I have built 12 rocking horses mostly for friends and family. I am thinking about building them and selling them at craft shows. Do I need to worry about getting insurnace in the case that someone’s kid falls off and breaks an arm? How often do people get sued from things they sell at craft shows?
Any words of wisdom?
Replies
I know several crafters, none of them carry product insurance. Everything is sold "as is " "buyer beware" etc. Most have a satisfaction or money back policy on the product itself but if you drop that picture on your foot or trip over that sweater or fall off that horse you did it to yourself.
I built a horse for my granddaughter and the first thing she did was fall off! :o)
We started selling rocking horses several years ago. We spoke to a lawyer and took his advice and purcahsed liability insurance. As he advised, if you sell a product .... meaning... you take cash for your work, ... not the same as giving a rocking horse to a family member... then you can be sued and lose everything that you have. We do not want to take that risk. When we first started, we sold only to people inour country so the policy was $500/ year. We soon realized our market was in the USA, so we hade to get coverage for ourside of Canada. The shocker was the insurance rose to just over $8,000. Yes, I did say eight thousand dollars a year, and that is just for liability. After paying all the bills, including the liability, it doesn't leave us a lot, but it makes the extra cash to allow my husband stay home to care his aging mother who lives with us. and ... We are happy.
If you think it would not be needed, well last year a customer's 82 year old mother tried to ride the horse. She fell and broke her hip! This could have become a problem if they wanted to sue, even thought it wasn't our fault. People in the US are sued for so many crazy things... ie hot coffee at McDonalds. Luckily the family did not do anything because only a few months earlier, she was trying th ride her grandson's skateboard.... she was just a woman who loved life and took crazy chances and they took it as an accident that was expected to happen one day..
A motorcycle business 20 minutes away from us cancelled their $10,000/year contents insurance last year because they thought it was too high. This year they cancelled and the building went up in flames.... lost over 1 million dollars.....
That is what insurance is about. Do you want to risk losing everything?
If anyone out there has insurance that covers selling products that children children will use, please let us know. It is crazy tho pay this amount, but we can't risk losing everything that we have.
That seems awfully high, have you tried a carrier in the US? Perhaps your carrier is hitting you for a premium for international sales. Otherwise I would think that they would base your premium on you gross receipts. More sales, more risk. I hate all insurance companies, but they are a necessary evil. You are wise to cover yourself. In the states, or at least in CT, we can be a "Limited Liability Company" or an "LLC" for short. This gives us a layer of protection similar to becoming incorperated without the tax headaches.
Good Luck!
John
I buy insurance to make my customers whole.
Make sure the liability covers you when you go to the craft show and accidently knock over someones display when setting up and destroy their inventory. You never know what will happen and if you intend to travel and set up or display these items for sale you need to be covered in the event for any type of situation that may occur while you are conducting business. When I was a finish carpenter my liability covered me while I was driving to the job, during the work day and on my way home. You should make sure yours will cover you from door to door as well.
J.P.
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