Tree Service General Liability Insurance
Climbing, cutting, rigging, and dropping wood is high-severity work. The right General Liability program protects your tree service against third-party bodily injury, property damage, completed operations claims, and the demands of property managers, municipalities, and HOAs.
The Foundation Policy for Every Tree Service
Tree Service General Liability — also called CGL — is the coverage your business uses to respond when a third party (a customer, neighbor, pedestrian, or property manager) alleges your operations caused them bodily injury or property damage. It is the policy required on virtually every contract, the one that produces your Certificate of Insurance, and the policy named in additional insured endorsements for HOAs, property managers, and municipal contracts.
Tree care is graded by carriers as a high-severity class: a single misdirected limb can total a roof, a vehicle, or a fence run. Standard small-business GL markets routinely decline tree work, which is why your program needs to be placed by a broker who specializes in tree, arborist, and forestry risks.
Coverages Inside a Tree Service GL Policy
Premises & Operations
Injury or property damage at your shop, your yard, or while crews are actively performing tree work on a customer site.
Products / Completed Ops
Claims arising after the job is done — a hanging limb that drops days later, a stump grind that damages an irrigation line.
Bodily Injury
Third-party medical, lost wages, pain & suffering when a customer, neighbor, or passerby is injured by your operations.
Property Damage
Roofs, fences, vehicles, landscaping, sheds, pools, and structures damaged by falling wood, dropped tools, or rigging failures.
Personal & Advertising Injury
Libel, slander, copyright, and advertising-related claims tied to your marketing, reviews, and proposals.
Defense Costs
Attorney fees, court costs, expert witnesses, and settlement negotiation — typically paid in addition to your policy limits.
Tree Service GL Starts With the Intake Form
Tree work is not light landscaping. Give us the details on climbing, cutting, rigging, equipment, subcontractors, prior claims, and required limits so we can build the right General Liability submission.
Climbing crews · Bucket trucks · Cranes · Stump grinders · Subcontractors · Storm work
The Real-World Exposures GL Responds To
Roof & Structure Strikes
Limbs, leaders, and full trunks landing on roofs, gutters, skylights, chimneys, and sheds — typically the most frequent and most expensive tree service claim.
Vehicle Damage
Customer vehicles, neighbor vehicles, and passing traffic struck by falling wood, dropped tools, or shifted rigging during a controlled drop.
Fences, Pools & Landscaping
Crushed fence panels, pool covers, irrigation, decorative landscaping, and hardscape damaged by drag-out, drop zones, and equipment travel.
Bystander & Neighbor Injury
Pedestrians, neighboring homeowners, delivery drivers, and curious onlookers entering an active drop zone or being struck by debris.
Subcontractor Operations
1099 climbers, crane vendors, and chip truck operators creating exposures the policyholder is held responsible for under contract.
Completed-Ops Failures
A hanger drops a week later. A stump fails to grind below grade. A wedge cut goes the wrong way and damage shows up after sign-off.
Tree Service GL Is Built For Operations Like Yours
Residential Tree Services
Single-family homes, HOAs, property managers, and short-driveway tight-quarter work.
Commercial Tree Contractors
Office parks, industrial sites, retail centers, and large-scale grounds maintenance contracts.
ISA Certified Arborists
Climbing arborists, consulting arborists, and crews performing pruning to ANSI A300 standards.
Storm & Emergency Work
24/7 storm response, hanger removal, road clearing, and emergency utility-side work.
Crane-Assisted Removals
Operations using cranes, boom trucks, or grapple saws for high-severity removals.
Stump & Cleanup Crews
Stump grinding specialists, debris haulers, and post-removal site restoration crews.
Insured From Climb to Cleanup
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Other Tree Service Coverages We Place
By Operation Type
Cost, Quotes & Buyer Resources
Hard-to-Place & Problem Risk Pages
Other Coverages Tree Contractors Often Add
Tree Service GL Questions Answered
What does Tree Service General Liability actually cover?
Third-party bodily injury, third-party property damage, products/completed operations, personal & advertising injury, and defense costs. It is the policy that produces your COI and the foundation of every additional insured endorsement you issue.
Is GL the same as Workers Compensation?
No. GL covers third parties (customers, neighbors, the public). Workers Compensation covers your employees when they are injured on the job. Most states require both for tree service operations with employees. See our Arborist Workers Comp page.
What limits do tree services typically carry?
Most carriers issue $1M per occurrence / $2M aggregate as a starting point. Crane work, utility line clearance, and large commercial contracts frequently require $2M / $4M, and umbrella limits of $1M to $10M+ stacked on top. See our Tree Service Umbrella page.
Why is tree service GL hard to place?
Severity. Roof and vehicle strikes, climbing falls, and crane drops produce six-figure claims. Standard markets routinely decline tree work, which is why tree GL belongs with a specialty broker who has carrier relationships built specifically for arborists and tree contractors.
Does GL cover damage to the tree I am working on or property in my care?
Generally no — most GL policies exclude damage to the specific property you are working on (the "your work" exclusion) and items in your care, custody, and control. Those exposures are typically addressed through Inland Marine, equipment, and care/custody/control endorsements.
Does GL cover crane-assisted removals?
Crane operations are an underwriting trigger and frequently require specific endorsements, scheduled equipment, and sometimes a separate crane policy. See our Tree Service With Crane Operations page.
Can I get a Certificate of Insurance the same day I bind?
Yes — once your submission is bound, COIs are typically issued same day. Property managers, HOAs, and municipal contracts almost always require additional insured language, which we coordinate at issuance. See our Tree Service COI page.
I had a claim or was non-renewed. Can you still place me?
Yes. We work with hard-to-place and high-risk tree accounts every day. Send the loss runs, the cancellation notice, and the operational details — start with our After Cancellation page and the Intake Form.
Ready to Place Your Tree Service GL?
Send us climb counts, equipment, subcontractor usage, claims history, and required limits. We build the submission, market it to specialty tree carriers, and get you the policy your contracts demand.
Start the Intake Form → Contact Kelly Insurance Group →