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gunsmith insurance
- Thread starter 4V50 Gary
- Start date
Dixie Gunsmithing
Moderator Emeritus
Gary, I doubt a small shop can afford it. Any business, that the insurance companies think that can easily lead to a liability suit, is high. The insurance on my machine shop was $1,000 a month for a $1 mil policy. I haven't checked on Gunsmithing alone in a while, so I'm not sure what it runs now.
In my opinion, you would need a gun store, along with gunsmithing, to generate the money to pay the premium. There may be cheaper policies, but the coverage will drop.
Edit: If they still have it, you can get it through the NRA, and I think there's a policy from a company in Philadelphia. My guess is $1000.00 a year, at least, for decent coverage. 20 years back, it ran around $500.
In my opinion, you would need a gun store, along with gunsmithing, to generate the money to pay the premium. There may be cheaper policies, but the coverage will drop.
Edit: If they still have it, you can get it through the NRA, and I think there's a policy from a company in Philadelphia. My guess is $1000.00 a year, at least, for decent coverage. 20 years back, it ran around $500.
The licensee is covering his fanny. But how about the license itself? If the gunsmith is an employee of the licensed shop, he doesn't need his own license. But if he is an outside contractor (pick up, repair, deliver type of thing) it is my understanding that the gunsmith needs to be licensed and comply with all the FFL regulations.
Jim
Jim
For yourself you may want some kind of umbrella policy. The shop's insurance becomes the primary, but the umbrella is usually purchased in the value of your life's savings plus some change, but is a form of backup. That would cost less. But check with your insurance agent about what you are thinking of doing and let the companies he represents take care of figuring out what the real personal risk is.
kilimanjaro
New member
My personal umbrella policy runs $200 a year for one million in coverage. You have to be fully insured before an umbrella can be written, i.e., car, home, medical, professional liability, etc., once those are tapped your umbrella comes into play.
Note that not all those personal umbrella policies cover a business or damages/lawsuits resulting from the business. Example: You have a fire in your basement rec room - your big screen TV is covered. But if you converted your rec room into a gunsmith shop and $500k worth of customer's guns and tools burn, you might not be covered. Or you get a trigger pull too light and are sued when a customer literally loses his head. Covered? Probably not.
Jim
Jim
Dixie Gunsmithing
Moderator Emeritus
Scorch, I bet they requested a $1 mil policy for subcontract work, too, didn't they? That seems to be about the norm.
When I ran my machine shop, I did a lot of work for both CSX and Norfolk Southern, either rebuilding or designing and building special equipment to build railroad cars with. I had to carry a $1 mil policy to perform any work in their plants, or to build/rebuild machinery in my own shop for them. It seems that about all large corporation require the same, no matter what they provide. I imagine all the large sporting goods dealers would require it too. Even though I made some good money, I had to pay out a good amount of that money on things like this too.
When I ran my machine shop, I did a lot of work for both CSX and Norfolk Southern, either rebuilding or designing and building special equipment to build railroad cars with. I had to carry a $1 mil policy to perform any work in their plants, or to build/rebuild machinery in my own shop for them. It seems that about all large corporation require the same, no matter what they provide. I imagine all the large sporting goods dealers would require it too. Even though I made some good money, I had to pay out a good amount of that money on things like this too.
I was a General Lines Agent in a "former life" (lol)...
This is a specialty lines risk, so be sure your Agent can walk the walk when it comes to knowing exactly what's in the policy- these are NOT standard form like your HO insurance- and may (probably do) contain many limitations of liability and exclusions.
Before signing on the dotted line- be your own advocate (or, hire an attorney if you're uncomfortable with the legalese therein), request a copy of the actual policy form and READ IT.
IMO, if there is a loss/claim, attorneys tend to go after those that have the most to lose- the old "can't get blood out of a turnip" thing... the more insurance you have, the more likely you are to get sued. I might get flamed for saying that (and it's not to suggest having a lot of coverage isn't a good thing or perhaps necessary), but that's just the way it is.
If you have "a lot to lose" in the event of a catastrophic claim, best to consult with an attorney as well as there are other ways to protect your assets beyond insurance coverage. More and more, LLC's can have the "corporate veil" pierced and the courts are all over the road on this.
JMO, YMMV.
This is a specialty lines risk, so be sure your Agent can walk the walk when it comes to knowing exactly what's in the policy- these are NOT standard form like your HO insurance- and may (probably do) contain many limitations of liability and exclusions.
Before signing on the dotted line- be your own advocate (or, hire an attorney if you're uncomfortable with the legalese therein), request a copy of the actual policy form and READ IT.
IMO, if there is a loss/claim, attorneys tend to go after those that have the most to lose- the old "can't get blood out of a turnip" thing... the more insurance you have, the more likely you are to get sued. I might get flamed for saying that (and it's not to suggest having a lot of coverage isn't a good thing or perhaps necessary), but that's just the way it is.
If you have "a lot to lose" in the event of a catastrophic claim, best to consult with an attorney as well as there are other ways to protect your assets beyond insurance coverage. More and more, LLC's can have the "corporate veil" pierced and the courts are all over the road on this.
JMO, YMMV.