Respiratory Therapists insurance – what kind and at what cost

Whenever you budget the expenses of your business, Respiratory Therapists insurance must be included in the list because you can’t always know exactly what could happen in the future.

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 unexpected happens.

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

If your Respiratory Therapists business runs without proper insurance, you are taking a tremendous 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 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 Respiratory Therapists business?

What this means, for any Respiratory Therapists 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 Respiratory Therapists business is not protected 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 New Jersey, there are specific monetary levels that limit the amount an adjudicator 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 plaintiff more than they have sued for.

When you are running your Respiratory Therapists operations, you can’t deny responsibility for the outcomes of your actions.

Even more importantly, unless you have spent in advance the money necessary to have your business running as a corporation, all of that liability belongs to you as a person.

What does Respiratory Therapists insurance protect you from?

For your Respiratory Therapists business, the most important types of insurance are meant to cover the risks to your business from accidents, from unexpected events, and from mistakes.

As well there are some official kinds of insurance that various states require.

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

The main categories of insurance for your Respiratory Therapists businesses are liability insurance, commercial insurance, asset insurance and workers compensation insurance.

Liability insurance

General liability insurance

Any Respiratory Therapists business is dealing directly with other people, and that means you generally have the danger that some accident can happen to them personally or else something of theirs can be damaged.

In such a case, they can demand compensation.

General liability insurance policy for your Respiratory Therapists business insures you against claims coming from injury to customers or damage to their property.

It protects your Respiratory Therapists business from the claims themselves and in addition to any follow-on 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 average level of general liability insurance for your Respiratory Therapists business would be with a upper limit of $1 million for a single claim 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 Respiratory Therapists insurance operations.

Professional liability insurance for your Respiratory Therapists business

In the event where a buyer alleges some negligence, errors, or omissions in how you conducted your Respiratory Therapists business for them, you can quickly have to fight a court case.

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

Most small Respiratory Therapists 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 Respiratory Therapists insurance section below for average prices of professional liability insurance for your Respiratory Therapists operations.

Product liability insurance

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

You need to understand the specific 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 likely lawsuit, you need Product liability insurance for Respiratory Therapists

Only you can estimate exactly how much insurance you need.

Best advice is to consult with experienced insurance agents, brokers or company representatives for guidance.

Commercial insurance

Commercial vehicle insurance for your Respiratory Therapists business

Be careful! – most policies for private vehicle insurance do not cover any happening 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 designated commercial vehicle insurance package.

Commercial van policies insure 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 covered if your van is involved in a collision.

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

The necessary value of the insurance is calculated on the depreciated value of the vehicle, and your requested level of cover of contents. 

Tools and Equipment insurance

Since your Respiratory Therapists business needs unique and dedicated equipment, you can appreciate how much it can cost to replace it in case of any damage, loss, or theft.

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

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

Unless you can afford to immediately replace such unique gear quickly out of your own pocket, you need full-level equipment insurance so that you can immediately buy any equipment needed to keep your Respiratory Therapists 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 Respiratory Therapists business’ equipment.

Commercial Property insurance

Any Respiratory Therapists business that owns or rents space in a building should have a commercial property insurance policy.

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

Every physical building location should carry insurance coverage for the value of the premises and contents against natural occurrences like fire and storms, and against deliberate damages like theft and vandalism.

If your Respiratory Therapists business operates in areas of high risk, like Florida or South Carolina, extra coverage may be needed for earthquakes and hurricanes or tornadoes.

In other states like Washington, where unlimited cold snaps can cause damage to outer coverings of Respiratory Therapists business premises, there is a need for more supplementary cover than in warmer climes.

Whereas 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 Respiratory Therapists insurance section below to give some estimate of the average prices per million dollars of property insurance for your Respiratory Therapists business.

Temporary insurance by month, week or day for your Respiratory Therapists business

Is your Respiratory Therapists business working part-time or casually, or is the level of business variable?

Using short-term insurance makes good sense. Business insurance by the month, day, or week – temporary insurance for Respiratory Therapists – are special policies where you can cover a specific 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 the same risk cover.

The important feature of short-term insurance is that you purchase the cover for a defined period – a specific 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 larger 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 Respiratory Therapists business

You have the chance 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 merges commercial property and public liability insurance by amalgamating 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 frequently the right choice for small and medium-sized Respiratory Therapists businesses, such as yours.

There are some limits that will determine whether BOP is suitable for your own business.

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

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

The typical business that can take out a BOP policy must have fewer than one hundred employees, and not more than five million dollars in annual turnover.

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

Workers Compensation insurance for your Respiratory Therapists business employees

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

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

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

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

Some states, such as North Dakota, Ohio, Washington, West Virginia, and Wyoming only authorize 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 worked out based on the employee’s pay, and usually come out at around $1.00 per $100 per month.

However, you must refer to the relevant authorities in your state.

Average costs of these types of insurance

Although every Respiratory Therapists insurance requirement is unique, there are enough examples of usual quotes from insurance companies for us to give rough guidelines, including what are the cheapest rates offered.

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

The list below is of annual premiums we have researched for the main types of insurance your Respiratory Therapists businesses needs.

Cost of insurance for your Respiratory Therapists operations depends on many different factors.

We have estimated these figures for small independent Respiratory Therapists businesses.

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

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

You should talk to professional insurance agents and brokers, or insurance company representatives.

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

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

FAQ

What is small business insurance for Respiratory Therapists operations?

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

Does my Respiratory Therapists business have to have insurance?

Some of the types of insurance are not mandatory for you to operate 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 Respiratory Therapists business insurance policy cover?

Liability insurance provides protection against lawsuits or claims filed by a third-party 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 recommended policies for Respiratory Therapists insurance.

How much will Respiratory Therapists business insurance cost?

In addition to 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.

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