Navigating the Hard Market in Tree Care Insurance: What Business Owners Need to Know

Author, Rory Anderson, Partner, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

The tree care industry has always carried a unique set of risks, but in today’s insurance climate, business owners are facing challenges unlike anything they have seen before. What used to be a straightforward cost of doing business has evolved into one of the more complex and expensive aspects of running a company. Nearly every major coverage line is feeling rate pressure, stricter underwriting standards, and fewer carriers willing to take on the exposure.

This environment is what the industry calls a hard market. Knowing why this is happening and how it impacts your business is essential to navigating it successfully.

Auto: The Leading Cost Driver

Commercial auto has become the biggest pain point in insurance programs for tree care companies. Premiums are rising sharply due to:

• Vehicle costs - new trucks, parts, and repair expenses have jumped significantly

• Medical bills - post-accident treatment continues to escalate year after year

• Nuclear verdicts - jury awards in the millions, even for relatively routine accidents, have made insurers more cautious and aggressive with rate adjustments.

In response, many carriers are raising rates substantially and, in some cases, reducing coverage. For contractors that rely heavily on vehicles, this is creating major financial strain.

General Liability: The Long Tail of Claims

Tree care companies are also feeling pressure on general liability coverage. Carriers are dealing with:

• Rising medical costs for bodily injury claims

• Inflated property damage payouts as materials and labor costs climb

• Claims that appear years after work is completed. For example, if a company trims a tree and years later a storm brings it down, liability may still trace back to the original contractor.

These realities have not only led carriers to raise premiums, but also scrutinize operations more closely, sometimes declining to offer quotes on accounts they would have considered in the past.

Umbrella: Following the Trend

Because umbrella liability sits directly on top of auto and general liability policies, the pricing inevitably follows those trends. As underlying rates climb, umbrella coverage has become more expensive, and carriers are regularly reducing limits. This makes it difficult for companies to secure the higher levels of protection they need.

Workers’ Compensation: No Longer a Safe Haven

For years, workers’ compensation provided a soft landing spot in an otherwise tough market. That has changed.

The 2025 pure premium for class code 0106 (tree care) has increased 12% from $9.91 to $11.24. Pure premium is the baseline rate set by the state that reflects the expected cost of claims for a given class code, before carrier expenses, fees, and profit are added.

The primary drivers of this increase are rising medical costs, a surge in cumulative trauma claims, and higher wages which increase claim payouts since lost wages are a core part of workers’ compensation benefits.

Tree care companies that once relied on stable workers’ compensation programs are now seeing noticeable increases on this critical line of coverage.

Positioning Your Company for Success

While companies cannot control market cycles, they can influence how carriers view their risk. Strategies include:

• Strengthening safety programs - documented safety practices lower both claim frequency and severity.

• Prioritizing fleet management - clean driving records, ongoing training, and telematics can make your auto risk more attractive.

• Start early - the more lead time your broker has, the more leverage you will have with carriers.

• Choose a specialist - generalist brokers often miss industry nuances. A broker who understands tree care can align your program with carriers who know the risks.

The hard market is reshaping how insurance works for tree care companies. Rising rates and limited capacity are real challenges, but businesses that invest in safety, plan ahead, and partner with knowledgeable advisors can still secure strong and competitive programs. Now is the time to approach insurance with a proactive, not reactive, strategy.

For assistance navigating the hard market, contact me at randerson@ranchomesa.com or (619) 486-6437.

Four Areas of Focus for Landscape Contractors During A Hard Insurance Market

Author, Drew Garcia, Vice President, Landscape Group, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

The property and casualty insurance market continues to impact landscape contractors resulting in increased costs, changes to carrier appetites, and overall concerns for insurability.

There are four areas of focus your business can review to help manage the things that are somewhat unpredictable during this difficult insurance market

Renewal Process

It is always a best practice to start the renewal process early. Engage with your insurance agent 90 – 120 days before your policies renew. And, be prepared to update renewal information and learn from your agent about current market conditions.

Policy Structure

Consider policy consolidation. Some insurance carriers have capabilities to underwrite your major casualty lines (i.e., general liability, automobile, umbrella and workers’ compensation) to leverage all your insurance to see if you can create some economies of scale and perhaps more opportunity within the insurance market. As your combined premiums exceed  $200,000, additional deductible options may become available.

Pre-Injury and Accident Prevention

Implementing a strong safety program and ongoing training can help prevent employee injuries and third-party accidents.

Post-Injury and Accident Protocol

Conduct thorough accident reports and investigations. Gathering detailed information at the time of an accident or injury is critical for your insurance carrier to best handle the claim. And, create trainings to avoid similar incidents from occurring in the future.[DG2] 

These four areas should be on your radar to ensure that your company can weather the hardening insurance market.

To discuss these specific areas or to evaluate your current insurance program, contact me at (619) 937-0200 or drewgarcia@ranchomesa.com.

A Hardening Insurance Market for Non-Profits-Steps to Prepare for the 2025 Renewal Process

Author, Sam Brown, Vice President, Human Services Group, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

Non-profit and human services leaders started experiencing a hardening property and casualty insurance market in 2024 illustrated by reduced limits of liability, higher deductibles, and increased premiums. And, the market shift still may not have been enough to right the ship.

According to Insurancebusinessmag.com, reinsurers are seeking double digit increases in 2025 due to rising claim costs. Behind these rising claims costs are social inflation, emerging risks (i.e., opioid and synthetic chemicals), reserve increases, litigation funding and no promising tort reform. Reinsurers also argue that 2024 rate hikes were insufficient. As a result, these companies are reducing exposure to the US casualty market.

When reinsurers sneeze, the insurance market and its insurers catch a cold. In 2025, expect more signs of the hardening market. However, there are steps non-profit leaders can do to prepare for the renewal process in 2025.

Anticipate Premium Increases

Consider the organization’s growth in all rating factors, whether it be revenue, employee count, vehicles, or beds. Premium will increase accordingly before rate increases.

Complete Full Insurance Applications

An experienced insurance agent will ask clients to update applications in hard copy, using electronic documents, or via an online portal. If this is not happening, ask why. If it is happening, then complete the full version rather than truncated renewal applications. Creating competition in the marketplace means providing underwriters a full scope and understanding of operations. Very few underwriters will quote using another carrier’s renewal updates.

Review Contract Insurance Requirements

Many carriers are reducing limits of liability for abuse/molestation and professional liability. Others will no longer quote umbrella or excess liability. Stacking quotes from various carriers to achieve once readily attainable limits is possible, but this strategy comes with a significant premium cost. So, before stacking policies, review contracts with counties, regional centers, and funders to understand the required insurance coverage.

Engage with Partners Now

Communicate to organization partners the cost to maintain required insurance limits. Take a hard look at current programs to determine if outcomes (i.e., revenue and impact) warrant the increased insurance costs. Some programs may need to sunset.

A continuing hardening insurance market in 2025 will force non-profit and human services leaders to approach the renewal process with care and new focus. The recommended steps listed above will help organization leaders develop a renewal strategy while helping underwriters’ analysis prior to releasing quotes.

For more information about the hardening market, contact me at sbrown@ranchomesa.com or (619) 937-0175.

Excess/Umbrella Rates Experiencing Alarming Price Jump

Author, Sam Clayton, Vice President of the Construction Group, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

As if the 2020 business landscape has not already been challenging enough, a hard market for excess/umbrella is occurring at a concerning rate, resulting in rising premiums, limited capacity and a restriction in terms and conditions.

A hard market can be defined by a decrease in limit and underwriting capacity, and an increase in rate and premium. While other lines of liability are seeing single-digit increases, excess/umbrella pricing is experiencing 20-30% jumps, depending on the risk. This significant increase is the result of several factors including:

• Social inflation

• Nuclear judgements

• Third-party litigation financing

• Natural and man-made catastrophes

• Increase in severe distracted driving incidents

In addition to these premium increases, insurance carriers are reducing their capacity. Previously a carrier might have been comfortable in offering higher limits such as $25 million on a risk and now they are limiting their lead limits to $5 or $10 million dollars, which then require a business, in need of higher limits, to seek additional participation from other carriers to meet their needs. This creates both the need to “stack” limits and at the same time make sure policy terms stay consistent.

The area most often overlooked are new restrictions in the terms and conditions. Some to be mindful of include:

• Communicable Disease Exclusions

• Wildfire Exclusions

• Higher Retention Limits

Now more than ever is the time for contractors to be meeting with their broker to put proactive steps in place to minimize the impacts of this hardening market. As the construction group leader here at Rancho Mesa, if you have questions or need help in navigating these turbulent times, please reach out to me at (619) 937-0167 or email at sclayton@ranchomesa.com.