Being a tree care professional has many benefits. Perhaps you work for a large company and enjoy spending your days outdoors. Or maybe you're a business owner, taking on the jobs you want and building a name as a tree service professional.
However, as any arborist knows, your work comes with risks. Anytime you climb a tree or use power tools to trim or shape a client's landscaping, accidents can happen. Even the most experienced arborists can make mistakes. Property damage or injuries to third parties are also common risks—tree branches can fall on cars or through windows. That’s why having the right arborist insurance in Ontario is essential to protect your business from lawsuits, injury claims, or financial loss.
With the expertise of a trusted Morison Insurance broker, you can get comprehensive tree service insurance coverage tailored to your needs. Whether you focus on tree trimming, removal, or general tree care services, the right insurance ensures peace of mind.
Arborist insurance, also called tree removal insurance, is a contractor insurance policy that can be customized to your business. A solo arborist working from a truck has different needs than a company with multiple employees and a fleet of vehicles.
Even with strict safety protocols, accidents happen. A ladder fall or chainsaw incident can cause serious injury. Without proper arborist insurance, you could face expensive legal fees, settlements, and medical costs—all out of pocket.
While Ontario does not legally require arborist insurance, most professionals benefit from it. Clients are less likely to hire uninsured arborists, and subcontractors should also have coverage.
Businesses that should consider arborist or tree surgeon insurance include:
If you are unsure if your business activities require arborist insurance, the Ontario brokers at Morison Insurance will be happy to discuss your business insurance needs with you and determine whether you can benefit from having this type of insurance policy.
Tree removal specialists face many potential risks on a daily basis, so arborist insurance is a crucial coverage to have. If you experience a loss and do not have insurance coverage in place, you will be forced to pay out of pocket which can be extremely costly. Have peace of mind with tree service insurance policies.
Ontario doesn’t mandate that a tree service professional have insurance, outside of some legally mandated coverages such as auto insurance. That said, without proper arborist coverage, you’ll find it very hard to work as an arborist.
As discussed above, many clients won’t hire you if you can not provide proof of insurance, as they wouldn’t want to risk an accident happening and you not being able to provide the needed compensation. Additionally, many lenders or mortgage companies require you to have property coverage. Otherwise, they won’t rent or provide the funds needed to purchase a property. Ultimately, without some kind of insurance coverage, you’ll find it very hard to do business in Ontario.
Tree care or tree surgeon insurance policy doesn’t refer to just one type of policy. Rather, it refers to a broader insurance package that contains many different types of coverage. As such, your arborist insurance policy can be uniquely tailored to your specific insurance needs.
Many types of insurance can be added to your policy, and different arborist insurance companies offer different extensions of coverage. For this reason, it's best to partner with a qualified broker such as the knowledgeable team at Morison Insurance. By shopping around for competitive rates at the province's top arborist insurance carriers, we will find you a policy that offers the best coverage for your needs.
That said, there are some common coverage inclusions in many different arborist insurance policies. Ontario tree professionals often include the following types of coverage in their policies.
Also known as errors and omissions insurance, professional liability protects arborists against claims of misconduct, negligence, failure to deliver a promised service, bad advice, or breach of contract that result in financial damages to a client or third party.
Example: A client hires your company to prune trees before selling their home. If a mistake occurs, such as cutting down the wrong tree or missing a critical pruning deadline, the client could experience financial loss. Professional liability insurance helps cover legal fees and settlements in these situations, keeping your business financially protected.
A commercial general liability insurance policy covers two essential risks: bodily injury to third parties and property damage.
Example 1: While removing a hanging tree branch, it accidentally falls on a client’s car.
Example 2: A felled tree lands in a neighbor’s yard, causing injury.
CGL insurance helps offset the costs of legal defense, settlements, and damages arising from such incidents, ensuring your tree care business is protected.
If you own a commercial building this coverage protects your business location, tools, equipment, and inventory from accidents, fire, theft, or vandalism.
Example: If a fire damages your office or garage where you store equipment, commercial property insurance covers repair or replacement costs. Without it, you would have to pay out of pocket for building repairs and tool replacement.
If you own a vehicle for strictly commercial purposes, then you likely already have a commercial auto insurance policy. Personal auto policies typically do not cover work-related accidents or damage to tools stored in your vehicle.
Example: If you get into an accident while driving to a job site, commercial auto insurance covers damages and legal costs that your personal policy wouldn’t.
While some arborist businesses can get away with a standalone vehicle, for larger tree care companies, they may need coverage for multiple vehicles. If you own more than 4 commercial vehicles for your arborist business, then you may want to ask your arborist insurance broker about getting fleet insurance. In a nutshell, fleet insurance allows you to insure all your commercial vehicles under one policy, rather than individually. You also usually have the choice to insure all drivers for all vehicles or assign named drivers to each vehicle. This can help you save on your insurance premiums and also makes it easier for any of your employees to drive any of your insured vehicles.
If you operate a tree care business from home, especially if you store tools and equipment at your house, then you need to have home-based business insurance coverage. Most homeowner insurance policies will not provide coverage for any business-related activities that take place at your home, so if you run any part of your tree care business from home, whether it’s office equipment and client files or just storing tools, you need to have this coverage inclusion as part of your home insurance for arborists.
Example: Storing expensive tools in your garage—if a fire or flood damages them, your homeowner insurance alone will not cover business-related losses. Home-based business insurance fills this gap.
Your tools of the trade are one of the most important aspects of running a tree care business. If something happens to your tools and you're forced to replace them, the costs can be astronomical. This may force you to take out an additional loan or close your business down for good. Tools and equipment insurance for arborists, which is also referred to as an equipment floater, is essential for protecting heavy equipment from external damage, vandalism and theft while the equipment is in transit or at a job site—in other words, when it's not on your commercial premises. By having this tree surgeon insurance protection, you can rest assured that you have the financial protection you need should a crucial piece of equipment get stolen or damaged in an accident.
Example: A chainsaw is stolen from a job site. Tools and equipment insurance ensures replacement without financial strain.
If your equipment is stolen, vandalized, or damaged by something like a fire or accidental impact, it's covered under your tools and equipment coverage on your arborist insurance. Ontario brokers, however, will caution that it's important to note that tools and equipment insurance does not apply to equipment malfunction or other internal problems. For that type of coverage, you need equipment breakdown insurance. Should your equipment experience a mechanical failure or be damaged by an operator error, equipment breakdown coverage affords you the necessary arborist insurance compensation to cover repair or replacement costs so you can get it up and running again and get back to work.
This type of arborist insurance is essential for all types of contractors, including arborists. Business interruption insurance covers you for loss of income during periods when you can't conduct business as usual due to a covered event. Sometimes, business interruption coverage in your arborist insurance package can help you cover the cost of renting your office building and paying employee wages while you can't operate to your full capacity.
Example: A wood chipper malfunctions during operation. Equipment breakdown insurance covers repair or replacement costs, allowing you to resume work quickly.
Similar to general liability coverage, pollution liability insurance covers third-party bodily injury, property damage, and environmental damage caused by either gradual or sudden pollution events that occur on job sites.
Example: Over-application of fertilizer damages a client’s lawn, or chemicals harm a child near the job site. Pollution liability coverage offsets legal and remediation costs.
You probably chose your profession as an arborist because you like being outdoors and working with your hands, not typing away on a computer all day, so why should your arborist insurance in Ontario include cyber risk coverage? The fact is that most businesses need cyber liability insurance these days because most businesses conduct at least some of their business online. You may accept digital payments or store sensitive client information, such as payment details and home addresses. That makes you a target for cyber criminals looking for information they can exploit for fraud or theft. Cyber insurance gives you financial support to deal with the legal fallout of such an event, including litigation costs, settlements, and notifying your clients of a data breach.
There are many ways that your unique arborist insurance policy can protect you from financial loss due to a range of risks. The above are just a few examples of what can be included in your policy for arborist insurance. Ontario policies can also contain averages such as business income insurance, workers' compensation insurance, life insurance, and much more. If you'd like further insight about what protection these coverages offer and how you can be sure to have the most protection possible for your tree work, reach out to our dedicated and licensed Morison Insurance brokers today.
Most arborist insurance quotes include coverage options for your tools, equipment, and climbing gear. However, depending on their total value, you may need additional coverage to ensure they are insured for their full replacement cost. This type of endorsement can also provide protection while your tools and equipment are in transit or on the job site. Speak with a Morison Insurance broker to ensure your gear is properly covered.
The limitations of your insurance will depend on how much and what type of coverage you purchase. That said, each type of coverage will have its own exceptions as well. For instance, tools and equipment insurance does not cover damage from general wear and tear or damage incurred because of poor maintenance.
There are also some services you may offer or are thinking of offering that you can't get coverage for from most arborist insurance companies. For example, if you have a wood chipper, insurance carriers will not insure you if you are chipping directly into the back of a truck and hauling the chips away. The chips must be bagged on site and hauled away, or not chipped and hauled away as larger, cut-up pieces of wood. There are no insurance companies in Canada that will be willing to offer arborist insurance to a tree service professional who is chipping directly into the back of a truck.
Stump removal is another big consideration. While stump grinding is generally accepted by arborist insurance carriers, many companies will not insure an arborist who is providing stump removal services because there's a much bigger risk of causing damage to the client's property. That doesn't mean you can't get coverage for stump removal at all, but it's important to make sure your insurance broker knows exactly which services you provide so they can find arborist insurance that will give you the full coverage you need. To best understand the limitations of your policy, speak with an insurance broker at Morison Insurance today.
As established previously, there are many different types of tree care businesses, so it’s natural that they’ll have varied coverage and the cost of arborist insurance. Ontario arborists, however, can still face wildly different insurance costs even if they offer the same type of services and have the same business model as a competitor. That’s because there is a long list of factors that insurance companies take into consideration when calculating the cost of tree care or tree surgeon insurance premiums. A few of these include, but are not limited to:
In order to get you the best possible arborist insurance rate, our team of talented brokers will take the time to discuss and ask questions about your tree business. This will allow us to get a better idea of what coverages you need and provide you with comprehensive policy options at great rates.
Before purchasing arborist insurance in Ontario, gather:
Be prepared to answer questions such as:
You can get an arborist insurance quote by contacting the business insurance experts at Morison Insurance. We proudly work with the best business insurance companies in Ontario and will compare tree surgeon insurance quotes to ensure you get the best coverage at a competitive rate. Get started today by calling 1-800-463-8074 or by submitting a form on this page. We are here to help tree service businesses get the right insurance.
