Theft from yards
Theft of towable chippers from driveways, yards and job sites, generally subject to hitch lock and security conditions.
Wood Chipper Insurance
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Wood Chipper Insurance
Cover for towable and tracked wood chippers used in arborist work.
Wood chippers are among the most frequently stolen items in the arborist trade, because they sit on a trailer in a driveway or yard overnight and can be hooked up in under a minute. They are also the highest-severity injury exposure on a tree job, which puts public liability and safe operating practice at the front of the discussion.
What is it?
Wood chippers reduce branches and limbs to chip using a drum or disc, fed by hydraulic rollers. Australian arborists commonly run towable diesel units and tracked self-propelled chippers, with brands including Vermeer, Bandit, Morbark and Hansa. Capacity is described by the maximum feed diameter. Many are towed behind a chipper truck or tipper with the chip bin carried on board.
What does wood chipper insurance cover?
Towing and transit
Damage while being towed between jobs, plus liability while the unit is behind your vehicle.
Public liability
Third-party injury and property damage around the chipper and the drop zone, subject to the policy terms.
What affects the cost?
- Chipper value and feed capacity
- Overnight storage and hitch locks
- Residential versus commercial tree work
- Operator training and crew size
- Whether the unit is hired out
Worth raising on the call
- Hitch locks and wheel clamps are often a condition of theft cover, not simply a premium discount.
- Damage from metal or foreign objects in the feed is commonly treated as an operating loss, not accidental damage.
- Blades, anvils and drive belts are wear items and generally sit outside the cover.
Claims we are commonly asked about
Chipper towed from a driveway
A towable chipper left hitched behind the work ute in a suburban driveway is unhooked and taken during the night. Recovery generally depends on whether the hitch lock or wheel clamp described when cover was arranged was actually fitted at the time.
Chip discharged onto a parked car
The discharge chute is left pointing the wrong way and chip peppers a car parked in the street, chipping paint and cracking a window. Damage caused by material discharged from the chute is a liability question rather than a machine one, so the liability wording matters.
Hidden wire wrecks the drum
A star picket offcut or embedded fence wire inside a removed limb goes into the drum and damages knives, the anvil and the drum bearings. Whether that is treated as accidental damage or an operating loss is commonly argued, so it is worth settling before it happens.
Worth confirming in the wording
- Worth confirming whether theft cover requires a hitch lock, wheel clamp or locked yard, and whether it still responds when the unit is left at a job site overnight.
- Worth confirming whether damage caused by foreign objects such as wire, nails or metal entering the feed is treated as insured damage or as an operating loss.
- Worth confirming whether the liability section covers injury or damage caused by chip, branches and debris discharged from the chute.
Common questions
Does public liability cover injury to my groundie feeding the chipper?
Generally not. Injury to your own workers is normally dealt with through workers compensation rather than public liability, which responds to third parties. Because feeding a chipper is one of the highest severity exposures in tree work, having the workers compensation arrangements right matters as much as the liability policy.
Is the chipper covered while it is being towed between jobs?
Towing exposure should be raised rather than assumed. Damage to the chipper itself while under tow is commonly dealt with by the plant or trailer cover, while damage the trailer causes to others is generally picked up under the towing vehicle's motor policy. Confirming how the two fit together avoids a gap on the road.
Do arborists need a specific liability policy rather than a general one?
Tree work is often treated as a higher hazard by general liability insurers, and some wordings restrict or exclude tree felling, climbing, work at height or work over structures. A policy arranged specifically for arborist work is usually the safer path, and the activities you actually perform should be listed accurately. It is worth checking the schedule against the jobs you take.
What does wood chipper insurance cost?
It depends on the unit and the work. The main drivers are chipper value and feed capacity, overnight storage and whether hitch locks are used, the split between residential and commercial tree work, operator training and crew size, whether the unit is hired out, and claims history. Theft frequency in your area can also influence it.
General information only. Cover, limits and exclusions depend on the PDS, TMD, eligibility, underwriting and the policy terms. See mobile plant machinery insurance for the wider picture.
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