Protecting Your Carpet Cleaning Business Against Liability Claims
Liability claims can have a disastrous impact on the health and reputation of a business. They happen when negligence causes injury, financial loss or property damage, and can happen with customers or employees. Luckily, there are steps that you can take to ensure that you are not liable for potential accidents.
Check equipment
Faulty equipment can cause injury, damage to customer property and even fires. Regularly inspecting your equipment will help you to prevent accidents, as it allows you to fix issues that may otherwise have gone undetected. If you keep consistent records of your checks, you can also prove that you did your due diligence if anything does go wrong. Many businesses put stickers on each item that include the date of their last inspection and the due date for their next one.
Training
Ensuring that you and your staff are highly trained improves your ability to avoid mistakes. As well as carpet cleaning itself, your training should include hazard management and safety, making sure that everyone in your team is part of keeping the work environment safe. Training should be repeated at regular intervals. NCCA members get access to exclusive and discounted training.
Risk assessments
Carrying out a risk assessment for each kind of job you do will help you to spot potential accidents before they happen. Your risk assessment should identify hazards, assess their severity, and then list safety procedures to prevent problems. Risk assessments should be regularly reviewed and updated, allowing you to improve your hazard prevention.
Make sure you understand the law
Even if an accident is caused by a misunderstanding of the law, you are likely to be liable. It's important that you research the law around liability, and if you have employees, you should have knowledge of labour laws. Staying compliant with the law is vital to avoiding legal disputes, and you can only do this if you understand it.
Pay attention to your contracts
A subtle difference in the wording of your contract could make all the difference to the outcome of a case. Whether your contract is between you and a customer or you and an employee, the terms should be clear and enforceable. Bringing in a solicitor to check that your contracts are airtight is a strong way to protect your business from liability.
Insurance
Public liability insurance is vital for any cleaning business. If anything does go wrong, your insurer will help you to manage the cost. However, you should still take steps to avoid accidents, as repeated claims could cause your insurance costs to rise. Insurance is a minimum requirement for membership of many organisations, including the NCCA.
Join the NCCA
Becoming a member of the National Carpet Cleaners Association helps you to keep improving your business. Our members gain access to training, forums and mediation services to assist with carrying out best practice. Membership also grants you a place in our carpet cleaner directory, increasing your visibility to new customers.
