Riding the ebbs and flows of the insurance market

By Emma Peterson. 

Get some helpful tips on navigating the insurance side of the roofing industry! 

While at the Western States Roofing Contractor’s Association 2024 Roofing Expo (WRE), Heidi J. Ellsworth brought Seth and Ashley Pietsch to The Coffee Shops soundstage to talk about insurance. The duo run Integrity Insurance and Bonding, with Ashley as vice president and Seth as president. Integrity Insurance is an independent insurance agency that is committed to delivering “exceptional service, personalized solutions and empowering our clients and employees to thrive.” The company began in November 2018 and they have grown rapidly over the last half decade, now operating in 38 different states.  

While at WRE, Seth got the chance to present about contractual risk transfer. He explained a bit of what was included in that presentation, saying, “It’s about looking at construction contracts for the general contractors and when they are hiring subs. Currently, the main concern right now is that it's harder to get things done in the industry than it previously used to be.” Basically, what Seth and Ashley have been seeing is that tasks that would’ve taken a couple days back when they started Integrity Insurance, are now taking agents up to one month or more. This is one example of how the insurance market has gotten more difficult to navigate today, with carriers tightening their grip on things. Seth even stated that he thinks it’s the hardest market he has seen in 17 years. 

So why has the insurance market gotten so tough recently? It might actually be normal fluctuations and shifts. Seth elaborated, “It goes in cycles, you have hard and soft markets and every few years the market shifts again. Right now, we're at the top of the iceberg with it being as difficult as can get, but it will shift to be easier.” This can be stressful to navigate as a contractor, which is why you should find and rely on an insurance agent with industry-specific experience. Ashley explained, “Contractors aren't the specialists in insurance and that’s okay, your agent is... We are here to educate you, so ask every question possible. Our job is to make sure you're protected.”  

For more about the roofing insurance world and making sure you are protected properly, watch the full interview!