Last updated: September 14, 2026
Compare Delaware landscaping insurance for the one-employee workers’ comp trigger, Delaware Department of Agriculture pesticide business liability floors, and client certificates before you quote.
Requirements · Coverages · Costs · Quote checklist · FAQs
Get a landscaping insurance quote
Use Simply Business to request a quote for your landscaping operation. Describe the lawn, hardscape, pesticide and vehicle work you do and confirm coverages and availability with the provider.
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Delaware landscaping insurance requirements to check first
Delaware’s Office of Workers’ Compensation states that employers with one or more employees must maintain workers’ compensation from the first day of employment. Part-time and seasonal landscaping crew count. Limited statutory exemptions (certain farm workers, casual employment not in the regular course of business, bona fide independent contractors) rarely fit a for-hire lawn crew — confirm edge cases under 19 Del. C. ch. 23. Delaware is not an exclusive-fund state.
Delaware does not issue a statewide landscaping contractor trade license for ordinary lawn care. Local business licenses and client COI schedules still apply. No statewide landscaper surety bond was identified for mowing-only operations.
DDA pesticide business license — $300,000 / $100,000 liability
If you apply pesticides for compensation, you need commercial applicator certification and a Delaware Department of Agriculture pesticide business license. Under 3 Del. Admin. Code §601-15.0, the Secretary will not issue the license until the applicant files evidence of financial security — typically a general liability policy with completed-operations coverage — of at least $300,000 for bodily injury or death per occurrence and $100,000 for property damage from pesticide use or misuse (aerial applicators have a separate schedule). Enclose a certificate of insurance with the application. That pesticide financial-responsibility floor is not a statewide GL mandate for crews that only mow, edge and blow.
Certificates versus statutory filings
Keep WC, commercial auto, tools/inland marine and any DDA pesticide certificate on separate tracks. A homeowner COI request does not replace the DDA filing, and a certificate does not by itself add additional insureds.
Which landscaping coverages should you compare?
| What you need to protect | What to compare |
|---|---|
| Customer injury, damaged plants, irrigation and hardscape claims | General liability, including products and completed operations for finished landscape work. |
| Herbicide drift, fertilizer burn and chemical application claims | Ask whether pesticide/herbicide exposures sit on the GL form or need a separate endorsement — and whether your pesticide license has its own financial-responsibility floor. |
| Crew injuries while mowing, planting, digging or loading | Workers’ compensation (state rules differ — see requirements above). |
| Trailers, mowers, blowers and truck tools | Inland marine / tools & equipment at the shop, in transit and on jobs. |
| The pickup, dump truck or trailer on public roads | Commercial auto separate from general liability; hired/non-owned auto if helpers drive personal vehicles. |
| License, pesticide-dealer or municipal bond floors | Surety amount, obligee and whether a liability policy can substitute under statute. |
General liability for landscape work
General liability responds to third-party bodily injury and property-damage claims tied to your operations — for example a slip on a wet walkway after you mowed, or irrigation damage to a neighbor’s foundation. Ask how the form treats products/completed operations after the bed or hardscape is finished, and whether herbicide drift or fertilizer burn needs a pesticide endorsement or sits on the base form.
Commercial auto, trailers and tools
A pickup hauling a trailer is usually a commercial-auto question, not a general-liability question. Confirm hired and non-owned auto if helpers drive personal vehicles to jobs. Tools and equipment (inland marine) cover scheduled mowers and trailers at the shop, in transit and on jobs — separate from the truck’s physical-damage coverage.
What these policies usually do not do
General liability is not workers’ compensation, professional design liability, or a surety bond. A certificate of insurance is proof of a policy in force — it does not by itself add a homeowner or GC as an additional insured. Ask for the endorsement when a contract requires it.
How much does Delaware landscaping insurance cost?
Insureon’s national landscaping customer medians (page updated February 24, 2026; rechecked September 14, 2026) provide a starting reference: general liability $51/month ($610/year), workers’ compensation $169/month ($2,029/year), tools & equipment $38/month ($450/year), commercial auto $204/month ($2,452/year), license/permit bonds $9/month ($112/year), commercial umbrella $88/month ($1,060/year), and a business owner’s policy $94/month ($1,130/year). These are national Insureon landscaping-customer medians — not Delaware-specific rates and not Simply Business prices.
Do not add every row together. A business owner’s policy can bundle general liability with property, so those lines may overlap. Workers’ compensation, commercial auto, tools and bonds remain separate questions. Your provider needs payroll, revenue, services (mowing vs hardscape vs pesticide), claims, limits and equipment values to quote the actual crew.
Request an annual total for the same service mix and coverage dates. Ask whether payment plans, certificates, additional-insured endorsements or midyear changes add charges.
Prepare your Delaware landscaping insurance quote
- Business entity, operating address, start date and years in business.
- Services: mowing/maintenance, design/install, irrigation, hardscape, tree work, pesticide/fertilizer.
- Revenue, payroll, worker roles, owner participation and any 1099 help.
- Vehicles and trailers, drivers, and overnight storage.
- Equipment values (mowers, trailers, tools) and any pesticide inventory.
- Claim history, current policies, license/bond status, and each GC or HOA’s written insurance requirements.
Have providers quote the same activities, limits, deductibles and effective date. Ask for the annual total, payment charges and costs for required endorsements. Get written confirmation of unresolved exclusions before relying on the policy for a new contract.
Get a landscaping insurance quote
Use Simply Business to request a quote for your landscaping operation. Describe the lawn, hardscape, pesticide and vehicle work you do and confirm coverages and availability with the provider.
Affiliate link — we may earn a commission at no additional cost to you.
Frequently asked questions
When does a Delaware landscaper need workers’ compensation?
When you have one or more employees. Seasonal and part-time crew are covered from day one unless a narrow statutory exemption applies.
Does Delaware require general liability for landscapers?
No statewide GL floor was identified for ordinary landscaping. Pesticide business licensees must show at least $300,000 BI and $100,000 PD under 3 Del. Admin. Code §601-15.0. Clients may still require GL by contract.
Does general liability cover the landscaping truck?
No. Vehicle liability is a commercial auto product. Trailers, hired/non-owned drivers and tools in transit are separate questions from a GL policy.
Does a certificate make a homeowner or GC an additional insured?
No. A certificate is evidence of a policy; it does not create coverage. Ask whether the requested additional-insured wording is in the policy or an endorsement before you send the COI.
Related guides
Delaware landscaping · Landscaping business insurance
Requirements and source benchmarks checked September 14, 2026. Policy terms and availability depend on the insurer and your business.
Sources
- Delaware OWC — Workers’ compensation FAQs — 1+ employee coverage requirement
- 3 Del. Admin. Code §601-15.0 — Financial security — $300k BI / $100k PD pesticide floors
- DDA — Pesticide business license application — COI and category checklist
- Insureon — landscaping insurance cost — National customer medians, updated Feb 24, 2026
