Best Excavation Business Insurance

The Hartford leads as the best excavation business insurance provider with a MoneyGeek score of 4.77 out of 5, with top scores in affordability, customer service and coverage options. 

Whether you run an excavation company or work as a professional excavator, The Hartford provides coverage with strong financial stability. NEXT and Nationwide also earned top ratings for excavating contractors seeking reliable coverage.

Note: We based all scores on an excavation business with two employees across professional liability, general liability, workers' comp and BOP policies.

Our study shows biBERK offers the cheapest excavation business insurance at $261 monthly ($3,137 annually) across all coverage types. Excavating companies get the most affordable BOP at $484 monthly and the second-cheapest general liability at $371 monthly. 

For workers' compensation, NEXT leads at $100 monthly, while The Hartford offers the lowest professional liability rates at $61 monthly for excavation contractors.

NEXT Insurance offers the cheapest general liability insurance for excavation companies at $370 monthly ($4,437 annually), saving excavation contractors $98 monthly compared to the industry average of $468. biBerk ranks second at $371 monthly, while Nationwide ranks third at $374 monthly.

Excavation contractors need cheapest workers' comp insurance to protect crew members from on-site injuries. NEXT Insurance delivers the lowest rates at $100 monthly ($1,199 annually), beating the $107 monthly industry average by $7. The Hartford ranks second at $102 monthly, followed by Thimble at $103 monthly.

Professional excavators face liability risks from project errors and omissions. The Hartford provides the cheapest professional liability insurance at $61 monthly ($730 annually), saving excavation companies $7 monthly compared to the $68 industry average. NEXT Insurance ranks second at $63 monthly, with Progressive Commercial third at $64 monthly.

biBerk offers the cheapest business owners' policy at $484 monthly ($5,803 annually), saving excavation contractors $208 monthly compared to the $692 industry average. This combines general liability and property protection in one policy. Nationwide ranks second at $557 monthly, followed by NEXT Insurance at $567 monthly.

In general, business insurance costs for excavation companies are the following for the four most popular coverage types:

• General Liability: $468 on average per month, ranging from $370 to $661, depending on the state
• Workers' Comp: $107 on average per month, ranging from $100 to $124, depending on the state
• Professional Liability (E&O): $68 on average per month, ranging from $61 to $79, depending on the state
• BOP Insurance: $692 on average per month, ranging from $484 to $997, depending on the state

The required coverage for professional excavators includes workers' compensation, general liability, and commercial auto insurance, while additional policies like inland marine and umbrella coverage become essential depending on your equipment value and project scope.

• Workers' Compensation Insurance: Your crew may have cave-ins, equipment rollovers and struck-by hazards daily. Workers' comp covers medical bills and lost wages when someone gets crushed by a trench collapse or injured operating machinery, protecting you from costly lawsuits. Most states mandate this coverage if you have employees, and general contractors won't let you on job sites without proof. Plan for coverage based on your payroll, usually $100,000 to $500,000 per accident.
• General Liability Insurance: One misread utility map means you could rupture a gas line or sever fiber optic cables serving hundreds of customers. General liability covers property damage and bodily injury claims when your excavator damages a neighbor's foundation or your crew accidentally injures a bystander. Most contracts require at least $1 million per occurrence before you break ground, with $2 million aggregate becoming standard for excavation work.
• Commercial Auto Insurance: Your dump trucks hauling debris and excavators traveling between sites need protection on public roads. Commercial auto covers liability and repairs after your loaded dump truck causes an accident or your equipment trailer jackknifes. Personal auto policies exclude business vehicles, and state law mandates minimum coverage. Most excavation companies carry $1 million combined single limit, given the weight and damage potential of construction equipment.
• Inland Marine/Equipment Insurance: Your excavator, backhoe, and trencher represent $250,000 to $2 million in machinery that sits vulnerable at job sites overnight. Inland marine covers theft, vandalism and damage to your equipment, whether it's stolen from a remote site, vandalized by trespassers or damaged during transport. This protection extends beyond what commercial auto covers, safeguarding your biggest business assets wherever they're working.
• Commercial Umbrella Insurance: Hitting an unmarked high-pressure gas line could trigger millions in evacuation costs, property damage and injury claims that blow past your standard $1 million liability limit. Umbrella coverage adds protection above your primary policies. Most excavation contractors carry at least $2 million in umbrella coverage because one catastrophic utility strike or trench collapse involving multiple injuries can generate claims exceeding basic policy limits.
• Builder's Risk Insurance: When you're clearing land for a new development or excavating for a commercial foundation, your earthwork and materials sit exposed to weather and theft for weeks. Builder's risk covers your work in progress if a storm washes out your grading work or thieves steal equipment from the active site. Match coverage to total project value, typically $500,000 to $5 million, depending on project scope.
• Professional Liability Insurance: Miscalculating cut-and-fill volumes, improper slope grading or flawed drainage plans can flood a client's property or destabilize their foundation, costing tens of thousands to fix. Professional liability covers claims when your site preparation errors cause financial losses, even without physical damage to property. Excavation businesses offering grading design or site consulting carry $1 million per claim for this specialized protection.

Getting business insurance for your excavation company becomes straightforward when you follow a systematic approach to compare coverage options and find the best rates for your work.

Protecting your excavation company starts with workers' compensation, general liability, commercial auto, and inland marine coverage for job site injuries, utility strikes and equipment theft. The Hartford delivers the best balance of service and rates for professional excavators, while biBerk provides the most affordable option at $261 monthly for solid protection.

We answer frequently asked questions about excavation business insurance:

We selected the best business insurer for excavation companies based on the following criteria:

• Affordability (50% of score): The lower a company's costs compared to the competition based on our base profile for four core coverage types, the better the company performs.
• Customer service (30% of score): We scored providers on overall customer satisfaction using industry studies, customer review forum ratings and public forum sentiment analysis from sites like Reddit.
• Coverage (15% of score): We scored business insurance providers for this category based on the flexibility, payment and actual coverage options.
• Financial stability (5% of score): Using financial stability industry ratings from companies like AM Best and Moody's, we created an overall rating to judge how likely companies are to pay out claims compared to the competition.

All pricing in this article is based on the following base profile to represent the vast majority of small businesses in all states:

• Three-person business with two employees
• Coverage: $1 million per occurrence and $2 million total per year for all but BOP, which includes the same coverage plus $5,000 of business property coverage
• $150,000 in payroll
• $300,000 annual revenue