Insurance for carpenters
For chippies doing framing, fit-out, decks and renovations, on your own or with a small crew. A nail through a pipe, damage to another trade's finished work, tools gone from the site box, work at height on frames: we ask about the carpentry you actually do, then get you quotes from insurers.
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General advice only. Read the policy documents we send with your quote before you decide.
What it can cover for carpenters.
Examples of the claims insurance for carpenters can respond to. Whether a claim is paid, and how much, is up to the insurer under your policy.
A nail finds a pipe
Fixing skirting or a wall sheet, a nail goes through a water pipe in the wall. By the time it shows, the floor and the room next door are wet. Damage to someone else's property caused by your work can fall under public liability.
You damage another trade's finished work
Hanging doors on a nearly finished house, you gouge the new timber floor and chip a stone benchtop. Damage to other people's property can fall under public liability, though the building contract may decide whose policy deals with damage to the works.
Something falls from the frame
An offcut or a nail gun slides off a first floor frame and hits a delivery driver below. Injury to a member of the public from your work can fall under public liability.
A deck you built gives way
Months after handover, a deck or balustrade you built fails during a party and a guest is hurt. Claims about work you've finished can fall under public liability, so check the policy covers completed work.
The site box is cleaned out
Nail guns, a drop saw and a bag of batteries taken from the site box overnight. Tool cover can pay to repair or replace stolen or damaged tools, up to the policy limits (the most the policy pays for a claim) and its conditions on how they were locked up.
Wind takes a frame before it's braced
A storm pushes over a wall frame before it's fully braced, and it lands on the neighbour's fence. Damage next door can fall under public liability. Damage to the frame itself is usually a matter for contract works cover, if the job has it.
What it usually doesn't cover.
Every policy is different, and the policy wording is what counts. These are the usual gaps.
- The cost of redoing your own faulty work, such as a frame out of square or a deck that has to come up
- Injury to you or your workers: that's workers comp, or personal accident cover for yourself
- Damage to the building you're working on while it's under construction, unless the job has contract works cover
- Structural design and engineering advice: that's professional indemnity
- Work you didn't tell the insurer you do, such as roofing, structural steel or work above a height the policy sets
- Tools left in an unlocked ute or site box, or on an open site, unless the policy says otherwise
The covers carpenters ask about.
In the order most carpenters think about them. Each one is explained on its own page.
- Public liabilityDamage to a client's home or another trade's finished work is the kind of claim public liability can respond to. Carpenter public liability insurance is what builders ask to see before you start.
- ToolsNail guns, drop saws, routers, batteries and the site box, for theft and damage up to the policy limits.
- ContractorsFraming or fitting out for a builder? They set the limit, want proof of your own cover before you start, and their policy may not cover you.
- VehiclesThe ute and trailer carry your tools and your timber. Commercial vehicle cover is for vehicles used for work.
- Contract worksContracting straight with owners for decks, extensions or fit-outs? Contract works is for damage to the works while they're underway.
- Workers compBringing on a carpentry apprentice or a second chippy? Workers comp for employees runs under each state's scheme.
- Accident and illnessFrames, ladders and heavy lifting all carry a risk of injury. If injury or illness stops you working, personal accident and illness cover can pay a weekly benefit, depending on the policy.
- Sole tradersA chippy on your own ABN? How public liability, tools, the ute and cover for yourself fit together when there's no crew behind you.
Licences and site rules.
- On site
Builders and head contractors usually ask for a certificate of currency for your public liability (the insurer's short document showing your policy is current) before you start, and the subcontract may set the cover limit. Read the insurance clause before you sign: some ask for more than public liability.
- Western Australia
In WA, if you take on decks, pergolas or extensions straight from owners, check with Building and Energy whether the job needs a registered building contractor.
Builders' registration, Building and Energy WA(opens in a new tab)- WA high risk work
In WA, check WorkSafe WA's rules for high risk construction work, including safe work method statements, before the job starts.
Safe work method statements, WorkSafe WA(opens in a new tab)- New South Wales
In NSW, check with Building Commission NSW when carpentry needs a contractor licence and what counts as carpentry work.
Carpentry work, Building Commission NSW(opens in a new tab)- Queensland
In Queensland, check with the QBCC whether your carpentry needs a licence, including when you sub to a licensed builder.
When you need a licence, QBCC(opens in a new tab)- Other states
Outside WA, NSW and Queensland, ask your state's building regulator when carpentry needs a licence, and tell us if that licence asks for any insurance.
What sets the price.
- The work you do: framing, lock-up, fit-out, decks and pergolas, or renovations
- Your turnover
- The public liability limit you choose
- The heights you work at
- How many people work for you, and how much you subcontract
- The value of the tools you insure
- The state you work in
- Your claims history
On the quote form
Pick the one that matches your work. Not sure? Pick the closest and tell us in the comments.
- Carpenters & Joiners
How to get insurance for carpenters.
Tell us about your carpentry.
Framing, fit-out, decks or renovations, how high you work, your turnover, who works with you and the limit your builders ask for. Use the quote form or call us.
We get you quotes.
We ask insurers for quotes and come back to you with what each one covers and what it doesn't, tools left on site included.
Choose, then start work.
Cover starts once you pick a policy and the insurer agrees to it. Then ask us for a certificate of currency to send the builder.
Carpenters: your questions.
What insurance do I need as a carpenter?
Carpentry insurance usually starts with public liability, because builders ask to see it before you start and many owners do too. Tools cover usually comes next, then vehicle cover, contract works if you contract straight with owners, workers comp if you employ anyone and personal accident cover for yourself. What suits you depends on your work, so talk it through with a broker before you decide.
How much does carpenter insurance cost?
There's no set price. The insurer works it out from the carpentry you do, your turnover, the public liability limit you choose, the heights you work at, how many people work for you, the tools you insure, your state and your claims history. Tell us about your work and we'll get you quotes.
Do carpenters need public liability insurance?
No one national rule says every carpenter must hold it, but builders and head contractors usually want to see it before you start, and many owners ask too. A carpentry licence is a separate question, and the rules differ by state, so check with your state's building regulator. Keep a certificate of currency on your phone for site.
How much public liability tradies needAm I covered for damage to finished work?
Public liability can cover damage you cause to other people's property, such as another trade's finished floor or a client's benchtop. Damage to the building you're working on, while the job is underway, is usually for contract works cover instead, and the building contract often says who insures what. Neither pays to fix your own faulty work.
Are nail guns and saws covered if they're stolen from site?
They can be, under tool cover, up to the policy limits. Many policies set conditions for theft from a site, such as tools being in a locked site box, a locked building or a locked vehicle, and some ask for signs of forced entry. Check those conditions before you leave gear on site overnight.
Am I covered when working at heights on frames?
Public liability can respond to damage or injury to other people from your work at height, but some policies set a height limit or conditions, so tell the insurer the highest work you do. Injury to you from a fall isn't public liability: that's personal accident cover for you, or workers comp for your employees.
Does the builder's insurance cover me on their site?
Don't count on it. The builder's policy is written for the builder, and most head contractors ask subbies to carry their own public liability.
Insurance for subcontractorsSort your cover.
Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. Or email mate@tradies365.com.au.