Equipment Breakdown Insurance for Residential Roofing Contractors

Key Endorsements for Residential Roofing Equipment Breakdown

Equipment breakdown coverage (formerly known as boiler and machinery insurance) protects residential roofers when mechanical, electrical, or pressure-system failures damage their equipment. This coverage applies to equipment that fails from internal causes — motor burnout, electrical arcing, compressor rupture — rather than external events covered by property or inland marine policies. The standard form is EB 00 01.

EB 00 20 — Spoilage and Contamination

While this endorsement is more common in food-service contexts, it has a roofing application: when a climate-controlled storage unit's HVAC fails and stored roofing adhesives, sealants, or coatings are ruined by temperature extremes. Residential roofers storing temperature-sensitive materials — such as peel-and-stick underlayments or silicone coatings — in heated or cooled storage benefit from this endorsement. A freezer failure in winter can destroy thousands of dollars in adhesive products.

EB 00 25 — Expediting Expense

When a critical piece of equipment breaks down, this endorsement covers the extra costs to speed up repair or replacement — overtime labor charges, express shipping for parts, and temporary rental equipment. For residential roofers in the middle of storm season, a broken roof loader or compressor can halt multiple jobs. Expediting expense coverage pays the premium for overnight parts delivery or weekend repair service that gets the roofer back to work faster.

EB 00 30 — Business Income From Equipment Breakdown

This endorsement covers lost income when an equipment breakdown forces the roofer to suspend operations. If a roofer's primary air compressor suffers catastrophic failure mid-week and it takes five days to source a replacement, this coverage pays for the lost production revenue. For residential roofers running multiple daily jobs, even a few days of downtime can mean $10,000-$25,000 in lost revenue.

EB 00 40 — Service Interruption

This covers losses from off-premises equipment failures — such as a utility transformer failure that shuts down the roofer's warehouse, including office operations and dispatching. While less critical than on-site endorsements, it protects roofers with significant office-based operations.

Hartford Steam Boiler (HSB)

HSB, now a subsidiary of Munich Re, is the original and dominant equipment breakdown insurer. They offer equipment breakdown coverage as a standalone policy or as an endorsement to a BOP or commercial property policy. For residential roofers, HSB's advantage is their extensive inspection network — they conduct periodic inspections of covered equipment and can identify potential failures before they occur. HSB covers mechanical breakdown, electrical arcing, and motor burnout on virtually any equipment a roofer owns, from compressors and generators to office HVAC systems. Their deductibles start at $1,000, and they include $25,000 in automatic expediting expense coverage.

FM Global

FM Global writes equipment breakdown primarily for larger operations, typically requiring minimum property values of $500,000 or more. While most residential roofers won't qualify individually, roofers who own their own commercial buildings (warehouses, offices, shops) may fit FM Global's appetite. Their equipment breakdown program includes engineering-based loss prevention services and highly technical claims adjusting. FM Global's coverage is broader than most competitors for electrical and pressure-vessel failures, but their premium structure is designed for larger accounts.

Nationwide

Nationwide offers equipment breakdown as an add-on to their BOP for small residential roofers at a minimal additional premium — often $200-$500 annually. This makes it one of the most cost-effective options for roofers who already have a Nationwide BOP. The coverage is basic but functional, covering mechanical and electrical failure of owned equipment with limits matching the BOP property limit. Nationwide's limitation is their $2,500 minimum deductible on equipment breakdown claims, which may exceed the value of some individual tool failures.

Chubb

Chubb's equipment breakdown coverage targets higher-value operations and includes broader coverage for electronic equipment — computers, GPS systems, and diagnostic tools used in modern roofing operations. Chubb covers data restoration costs when electronic equipment failures cause data loss, which protects roofers' estimating software, CRM databases, and project management systems. Their premiums are 20-30% above market average, but the electronic equipment coverage is significantly broader than competitors.

$18,500 — Compressor Failure on Jobsite, Oklahoma City, OK

A residential roofer's trailer-mounted air compressor — a $12,000 unit powering four pneumatic nailers — suffered a catastrophic internal failure when the connecting rod broke and punctured the cylinder wall. The compressor was six years old and had been regularly maintained. Repair was not feasible. The equipment breakdown policy paid $12,000 for the replacement compressor, $2,500 for expedited overnight shipping from the manufacturer, $2,800 for a rental compressor used during the three-day wait, and $1,200 for the crew's downtime on the day of failure. Total payout after a $1,000 deductible was $18,500.

$7,200 — Generator Electrical Failure, Rural Virginia

A residential roofer working on a home in a rural area without reliable power relied on a portable generator to run power tools. The generator's voltage regulator failed, sending an electrical surge through connected equipment. The surge destroyed two cordless tool battery chargers ($600), a miter saw ($800), and an impact driver ($400). The generator itself required $3,200 in repairs — new voltage regulator, stator rewinding, and control board replacement. Additional costs included $2,200 for rental equipment while repairs were completed. The equipment breakdown policy covered the generator repair and surge-damaged tools after a $1,000 deductible, paying $7,200.

$31,000 — Roof Loader Hydraulic Failure, Dallas, TX

A residential roofer's hydraulic roof loader — a $45,000 piece of equipment critical to the operation — suffered a hydraulic pump failure that also damaged the hydraulic cylinders and control valves. The failure occurred during peak storm restoration season when the roofer was running five jobs simultaneously. Repair costs totaled $22,000, including a new pump assembly, two cylinders, and hydraulic fluid replacement. A rental loader cost $4,500 for the two-week repair period. Lost productivity on two jobs that had to be rescheduled added $4,500 in penalties. The equipment breakdown policy paid $31,000 after the deductible, including expediting expenses for overnight parts delivery.