Two commercial snow and ice agreements, free: a per-push contract for one property and a seasonal contract at a flat winter price. Download either as a Word file or a PDF, or copy the text.
Both put the scope of work in an Exhibit A that states the lot in square feet — the plowed area, the walks and the snow stacking areas — where a generic template says “the parking lot and sidewalks.” Under them, every clause is explained by the problem it prevents.
For one commercial property, billed by the pass or by the storm: the client elects per push or per event in the price schedule, and both are tiered by depth. Replace everything in [brackets]; the four that decide whether it protects you are the trigger depth, the response hours, the re-service interval and the depth tiers.
COMMERCIAL SNOW AND ICE MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT (Per Push / Per Event) [YOUR COMPANY NAME] [Address] - [Phone] - [Email] [License # if applicable] Agreement #: [S-0118] Date: [Month Day, Year] 1. PARTIES AND PROPERTY Contractor: [Your Company Name] ("Contractor") Client: [Management Company / Owner Entity] ("Client") Property: [Property Name], [Property Address] Authorized site contact: [Name], [Title], [Cell], [Email] Billing contact: [Name], [Email], PO / Vendor #: [______] 2. SEASON AND TERM Season: [November 1, YYYY] through [April 15, YYYY]. Services outside those dates are performed only on Client's written request and billed at the rates in Section 8. 3. SCOPE OF WORK The areas serviced under this agreement are the measured areas set out in EXHIBIT A, which is part of this agreement. Any area not listed in Exhibit A is excluded until added in writing. 4. SERVICE TRIGGER Contractor will mobilize without further authorization when accumulation on the Property reaches [2] inches. Accumulation is measured at [the marked stake at the northeast corner of the lot / the nearest NWS observation at ________]. Client may request service below the trigger at any time; that service is billed at the rates in Section 8. ICE EVENTS: freezing rain, sleet or refreeze with no measurable accumulation triggers de-icing only, under Section 9. 5. RESPONSE AND RE-SERVICE Contractor will be on site within [4] hours of the trigger being reached, and will have drive lanes and the [main entrance] passable within [6] hours. During a continuing storm, Contractor will re-service the Property approximately every [3] inches of new accumulation, and will make a final clean-up pass after the snow stops. Each pass is billed on the basis elected in Section 8. 6. SERVICES INCLUDED - Plowing of the paved lot and drive lanes in Exhibit A - Clearing of the walks, entries and dock approach in Exhibit A, by [shovel / snow blower / walk machine] - Stacking of snow in the areas designated in Exhibit A - Application of de-icing material under Section 9 - A service record for every visit, under Section 12 7. SERVICES NOT INCLUDED Not included unless added in writing at the rates in Section 8: - Hauling or off-site removal of snow (Section 10) - Loading, stacking or relocation by loader or pusher beyond the designated areas - Roof, canopy, awning or gutter snow and ice - Clearing around vehicles left in the lot (Section 11) - Damage repair to turf, curbs, irrigation or pavement arising from conditions noted in the pre-season walk - Sanding of unpaved areas, and spring sweep-up of material 8. PRICING SCHEDULE Billing basis elected by Client: [per push / per event] PER PUSH - EACH PASS OVER THE AREAS IN EXHIBIT A [2] to [4] inches ......................... $[______] Over [4] and up to [8] inches ............. $[______] Over [8] inches ........................... $[______] PER EVENT - EVERY PASS IN ONE STORM, TRIGGER TO CLEAN-UP Up to [6] inches of total accumulation .... $[______] Over [6] and up to [12] inches ............ $[______] Over [12] inches .......................... $[______] OTHER RATES Walks and entries, per service ............ $[______] Loader / pusher, per hour ................. $[______] Hand crew, per labor hour ................. $[______] Site visit below the trigger .............. $[______] Minimum charge per mobilization ........... $[______] Per push, a storm needing three passes is billed as three pushes. Per event, a storm is one event from the trigger to the final clean-up pass. 9. DE-ICING AND SALT Material: [bulk treated rock salt / brine / calcium chloride]. Priced per [application / ton applied] at $[______], applied at Contractor's discretion when pavement conditions require it, and on Client's request. Contractor sets the application rate for the pavement temperature and conditions in its professional judgment, and may pre-wet salt or change material below [15] degrees F. PRE-TREATMENT: before a forecast event Contractor [will / will not] apply liquid anti-icing to [the lot / the walks and entries], priced at $[______] per application. SALT SUPPLY: if bulk salt is unavailable or Contractor's delivered cost rises more than [20]% above $[______] per ton during the season, Contractor will notify Client in writing and the parties will agree an adjusted rate or a reduced application plan before further applications. Contractor is not in breach for a material shortage outside its control. 10. SNOW STACKING AND RELOCATION Snow is stacked in the areas designated in Exhibit A. Client accepts that stacked snow occupies those areas, including any parking spaces within them, for the duration of the season. When designated stacking areas are full, or when stacked snow blocks sight lines, a fire lane or an accessible route, Contractor will notify Client and relocation or hauling will be authorized in writing and billed under Section 8. Contractor is not responsible for lost parking spaces or for turf, curb or irrigation damage inside designated stacking areas. 11. SITE CONDITION AND THE PRE-SEASON WALK Before the season begins, the parties will walk the Property together and record: the designated stacking areas, the location of curbs, islands, wheel stops, hydrants, catch basins, bollards, light bases and irrigation heads, any pre-existing pavement damage, and the areas Client will have cleared of vehicles. Markers are placed by [Contractor / Client]. Contractor is not responsible for damage to items not visible above the snow line and not recorded in that walk. Client will use reasonable efforts to have the lot clear of parked vehicles during service. Areas that cannot be reached will be noted in the service record and cleared on the next visit or on a return trip billed under Section 8. 12. SERVICE RECORDS AND STORM COMMUNICATION For every visit Contractor will record the date, arrival and departure times, the accumulation observed, the services performed, the material applied and the quantity, and any condition observed on site, and will provide that record with the invoice. Records are retained for [3] years. Both parties agree this record is the primary account of the services performed. Contractor will notify the site contact by [text / email] when crews mobilize for an event and when each visit is complete, and will name one storm contact reachable during every event: [Name], [Cell]. 13. EQUIPMENT AND BACK-UP Contractor will assign to the Property: [list machines]. If assigned equipment fails, Contractor will substitute equipment of equivalent capability or subcontract the work at no additional cost to Client, and remains responsible for the result. Contractor keeps back-up equipment or a subcontractor on call for each primary machine assigned. 14. FORCE MAJEURE Neither party is liable for delay caused by events outside its reasonable control. A snowfall exceeding [12] inches in [24] hours, a declared state of emergency, or a road closure extends the response times in Section 5 for the duration of the event; Contractor will keep Client informed and prioritize the [main entrance and accessible route]. 15. INSURANCE Contractor maintains, for the term: - Commercial general liability, $[1,000,000] per occurrence / $[2,000,000] aggregate - Commercial automobile liability, $[1,000,000] - Workers' compensation as required by law - Excess / umbrella liability, $[______] The general liability policy covers snow and ice management operations and carries no snow and ice exclusion. A certificate of insurance naming [Owner Entity] and [Management Company] as additional insured for ongoing operations will be provided on execution and at renewal. Additional insured status shares Contractor's limits; it does not add limits. 16. INDEMNITY AND SLIP AND FALL Each party is responsible for claims arising from its own negligence. Contractor's indemnity of Client is limited to claims arising from Contractor's performance or failure to perform the services in this agreement, and does not extend to: conditions before Contractor's first response window has run, areas excluded in Exhibit A, refreeze occurring after a completed and documented service, or Client's own acts or omissions. Client is responsible for inspection and for requesting service between visits. Contractor's total liability under this agreement is limited to [the amounts paid by Client under this agreement / the limits of the insurance in Section 15], except where limitation is not permitted by applicable law. Contractor does not agree to a defense obligation broader than its insurance covers. 17. PAYMENT TERMS Invoiced [after each event / monthly] with the service records from Section 12 attached. Net [14] days. Late payments accrue [1.5]% per month, to the extent permitted by applicable law. Contractor may suspend service on an account more than [30] days past due, on written notice. 18. TERM, RENEWAL AND CANCELLATION This agreement renews for successive seasons unless either party gives written notice at least [30] days before the start of the next season. Contractor may propose a rate adjustment for any renewal season with the same notice. Either party may terminate for convenience with [30] days' written notice, effective no earlier than the end of the current month. Either party may terminate immediately for material breach not cured within [10] days of written notice. 19. GENERAL Contractor is an independent contractor and may use qualified subcontractors, remaining responsible for the work and for the insurance in Section 15. Neither party may assign this agreement without the other's written consent. This document and Exhibit A are the complete agreement between the parties and supersede prior discussions, and are governed by the laws of the State of [State]. Changes must be in writing and signed by both parties. EXHIBIT A - MEASURED SCOPE OF WORK Property: [Property Name], [Property Address] Areas measured [from satellite imagery / on site] on [Month Day, Year]. PLOWED AREA Parking lot and drive lanes ......... [48,000] sq ft ...................................... ([1.10] acres) CLEARED BY HAND OR WALK MACHINE Walks, entries and dock approach .... [2,400] sq ft ...................................... ([480] linear ft) DESIGNATED SNOW STACKING AREAS Landscape islands and NE grass corner [6,200] sq ft Stacking is not permitted in: [the accessible spaces, the dock apron, within 10 ft of a hydrant, over a catch basin, or anywhere blocking a sight line at the [Main St] exit]. EXCLUDED FROM THIS AGREEMENT - [The rear gravel yard and its access drive] - [The roof, canopies and awnings] - [The tenant patio behind Suite ____] - [Any area not listed above] A site plan or satellite image with these areas outlined is attached to and part of this Exhibit. ACCEPTED AND AGREED Client: ___________________________ Date: ____________ Print name / title: [Name], [Title] Entity: [Management Company / Owner Entity] Contractor: _______________________ Date: ____________ Print name: [Your Name], [Your Company Name]
One price for the winter, paid in monthly installments whether it snows that month or not. Read Section 6 before anything else: without a cap on events and total accumulation, a seasonal contract leaves you carrying every storm for a price set in September.
SEASONAL SNOW AND ICE MANAGEMENT CONTRACT (Flat Winter Price) [YOUR COMPANY NAME] [Address] - [Phone] - [Email] [License # if applicable] Contract #: [SS-0042] Date: [Month Day, Year] 1. PARTIES AND PROPERTY Contractor: [Your Company Name] ("Contractor") Client: [Management Company / Owner Entity] ("Client") Property: [Property Name], [Property Address] Authorized site contact: [Name], [Title], [Cell], [Email] Billing contact: [Name], [Email], PO / Vendor #: [______] 2. SEASON [November 1, YYYY] through [April 15, YYYY], inclusive. Service before or after those dates is billed separately at the rates in Section 7. 3. SCOPE OF WORK The areas covered are the measured areas in EXHIBIT A, which is part of this contract. Any area not listed in Exhibit A is excluded until added in writing, and adding one adjusts the seasonal price under Section 13. 4. SERVICE STANDARD Contractor will maintain the areas in Exhibit A in a passable condition throughout the season, and will: - Mobilize when accumulation reaches [2] inches, without further authorization - Be on site within [4] hours of that trigger - Re-service during a continuing storm approximately every [3] inches of new accumulation - Make a final clean-up pass after the snow stops - Apply de-icing material when pavement conditions require it - Record every visit under Section 10 The number of visits does not change the seasonal price, within the limits of Section 6. 5. WHAT THE SEASONAL PRICE INCLUDES - All plowing of the areas in Exhibit A, within the limits of Section 6 - All walk and entry clearing in Exhibit A - Up to [___] de-icing applications to the lot, and [___] to the walks - Liquid anti-icing before forecast events [included / billed per application under Section 7] - Stacking within the designated areas in Exhibit A - Service records and the pre-season site walk 6. SEASON LIMITS AND THE HEAVY-WINTER CAP The seasonal price is built on an expected [__] snow events and [__] inches of total seasonal accumulation. Once either is exceeded, each further push is billed at the per-push rate in Section 7 -- OR, if both parties initial here [____] [____], Contractor carries the whole season's risk and this Section 6 does not apply. If total seasonal accumulation is less than [__] inches, [no credit is issued / a credit of $[______] is issued]. 7. BILLED SEPARATELY - Hauling or off-site removal of snow (Section 9) - De-icing applications beyond the allowance in Section 5, at $[______] per application - Pushes beyond the Section 6 limits .... $[______] per push - Service outside the season dates in Section 2 - Loader / pusher, per hour ............ $[______] - Hand crew, per labor hour ............ $[______] - Clearing around vehicles left in the lot - Roof, canopy, awning or gutter snow and ice - Damage repair arising from conditions recorded in the pre-season walk 8. SEASONAL PRICE AND PAYMENT Seasonal price: $[______] for the season in Section 2. Payable in [5] equal installments of $[______], due on the first of each month from [November] through [March], regardless of snowfall in the month invoiced. Charges under Section 7 are due net [14] days. Late payments accrue [1.5]% per month, to the extent permitted by applicable law. Client acknowledges that a seasonal price is paid for availability and readiness as well as for work performed, and that installments are not refundable for a light month. 9. SNOW STACKING AND RELOCATION Snow is stacked in the areas designated in Exhibit A. When those areas are full, or when stacked snow blocks sight lines, a fire lane or an accessible route, relocation or hauling is authorized in writing and billed under Section 7. Contractor is not responsible for lost parking spaces or for turf, curb or irrigation damage inside designated stacking areas. 10. SERVICE RECORDS AND STORM COMMUNICATION For every visit Contractor will record the date, arrival and departure times, the accumulation observed, the services performed, the material applied and the quantity, and any condition observed on site. Records are provided [with each monthly invoice] and retained for [3] years. Both parties agree this record is the primary account of the services performed. Contractor will notify the site contact by [text / email] when crews mobilize for an event and when each visit is complete, and will name one storm contact reachable during every event: [Name], [Cell]. 11. SITE CONDITION AND THE PRE-SEASON WALK Before the season begins the parties will walk the Property and record the designated stacking areas, the location of curbs, islands, wheel stops, hydrants, catch basins, bollards, light bases and irrigation heads, any pre-existing pavement damage, and the areas Client will have cleared of vehicles. Contractor is not responsible for damage to items not visible above the snow line and not recorded in that walk. 12. EQUIPMENT, BACK-UP AND FORCE MAJEURE Contractor will assign to the Property: [list machines], and will substitute equivalent equipment or subcontract at no additional cost to Client if assigned equipment fails. Neither party is liable for delay caused by events outside its reasonable control. A snowfall exceeding [12] inches in [24] hours, a declared state of emergency or a road closure extends the response times in Section 4 for the duration of the event. 13. TERM, RENEWAL AND PRICE ADJUSTMENT This contract is for the season in Section 2 and renews for the following season unless either party gives written notice at least [30] days before the start of that season. Contractor may propose an adjusted seasonal price for any renewal season with at least [45] days' written notice before the season start; Client may decline and the contract ends at the close of the current season. Any change to the Property, the areas in Exhibit A or the service standard is priced by Contractor and confirmed in writing before it takes effect. 14. CANCELLATION Either party may terminate for convenience with [30] days' written notice, effective no earlier than the end of the current month; installments for months already begun remain due. Either party may terminate immediately for material breach not cured within [10] days of written notice. 15. INSURANCE Contractor maintains, for the term: - Commercial general liability, $[1,000,000] per occurrence / $[2,000,000] aggregate - Commercial automobile liability, $[1,000,000] - Workers' compensation as required by law - Excess / umbrella liability, $[______] The general liability policy covers snow and ice management operations and carries no snow and ice exclusion. A certificate naming [Owner Entity] and [Management Company] as additional insured for ongoing operations will be provided on execution and at renewal. Additional insured status shares Contractor's limits; it does not add limits. 16. INDEMNITY AND SLIP AND FALL Each party is responsible for claims arising from its own negligence. Contractor's indemnity of Client is limited to claims arising from Contractor's performance or failure to perform the services in this contract, and does not extend to: conditions before Contractor's response window has run, areas excluded in Exhibit A, refreeze occurring after a completed and documented service, or Client's own acts or omissions. Client is responsible for inspection and for requesting service between visits. Contractor's total liability is limited to [the amounts paid by Client under this contract / the limits of the insurance in Section 15], except where limitation is not permitted by applicable law. Contractor does not agree to a defense obligation broader than its insurance covers. 17. GENERAL Contractor is an independent contractor and may use qualified subcontractors, remaining responsible for the work and for the insurance in Section 15. Neither party may assign this contract without the other's written consent. This document and Exhibit A are the complete agreement between the parties and are governed by the laws of the State of [State]. Changes must be in writing and signed by both parties. EXHIBIT A - MEASURED SCOPE OF WORK Property: [Property Name], [Property Address] Areas measured [from satellite imagery / on site] on [Month Day, Year]. PLOWED AREA Parking lot and drive lanes ......... [48,000] sq ft ...................................... ([1.10] acres) CLEARED BY HAND OR WALK MACHINE Walks, entries and dock approach .... [2,400] sq ft ...................................... ([480] linear ft) DESIGNATED SNOW STACKING AREAS Landscape islands and NE grass corner [6,200] sq ft Stacking is not permitted in: [the accessible spaces, the dock apron, within 10 ft of a hydrant, over a catch basin, or anywhere blocking a sight line at the [Main St] exit]. EXCLUDED FROM THIS CONTRACT - [The rear gravel yard and its access drive] - [The roof, canopies and awnings] - [The tenant patio behind Suite ____] - [Any area not listed above] A site plan or satellite image with these areas outlined is attached to and part of this Exhibit. ACCEPTED AND AGREED Client: ___________________________ Date: ____________ Print name / title: [Name], [Title] Entity: [Management Company / Owner Entity] Contractor: _______________________ Date: ____________ Print name: [Your Name], [Your Company Name]
Not legal advice. These are working templates, not documents drafted for your state or your situation, and they have had no legal review. Indemnity scope, limitation of liability, additional insured and waiver-of-subrogation wording, late-fee limits and lien language vary by state and sometimes by city — and snow and ice work carries slip-and-fall exposure that ordinary contracting does not. Have a local attorney read your standard agreement once, before you send it a hundred times, and have your insurance agent read the insurance and indemnity sections against your policy.
Section 3 of both contracts points at an exhibit, and this is what goes in it: a site plan and three measured areas. The example is a suburban medical-office plaza — the same property the bid guide prices from start to finish.
EXHIBIT A — MEASURED SCOPE OF WORK
Medical-office plaza · measured from satellite imagery
EXCLUDED: rear gravel yard and its drive · roofs, canopies and awnings · tenant patio · any area not listed above
Your push price is machine hours, and the hours come from this number. It is the line that makes the price something you can defend.
A hand crew clears them at its own pace — published rates put hand clearing at $25-$75 an hour — so they are measured and priced on their own.
Agreed in writing before the first storm, with the disclaimer that turf and curb damage inside them is not yours and the point at which hauling becomes billable.
The rear yard, the roof and canopies, the tenant patio. A list of what is out is what stops a scope conversation in February from turning into a negotiation.
None of it needs a site visit. Trace the pavement on satellite imagery, draw the islands and grass corners as their own shapes, and the areas come back within 1–3% of a wheel measurement — a whole route of lots in an afternoon. Measure a parking lot zone by zone.
Twelve clauses, each with the section it sits in and the problem it exists to stop. Know which problem a clause solves and you will know whether you can afford to give it up when a manager asks.
§3 · Exhibit A
Prevents: A scope argument in February
"The parking lot and sidewalks" is how a property manager ends up pointing at a rear service drive in January and calling it included. Square footage for the plowed area, the walks and the stacking areas — with the exclusions named — turns the scope into a number both sides signed.
§4
Prevents: Arguing about whether you should have come
The accumulation that starts service with no phone call. One inch and two inches are different bills and different liability, so the number is written down — and so is where it is measured, because a stake on the lot and an airport thirty miles away do not report the same storm.
§5
Prevents: Blame for a fall at 6 a.m.
Hours from trigger to on site, and how often you return while it keeps snowing. Without the interval a twelve-hour storm is one push to the client and four to you. With it, every pass is agreed in advance and priced by Section 8, and the window is the line the indemnity clause measures from.
§6–7
Prevents: Hauling you did for free
Plowing, walks, de-icing, stacking, hauling, sanding and roof snow each cost something different. Say which are in the price. Roof and canopy snow especially: it is a fall hazard with its own insurance questions and has no place in a plowing price.
§8
Prevents: A twelve-inch storm at a two-inch price
A single price for every storm is a bet that it never snows hard. Tier it by depth, let the client elect per push or per event, say exactly what a push and an event each mean, and carry a minimum per mobilization. The calculator does the arithmetic; this is where the arithmetic becomes a term.
§9
Prevents: Buying salt at triple to keep a flat price
Price de-icing per application or per ton and say whether you pre-treat before a forecast, but keep the application rate out of the contract: the published target is 0.75-3 lb of dry salt per 1,000 sq ft and reported practice averages 11, and a number written into the agreement is a number a claimant can hold you to. Then the line almost nobody writes: a bulk-salt shortage, with a threshold above which the rate is renegotiated.
§10
Prevents: Losing the spaces the tenants counted on
Where the piles go is a term. Name the stacking areas, say that stacked snow occupies them for the season — parking included — and disclaim turf and curb damage inside them. Then list what triggers paid hauling: the areas are full, a sight line is blocked, a fire lane or an accessible route is covered.
§12
Prevents: Being unable to prove you were there
Date, arrival and departure, the accumulation, what was done and how much material went down — plus a text to the site contact when crews roll and when each visit is done. On a per-push contract the record is the invoice. In a slip-and-fall claim it is your defense.
§13
Prevents: Losing the account on the night it mattered
Procurement asks this directly, and "we have a spare truck" cannot go in a vendor file. Name the machines assigned to the site and commit to substituting equivalent equipment, or subcontracting, at no extra cost. It costs nothing to write and it wins bids against contractors who left it out.
§15
Prevents: A month of paperwork before the first push
Expect to be asked for general liability, commercial auto and workers' compensation, and to name the owner and the manager as additional insured; a million per occurrence is the usual floor. Snow RFPs also ask whether the liability cover includes snow and ice work, because not every contractor policy does — say in writing that yours does. And note that additional insured status shares your limit rather than adding to it.
§16
Prevents: A claim that outlives the company
The section to read twice. Commercial snow contracts routinely push the property's ice risk onto the contractor through broad indemnity and a waiver of subrogation. Limit yours to your own performance; exclude conditions before your response window has run, excluded areas and refreeze after a documented visit; and refuse a defense obligation wider than your policy.
§17–18
Prevents: Re-selling the same lot every August
Renewal with notice before the season is what turns a winter into a route. Pair it with a rate-adjustment right on the same notice, net terms with the service records attached, and the right to suspend a badly late account. On a seasonal contract, add that installments pay for readiness, so a light January is not a refund.
The two documents put the depth risk in different places. A per-push agreement bills every pass, so a winter with twice the storms pays twice and the client carries the weather. A seasonal contract is one number, so a heavy season comes out of your margin unless Section 6 caps the events and the total accumulation the price assumed.
Northeast seasonal contracts are commonly written against 8-12 snow events. If your real count is fifteen and there is no cap, the extra storms are free. Price the same lot both ways on the snow removal pricing calculator before you choose, and see how to bid snow removal jobs for the method behind the number.
Sell per push when
Sell seasonal when
Property managers buy snow service like any other procurement, on a calendar that closes long before the weather arrives.
Property-manager guidance is to issue snow requests in July or August and award by mid-September, before the good contractors are booked. A contract that turns up after the first forecast is being read in a hurry, and a hurried buyer compares totals.
The contract is the terms; the estimate is the price for this property. Send the two together, with the estimate's acceptance line pointing at the contract, and the manager signs once.
Snow removal estimate template →A bracket left in place tells the reader it is a template, and they start wondering what else was skipped. The four that decide whether it protects you: trigger depth, response hours, re-service interval, and the heavy-winter cap.
Download the Word file, put it on your letterhead, attach Exhibit A and the site plan, then print it to PDF. An e-signature is valid for ordinary commercial agreements in the US under the federal E-SIGN Act and state UETA laws, so a free e-sign tool beats a scanned page.
Large managers send their own vendor agreement or redline yours. Decide before you open it which clauses you defend — indemnity scope, the response window, service records, stacking — and which you trade. Most of a snow negotiation happens in the indemnity section.
Section 11's pre-season walk is the record of what was under the snow. Photograph the curbs, islands, wheel stops and irrigation heads, and agree the stacking areas on site. It removes the most common spring argument in the trade.
A snow RFP tends to ask seven things: the response time you guarantee, how you document each service, what de-icing material you use and at what rate, whether you pre-treat, how equipment is assigned and backed up, whether your liability cover includes snow and ice work, and how you communicate during a storm. The per-push agreement answers all seven in writing — Sections 5, 12, 9, 13 and 15.
What goes in it, what a trigger depth is, and who is liable when someone falls.
The parties and the property; the season dates; a scope of work stated as measured areas rather than a sentence; the service trigger and where accumulation is read; the response window and the re-service interval during a continuing storm; what is included and what is billed separately; a price schedule tiered by depth with a minimum per mobilization; de-icing terms, including pre-treatment and who carries a salt shortage; the snow stacking areas and what triggers hauling; a pre-season site walk; a record of every visit and how you will communicate during storms; equipment back-up; insurance that covers snow and ice work, with additional insured status; an indemnity limited to your own performance; and payment, renewal and cancellation terms. A generic services agreement with "snow" typed into it has almost none of the middle items, and those are the ones a hard winter tests.
The trigger depth is the accumulation that puts you on site without a phone call. Two inches is the common commercial trigger, and published guidance puts the usual range at one to two inches. A property that opens to the public early — a clinic, a store — has a case for one inch; a lot nobody uses overnight can live with more. What matters as much as the number is where it is measured: name a marked stake on the lot or a specific weather station, because the same storm reads differently thirty miles away. Treat ice separately: freezing rain with no measurable accumulation should trigger de-icing on its own.
Per push on a property you have never plowed, because the first winter is when you learn what the site really costs. Seasonal once you know its hours and want income in months without snow. The difference is who carries a bad winter: per push bills every pass, so the client does; a seasonal price is flat, so you do — unless the contract caps the events and the total accumulation it was priced on. Never sell a seasonal contract without that cap filled in. Run the same lot both ways on the snow removal pricing calculator before you choose.
It is the most useful line in the document. Square footage in Exhibit A settles the scope, so a rear service drive is in or out on paper; it makes the price defensible, because a push price is machine hours and the hours come from the area; it makes a mid-season addition an obvious change order; and it gives the property manager something to compare bids on besides the total. Measure the plowed area and the walks separately, since different crews clear them, and trace the islands and grass corners too — they are where the snow goes. Satellite measurement gets all of it without visiting, typically within 1–3% of a wheel measurement.
Claims normally name both the property owner and the contractor, and the contract decides how the loss is shared. Commercial snow contracts often shift the property's ice risk onto the contractor through broad indemnity, an additional insured endorsement and sometimes a waiver of subrogation — which together can have your policy defending the owner for the owner's own negligence. Your protection is written, not argued: an indemnity limited to your own performance that excludes conditions before your response window has run, excluded areas and refreeze after a completed visit; a service record for every visit; and insurance limits you have read, remembering that additional insured status shares your limit. Have an attorney and your insurance agent read those sections together before you sign.
Not to start from a template, and most contractors do. But snow is the part of exterior work where the paperwork carries real risk: indemnity scope, limitation of liability, additional insured and waiver-of-subrogation wording, late-fee limits and lien rights vary by state, and snow and ice work draws slip-and-fall claims that ordinary contracting does not. Have a local attorney read your standard agreement once before you send it a hundred times, and have your insurance agent check Sections 15 and 16 against the policy you actually hold. This page offers working templates, not legal advice, and they have had no legal review.
Read September 2026. Industry practice and published guidance, not law; nothing on this page is legal advice. Price figures come from the snow removal pricing calculator and its sources.
The estimate, the price and the measurement behind this contract.
Trace the lot, the walks and the stacking areas on satellite imagery in a few minutes, and the scope of work in your contract is a measurement. First week free, card required.
