An HVAC business, or heating, ventilation and air conditioning, provides repairs, maintenance, and replacements for different types of air conditioning and heating systems in homes and businesses. It is a service that is always in need, therefore a great option when trying to start a lucrative business. However, you should also be aware of your potential risks, because there are several. By first understanding what your risks are, you can start to think about protecting them with business insurance.
Materials, Tools and Equipment Damage
The first area of risks to be aware of have to do with the tools and equipment you use in your HVAC business. Since you rely on your equipment, tools, and materials every day for repairing and maintaining client’s HVAC units, you need them to be working properly at all times. If they break down, you are reliable for either making repairs to them or replacing them. This is one of your biggest risks because it could cause you financial distress just replacing a single piece of equipment. For this reason, equipment breakdown insurance is critical in an HVAC business.
Legal Issues
You also have some legal issues to be aware of. With your HVAC business, you need to be sure you have the right licenses and permits to conduct business. This includes understanding contracts between you and your clients, getting a business license and having a permit in your local city to perform your type of business. If you fail to have the right license, it could mean facing a lot of fees as a result, or even losing your business or shutting down until you get these legal matters resolved.
Bodily Injury
Your business risks also include potential bodily injuries which can occur to you or your employees. When dealing with electrical units like heating and air conditions in homes or businesses, there are risks like falling off a ladder, using electrical equipment, electrocution and other types of injuries. All businesses have some type of worker injury risk, but even more so with your type of business. General liability insurance and workers’ compensation insurance are two types of small business insurance policies to help mitigate this risk.
Damage to Property
Not only do you need your business equipment and tools to be always be in working order, but your business property as well. Your administrative staff needs your business property to be intact, you may have customers or clients visiting you at your business, as well as storing your tools and materials for your HVAC business. If any damage is done to your property or contents, it poses a risk as you have to cover the cost of repairs. That’s where commercial property insurance can help.
Financial and Income Problems
Finally, you need to be concerned about your potential financial and income problems. If there is a major liability, such as a customer being injured while you are performing repairs in their home, it could mean very high legal costs. There are also other financial issues, such as advertising injury and marketing your business, and times of the year when your business is not as busy.
In order to mitigate these and other risks of your HVAC business, make sure you get the right types of business insurance. This includes business property insurance, workers’ compensation insurance, and liability insurance at a minimum.