In my first month of being president of the Association of Wall and Ceiling
Industries—International, I had the pleasure of traveling to Florida to attend the Annual
Convention and Southeastern Trade Show organized by AWCI’s chapter, the Florida
Wall and Ceiling Contractors Association. Being from Ohio, it was a great opportunity
for me to spend time with our members in Florida and learn about their issues
and concerns.
Foremost on everyone’s mind, and not just in Florida, is the difficulty in getting insurance.
It once was the case that when a contractor said, “I can’t get insurance,” what
he really meant was he could not get it at the same below market rate he was paying
last year. Now when he says he can’t get insurance, he means he can’t get insurance!
For this reason AWCI has been spending substantial resources and time developing
insurance options, and has been very successful in getting coverage for contractors.
However, over time it has been getting more difficult to find interested primary carriers,
so AWCI has taken the lead in the development and sponsorship of an insurance
company for the industry of wall and ceiling contractors and suppliers. After several
months of paperwork, completion of all the punch list items and a little bit of luck,
the insurance company will soon be a reality and operational.
The coverage would be available to all contractors, who do all kinds of work, including
exterior insulation and finish systems, and the rates would be competitive.
In order to be eligible for insurance through this company interested contractors and
suppliers will have to be a member of the association. If you have been thinking of
joining AWCI and needed just one more reason, now is the time. It’s going to get
very busy.
