Question 1

What's the difference between inland marine and commercial property?

Accepted Answer

Commercial property covers buildings and contents at fixed locations. Inland marine covers movable property — tools, equipment, and goods in transit between locations. The historical name comes from old marine cargo policies that extended to inland transportation. A contractor's commercial property policy covers the office building and stationary contents; the inland marine policy covers the trucks of tools that leave the office every morning.

Question 2

Should I schedule equipment or use a blanket limit?

Accepted Answer

Scheduled is best for high-value individual pieces ($25K+) where you need accurate replacement-cost protection on each unit. Blanket coverage works for fleets of small tools where individual scheduling would be administrative overkill. Most contractors use a hybrid: scheduled coverage on heavy equipment, vehicles, and named high-value tools; blanket coverage with a per-item sublimit (typically $1K–$10K) on miscellaneous small tools.

Question 3

Does inland marine cover leased and rented equipment?

Accepted Answer

Most policies include a sublimit for leased and rented equipment, typically $25K–$100K, covering the contractor's contractual obligation to return the equipment in good condition. This matters because rental equipment companies almost always pass damage and theft liability through to the renter. Without inland marine coverage of rented equipment, a stolen mini-excavator on rental contract becomes a direct out-of-pocket loss to the contractor.

Question 4

What's typically excluded from inland marine?

Accepted Answer

Standard exclusions include wear and tear, mechanical breakdown from internal failure (covered by equipment breakdown coverage), employee theft (covered by crime/fidelity), pollution events, damage to property in your care, custody, and control beyond your ownership (often a separate bailee's coverage), and equipment used for operations outside the policy scope. Tools and equipment over a stated unscheduled limit are also commonly excluded — review sublimits carefully.

Question 5

How is inland marine premium calculated?

Accepted Answer

Premium is based on the total insured value of scheduled and blanket equipment, equipment type (heavy machinery rates higher than hand tools), territory and storage practices, prior loss history, deductible level, and any GPS tracking or theft prevention measures. Florida construction inland marine typically runs 1.5%–4% of insured value annually; lower-risk commercial inland marine (IT installers, photographers) runs under 1%. GPS-tracked equipment can earn 10%–25% premium credits.

Question 6

Are tools in employees' personal vehicles covered?

Accepted Answer

Most inland marine policies cover company-owned tools regardless of where they're stored, including in employees' personal trucks used for work. However, the policy typically excludes tools that the employees themselves own (those need their own coverage). It's worth establishing clear company policy on whether tools live with the company or with employees, because that affects coverage placement and claim handling.

Question 7

Does inland marine cover business interruption from stolen equipment?

Accepted Answer

Standard inland marine covers physical loss of equipment but not the lost income from being unable to complete jobs while replacement equipment is sourced. Some policies offer 'rental reimbursement' or 'lost income' endorsements that pay for renting replacement equipment during the gap, typically up to 30–60 days. For contractors, this endorsement is often more valuable than the equipment coverage itself — a $50K stolen mini-excavator becomes a $200K problem if it stops jobsite progress for 4 weeks.

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