The policy is written for the work you described, not the work you did.

General liability

Third-party bodily injury and property damage. It is the line nearly every contract names by default.

Without it — The claim comes from the one job outside your usual run of work, and it is the job the policy description may not reach.

Workers compensation

Required in almost every state the moment you have employees. Priced on payroll and class code, which is why the class code is worth arguing about.

Without it — Ladders, hand tools and unfamiliar buildings produce falls and lacerations across a wide range of tasks.

Commercial auto

Vehicles the business owns and the people who drive them for work.

Without it — A loaded van going between calls all day is a business use a personal policy will decline once it understands it.

Inland marine & equipment

Tools, equipment and property in transit. It picks up exactly where commercial property stops, which is the moment the item leaves the building.

Without it — Tools are the working capital of the business and they live in a vehicle overnight.

Contractors errors & omissions

Covers faulty workmanship and professional mistakes: the cost of the work itself being wrong, which general liability excludes by design.

Without it — Advice given about a building — what needs replacing, whether something is safe — is a professional statement whether or not it was invoiced as one.

Umbrella & excess liability

Extra limit stacked above general liability, auto and employers liability. Usually the cheapest million dollars on the policy.

Without it — A fire or water loss in a client's home reaches numbers a small primary limit does not.

Business owners policy

General liability and property packaged together. Cheaper than buying them separately when you qualify, and most small businesses do.

Without it — A packaged policy is often the right structure for this size of business, provided the classification actually matches the work.

What gets handyman claims declined?

Scope, almost every time. The policy is issued against a description of operations, and the claim arrives from a task outside it: a roof repair on a policy rated for interior work, an electrical connection on a policy that excludes it, a water heater on a policy assuming no plumbing. The work was ordinary; the policy did not know about it. The fix is to describe the outer edge of what you actually take on rather than the average of it.

Which jobs are usually excluded?

The pattern is consistent even though the wording varies: work at height and roofing, anything electrical beyond fixtures, gas, structural alteration, and mould or water remediation. Some policies exclude them outright, others sublimit them, and some will add them for a stated premium. If you take on any of these regularly you need it in writing rather than assumed. No question is more useful to ask before buying, and it is rarely asked.

Why do so many carriers not want handyman business at all?

Because the class describes a range of work rather than a trade, and an underwriter cannot price a range. The same three words cover changing a tap and re-hanging a garage door, and the loss history of the second has nothing to do with the first.

Do I need workers compensation if it is just me?

Often not by statute, but frequently in practice. Property managers, leasing agents and commercial clients ask for it before they will use you, and a sole operator without it is usually excluded from that work. Where your state allows an exemption you can often satisfy the requirement with a certificate plus evidence of the exemption, worth setting up before a client asks rather than during the week they need someone.

Am I better off with a handyman policy or a trade-specific one?

It depends on where your revenue actually is. If most of the work is genuinely mixed maintenance, a properly described handyman policy is right and cheaper. If more than a modest share is one trade — you are effectively a painter, or effectively a plumber — you are usually better and more accurately insured on that trade's class, and being mis-rated in either direction shows up at audit.

What does a handyman and property maintenance insurance application ask for?

The applications for handyman and property maintenance businesses ask about 4 things above all: what types of crane and rigging work do you do (crane rental with operator, bare crane rentals, rigging, steel erection, millwright work, or other); what is the typical weight of items you lift, and what is your average and maximum on-hook value; what is your minimum age requirement for operators; have you had any losses over $5,000 in the past five years. Have your last five years of claims history from your current insurer, called loss runs, showing carrier name, policy term, number of claims, open claims, and amounts paid and reserved and a copy of your standard rental agreement or job ticket that shows what insurance your clients must have ready and a quote takes a day instead of a week.