As a maid, janitor, or any cleaning services provider, you may find that potential clients often insist on hiring only companies with janitorial bonds. These surety bonds ensure any cleaning services contract, and not only protect the person paying for the service, but they also protect your small business, which relies on reputation.
Have you been wondering what the purpose of a janitorial bond is, and how these fidelity bonds protect you and your clients? In this post, we’re going to explore what fidelity bonds are, how janitorial bonds protect the janitorial service company customers from employee misconduct, and how these bonds work.
What Are Fidelity Bonds?
A fidelity bond is a type of business customer protection. These bonds help businesses manage risk and protect their customers against physical or monetary losses caused by dishonest or fraudulent actions taken by employees. They guard against losses from employee theft in most cases.
Many businesses must carry fidelity bonds. There are several special types of fidelity bonds, and janitorial bonds are one of those sub-categories.
How Janitorial Bonds Work
Any surety bond, including a fidelity bond/janitorial bond, is an agreement between three parties: the cleaning company, the client, and the surety who is guaranteeing the work of the cleaning company. The agreement states that the surety company will pay the client if any employee of the cleaning service steals, destroys property, or otherwise breaches the trust that has been placed on the business.
A janitorial bond isn’t like insurance, because although you have paid your premium for the bond, if the surety has to pay for a claim, you or the employee who committed theft will be required to pay the surety back. This is because the agreement is based on the promise that no misconduct will happen; if it does, the responsibility will ultimately be placed on the business owner or employee committing the act.
How Janitorial Bonds Protect Your Business
All of this may feel like janitorial bonds don’t do anything for the businesses that hold them, but this isn’t actually the case. In fact, janitorial bonds protect cleaning services and the people who run them.
Keeping homes and work spaces clean is hard work. It’s also valuable; homeowners and businesses know that their properties are worth more when they’re well-maintained, and an unsanitary workspace in particular won’t keep customers (or employees) very long.
The work of cleaning professionals matters because clients rely on it absolutely, but potential customers need to know they can trust a cleaning business with their property. Many will only hire a “bonded” business. This means your business won’t meet the terms of many contracts out there if you aren’t bonded—especially with larger, longer-term clients who want some extra reassurance.
A janitorial bond also gives you more credibility—something that really matters when you are a sole owner, vouching for your company and employees. If you’ve got a bond, your company sets itself apart as a contender for business with a clean claims history.
Beyond that, janitorial bonds give you some peace of mind. You can weather claims and even cope when an employee damages something very valuable—something you couldn’t replace at cash value. Your janitorial bond also fills gaps in the coverage from your general liability insurance policy for a low cost.
Under many insurers, the Janitorial Services Bond (all states except Texas) does have a $100 deductible and the TX Business Services Bond does not have a deductible. The deductible would be required from the owner. The surety would generally seek reimbursement from the defaulting employee on both products (bus. Svc. and janitorial).
Find Out More About Janitorial Bonds
Viking Bond Service is an industry expert with extensive fidelity bonds experience. Contact the Viking Bond Service team now for more information, including information on the cost of janitorial bonds.