Stormwater Management Urged In Wake Of Hurricane Helene
Turf Editors
7 Steps For Trimming Risk With New Employees
If you own a landscaping company, simply finding new employees these days is likely to keep you awake at night. The job market is so tight right now that very often the vetting process becomes an afterthought to making sure you have enough folks on any given job. But this can create a temporary solution that leads to bigger problems down the road. When it comes to hiring, it’s important to understand the risks. One of the biggest issues affecting business owners across the board as we emerge from this pandemic is that the market is hardening. We are looking at higher premiums; more conservative underwriting; and fewer insurance companies willing to write certain lines of coverage. Ask yourself: What is the driving record of new hires? Will it affect your insurance rates? Do you have time for safety training? What if a new employee suffers an injury? Are they the type to sue? These are serious considerations, but by following a few tips, you can help decrease the risk associated with new employees. Hire Right. Conduct extensive background checks, including driving records (more on this below.) Also require a post-offer pre-employment physical conducted by a medical professional who knows what the potential employee’s job description will be. Conduct Safety Training. Once on board, make sure employees have the proper training, including hazard awareness. If your team doesn’t know specifically where danger lurks, you can bet they will stumble upon it. You must drive safety messages home constantly. From a ...
Business Insurance Check
Business insurance is a requirement to operations, and as such every business owner seeks out an insurance policy to protect stakeholders in the business. As a standard part of business practices, once the insurance policy is in place, it may be lost in the daily shuffle to review policy coverage, other than on an annual basis. Consider reviewing your insurance coverage at least semi-annually with your insurance provider. Business needs may have changed, or services expanded. Your equipment fleet might have grown or changed in its makeup. Further, requirements specific to location, customer profile, or current events can all have an impact on making sure your business has sufficient coverage. As Turf reported in Fall 2020 through an interview with Scott Young, director of small business underwriting at Progressive Insurance, there are several endorsements that are sometimes overlooked but should be considered, depending on your specific operations. “For instance, if you apply pesticides and/or herbicides, make sure your policy provides liability coverage,” said Young. “If you remove snow during the winter, you’ll want to make sure you’re adequately covered on your general liability policy. For landscaping businesses with employees, we recommend a business owner strongly consider Employment Practices Liability (EPL) coverage, which provides coverage if the owners of the business are sued by an employee for wrongful termination or hiring, harassment, and other employment related issues.” In terms of limits, Young advised that a business owner should contemplate buying the “at least $1 million per occurrence limit” for both ...
