Insurance for plumbing contractors in California

General liability (GL) pays when your work injures someone else or damages property that is not yours. For plumbers the usual villain is water: a connection that slowly weeps over a long weekend can ruin a home before anyone opens the cabinet. Water damage is a common large claim in the trade, and it often surfaces days or weeks after you leave.

• Leaks. A compression fitting not snugged, a supply line that fails, a water heater set wrong, a cracked fitting sealed up inside a wall.
• Hot work. Sweating copper with a torch next to studs, insulation or old dust. A fire inside a wall can smolder long after you drive away.
• Sewer and drain work. Backups into a home, damaged laterals, and excavation that hits gas, electric or a neighbor's line.
• Gas piping. If you install or repair gas lines, expect more questions. A leak can lead to fire or an explosion.
• Completed operations. Many plumbing losses show up after the job is done, so this coverage matters.

The way you work shapes how your policy is written.

• Service and repair. Leaks, water heaters, drain clearing and fixture swaps. You are inside many homes a week, so a small slip has plenty of chances to become a water claim.
• Remodel. Repipes and kitchen or bath remodels mean more work inside walls and more torch work.
• New construction. Rough-in and trim on new homes and commercial buildings. GCs ask for additional insured status and completed operations coverage, and some programs treat tract or multi-unit work very differently.

Tell the quote how your work really breaks down. A policy built for service work may not fit a new construction contract.

California requires both home improvement contracts and service and repair contracts to include a notice headed "Commercial General Liability Insurance (CGL)". The notice gives the one statement that is true for you: that you carry CGL, with the insurer's name and phone number; that you do not carry CGL; that you are self-insured; or, for an LLC, that you carry the insurance or other security the law requires, with a phone number.

For a plumber that means everyday service tickets that count as service and repair contracts, not just large remodels. Once your policy is in force, put the right insurer and phone number on your forms, and change them whenever the policy changes.

The above is general information, not legal advice. Check with CSLB on how the rule applies to your own paperwork, or read our contract insurance notice guide.

• Water damage limits. Some policies cap water damage or apply a higher deductible to it. For a plumber this may be the most important line on the quote.
• Mold. Water claims often turn into mold claims, and many policies exclude mold.
• Hot work. Some policies require fire-safety steps when you use a torch, and some exclude hot work.
• Pollution. Pollution wording can reach sewage and drain backups.
• New construction and multi-unit. Some programs leave out tract homes, condos or apartments.
• Subcontractor rules. If you sub out trenching or other work, your subs may need their own insurance.

GL does not cover injuries to your own employees (workers' comp), your own tools and camera gear, your service vans (commercial auto), or the cost of redoing your own faulty work. It covers damage your work causes to others.

• A certificate of insurance (COI) showing your GL policy and limits.
• Limits of $1M per occurrence / $2M aggregate. The limits GCs usually write into a plumbing subcontract.
• Additional insured status. Holding the certificate does not make someone an additional insured. Most will ask you to add them as additional insured, frequently with primary and non-contributory language plus a waiver of subrogation.
• Workers' comp proof if you have employees, or the exemption you filed with CSLB if you do not.

Once you are covered, CalRisk sends the certificate to your GC. Our certificate of insurance guide walks through each request.

General information from the CSLB, not legal advice.

• Workers' comp. Each licensee must file either a workers' comp certificate or an exemption with CSLB. Right now a C-36 plumber with no employees can file the exemption; workers' comp for every licensee is scheduled to start January 1, 2028. See the workers' comp 2028 guide.
• The $25,000 license bond. Every licensee carries it. It is not insurance.
• LLC licenses. An LLC must carry liability insurance with an aggregate of at least $1,000,000 when 5 or fewer people are on the license, plus a $100,000 worker-wage bond. See the LLC insurance requirement.
• Other licenses. CSLB does not require GL by law but strongly recommends it.

Getting quoted: type your C-36 license number and we look up your business in CSLB's public record. Confirm you are the owner, then tap through about a minute of questions. Your quote board searches A-rated programs in real time, and each price shows its deductible, limits, and what is included and excluded. Tap "Submit for approval" and a licensed agent takes over. Approval usually takes 30 minutes to 4 hours, depending on the insurance company, and the final quote is emailed for you to sign. Coverage is not bound until you sign. Workers' comp is quoted online too. Service vans (commercial auto), umbrella and CSLB bonds go to an agent by phone at (877) 940-4313, in English or Spanish. See the GL cost guide or compare other trades. CalRisk Insurance Center, CA Lic. 0K97400, 713 W Duarte Rd, Suite G747, Arcadia, CA 91007.