By now you know the importance of hiring a snow and ice removal service for your business in preparation for a brutal Chicago winter. While having a reliable snow and ice removal service mitigates much of the legal risk to your business, it may not completely protect you from litigation. In order to fully protect your business, consider the following aspects of Chicago winter risk management:
Make sure your snow and ice removal service is insured.
Insuring a snow and ice removal company is expensive – in some cases insurance rates have increased as much as 20%. As a result, many snow and ice removal services are uninsured or underinsured. If you hire an uninsured service, your business may be liable if an accident occurs.
Don’t rely on cost alone.
Due to the increase in insurance, many snow removal companies have been forced to raise their rates in order to remain solvent. When choosing a service, it is tempting to the one with the lowest price, but this may be a mistake; lower prices may indicate that a company is uninsured. The old axiom “You get what you pay for” never applies more than in the case of snow removal. You may pay a lower price up front, but if an accident or property damage does occur, you might be liable for thousands of dollars in expenses.
Make sure to specify liability in your contract.
When creating or signing any contract, phrasing the scope of services is the most important thing. In order to fully protect your business, specify which areas of your business a snow removal service is responsible for clearing. In addition, make sure that you include a provision stating that your company is not liable for accidents occurring in these designated areas.
For more information about Brancato Snow & Ice Management’s insurance policies, contact us.
Sources:
http://www.sima.org/hireapro/hire-a-snow-professional/insurance-and-risk-management
http://www.rcabrisk.org/loss-control-topics/winter-safety/snow-removal