Rigging Liability Tree Service Insurance
Rigger's Liability is the coverage that pays for direct physical damage to the property being hoisted, lifted, or rigged while it is in your care, custody, and control. For tree services that handle customer property — pieces being lowered onto a roof, equipment being moved, items being hoisted alongside tree work — it fills the gap your General Liability policy creates by excluding damage to property in your care.
Coverage for the Property in Your Hook
Rigger's Liability — sometimes called Riggers Legal Liability or written as a coverage extension within a Contractors Equipment / Inland Marine policy — pays for direct physical loss or damage to property while it is in your care, custody, or control during a rigging or hoisting operation. The defining trait is that the property in question is not yours — it belongs to the customer, a third party, or another contractor — and you are responsible for it during the lift.
Why does this need to exist as its own coverage? Because standard General Liability policies exclude damage to property in your care, custody, or control. The exclusion is built into virtually every CGL form. Without a Rigger's Liability extension, that piece of customer equipment you lower onto the patio — the one your rigging line drops mid-lower — has no coverage source. The GL won't pay because of the CCC exclusion. Your Inland Marine won't pay because the property is not yours.
Why General Liability Alone Isn't Enough
Three policies typically operate around a tree service rigging operation. Two of them have built-in exclusions that leave the property being hoisted uncovered. The third — Rigger's Liability — exists specifically to close the gap.
General Liability
Excludes damage to property in your care, custody, or control. Will not pay for the load itself.
Property You Are Hoisting
Belongs to the customer or a third party. Was in your control when damaged. Not covered by either GL or your IM.
Rigger's Liability
Built specifically to pay for direct physical damage to property in your care, custody, and control during a hoist or lift.
Inland Marine covers your equipment — your saws, ropes, blocks, and trucks. It does not cover property belonging to others that happens to be in your hook on a given day.
What Tree Services Actually Hoist
Most people think tree work and rigging means lowering tree pieces. That's part of it. But the moment a tree service operation includes hoisting property that doesn't belong to the company, Rigger's Liability becomes relevant. The scenarios below are the most common.
Customer Property Around the Tree
HVAC condensers, generators, garden statuary, urns, planters, and outdoor equipment that has to be moved out of a drop zone using rigging gear or a crane.
Roof Equipment Relocation
Solar panels, satellite dishes, antennas, and HVAC roof units that need to be temporarily lifted clear of a removal area.
Memorial & Specimen Tree Moves
Customer-owned ornamental, memorial, or specimen trees being relocated within a property using crane assistance and rigging.
Large Limbs Hoisted Over Structures
When a tree-piece itself is being controlled over a roof, vehicle, or other valuable third-party property — the hoist is yours and the structure below it is at risk.
Other Trades' Equipment On Site
Roofing, mechanical, or solar equipment staged near the tree work that must be moved by your rigging crew before operations begin.
Outdoor Furnishings & Hardscape
Heavy outdoor furniture, fountains, fire features, or hardscape elements relocated by rigging out of harm's way.
What It Covers — and What It Doesn't
Covered Under Rigger's Liability
- Direct physical damage to property being hoisted while in your care
- Damage occurring during the hoist, transit on the line, or controlled lower
- Damage from rigging failure, dropped load, shifted load, or hardware failure
- Damage during loading and unloading of the hoisted item
- Property belonging to a customer, neighbor, or third party
- Defense and adjustment costs related to a covered loss to the load
Not Covered Under Rigger's Liability
- Damage to your own rigging equipment — that's Inland Marine
- Damage to surrounding third-party property (roofs, fences, vehicles) — that's GL
- Bodily injury to bystanders or workers — that's GL or Workers Comp
- Damage to the tree being removed — owner has consented to its removal
- Cosmetic damage with no functional loss (depends on form)
- Wear & tear, gradual deterioration, or pre-existing damage to the load
Rigger's Liability vs. On-Hook Liability vs. Inland Marine
These three coverages get used interchangeably in conversation, but they address different exposures. Knowing which one applies to which loss is the difference between a paid claim and a denied one.
Property of Others Being Hoisted
Pays for direct physical damage to a load that is not yours, while it is in your care during a rigging or hoisting operation. Closes the GL care/custody/control gap.
Towing & Crane Variant
A close cousin used in towing and crane operations to cover property of others on the hook. Often substantively the same coverage form with industry-specific naming.
Your Own Mobile Equipment
Pays for damage to your equipment — chainsaws, ropes, blocks, chippers, trucks. Does not cover property belonging to others that you are temporarily handling.
Rigger's Liability Limit Structures
Rigger's Liability is typically written with limits keyed to the size of the load being hoisted. Different markets express the structure differently, but most placements fall into one of the three patterns below.
Per-Load Limit
The maximum payout for any single hoisted item. Selected based on the highest-value property typically handled — the most expensive HVAC unit, generator, or specimen tree your crews routinely move.
Per-Occurrence Limit
The maximum payout for any single rigging incident — even if multiple items are damaged in the same loss event. Important when a hoist over multiple targets fails.
Aggregate Limit
The total maximum payout under the coverage during the policy term. Resets at renewal. High-frequency rigging operations should pay attention to aggregate exhaustion.
Match the per-load limit to the most expensive property your crews routinely handle, not the average. A single failure on an oversized load can blow through a too-low per-load limit instantly.
Common Rigger's Liability Exclusions
Rigger's Liability forms vary by market, but several exclusions appear consistently. Always review the specific form before binding — these eight are the ones tree contractors most often run into during claims.
Pre-Existing Damage
Damage to the load that existed before you took control of it.
Wear & Tear / Gradual Deterioration
Normal aging or deterioration of the property being hoisted.
Mechanical / Electrical Breakdown
Internal failure of the load's own systems unrelated to a covered hoisting loss.
Cosmetic-Only Damage
Scratches and surface marks with no functional impact (form-dependent).
Loads Exceeding Rated Capacity
Exclusions for loads beyond the working load limits of the rigging system used.
Improper Securement
Some forms exclude damage from objectively negligent rigging or securement practices.
War, Nuclear, Government Action
Standard catastrophic exclusions present on virtually every property form.
Property Outside Coverage Territory
Loads handled outside the policy's specified territory or radius.
Tree Operations That Should Not Rig Without It
Not every tree service has meaningful Rigger's Liability exposure. Pure free-fall removal in open drop zones with no surrounding property does not generate the coverage need. But the moment a crew starts hoisting customer property, moving roof equipment, or handling loads over valuable third-party assets, the gap GL leaves becomes a real coverage issue.
- Crane-assisted tree services that hoist customer property as part of the job
- Operations that routinely move HVAC, solar, or roof equipment to clear drop zones
- Specimen and memorial tree relocation specialists
- Tree contractors working on commercial properties with valuable equipment in proximity
- Multi-trade contractors who coordinate hoisting with roofing, mechanical, or solar crews
- Storm response operations that handle customer property during emergency cleanup
- High-end residential operations where landscape statuary, urns, or artwork are routinely repositioned
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Rigger's Liability Questions Answered
What does Rigger's Liability actually pay for?
Direct physical damage to property that you are hoisting, lifting, or rigging while it is in your care, custody, or control. The defining feature is that the property is not yours — it belongs to the customer or another party — and you are responsible for it during the hoist.
Why doesn't my General Liability policy cover this?
Standard CGL forms include a "care, custody, and control" exclusion that removes coverage for property in your possession or control. The exclusion exists because the GL is built around third-party liability — not first-party damage to property you are temporarily holding. Rigger's Liability is the form built to fill that gap. See our Tree Service GL page.
Isn't this the same as Inland Marine?
No. Inland Marine covers your equipment — your saws, ropes, blocks, chippers, and trucks. Rigger's Liability covers property of others being hoisted by you. They are different exposures and need different policies. See our Tree Service Inland Marine page.
What's the difference between Rigger's Liability and On-Hook Liability?
They are very close cousins. On-Hook Liability is the term most commonly used in towing and crane operations to describe coverage for property of others on the hook. The coverage form is substantively the same idea — physical damage to property in your care during a lift or tow — with industry-specific naming.
Do I need Rigger's Liability if I only do free-fall tree removal?
Generally no. Free-fall cutting in open drop zones with no surrounding third-party property to be hoisted does not create a Rigger's Liability exposure. The coverage becomes relevant the moment you are moving someone else's property as part of the job — HVAC units, solar panels, ornamental items, specimen trees, equipment of other trades.
How are Rigger's Liability limits typically structured?
Most placements include a per-load limit, a per-occurrence limit, and an aggregate. The per-load limit should match the most expensive single piece of property your crews routinely handle — not the average. A single failure on an oversized load can blow through a too-low per-load limit instantly.
Does Rigger's Liability cover damage to the tree being removed?
No — and that's by design. The owner has consented to the tree's removal, so its destruction is not a covered loss. Rigger's Liability is about the other property — the customer's roof, their HVAC unit, their pool cover, their generator — that gets damaged while a hoist is in progress.
Where do I start?
Reach out via the Contact page or call (412) 212-2800. Bring an operations description, the kinds of property your crews routinely hoist, the maximum value of any single load, and any existing GL or Inland Marine policy declarations you carry.
Place Your Rigger's Liability Coverage
Send us your operations description, the kinds of property your crews hoist, the highest single-load value you typically handle, and any existing GL or Inland Marine declarations. We close the care/custody/control gap with the right form and the right limits.
Contact Kelly Insurance Group → Call / Text (412) 212-2800 →