Commercial property insurance protects the fixed side of a paving business: the shop, office, plant structures and the materials stored in the yard. Your pavers, rollers and rigs usually belong on a separate equipment floater, so the two policies should be read together to leave no gap.
What commercial property insurance covers
A commercial property policy responds when covered property is damaged by a covered cause of loss, such as fire, wind or vandalism, as the form defines them. For a paving firm that usually means:
- Buildings, such as a shop, office and storage.
- Fixtures and structures at a plant or yard, as the policy treats them.
- Business personal property, including tools and stored materials like aggregate, sealer, liquid asphalt and paint.
Our property coverage page describes how the coverage works, and the form controls what is and is not included.
The yard and the plant
A hot mix plant is a mix of structures, tanks and machinery, and policies treat each differently. Do not assume the whole plant is covered under one heading. Walk the site with your agency and list what is there, so each piece is placed on the correct form or scheduled item.
Open-air storage is another pressure point. Stockpiles, tanks and equipment parked outside face weather and theft in ways a building does not, and the form may limit coverage for property outside buildings. Ask how yours handles it.
Mobile equipment is a different policy
Pavers, rollers, distributors, sealcoat rigs and striping machines move from job to job, which is why they are usually insured on a contractor’s equipment floater rather than the property policy. The floater follows the machines wherever they work. If you rely on the property policy for equipment, check whether it excludes or limits mobile equipment away from your premises.
Loss of income
If a fire shuts your yard in the middle of the season, the buildings are only part of the loss. Business income coverage, when added to the property policy, addresses the interruption. It is not automatic, and its terms deserve a careful read.
Related protection
Property insurance covers physical damage to what you own. It does not cover liability for harm to others, which is general liability. Theft by an employee is typically a crime coverage issue, discussed in our post on employee theft and crime coverage for paving.
A simple review
Ask your agency for a one-page schedule of what is insured where: buildings, plant, stored materials and each machine. Compare it with a walk of the yard. Anything you can point to that is not on the schedule is a conversation to have before a loss, not after.
Seasonal changes in what you hold
A paving yard changes through the year. Stockpiles are heaviest before the season, sealer and paint are bought ahead of spring, and equipment may be parked in different places in winter. A property policy is written on the values and locations you report, so tell your agency when the pattern changes.
Ask also about the conditions the form attaches to coverage, such as protective devices, vacancy and theft. A yard that is fenced and lit may be treated differently from one that is not, and an exposure you did not know about can be the difference at claim time.
See how this piece fits the whole program under paving contractor insurance. To review your yard and equipment, request a quote and send us your current property schedule.