Inland marine insurance is what insurers call cover for business property that moves. For a contractor or tradesperson it's usually sold as tools and equipment insurance (or a contractor's equipment floater), and it pays to repair or replace tools and equipment that are stolen or damaged at a job site, in your truck, in transit or in a storage unit. You need it if your work gear leaves your shop, because a business owner's policy or commercial property policy only covers property at the address listed on the policy. Insureon's small-business customers pay a median of $48 a month for it, and handymen and general contractors who buy through Insureon pay $42.
The cheapest version isn't always enough. Some tools add-ons start at a $3,000 limit (ERGO NEXT's published blanket limit is $3,000 to $5,000), which won't replace a rig worth more than that, so the limit you pick matters more than the premium. If you want prices, you can compare business insurance quotes for tools cover alongside your liability policy. This guide is part of QuoteSweep's business insurance section.
Why doesn't my BOP or property policy cover my tools?
Because those policies are tied to a location. Insureon explains that standard commercial property policies, including BOPs, only cover items at the business address on the policy. Its example: if equipment is stolen from a truck, or the storage unit holding it burns down, you'd pay for the loss yourself without separate cover.
That gap is the reason inland marine exists. The name is a leftover from marine insurance: ocean marine covered goods at sea, and "inland" marine covered them once they moved over land. Today it's a "floater," meaning the cover follows the property wherever it goes.
| Where your tools are | Commercial property or BOP | Tools and equipment (inland marine) |
|---|---|---|
| In your shop or office at the listed address | Yes | Not needed for stationary property |
| At a client's job site | No | Yes |
| In your truck or trailer | No | Yes |
| In a rented storage unit | No | Yes |
| Being shipped or driven between sites | No | Yes |
Insureon notes you can often add tools cover to a BOP or a commercial package policy rather than buying it standalone. Some carriers sell it as an add-on to general liability: ERGO NEXT offers it that way for contractors and cleaning businesses.
What does tools and equipment insurance cover?
It covers your tools and mobile equipment against theft and damage away from your premises. Per Insureon, covered perils typically include theft, fire, wind and hail, burst pipes and vandalism. It can cover:
- Hand tools and power tools at job sites, in your vehicle or in storage
- Machinery and heavy equipment such as excavators, backhoes and skid steers (usually scheduled)
- Equipment mounted on a vehicle. Insureon's examples are a pressure washing system in a pickup bed and a bucket lift on a tree trimming truck.
- Laptops and other gear that travels with you
- Leased or rented equipment, on some policies
- Personal protective equipment such as gloves, goggles and helmets
The Hartford's contractor's equipment product, written for midsize and larger contractors, also covers borrowed equipment, employee-owned tools and work clothing (subject to limits), and equipment used under written rental agreements.
The truck itself is a different policy. Insureon says business-owned vehicles belong on commercial auto insurance. When a van is broken into, commercial auto handles the vehicle and tools cover handles what was inside, if you carry both.
Types of inland marine cover a trade business might need
"Inland marine" is a family of policies. These are the ones that come up for contractors and service businesses, as Insureon describes them:
| Type | What it covers | Who usually needs it |
|---|---|---|
| Tools and equipment floater / contractor's equipment | Your own tools and mobile equipment, wherever they are | Most trades: handymen, electricians, plumbers, landscapers, tree services |
| Installation floater | Materials and appliances being moved, stored or installed at a job site before they're permanently installed, such as an HVAC unit, appliances or shingles | Installers and specialty contractors |
| Builder's risk | A building under construction and its materials | The owner or general contractor on a construction project; see our builder's risk guide |
| Bailee's customer | Customers' property while it's in your care | Repair shops and businesses that take in customer property |
| Motor truck cargo | Goods while a trucking company is carrying them | Trucking businesses |
The installation floater is the one trades miss. Tools cover protects your gear; it doesn't protect the new condenser sitting in a client's driveway waiting to be set. If you buy materials and hold them before installing, ask about it.
Bailee's customer cover exists because general liability excludes damage to property in your "care, custody or control," Insureon notes. If you're worried about theft by your own employees, look at commercial crime insurance too.
Scheduled vs blanket: how to list your equipment
Small tools go on a blanket limit; expensive items are listed one by one. Insureon says items under $2,500 (up to $5,000, depending on the insurer) can be covered as unscheduled or miscellaneous equipment, while anything above that, such as an excavator or backhoe, is usually scheduled separately at a higher cost.
What that means in practice:
- Blanket (unscheduled): one limit across many small items. Check the per-item cap, not just the total.
- Scheduled: each item listed with its value and, usually, its serial number. Ask how the policy treats a costly item you forgot to schedule.
The limit is where cheap policies fall short. ERGO NEXT's published terms for handyman and general contractor customers show a blanket equipment limit of $3,000 to $5,000 per occurrence and per item, with a $500 deductible, plus a smaller miscellaneous limit of $600 to $1,000. That suits a van of hand tools. It doesn't suit a skid steer.
Replacement cost or actual cash value?
Replacement cost pays what it costs to buy a new item; actual cash value pays what your used item was worth after depreciation. Insureon says replacement cost cover costs more for that reason. The Hartford's contractor's equipment product, for example, offers replacement cost for equipment less than five years old, so ask your insurer whether the valuation changes with the age of each item.
If you'd need to buy new tools to keep working, replacement cost is usually worth the extra premium. If most of your gear is old and you'd buy used, actual cash value may be enough.
Are tools stolen from my truck covered?
Usually yes, theft from a vehicle is a core reason to buy tools cover, and Insureon's examples include tools stolen from a pickup and from a van. But insurers set conditions on theft, and they differ. We couldn't find one standard US wording, so ask your insurer these questions before you buy:
- Does the policy pay for theft from an unattended vehicle? Only if it's locked? Only with signs of forced entry?
- Are there overnight conditions, such as the vehicle parked in a locked building or fenced yard?
- Is theft from an unfenced job site or trailer covered, and under what conditions?
- Are tools covered while in a personal vehicle, or only a business one?
Security also affects price. Insureon says tools kept in a client's locked office cost less to insure than tools left at an unfenced construction site.
What tools and equipment insurance doesn't cover
Insureon lists these common exclusions:
- Wear and tear, like a mower blade dulled by use
- Intentional damage or misuse
- Stationary property at your main location (that's commercial property)
- Natural disasters such as hurricanes, floods and earthquakes
- Vehicles (commercial auto)
Its cost page adds equipment breakdown and spoilage as possible exclusions. Mechanical failure is covered by a separate equipment breakdown policy.
How much does tools and equipment insurance cost?
Insureon's small-business customers pay a median of $48 a month for tools and equipment (inland marine) insurance, with annual premiums from about $150 to over $4,500. These are Insureon's figures for its own customers, which it calls averages; its method note says they are medians of policies bought by its customers, most of whom have fewer than five employees.
Trade figures from Insureon's per-trade cost pages:
| Trade | Monthly | Annual | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Handyman | $42 | $505 | Insureon handyman costs |
| General contractor | $42 | $505 | Insureon general contractor costs |
| Carpenter | $42 | $500 | Insureon carpenter costs |
| Roofer | $42 | $505 | Insureon roofing costs |
| Painter | $42 | $505 | Insureon painter costs |
| Mason | $42 | $505 | Insureon masonry costs |
| Flooring installer | $41 | $495 | Insureon flooring costs |
| Drywall installer | $41 | $495 | Insureon drywall costs |
| Tree service | $53 | $637 | Insureon tree service costs |
Insureon's inland marine cost page shows how much the type of property matters: cleaners pay $42 a month, photographers and videographers $43, wholesalers and distributors $128, and retailers $137, because shipments and stored inventory are worth more than a cleaning kit.
A carrier's own figures, in a separate row because they come from a different customer base:
| Carrier | What it publishes |
|---|---|
| ERGO NEXT (tools add-on to general liability) | Handyman customers: most pay $31 a month. General contractor customers: $32 to $64 a month. Blanket limit $3,000 to $5,000, $500 deductible. Data updated October 2026 (handyman, general contractor) |
What moves your price, per Insureon: the value of what you insure and your limits, the deductible, replacement cost vs actual cash value, your trade, your location (crime rates and weather) and your claims history. Full policy costs for the trades above are on the handyman insurance cost, general contractor cost, carpenter cost and tree service cost pages, and every trade is listed on insurance costs by business type.
Which trades need it most?
Any trade whose gear would be expensive to replace and spends its day away from the shop. For the trades below, tools cover sits next to general liability in the basic package:
- Handymen: drills, saws and ladders that live in the truck. See handyman insurance.
- Pressure washing: the rig, surface cleaners and hoses, often mounted on a truck or trailer. See pressure washing insurance.
- Tree services: chippers, stump grinders, saws and climbing gear. Insureon counts a bucket lift mounted on a truck as inland marine property, but the truck is on commercial auto, so confirm which policy pays for what. See tree service insurance.
- General contractors: owned, rented and borrowed equipment across several sites. See general contractor insurance.
- Landscapers: mowers, blowers and trimmers on trailers. See landscaping insurance.
In QuoteSweep's carrier appetite data for general contractors, 15 of 26 carriers list inland marine among the lines they write, including Travelers, The Hartford, CNA, Nationwide, Liberty Mutual and Progressive Commercial (as of March 2026, each checked against the carrier's own construction page).
What you'll need for a quote
- A list of tools and equipment with values, and serial numbers for anything costly
- Which items go on a schedule and what blanket limit you need for the rest
- Where equipment is kept overnight and how it's secured
- Whether you rent, lease or borrow equipment, and how often
- Your choice of replacement cost or actual cash value, and the deductible you can afford
- Any past theft or damage claims
The full list for a business insurance application is in what you need for a business insurance quote. When you're ready, compare business insurance quotes for tools cover and the rest of your policies.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is inland marine insurance in simple terms?
It's insurance for business property that moves or sits away from your main location (short definition here): tools at job sites, gear in your truck, goods in transit, equipment in storage. Insurers sell it under names like tools and equipment insurance, equipment floater and contractor's equipment insurance; Insureon treats these as the same coverage.
Does my general liability policy cover my tools?
No. General liability pays for injuries to other people and damage to their property. Your own tools need tools and equipment (inland marine) cover, which some insurers sell as an add-on to a general liability policy or a BOP.
Is tools and equipment insurance the same as inland marine?
Yes, for a trade business. Insureon says contractor's tools and equipment insurance, equipment floater insurance and inland marine refer to the same policy. Inland marine is also the umbrella term for related policies such as installation floaters, builder's risk and cargo cover.
Does tools and equipment insurance cover rented equipment?
Some policies do. Insureon says some include leased or rented items, and The Hartford's contractor's equipment product covers owned, leased, rented or borrowed equipment. Check before you rent: if your policy doesn't include it, ask to add it.
Are my employees' tools covered?
Only if the policy says so. The Hartford's contractor's equipment product covers employee-owned tools and work clothing subject to policy limits. On a smaller policy, ask whether employee tools are included and at what limit.
How much is tools and equipment insurance for a small contractor?
Handymen and general contractors who buy through Insureon pay a median of $42 a month ($505 a year), and tree services pay $53. ERGO NEXT says most of its handyman customers pay $31 a month for its tools add-on, with a $3,000 to $5,000 blanket limit.
