Risk Exposures for Janitorial and Cleaning Services

Running a commercial janitorial or cleaning service might seem like a fairly simple proposition. You show up at other businesses, clean them, and leave. As with any business doing physical work, there’s the risk of workers compensation claims from injured employees. But there are also risk exposures you might not have considered, exposures that could threaten your business if not addressed.

Getting there: Your crews have to travel to get on site to do their work. That might mean maintaining a fleet of cars or trucks or having them use their personal vehicles. Either way there’s the ever-present risk of an accident, with fatigue, bad weather or just driver inattention as frequent causes. In the case of personal vehicles, your employees’ standard personal auto policies may not be adequate. Talk to a risk advisor and make sure you have a plan to cover your specific situation.

Oops. Your liability exposure doesn’t end when your crew gets on site, and you can’t be everywhere to supervise what they’re doing. If an employee of the business whose site you’re cleaning slips and falls on a wet floor, or if a piece of equipment is broken or damaged while your crew is cleaning it or cleaning around it, you’re likely to be liable. A good risk profile will take into account the specifics of the kinds of work you do, and where you do it.

Breakdowns: Chances are that you depend on a variety of power equipment like floor cleaners, buffers or polishers. If these break down, you could be sidelined and faced with expensive repairs or replacement. Equipment breakdown coverage can help to mitigate this exposure and keep you up and running.

Temptations: Employees at the facilities you’re cleaning might leave valuables sitting out, and sometimes the temptation is too strong for cleaning personnel. Even a false claim of theft leaves you in a position of having to defend yourself. And some bad actors have been known to pay cleaning personnel to pass along information like usernames and passwords that left visible, perhaps on a sticky note attached to a monitor. Obviously, you should have a thorough vetting process in place before hiring, but you’ll also need adequate coverage as a hedge against incidents like these.

Proper risk management for your cleaning or janitorial business will take into account all the things and more. Make sure you’re properly protected.

Questions about coverage for your cleaning business, or any business? Contact Consolidated Insurance.