15.10.45.d Agencies shall not structure contracts to avoid the competitive procurement or other requirements of this policy. 15.10.45.e Contract records may contain personal information about citizens. Before conducting a personal service procurement, the agency should analyze the type of services required and evaluate the State s exposure to legal liability that may result from that contract. To protect the State s interests, appropriate liability insurance requirements should be included in the solicitation document as a condition of responsiveness. Injury or damage to a third party may result in legal liability if it occurs as a result of a contractor s negligence.
Liability insurance covers legal liability of an insured.
If a contractor buys liability insurance and names the State as an additional insured on the policy, the State will have insurance protection for many types of tort claims that arise out of the contractor s activities. At a minimum, ORM suggests that contractors be required to buy general liability and employer s liability insurance and comply with workers compensation laws. Include industrial insurance requirements in contracts 15.10.55.a With few exceptions, Washington State's industrial insurance law, Title 51 RCW , requires that all persons performing work under contract be covered by industrial insurance, and RCW 51.12.050 holds the contracting agency ultimately responsible for making sure that such coverage is provided. Agencies should incorporate into their personal service contracts a provision stating that the contractor agrees to comply with the industrial insurance requirements of Title 51 RCW . In the event the contractor is found to be out of compliance, the agency may still enter into the contract, but should notify the contractor that no payments for services provided under the contract will be made until the contractor furnishes evidence of full compliance.