He was a handyman. Skilled, meticulous, decades of work behind him and not one claim. He trusted his own hands, and he'd earned that.
He carried no general liability coverage. Why would he? He was careful.
One job went wrong. He lost everything he had built.
I've heard that sentence — I'm careful, I've never needed it — more times than any other in thirty years, and it's almost always true. These are careful people. That's the part that gets missed.
Careful reduces how often something happens. It does nothing to what it costs when it does. Those are two separate problems, and only one of them is solved by being good at your job.
A clean fifteen-year record tells you that you run a tight operation. It tells you nothing at all about next Tuesday.
This week: If you've been operating without general liability because nothing has ever happened, get one quote. Just to see the number. Then decide with the number in front of you instead of without it.
Tuesday's issue is about someone who did have it. Different ending.
John Crist
Prestizia Insurance
Author, The Prestizia Protection Playbook