Nick runs a commercial and residential painting company in Spokane with sixteen painters. For years, all his work was in Spokane County. Then a general contractor he works with won a string of projects in Coeur d'Alene and Post Falls, just across the Idaho line, and wanted Nick's crew on all of them.
The GC's Idaho project manager asked for a certificate showing workers compensation for Idaho. Nick sent over his L&I certificate. The project manager said it would not do.
What he asked for
What the Idaho GC actually needed.
What the review found
Washington L&I is built for work in Washington. L&I covers Washington employees, and it offers limited protection for temporary work out of state. But Idaho, unlike Washington, requires employers working there to carry Idaho workers compensation, which comes from private carriers or the Idaho State Insurance Fund. For ongoing Idaho projects, Nick needed Idaho coverage.
Stop-gap had a low limit and Washington-only wording. Nick's stop-gap employers liability was at a low limit. His umbrella carrier required a higher one, and the GC's contract did too.
The umbrella was not following his underlying policies. His commercial umbrella listed stop-gap as an underlying policy at a limit higher than he actually carried. That mismatch would leave a gap between the actual stop-gap limit and where the umbrella begins.
Lead paint exclusions mattered for older buildings. His general liability excluded lead-related claims, which matters for residential repaint work on homes built before 1978.
What we put in place
We placed an Idaho workers compensation policy with a private carrier, covering his crew for work performed in Idaho, with other states coverage so a job in Oregon or Montana would not create another gap. His Washington employees remain covered by L&I for Washington work.
We raised his stop-gap limit to $1 million, matching both the GC's requirement and the umbrella's underlying schedule, and had the umbrella carrier confirm the schedule in writing.
We reviewed the lead exclusion and confirmed Nick follows EPA lead-safe practices for older homes. We found a carrier that offers limited lead coverage for certified renovators and moved the GL there.
Why it mattered
Nick's crew spent most of the next summer on Idaho projects. In August, a painter fell from a ladder on a Coeur d'Alene job and broke his wrist. The Idaho policy handled the claim without question. Under the old setup, whether L&I would respond to an injury on a long-term Idaho project would have been an open question, with the painter waiting on the answer.
If you work across state lines
- Washington L&I does not replace workers comp in other states
- Idaho workers comp is bought privately or from the state fund
- Add other states coverage so the next job does not create a new gap
- Match your stop-gap limit to your umbrella's underlying schedule
More on contractors and trades, or get a free policy review before your next out-of-state job.