Insurance for landscaping services

What goes wrong in this trade

Mower and cutting-tool injuries, heat illness and vehicle accidents between sites; a fatality rate several times the all-industry level, largely from tree work and traffic, explains why auto and umbrella limits matter.

The checklist for landscaping services

• GL
  General liability

  Damage to client property while working is the main claim.

  Not required by federal law. Required in practice by most contracts, landlords and many state contractor licences.
• WC
  Workers' compensation

  Required once you have employees in nearly every state.

  Required by state law in nearly every state once you have employees; the employee-count threshold and exemptions are set state by state and are not reproduced here.
• Auto
  Commercial auto liability

  Crew vehicles and trailers.

  State minimum auto liability applies to business vehicles. Interstate for-hire carriers of vehicles 10,001 lb GVWR and up must carry the 49 CFR 387.9 minimums ($750,000 non-hazardous property; $1,000,000 oil; $5,000,000 bulk hazmat).
• Tools
  Inland marine (tools and equipment)

  Equipment travels to every job.

  Not required by law.
• Umbrella
  Commercial umbrella / excess

  Commercial property managers often require higher limits.

  Not required by law; required by many general contractors and commercial landlords.

Red tags mark policy types that a law or licence usually requires; green tags are what contracts, landlords and clients ask for. Tailor the list for your situation (no employees, no vehicles, alcohol) with the checklist tool.

What the injury record means for the premium

At 3 cases per 100 workers this trade sits in the middle of the 37 trades here, with 67 percent of cases involving days away, restriction or transfer. The workers' compensation class rate will be noticeable but not dominant; the balance of the premium is general liability and, where the checklist lists it, commercial auto. The approximate fatality rate of 30.1 per 100,000 FTE is well above the all-industry level and is the figure that keeps auto and liability limits high.

The nearest trades by injury rate are plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors (3), drywall and insulation contractors (2.9), general freight trucking (3.1); the same payroll insured in those classes would start from a similar workers' comp base.

Legal, licence or contract?

Sources: BLS Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses, Table 1 (2024), incidence rates per 100 full-time workers; BLS SOII Table 3 (2024), hours worked by detailed industry; BLS Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, Table A-1 (2024). Fatal rate per 100,000 FTE is derived (count ÷ hours × 200,000,000) and approximate. Checked 2026-10-23.