structure.

Following these steps helps ensure you’re properly insured and set up to handle risks confidently and professionally.