Winter in Northeast Ohio is right around the corner and many snow removal contractors are signing contracts for the 2020-2021 season. While revenue is of great concern during these unprecedented times, don’t forget to create a loss control program to reduce your insurance losses.

Before the first snowfall take a digital picture of each client’s parking lot/drive. The snowplow driver can carry it with him on his phone/tablet during the snow plowing season. The picture should show any existing damage to plants, grass shrubs, etc.The picture will also show where parking stops and curbs arewhich can help your drivers avoid damaging plow blades and truck tires.

Keeping a log of all work done is key. Document the date and time the area was plowed along with the estimated depth of the snow at the time of plowing. If deicer is used, indicate where and when it was applied. Taking a short automatically date stamped digital video of the area after plowing will be a great asset it there is a claim at a later date. With today’s technology this can be done very easily, efficiently and economically with a GoPro camera mounted to the dash of the truck

Review the contracts you are signing. Have your legal counsel review the contract to ensure you are not transferring all of the responsibility of the business to you. Remember, your customer most likely had their attorney draft the contract. As the contractor you need to beware of your responsibilities. If you are contracted to plow every time 2 inches of snow or more falls,you will be held to that standard. If somebody slips and falls because you failed to remove the snow in the contracted areayou are responsible. If you are required to de-ice the area after plowing or when there is less than 2 inches of snow this needs to be indicated in the contract as well.

While liability losses are apt to happen due to the severe weather in Northeast Ohio, preparing beforehand can save you insurance premiums in the long run. If you would like a sample snow and ice removal/log and or incident report, contact your Trusted Choice Insurance agents at Richey-Barrett.