There are two conditions regarding insurance, which the plumber must consider when he engages in business. The first is, to cover his stock, furniture and fixtures with a policy of insurance. This is necessary in many cases where the contractor seeks credit, for many supply houses will not extend a line of credit to plumbers who do not keep the goods covered by insurance. Outside of this requirement of supply houses, the plumber should cover his goods for his own satisfaction and safety, and in order that he will not be called upon to pay for insurance which does not insure, it will pay him to submit his policy to a lawyer for an opinion as to its many printed terms. As was previously pointed out in this work, signing a printed form of contract is a hazardous undertaking, and an insurance policy is no exception to the rule. Many conditions are printed in the form of policy used, which will prevent the plumber recovering in case of fire. unless they are stricken out before signing the contract. For instance, owing to a printed stipulation, most policies are void if gasoline is used or stored on the premises. There are very few plumbing shops where gasoline torches or gasoline furnaces are not used, and these would invalidate the policy of insurance so that in case of fire nothing could be recovered. Further, many policies contain a stipulation rendering them void in case the interest of the plumber is not whole and entire. Under the terms of such a policy, if the plumber had goods in his shop on consignment, or materials of any kind in which others had an interest, the policy would be void.

The second consideration is for the plumber to see that work on new buildings, when of sufficient size to warrant it, is covered by insurance. If a loss is sustained by fire, before final acceptance of the work and payment, the loss is the plumber's, and he must again install the work, according to the terms of the contract, even though the loss entailed would make him a bankrupt. Insurance, then, both for the shop and the work should be looked after by the plumber, and he should make sure that no clause in the policy of insurance will deprive him of his indemnity in case of fire.