Forensic Science Technicians insurance – cost and types of policies

Whenever you budget the expenses of your business, Forensic Science Technicians insurance must be near the top of the list because you can’t always know exactly what could happen in the future.

Need General Liability Insurance for Your Forensic Science Technicians Business?
Get Your Free Quote

With the protection provided by liability insurance and all the other sorts 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 Forensic Science Technicians enterprise, you must consider how much financial danger you are taking on.

If your Forensic Science Technicians business runs without proper insurance, you are taking an enormous chance not just of losing some money but of a total wipe-out.

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

Forensic Science Technicians Insurance

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

The question is, can you afford to NOT have insurance for your Forensic Science Technicians business?

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

Your Forensic Science Technicians business is not sheltered by laws in the same way as states are, where legislation can place a “cap” on the maximum level of liability.

In some states, like Montana, 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 person more than they have sort.

When you are running your Forensic Science Technicians operations, you can’t escape responsibility for the results of your actions.

Even more importantly, unless you have spent up-front the money necessary to have your business running as a limited liability company, all of that liability belongs to you as a person.

What does Forensic Science Technicians insurance protect you from?

For your Forensic Science Technicians 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 mandatory kinds of insurance that various states require.

In the next few paragraphs, we will outline the most important points any Forensic Science Technicians business owner should remember when negotiating the insurance needed.

The main headings of insurance for your Forensic Science Technicians businesses are liability insurance, commercial insurance, asset insurance and workers compensation insurance.

Liability insurance

General liability insurance

Any Forensic Science Technicians business is dealing directly with other people, and that means you always have the danger that some accident can happen to them bodily or else something of theirs can be damaged.

In such a case, they can require compensation.

General liability insurance policy for your Forensic Science Technicians business covers you against claims coming from injury to visitors or damage to their property.

It protects your Forensic Science Technicians business from the claims themselves and also to any associated court costs and legal fees of the lawsuits.

In many cases, it will even 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 Forensic Science Technicians business would be with a cap of $1 million for a single submission 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 Forensic Science Technicians insurance operations.

Professional liability insurance for your Forensic Science Technicians business

In the event where a buyer alleges some negligence, errors, or omissions in how you conducted your Forensic Science Technicians business for them, you can quickly face a law suit.

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

Every small Forensic Science Technicians business should have enough professional liability insurance to cover a once-off claim of $25,000, with annual cover of $50,000.

See the table in the cost of Forensic Science Technicians insurance section below for average prices of professional liability insurance for your Forensic Science Technicians operations.

Product liability insurance

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

You need to be aware of the explicit laws of product liability in your own state.

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

To cover yourself against any following lawsuit, you need Product liability insurance for Forensic Science Technicians

Only you can know exactly how much insurance you must have.

Best advice is to contact experienced insurance agents, brokers or company representatives for help.

Commercial insurance

Commercial vehicle insurance for your Forensic Science Technicians business

Be careful! – most policies for private vehicle insurance do not cover any occurrence like theft or accidental damage when the vehicle is being used for business purposes.

The proper 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.

In addition, in case of any accident, the car itself, the content and any legal bills, medical expenses, and property damage is guaranteed if your van is involved in an accident.

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

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

Tools and Equipment insurance

Since your Forensic Science Technicians business needs unique and expensive equipment, you can appreciate how much it can cost to replace it in case of any damage, loss, or theft.

The gear 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 wipe-out your whole business in one stroke.

Unless you can afford to immediately replace such specific gear quickly out of your own pocket, you must have full-level equipment insurance so that you can immediately buy any equipment needed to keep your Forensic Science Technicians business running.

It is difficult to advise how much equipment insurance you need – it’s essentially dependent on how much you have invested in your Forensic Science Technicians business’ equipment.

Commercial Property insurance

Any Forensic Science Technicians business that owns or rents space in a building needs a commercial property insurance policy.

If you own the building, you probably have a substantial capital investment, as well as a big liability if there’s a mortgage.

Your physical building location should 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 Forensic Science Technicians business deals in areas of high risk, like California or North Carolina, supplementary coverage may be needed for earthquakes and hurricanes or tornadoes.

In other states like Rhode Island, where intense cold snaps can cause damage to outer coverings of Forensic Science Technicians business premises, there is a need for more supplementary cover than in warmer climes.

Whereas the level of cover depends completely 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 Forensic Science Technicians insurance section below to give some idea of the average prices per million dollars of property insurance for your Forensic Science Technicians business.

Temporary insurance by month, week or day for your Forensic Science Technicians business

Is your Forensic Science Technicians business working part-time or casually, or is the level of business fluctuating?

Using short-term insurance makes good sense. Business insurance by the month, day, or week – temporary insurance for Forensic Science Technicians – 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 less premiums but still having identical risk cover.

The essential feature of short-term insurance is that you pay for the cover for a defined period – a nominated 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 higher business activity, get the existing cover raised.

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

Business Owners Policy BOP for your Forensic Science Technicians business

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

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

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

It is often the right choice for small and medium-sized Forensic Science Technicians businesses, such as yours.

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

BOPs cannot cover your professional liability or commercial vehicle cover.

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

The normal business that can take out 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 required worker’s compensation, health and disability insurance as determined for your state.

Workers Compensation insurance for your Forensic Science Technicians business employees

In many states, it is mandatory to have workers compensation insurance when your Forensic Science Technicians business has one or more employees.

Workers compensation insurance covers the enterprise against any costs that arise if any hired hand 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 obliged to pay penalties levied by the states.

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

In these states, you cannot get your workers compensation obligations from private insurance companies.

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

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

Average costs of these types of insurance

Although every Forensic Science Technicians insurance level is unique, there are enough examples of average quotes from insurance companies for us to give rough guidelines, including what are the cheapest rates offered.

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

The list below is of annual premiums we have gathered for the main types of insurance your Forensic Science Technicians businesses needs.

Types of insurance Price range
Commercial vehicle insurance $1756 – $2577
Public liability insurance $379 – $543
Product liability insurance $261 – $773
Equipment insurance $462 – $1090
Commercial insurance $1163 – $2004
General liability insurance $632 – $1261

Cost of insurance for your Forensic Science Technicians operations depends on many different factors.

We have calculated these figures for small freelance Forensic Science Technicians businesses.

In larger states like New York, premiums are generally about 20%-30% higher than national averages, but in smaller states like Utah, they usually are about 20%-30% lower.

The location and size and type of your Forensic Science Technicians business can have a big effect on the cost of different policies.

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

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

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

FAQ

What is small business insurance for Forensic Science Technicians operations?

This is an umbrella term used to describe basic insurance policies designed to protect Forensic Science Technicians business owners from risks like bodily injury, property damage, claims of negligence.

Does my Forensic Science Technicians business have to have insurance?

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

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

What does a small Forensic Science Technicians business insurance policy cover?

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

The precise cover will vary based on your own operations.

See the table in the costing section above for average prices of the recommended policies for Forensic Science Technicians insurance.

How much will Forensic Science Technicians business insurance cost?

In addition to the size of the business, several 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.

Was this helpful? Share it!
SBCoverage.com