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What is freelancer insurance?

Freelancer insurance is commercial insurance. It brings together key coverages to help protect you from the most common risks associated with your business—client disputes, property damage, theft, and more. With options to customize your policy, you get targeted protection for your business, your reputation, and your peace of mind.

Here are some of the vocations freelance insurance will cover:

• Writers and editors: Whether you write or edit blog articles, instruction manuals or books, insurance will protect you should there be any disputes over your work.
• Graphic designers and artists: Whether you produce logos, illustrations or any other visual content, insurance will cover you in case of a legal dispute.
• Photographers and videographers: If your role involves capturing moving images as a videographer or stills as a photographer, or both, whether it’s a simple headshot or a big-budget music video, insurance will cover your equipment and/or liability issues as well as any mishaps during shoots.
• Journalists: For those of you who are journalists, covering events in person or in writing, from your home or office, insurance will offer coverage for professional liability risks.
• Web developers and programmers: Designing or maintaining websites isn’t always risk-free. Issues like data breaches or client disputes do arise and can cost quite a bit of money. In those cases, insurance will cover you.
• Consultants and advisors: If your client decides to seek legal action against you because your consultation or advice either didn’t work out or even harmed them, insurance can cover the fees that would arise from this.
• Accountants and bookkeepers: Handling someone else’s finances can be risky and mistakes costly. Whether you make a mistake or get accused of making one, insurance will cover any legal fees you may encounter.
• Tutors: As performer, you might take a significant financial hit due to equipment damage, performance cancellations or even legal claims related to your work. Insurance can get you covered.
• Musicians and performers: This covers loss or damage to your property, such as your studio, art supplies, materials, and the artwork itself. Theft, vandalism, fire and flood are several examples of the kinds of perils that could affect your property. Basically, think of this coverage as home insurance for your business property.
• Craftspeople and artisans: If you’re in the business making jewelry, pottery or furniture, you might want to insurance to cover the costs should something go wrong during the creation process, or if your client is unhappy with your work.

What freelancer insurance includes

Your freelancer insurance policy is built from a combination of coverages designed to address the risks you face. Self-employed business owners usually add these coverages first and build out from there:

• Commercial general liability (CGL): Helps protect you if someone is injured or their property is damaged as a result of your work. For example, if a client trips and falls in your workspace, commercial general liability coverage can handle medical costs and legal expenses.
• Commercial property: This covers loss or damage to your property, such as your home offices or rented workspace. Theft, vandalism, fire and flood are several examples of the kinds of perils that could affect your property. Basically, think of commercial property coverage as home insurance your business property.

Recommended add-ons for freelancer insurance coverage

While the basic coverage may seem comprehensive enough, you can further tailor your policy with optional coverages based on your business needs:

• Professional liability: Also known as errors and omissions (E&O) insurance, this coverage is essential for most freelancers, but especially those who offer expert advice or services. For instance, if a client claims that your work caused them financial loss, profiessional liability insurance will take care of legal fees, settlements or any damages from such claims. Consultants, designers, writers and similar professionals could benefit from this.
• Cyber liability: If your business handles client data or involves an online platform, this policy will cover you against issues like data breaches and cyberattacks. It can pay for data restoration, legal fees and even reputation management should hackers target your business.
• Commercial auto: If you use a vehicle for your freelance work, this insurance can cover accidents and damage that might occur while you're driving for business purposes, including deliveries, equipment transportation and travelling to meetings. Personal auto insurance typically doesn’t cover business-related incidents, such as product loss, so this policy ensures you are protected while on the job.
• Tools and equipment: If your freelance work involves specific tools or equipment, like a camera or a laptop, tools and equipment insurance will cover the cost of repairing or replacing these items if they’re damaged, stolen or lost.
• Business interruption: Should your work be impeded by some kind of calamity, such as a power outage or broken equipment, business interruption coverage will reimburse you for any losses you may incur.

Common types of freelancer insurance claims

Here are some scenarios for which freelance insurance might be useful:

• Power outage: James, a freelance web designer, loses power at his home office due to a major storm. This interrupts his workflow, leading to lost income. Insurance with business interruption coverage would pay for the lost income as well as cover his operating costs and temporary solutions during the downtime.
• Stolen equipment: Tara’s high-end camera gets stolen for her car, preventing her from doing a shoot that day as a photographer. Tools and equipment insurance would pay for the camera’s replacement as well as any losses incurred due to being unable to do her job. She can also get protected in the event of a liability suit should her client decide to pursue one.
• Data breach: Blake, a freelance web developer who manages several of his clients’ websites, suffers from a ransomware attack that locks him out of his computer and leads to the clients’ data being stolen. Insurance would cover his legal fees, including any consultations, data restoration and even reputation management, so he can get back to work with existing and new clients.

How much does freelancer insurance cost?

While there is no way to quote the exact premiums that you would pay for your freelance insurance – at least not without accounting for your personal circumstances – the expected average is around $300 to $1,200 per year.

Factors that may impact your insurance premium include:

• Type of coverage: Basic policies with standard coverage will cost less than comprehensive policies with multiple add-ons.
• Coverage amount: The higher the coverage limits, the more expensive the policy.
• Location: Insurance costs can vary based on where you live and work. If the area where your home office is located has a lot of crime, for example, then there is a higher likelihood that your property would get stolen.
• Claims history: If you have recently filed a claim, then there is a high chance that you’ll file another one in the future. Insurers take this into account and adjust their premiums accordingly. As you might expect, more claims in the past equal to higher premiums in the future.

How to get the cheapest freelancer insurance rates

Finding affordable freelancer insurance doesn’t mean you have to compromise on coverage. Here are some tips to get the best rates:

• Bundle policies: If you need multiple types of insurance (like home or auto), bundling them with the same provider can often result in discounts.
• Maintain a good record: If you need multiple types of insurance (like home or auto), bundling them with the same provider can often result in discounts.