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Yuma Contractors See Material Costs Fall—but Liability Rates Keep Climbing in 2025. What Can You Do?

9 June 2025

A nuts-and-bolts guide for general contractors, specialty trade crews, and other small businesses bidding work in Yuma County.

What’s Happening in 2025?

  • Material relief: Lumber futures slipped nearly 30 % from early-2024 highs, trimming bid costs on wood-frame jobs.
  • Premium pressure: General-liability (GL) and builders-risk rates still climbed 7–12 % statewide, despite cheaper supplies.
  • Small-biz snapshot: A typical Yuma operation now spends $400–$1,200 per year for basic GL, versus $500 statewide.
  • Workers’ comp: Payroll-driven premiums ticked up after Arizona’s minimum wage rose to $14.70 on Jan 1, 2025.

Why Are Insurance Costs Rising While Lumber Prices Fall?

  • Big jury verdicts: Construction-injury awards above $5 million pushed carrier loss ratios past 70 % in 2024.
  • Reinsurance squeeze: Global treaties for construction liability renewed at +10 %, forcing retail hikes.
  • Heat-stress exposure: OSHA’s pending national standard targets Arizona first; carriers now include “heat-plan” surcharges if you lack written protocols.
  • Wildfire severity: Rural Yuma job-sites in WUI zones face higher property-damage deductibles and rate loads.

Who Pays the Most?

  • Roofers, framers, and concrete crews—highest injury frequency and GL surcharges.
  • Start-ups and one-person LLCs with no prior coverage history.
  • GCs hiring uninsured subs; you’re billed for their payroll at audit if COIs are missing.

Where Can You Still Save Money?

  • Audit your numbers: Verify payroll and gross-receipt estimates—overreporting is overpaying.
  • Bundle a Business Owner’s Policy (BOP): GL + property can run $121 / month for contractors, 5–10 % less than separate policies.
  • Safety credits: Written heat-stress plan, AI dashcams, and weekly toolbox talks can earn up to 10 % GL credit.
  • Small wrap-ups (OCIPs): Projects in the $2–5 million range may insure cheaper under one wrap than stacking individual policies.
  • Higher deductibles: Moving GL from $1k to $2.5k often trims 6–8 % without gutting court-fee protection.

When Should You Re-Shop Coverage?

  • 90–120 days before renewal—lets underwriters review loss runs and quote competing carriers.
  • After bid spikes or change orders—if contract value jumps 25 %+, report it to avoid audit shock.
  • Right after major safety upgrades—submit proof immediately for mid-term credits.

How to Lock in Better Rates—Without Cutting Protection

  • Schedule equipment under one inland-marine floater instead of separate tool endorsements.
  • Add completed-operations limits only when needed; skip them if the owner’s wrap already covers post-work liability.
  • Vet every sub: Require equal or higher GL limits and current COIs before the first draw is released.
  • Document safety culture: Heat logs, fall-arrest training records, and incident-rate dashboards justify carrier discounts.

Key Take-Aways for Yuma Builders

  • Budget for high-single-digit GL increases even as lumber gets cheaper.
  • Early shopping + proven loss-control beat last-minute price hunts.
  • Bundle smart, audit payroll, and show off your safety plan—those three moves offset most 2025 premium hikes.

Sources

Need a line-item policy audit? Inszone’s Yuma construction team can review your coverage and find savings before bid season heats up.

Matt List - Inszone Insurance Senior Commercial Insurance Specialist

Matthew List

Senior Commercial Insurance Specialist

Matthew List is a Senior Commercial Insurance Specialist at Inszone Insurance Services, joining the company in May 2023 after the merger with Desert Cornerstone Insurance Services. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Business and Management from the University of Redlands and recently completed a Master of Science in Entrepreneurship and Innovation from Cal State San Bernardino. He began his insurance career in 1988 with an insurance carrier in Riverside. After working for another firm for 13 years, he started his own insurance agency, Desert Cornerstone Insurance Service, Inc., and relocated to the Coachella Valley. Matt has been a licensed insurance agent since March 1992. After many years of serving the community through his company, he decided to merge his business with Inszone Insurance Services.

Matt is a proud husband and father of three grown children and a happy grandson, Elias. In his free time, he volunteers at a local homeless shelter that provides housing for over 350 families. His strength lies in his love for the community and the people around him. He has been playing classical piano for the past two decades and enjoys traveling in his spare time. However, his greatest joy is spending time with his family.

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