General Contractor
The construction professional responsible for managing a project end to end, including coordinating subcontractors, scheduling, permits, and quality control. In insurance restoration, the GC coordinates all trades from mitigation through final reconstruction.
A general contractor is the professional who manages a construction project from start to finish, coordinating trades, permits, schedules, materials, and client communication. In insurance restoration, the GC is the central point of accountability for everything that happens from mitigation through final completion.
What the GC Does
Day to day, the GC schedules trades, confirms material arrivals, manages the permit process with the local Authority Having Jurisdiction, walks the job daily for quality control, handles client questions, and keeps the project financially on track. They manage the logistics and the relationships that make the work happen. On restoration jobs, they coordinate with the adjuster, the mitigation contractor, and the supplement team to keep the claim and the repairs aligned.
GC vs Trade Contractor
Trade contractors — roofers, electricians, plumbers, painters, drywall hangers — execute specific work. The GC coordinates among them. A homeowner hiring just a roofer to replace a roof does not necessarily need a GC. A restoration project involving mitigation, structural repair, mechanical trades, and finish work almost always does, because the scheduling and coordination complexity exceeds what any single trade can manage.
How GCs Are Paid
GCs typically earn overhead and profit on the total project scope, plus a markup on subcontractor work. On insurance claims, this is commonly expressed as the 10-and-10 convention — 10 percent overhead plus 10 percent profit — which carriers apply when three or more trades are involved in a job. The additional cost compensates for the management, coordination, and risk the GC takes on by running the entire project.
Frequently asked questions
The GC manages the whole project: scheduling, subcontractor coordination, permit pulling, material ordering, quality control, client communication, and financial tracking. Subcontractors execute specific trade work. The GC is responsible for the project as a whole; subcontractors are responsible for their specific scope.
On small single-trade jobs, no. A homeowner hiring a painter for a single room does not need a GC. Larger projects involving multiple trades, permits, and extended timelines benefit significantly from a GC. Restoration projects that involve mitigation, demolition, multiple repair trades, and reconstruction almost always require a GC role to keep everything coordinated.
Often yes. GCs typically take overhead and profit on the project scope, along with markup on subcontractor work. Subcontractors are paid for their specific trade work at the agreed rate. The GC's additional cost compensates for the management work that subcontractors do not do themselves.
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