Installation Floater

An installation floater is an inland marine policy that covers property a contractor will install — items such as HVAC units, cabinetry, wiring, plumbing fixtures, boilers, or elevators — from the time the materials leave the supplier, through transit and any temporary storage, until they are permanently installed and accepted at the jobsite. Because the property is mobile and off the contractor's premises during this window, standard commercial property and auto policies leave a gap; the installation floater is designed specifically to close it.

This coverage matters to a contractor because the risk of loss on those materials sits with the installer until the work is complete and the owner takes over. If a truck carrying $80,000 of rooftop equipment crashes, or fire or theft strikes the staged materials the night before they go in, the contractor's general liability and commercial auto policies will not pay for the damaged property itself — they cover injuries and liability, not the contractor's own goods. The installation floater pays for the physical loss, typically against a broad set of perils including fire, theft, vandalism, and transit accidents, and coverage terminates once installation is finished and accepted.

A key practical nuance is how the installation floater relates to neighboring coverages. It overlaps with builders risk, which insures an entire structure under construction; on many projects a builders risk policy already covers materials once they are at the site, so contractors buy an installation floater chiefly when they supply and install specific systems rather than erect the whole building. It is also distinct from a tool floater, which covers the contractor's own tools rather than the materials being installed. Because the property is temporarily in the contractor's care, custody, and control, the floater is the correct place to insure it, and limits are usually set to the largest single installation job. Coverage ends the moment the work is installed, tested, and accepted, at which point the owner's permanent property insurance responds.