Doula Services Insurance – What Kind and at What Cost

Whenever you budget the expenses of your business, doula services insurance must be near the top of the list because you can’t always know exactly what is going to happen in the future.

Need General Liability Insurance for Your Doula Services Business?
Get Your Free Quote

With the protection provided by insurance against accidents and all the other types of insurance we will tell you about, you can protect your business and yourself in case something unwanted happens.

Like any business owner, for your doula services enterprise, you must consider how much financial danger you are taking on.

Business Insurance for doula services

If your doula services business runs without proper insurance, you are taking an enormous chance not just of losing some money but of a final wipe-out.

This is because the laws in every state are very strict in enforcing liability on the owners of businesses for the consequences of their actions. 

In this article, we are giving very general guidelines for growing businesses to outline what the main kinds of insurance that you need are, and where possible, a rough guide to how much you can expect to pay.

The question is, can you afford to NOT have insurance for your doula services business?

What this means, for any doula services business owner, is that if some customer claims that your work caused them some physical or economic damage, a court can award damages far beyond the total size of your business.

Your doula services business is not protected by laws in the same way as states are, where edicts can place a “cap” on the maximum level of liability.

In some states, like Texas, there are specific monetary levels that limit the amount a judge can award in any case against the state.

In a court case, it’s purely the duty of the jury to award whatever amount they deem appropriate, even sometimes giving a claimant more than they have sort.

When you are running your doula services operations, you can’t deny responsibility for the results of your actions.

Even more importantly, unless you have spent beforehand the money necessary to have your business running as an LLC, all of that liability belongs to you as an individual.

What does doula services insurance protect you from?

For your doula services business, the most important sorts of insurance are meant to cover the risks to your business from accidents, from unexpected events, and from mistakes.

Also there are some legal kinds of insurance that various states require.

In the next few paragraphs, we will explain the most important points any doula services business owner should consider when negotiating the insurance needed.

The main headings of insurance for your doula services businesses are liability insurance, commercial insurance, asset insurance and workers compensation insurance.

Liability insurance

General liability insurance

Any doula services business is dealing directly with customers, and that means you generally have the danger that some accident can happen to them themselves or else something of theirs can be damaged.

In such a case, they can demand compensation.

General liability insurance policy for your doula services business insures you against claims coming from injury to visitors or damage to their property.

It protects your doula services business from the claims themselves and also to any resulting court costs and legal fees of the lawsuits.

In many cases, it should help you to qualify for extra business from city and state organizations, where contracts require proper liability insurance.

The normal level of general liability insurance for your doula services business would be with a cap of $1 million for a single event and a total of $2 million for the whole year.

See the table in the costing section below for average prices of general liability insurance for your doula services insurance operations.

Professional liability insurance for your doula services business

In the event where a client alleges some negligence, errors, or omissions in how you conducted your doula services business for them, you can quickly have to fight a law suit.

Even if the case against you is ruled in your favor, the cost of defense can be large, and the impact on your reputation can be damaging.

Every small doula services business should have enough professional liability insurance to cover a single claim of $25,000, with annual cover of $50,000.

See the table in the cost of doula services insurance section below for average prices of professional liability insurance for your doula services operations.

Product liability insurance

Whatever goods you sell or advice you give about the goods, you are running a risk that buyers may claim that what you delivered didn’t meet your description of function, or that your recommendation was basically incorrect.

You need to know the particular laws of product liability in your own state.

For example, in California, all businesses in the supply chain can be held responsible for results caused by products claimed to be defective.

To cover yourself against any following lawsuit, you need Product liability insurance for doula services

Only you can estimate exactly how much insurance you should get.

Best advice is to talk to experienced insurance agents, brokers or company representatives for support.

Commercial insurance

Commercial vehicle insurance for your doula services business

Beware! – almost all policies for private vehicle insurance do not cover any occurrence like theft or accidental damage when the van is being used for business purposes.

The right way to make sure that your vehicle is insured for both its own value, and the valuable contents, is by taking out a proper commercial vehicle insurance package.

Commercial van policies cover the value of any vehicle in case of accident, malicious damage, fire, or theft.

Also, in case of any accident, the car itself, the content and any legal bills, medical expenses, and property damage is insured if your van is involved in a collision.

Most states, other than Virginia and New Hampshire, require this type of insurance.

The wanted value of the insurance is worked-out for the depreciated value of the vehicle, and your intended level of cover of contents. 

Tools and Equipment insurance

Since your doula services business needs specialized and dedicated equipment, you know how much it can cost to replace it in case of any damage, loss, or theft.

The equipment may be subject to malicious damage, deliberate fire, theft, other such unpredicted acts.

Also, acts of nature like lightning strikes, hurricanes, earthquakes, and other highly damaging natural events can destroy your whole business in one stroke.

Unless you can afford to immediately replace such unique gear quickly out of your own pocket, you must have full-level equipment insurance so that you can immediately buy everything needed to keep your doula services business running.

It is hard to advise how much equipment insurance you need – it’s basically dependent on how much you have invested in your doula services business’ equipment.

Commercial Property insurance

Any doula services business that owns or rents space in a building needs a commercial property insurance policy.

If you own the property, you probably have a substantial capital investment, in addition to a big liability if there’s a mortgage.

Any physical building location must carry insurance coverage for the value of the premises and contents against unexpected occurrences like fire and storms, and against man-made damages like theft and vandalism.

If your doula services business operates in areas of high risk, like Texas or North Carolina, additional coverage may be needed for earthquakes and hurricanes or tornadoes.

In other states like Illinois, where intense cold snaps can cause damage to outer coverings of doula services business premises, there is a need for more extra cover than in warmer climes.

Although the level of cover depends entirely on the value of the property, it’s not possible to say what cover your need, but we have been able in the table in the cost of doula services insurance section below to give some idea of the average prices per million dollars of property insurance for your doula services business.

Temporary insurance by month, week or day for your doula services business

Is your doula services business working part-time or casually, or is the level of business seasonal?

Using short-term insurance makes good sense. Business insurance by the month, day, or week – temporary insurance for doula services – are special policies where you can cover a designated period when you want to be covered.

By only paying for that period of cover, you will save by having reduced premiums but still having the same risk cover.

The important feature of short-term insurance is that you pay for the cover for a defined period – a designated date, or a week or month starting on a specific date, for example for 30 days beginning on the specified date.

When you are expecting periods of better business activity, get the existing cover improved.

Talk to your insurance agent, broker or the company’s representatives to see what options you have.

Business Owners Policy BOP for your doula services business

You have the chance to combine most of the important kinds of small business insurance in one policy that is known as the business owner’s policy – BOP.

A BOP integrates commercial property and public liability insurance by incorporating these coverages into one insurance policy, which can save you money.

BOP insurance will protect you if any claims of injury or property damage are made.

It is often the right choice for small and medium-sized doula services businesses, such as yours.

There are two limits that will rule whether BOP is suitable for your own business.

BOPs do not cover your professional liability or commercial vehicle cover.

Also, the size of your business will dictate whether you are eligible to take out BOP cover.

The usual business that is eligible for a BOP policy must have no more than one hundred employees, and under five million dollars in annual revenue.

Plus, you must separately take out the mandated worker’s compensation, health and disability insurance as determined for your state.

Workers Compensation insurance for your doula services business employees

In almost all states, it is mandatory to have workers compensation insurance when your doula services business has one or more employees.

Workers compensation insurance covers the enterprise against any costs that arise if a worker experiences an injury or becomes sick as a result of work.

The benefits cover medical expenses, death benefits, lost wages, and vocational rehabilitation.

Failure to meet a state’s regulations in this regard can leave you as the employer required to pay penalties levied by the states.

Some states, such as North Dakota, Ohio, Washington, West Virginia, and Wyoming only permit coverage from the government-run monopoly state funds.

In these states, you can’t get your workers compensation obligations from private insurance corporations.

Workers compensation premiums are worked out based on the employee’s pay, and usually come out at around $1.00 per $100 per month.

However, you must consult the relevant authorities in your state.

Average costs of these types of insurance

Although every doula services insurance level is unique, there are enough examples of usual quotes from insurance companies for us to give appropriate guidelines, including what are the cheapest rates offered.

Of course, you should always check with an agent what’s relevant for your business.

The list below is of annual premiums we have gathered for the main types of insurance your doula services businesses needs.

Types of insurance Price range
Commercial insurance $870 – $2615
Commercial vehicle insurance $1610 – $2695
General liability insurance $590 – $1020
Equipment insurance $330 – $1445
Product liability insurance $310 – $675
Public liability insurance $250 – $615

Cost of insurance for your doula services operations depends on many different factors.

We have estimated these figures for small self-employed doula services businesses.

In larger states like New York, premiums are generally about 20%-30% higher than national averages, while in smaller states like Utah, they will be about 20%-30% cheaper.

The location and size and type of your doula services business can have a big effect on the cost of different policies.

You should consult with professional insurance agents and brokers, or insurance company representatives.

In addition you can let the internet do the work for you by enquiring about insurance companies near where your business is located.

Another good source of information is the local Better Business Bureau in your suburb.

FAQ

What is small business insurance for doula services operations?

This is a wide term used to describe basic insurance policies designed to protect doula services business owners from risks like bodily injury, property damage, claims of negligence.

Does my doula services business have to have insurance?

Some of the types of insurance are not mandatory for you to run your business, but they can protect you from risks in your business operations.

Several other forms are required by state law, such as workers compensation and vehicle insurance.

What does a small doula services business insurance policy cover?

Liability insurance provides protection against lawsuits or claims filed by a client for bodily injury, property damage, or negligence.

The specific cover will vary based on your own operations.

See the table in the costing section above for average prices of the most common policies for doula services insurance.

How much will doula services business insurance cost?

On top of the size of the business, certain other factors, such as location and claims history, are used to determine your policy’s cost.

You should discuss with professional insurance agents and brokers, or insurance company representatives.

You can search for more information insurance for doula services, in the search box below, and follow the relevant links.

Was this helpful? Share it!
SBCoverage.com