ROTO-ROOTER

At minimum: general liability at $1,000,000 per occurrence on an occurrence form through an A-VII admitted carrier, and workers' compensation at statutory limits with $1,000,000 employers liability. Review your executed franchise agreement for the current complete list. Commercial auto is not mandated in the agreement as reviewed but is operationally required for any franchise running a fleet.

Your legal business entity is the named insured the LLC or corporation you operate through. Roto-Rooter Inc. is the franchisor and is listed as additional insured where required. These are two separate roles. Never list the franchisor where your entity should appear.

Not automatically. The standard general liability policy includes a subcontractor exclusion that removes coverage for damage caused by independent contractors. An endorsement restores that coverage but only for subcontractors who maintain current certificates of insurance. A sub whose certificate has expired takes the exclusion with them.

Your occurrence-form general liability policy covers this through completed operations. What matters is when the damage-causing event occurred not when the claim is filed. Work completed during an active policy period is covered under that period, even if the claim arrives years later. The risk is a coverage lapse or carrier switch without continuity review.

Standard general liability policies exclude mold. A mold endorsement adds limited coverage, typically $25,000 to $100,000. For sewer work, drain chemical exposure, and restoration work involving mold-affected materials, the contractors pollution liability policy is the coverage written for what the standard general liability pollution exclusion removes.

Roto-Rooter franchisees perform plumbing work NCCI code 6400 and water damage restoration work CnCI code 5610. Each carries a different state rate. A policy built with only the plumbing code leaves restoration payroll misclassified. The workers' compensation carrier corrects this at year-end audit and bills the difference.

Workers' compensation is required for your employees. Independent contractors classified as 1099 are not employees under most definitions. But if a 1099 worker on your jobs cannot produce their own workers' compensation certificate, your carrier treats their payroll as yours at year-end audit and charges premium on it.

The agreement as reviewed does not list commercial auto as a mandate. That does not make it optional. Every vehicle used for a business purpose requires commercial auto coverage. Personal auto policies exclude business use. The absence of a franchise mandate does not create personal auto coverage for business operations.

Bailee's liability covers property belonging to others while it is in your care, custody, or control. During water damage restoration, your crew moves and stores client furniture, electronics, and personal property. If that property is damaged while in your care, your general liability policy does not typically respond. Bailee's liability is the policy written for that specific exposure.

Inland marine coverage also called tools and equipment coverage protects portable equipment away from your fixed location. Dehumidifiers, air movers, extraction units, and moisture meters are not covered by commercial property insurance when they leave your building. Inland marine covers that equipment in transit, on a job site, and inside a vehicle.