Contractors insurance is a tricky subject when it comes to people working from home. As a rule, contractors insurance typically covers injuries and damages involved with client-facing jobs such as if someone is injured in the course of your job. Say you are a general contractor and someone falls on a saw you left out. In this case, you should have contractors insurance to cover the victim’s injuries and protect yourself in case of a lawsuit.
However, if you don’t have clients coming to your home and you are not traveling to their home, you may not need contractors insurance.
This depends a great deal on the circumstances and nature of your job, however. Contractors insurance typically covers claims of bodily injury, property damage and personal or advertising injury. There are other forms of insurance available under contractors insurance that you may want to consider, however.
Beyond on-the-job injuries and damages, there is quite a bit that can happen in the course of your business. For instance, if you make any claims in your advertising, promising to offer better service than your competitor, that might be a suable offense, depending on what kind of spin your competitor's lawyers can put on it. With some form of business or contractors insurance, you'll be covered for any expenses arising from that lawsuit. Without that protection, your competitor could very well wind up with the deed to your home.
Errors and omissions is another major concern, depending on your line of work. For a graphic designer, it is unlikely that you will ever need this form of insurance. However, if you work in consulting in any capacity, your job is effectively to dole out advice. If someone is injured as a result of that advice, you may be held responsible for that.
Some work-from-home contractors need considerably more insurance than others. Some may require everything from errors and omissions insurance to advertising liability and workers comp for their assistant, while others may find that their home insurance covers most of their risks. Consider the hazards that you face in your line of work. Then, determine whether you feel adequately covered without contractors insurance.
Whether you are self employed or part of a remote practice, speak with your insurance agent to make sure that your at-home work is covered by the right insurance to protect you.