MISTER SPARKY

The Mister Sparky franchise agreement requires general liability at $1 million per occurrence and $2 million aggregate on an occurrence form, automobile liability at $1 million combined single limit covering owned, non-owned, and hired vehicles, and workers' compensation at state statutory limits with employers liability. You must name Mister Sparky Franchising SPE LLC, AB Inc. as manager, and their affiliates as additional insureds on both ongoing and completed operations. The policy must be primary and non-contributory and must include a waiver of subrogation. Proof of coverage must be provided before you open.

Yes. Workers compensation is required by law in virtually every state for any business with employees. Licensed electricians are employees in most franchise operating structures. Workers' compensation covers medical costs and lost wages when an electrician is injured on the job. The employers liability portion covers claims where an employee pursues you directly for a workplace injury beyond the workers compensation benefit. The standard limits for franchise operations are $1 million per accident, $1 million per disease per employee, and $1 million per disease policy limit.

Usually yes — if a permit was pulled, the work met code, and the fire damaged property beyond what your technician was actively working on. General liability covers completed operations: claims arising after your work is done. A fire caused by faulty wiring is a completed operations bodily injury and property damage claim. What can remove coverage is a missing permit, a code violation, or the application of the exclusion for damage to property your technician was actively working on when the incident occurred. These conditions are worth reviewing with your agent before taking on complex panel or commercial circuit work.

Residential and light commercial electrical service work is classified under NCCI code 5190 — Electrical Wiring. This code should appear on your workers' compensation declarations page for service technicians performing day-to-day residential and service call work. Commercial tenant improvement work and new construction electrical installation triggers NCCI code 5183 — Electrical Apparatus Installation — which carries a higher rate in most states. If your declarations page shows a code other than 5190 for residential service work, ask your agent to confirm it accurately reflects what your technicians do.

This is one of the most significant coverage gaps in the electrical trade. General liability policies typically exclude claims arising from work that violated applicable law — and performing electrical work without a required permit is a code violation in most jurisdictions. If a claim surfaces from unpermitted work, the carrier may deny on the basis that the work was not lawfully performed. This is why permit compliance is not just a licensing issue. It is an insurance coverage condition. Verify permit requirements before every panel upgrade, service change, or installation project.

Commercial clients often require higher limits than the FDD minimum. Many commercial property managers and general contractors require $2 million per occurrence and $4 million aggregate on certificates of insurance. Your Mister Sparky franchise agreement requires $1 million per occurrence — calibrated to residential service. Franchisees pursuing commercial accounts should confirm the client's certificate requirements before bidding. A commercial umbrella at $1 million over primary general liability is the most practical way to satisfy elevated certificate requirements without restructuring the primary policy.

Property damage that occurs to the specific area your technician is actively working on may be excluded under the standard general liability form. If your technician is fishing wire through a wall and damages a finished surface, cracks plaster, or breaks a tile — that damage may not be covered because it occurred during active operations to the property being worked on. Damage to clearly separate areas — a customer's furniture, an adjacent room's fixtures, property unrelated to the active work scope — is more likely covered. Confirm with your agent exactly how your policy addresses property damage during active operations before a claim makes the question urgent.