Contractor Insurance in Cheney, Washington

This page is for registered Washington construction contractors who work in Cheney and the West Plains: shops based in Cheney, and shops based in Spokane, Airway Heights or Medical Lake that take jobs there. Remodelers, roofers, electricians, plumbers, HVAC, painters, landscapers, concrete and excavation.

If a general contractor on a Cheney job just asked for a certificate with their name on it, or you are registering with L&I for the first time, the rest of this page is the checklist. Keaton Flanigan is the one licensed producer who handles your file from the first question to the certificate.

To register as a construction contractor, Washington L&I asks for three things before it issues your number. A business registered with the Department of Revenue, which gives you a UBI. A surety bond, $30,000 for a general contractor and $15,000 for a specialty contractor. And general liability insurance of at least $200,000 in public liability and $50,000 in property damage, or $250,000 combined single limit.

The bond and the insurance are both filed with L&I and have to stay in force. If the policy cancels, the registration is suspended until new proof is filed. The application fee is $150.20. Most policies I place carry $1,000,000 per occurrence, well above the minimum, because that is the limit general contractors ask to see on a certificate.

Sources: L&I, Register as a Contractor. RCW 18.27.040 (bond). RCW 18.27.050 (insurance).

The City of Cheney requires a business license for all businesses located in city limits or conducting business in city limits. It is a Cheney endorsement on your state business license, added through the Department of Revenue, and the city puts the annual cost at $30. The Department of Revenue page lists $30 to originate and $30 to renew for a business with more than $4,000 in gross annual income in the city, and no license at $4,000 or below, with the same schedule for a non-resident business. On September 2, 2026 the Cheney Free Press reported the city reminding contractors, service providers, vendors and mobile businesses located outside the city that they may need the endorsement to work inside it.

Permits come from the Cheney Building Department at 112 Anderson Road, (509) 498-9237, which issues building, mechanical, plumbing, grading, sign and roofing permits. The department's own advice to property owners is to have the contractor pull the permit, so the owner can be sure the contractor is licensed and bonded. That is your L&I registration doing its job at the permit counter. Neither the city licensing page nor the building department page lists a city insurance or bonding requirement beyond what L&I already requires.

Sources: City of Cheney, Business Licenses. DOR, Cheney city endorsement. City of Cheney, Building Department. Cheney Free Press, September 2, 2026.

There is no rate table here. Your number depends on trade, revenue, payroll, subcontracting and claims, and a table would be a guess dressed up as a fact. Here is one real quote instead.

In September 2026 I quoted a one-person shop with no employees for general liability at $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 aggregate through Hiscox: $500 for the year, or $125 down and 10 payments of $37.50. That is one quote I ran, not a promise about yours. A roofer with a crew and subcontractors will not see that number. A one-person handyman with no claims might. Send the list below and you get a figure, not a range.

A general contractor who asks for a certificate needs it before you are on site, and the certificate cannot issue until a policy is bound. The quote cannot start until a carrier has the whole picture, so send all nine of these in one reply:

• Legal business name and UBI. exactly as registered with the Department of Revenue.
• L&I contractor registration number. or the application date if it is pending.
• Trade. and the revenue split if you do more than one.
• Revenue. the last 12 months, and your estimate for the next 12.
• Employees and payroll. headcount and annual payroll, including owners on payroll.
• Subcontractor spend. what you paid subcontractors in the last 12 months.
• Claims. anything in the last five years, open or closed.
• Current carrier and expiration. if you are insured now.
• Start date. the day coverage has to be in force.

With that list complete, your quote comes back within 1 hour during business hours.