Umbrella / Excess Liability for marine contractors

It's driven by your largest realistic loss and your contract requirements. Ports and the Army Corps often require $5M–$10M total limits. Maritime losses (drownings, crane collapses) trend high. We model your worst-case scenarios and size the umbrella to what your work actually demands.

It can sit over the employers' liability layer that responds to Jones Act and USL&H claims, subject to the policy form. Because maritime injury claims can be high-value, this layer matters. We confirm exactly how the umbrella interacts with your maritime coverages.

Large waterfront projects shift risk down to contractors and require proof of high limits — often $5M–$10M. Carrying an umbrella lets you bid that work and protects you from a catastrophic over-water claim that could otherwise sink your business.

Umbrella premium is a fraction of your underlying liability cost and reflects your operations, underlying limits, and the umbrella layer chosen. It's one of the most cost-effective ways to add meaningful protection for a marine contractor.

Often yes. If a new waterfront project requires higher limits, we can frequently increase the umbrella (subject to underwriting) so you can take the work. Tell us the requirement and we'll move.

Yes. An umbrella responds to the same types of claims your underlying marine GL and employers' liability cover — including high-severity maritime injury and drowning claims — once primary limits are exhausted.

A true umbrella can drop down to cover some claims not covered by underlying policies; a straight excess policy simply adds limits on top of the same coverage. We place the form that fits your marine exposure and budget.

Most marina contractors pay $2,500–$9,000 a year for $1M/$2M marine general liability, with Jones Act/USL&H rated on over-water payroll and equipment floaters based on scheduled marine gear. We quote the full program in about 15 minutes and show every market's price.

Yes. Contractors Choice Agency is licensed in all 50 states and writes marine construction crews from the Gulf Coast and Florida to the Chesapeake, New England, the Great Lakes, and the Pacific coast.

About 15 minutes for a standard program. Once bound, we turn around additional-insured certificates, waivers of subrogation, and primary/non-contributory endorsements usually within minutes.

The Jones Act covers crew members who work on navigable waters as 'seamen.' If your crew works on a barge, tug, or over navigable water, standard workers' comp does not apply — you need Jones Act coverage. We'll confirm exactly where your operations fall.

Only upland. Over-water work on navigable waters falls under the Jones Act and USL&H (Longshore), not state workers' comp. We coordinate all three so every crew member is covered everywhere they work.

Equipment is covered under an inland marine / contractors equipment floater (and watercraft may need a separate hull/P&I policy), not under GL. We schedule barges, cranes, pile drivers, and dredges at replacement cost so a loss over water is covered.

Most marine contractors carry $1M/$2M marine GL with a $2M–$5M umbrella. Ports and large marina owners often require $2M–$10M limits plus additional-insured status. We size limits to your actual contract requirements.

Yes — personal auto excludes business use and will deny claims when you haul dock sections or materials. Commercial auto covers your trucks, trailers, and lowboys, including hired/non-owned vehicles.

Often, yes. We have excess-and-surplus (E&S) markets for marine contractors with loss runs, USL&H claims, cancellations, or tough exposures that standard markets decline.

Your marine GL doesn't cover independent subs — they should carry their own (including Jones Act/USL&H) and name you additional insured. We set up certificate tracking and additional-insured requirements so subcontracted work doesn't become your liability.

You reach a person with context, not a queue. We respond within 2 hours, help you document the loss, and manage the claim with the carrier so it's paid correctly and your operation keeps moving.

Marine construction has Jones Act, USL&H, and over-water GL traps that generic carriers miss or deny. A specialty broker knows the maritime statutes, the markets that write marine work, and how to manage a maritime claim.