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Contractors Equipment Insurance

Also known as Inland marine / equipment floater

Your tools don’t live at one address — and neither should the policy that covers them.

Contractors equipment insurance — inland marine, if you want the industry name — covers the gear that travels: the excavators, generators, compressors, and power tools that move from jobsite to truck to yard. It pays when equipment is stolen off a site, damaged in a fall, or wrecked while it’s being hauled down the highway, and it can cover the stuff you rent or borrow too. The reason it exists: standard property insurance is built around a fixed location and basically stops caring the moment your equipment leaves the building. It won’t cover licensed road vehicles (commercial auto) or a machine that simply wears out, and deciding what to schedule individually versus blanket is the kind of detail we get right for you.

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Reviewed for accuracy by Mark Hutchings, Licensed Insurance Producer (NV #3600994).

Who needs Contractors Equipment?

  • General contractors, subcontractors, and trades of every size — whether you are a solo operator or running a large crew
  • You own or operate valuable portable equipment like excavators, skid steers, generators, compressors, and high-value power tools
  • You regularly move equipment between jobsites, yards, and storage across Nevada and California
  • You lease, rent, or borrow equipment and are contractually on the hook if it is damaged
  • Your operation is financed through equipment loans or leases, and your lender wants proof of coverage

What it covers

  • Theft of your equipment from jobsites, vehicles, trailers, or storage yards — one of the leading causes of contractor losses
  • Accidental physical damage, like a dropped tool, a tipped machine, or collision damage to equipment you are towing
  • Fire, vandalism, and damage from many weather events while your equipment is away from a fixed location
  • Loss or damage in transit while your equipment is being hauled between locations
  • Equipment you do not own but are responsible for, including leased, rented, and borrowed items (coverage terms vary by policy)
  • Both scheduled equipment (specific high-value items listed by description and value) and smaller tools insured on a blanket basis under a stated limit

What it doesn’t cover

  • Third-party bodily injury or property damage caused by your operations — that is what general liability insurance is for
  • Licensed, road-going vehicles like trucks and vans — those belong on commercial auto insurance
  • The building, structure, or installed materials under construction — look to builders risk or commercial property insurance for those
  • Normal wear and tear, rust, corrosion, and gradual deterioration, which are generally excluded as maintenance
  • Mechanical or electrical breakdown of the equipment itself, which may call for separate equipment breakdown coverage
  • Tools and equipment permanently installed at a fixed business location, which typically belong under commercial property

Real claim scenarios

Skid steer stolen overnight

A grading contractor leaves a skid steer staged at a Reno jobsite over a long weekend. Thieves load it onto a flatbed, and by Monday it is gone. A contractors equipment policy can respond to the theft loss, helping you replace the machine so your crew is not left idle.

Trailer tips on the highway

While hauling a compressor and generator between sites near Sacramento, a trailer overturns and the equipment is badly damaged. Because the loss happened in transit, the equipment floater can cover the repair or replacement — even though the items were on the road.

Jobsite fire damages rented equipment

A fire at a commercial site destroys a rented concrete saw and a borrowed laser level the contractor was responsible for under the rental agreement. Coverage extended to leased, rented, and borrowed equipment can help pay the rental company for the loss.

Scenarios are illustrative; actual coverage depends on your policy terms.

How it’s priced

Your premium is built around the total value and type of equipment you need to insure, plus how and where you use it. Carriers look at your loss history, your security measures, and the mix of owned versus rented gear when they set your rate. Costs vary widely by the size of your operation, so treat any figure as a general range rather than a quote.

  • The total insured value of your equipment — the single biggest driver of your premium
  • The type and age of your equipment, since heavy machinery carries different risk than hand tools
  • Whether items are scheduled individually or covered on a blanket basis under a single limit
  • Your claims history and loss experience over recent years
  • Your security and storage practices, like locked yards, GPS trackers, and overnight storage habits
  • Your deductible level and any rented or leased equipment limits you add

What to watch out for

  • Check whether your equipment is valued at actual cash value (depreciated) or replacement cost — it makes a real difference in what you collect after a loss
  • Schedule your high-value items by description and value; leaning only on a blanket limit can leave expensive machines underinsured
  • Look at the rented and borrowed equipment limit, which is often capped below the value of the larger items you bring on
  • Review the transit and off-premises conditions, including any rules for how your equipment must be secured or stored overnight
  • Watch for exclusions on theft from unattended or unlocked vehicles — a common source of denied claims

Contractors Equipment FAQs

Generally no, not by state law — but lenders or lessors financing your equipment often require it, and some contracts will expect it. Even when it is not mandated, we treat it as essential, because standard property policies typically will not follow your equipment off-site.

Related coverages

Related reading

We tailor Contractors Equipment for: Construction & Contractors.

Get Contractors Equipment coverage that fits

We’ll match your limits and endorsements to what your contracts actually require — across Nevada & California.

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