Best Freelance Insurance

Freelancers are self-employed entrepreneurs who manage their own business and earn wages on a per-task or per-job basis. They are their own business owner and therefore are held responsible for any property damages, injuries, or liabilities while on the job. Business insurance for freelancers can offer protection from client lawsuits, work oversights, lease agreements, or common hazards that may occur.

Looking for the best freelance insurance options for freelance or contract workers? Use our guide to learn more.

The Best Freelance Insurance:

• Best for Small Businesses With Less Than 25 Employees: NEXT Insurance
• Best for Comprehensive Coverage/BOP: The Hartford
• Best for Tailored Coverage: Simply Business
• Best for Freelancers: Thimble
• Best for Contractors: Progressive
• Best for Staying Compliant With State and Federal Regulations: biBERK
• Best for Matching You to the Provider That Best Fits Your Needs: Tivly

Best Freelance Insurance

Navigating a plethora of insurance for your business can be confusing. Benzinga is here to introduce you to the process and share notable attributes of top business insurance providers.

1. Best for Small Businesses With Less Than 25 Employees: NEXT Insurance

NEXT, like other business insurance providers, wants small businesses to obtain the coverage they need for a good price. However, NEXT takes this mantra to the “next” level by making it easy to get covered quickly. Getting insurance through NEXT takes about 10 minutes, and during this process, you will:

• Choose your business type
• Answer a few questions
• Adjust limits and deductibles
• Purchase coverage

You can complete the process online, customize policies for your industry and take advantage of discounts on bundled policies. This is especially helpful because freelancers might not know what insurance they need and definitely want to save money by bundling.

In addition, several policy types are available, including:

• Business owners policy
• General liability
• Commercial liability
• Commercial property
• Workers’ comp
• Professional liability
• Liquor liability
• Commercial auto

If you’re not sure which policies you should choose—as they can be similar in some cases—remember that you can reach out to a representative from NEXT for more information.

2. Best for Comprehensive Coverage/BOP: The Hartford 

The Hartford has over 200 years of insurance experience and served over a million small business owners.

The Hartford is a leading expert in customizing clients’ needs and offering an expansive range of policies such as flood insurance, workers’ compensation, event insurance, and loss of business income.

Special discounts are offered for bundling options or adding extra protection. 

3. Best for Tailored Coverage: Simply Business

Simply Business has tailored insurance options for the self-employed, such as photographers, carpenters, IT consultants, plumbers, and interior designers. That's why it's a great choice for business insurance for freelancers. Policy options are created in less than ten minutes, with licensed agents always available to assist you. Simply Business has top-rated customer service and transparent quotes so that you can pick the right plan for your work.

4. Best for Freelancers: Thimble

Thimble offers temporary insurance for businesses that need flexibility for short-term insurance policies and instant upgrades. Liability insurance can be purchased by the hour, day, or month. Applications take only a minute to fill out, and plans can be paused or canceled immediately if work starts to slow down. Thimble offers great business insurance for freelancers and contract workers. And you can pause monthly coverage, meaning you're not paying for coverage for slow months or times when you have lighter than usual workloads.

5. Best for Contractors: Progressive

Progressive offers annual savings for drivers who make the switch to their car insurance provider. Their comprehensive coverage can apply to vehicles such as motorcycles, classic cars, RVs, and even segways. Additional discounts are also available for paying upfront or if you have been in operation for three years or more. If you travel a ton for work or need commercial car insurance, Progressive may be your one-stop-shop for all your business needs.

6. Best for Staying Compliant With State and Federal Regulations: biBERK

biBERK is great for small businesses who need great worker’s comp coverage -- without a lengthy or complicated signup process. Save up to 20% on coverage compared to other providers, and enjoy peace of mind with biBERK’s state and federal-compliant policies. Also, biBERK will grow with you, offering expanded coverage that moves with the trajectory of your business. All parts of the biBERK experience are online, from the application to submitting a claim. This allows busy business owners like you to keep your focus where it matters most.

Best for Matching You to the Provider That Best Fits Your Needs: Tivly

Tivly offers 1-stop shopping for a range of business insurance policies using its convenient online website. Fill in the criteria online and get a quote for your business. Tivly is partnered with over 200 providers and will match you with the one that fits your needs, especially when you are looking to protect your bottom line. 

Tivly works with providers on our list like Progressive, The Hartford, Liberty Mutual and Gallagher. Therefore, you can purchase business income insurance, liability coverage and more to protect your life’s work. 

What is Business Insurance for Freelancers?

Business insurance is a type of insurance coverage for businesses that seek protection from potential lawsuits, contract disputes, or property damage. Freelancers evaluate their coverage needs based on possible risk factors, which can vary based on how and where they operate. 

Nonetheless, having business insurance can prevent business owners from facing devastating losses that may spring up during their regular line of work. After all, emergencies and unfortunate events can occur at any time.

Freelance Business Insurance Explained

The U.S. Small Business Administration encourages freelancers to get business insurance to protect themselves from unexpected costs and to keep personal assets safe. There are several types of business insurance that you may need depending on your situation.

Types of Business Insurance for Freelancers

Here are several types of business insurance all business owners, including freelance or contract workers who own their business, may want to consider.

General Liability Insurance 

Any business can purchase general liability insurance to protect against financial losses due to bodily injuries, medical expenses, and property damage occurring on your premises or resulting from your work. Advertising injuries such as slander, copyright infringements, and libel are also covered.

Professional Liability Insurance 

Self-employed workers benefit from professional liability insurance since it covers legal fees, administrative costs, and settlement costs in the case of a lawsuit. Common problems can be delivering products past the deadline or miscommunicating project deliverables, therefore being accused of being professionally negligent. 

Product Liability Insurance

Self-employed business insurance can include product liability insurance, which protects your company from lawsuits based on a product’s manufacturing, delivery, installations, and overall supply process. There is also protection in case a product malfunctions or has a defect, resulting in bodily injuries or property damage. Examples include having misleading instructions, production flaws, or design deficiencies.

Commercial Property Insurance 

Whether you work from home or own an office, commercial property insurance can cover the cost to replace or repair business property that gets damaged due to a break-in, vandalism, hail storm, or fire. It is thereby essential to take stock of all your physical assets and property in case a burst pipe or theft occurs.

Workers’ Compensation

Freelancers often work with others to meet a task or job. Thus, having workers’ compensation insurance offers wage benefits and medical care in case employees fall ill or get injured on the job, no matter who is at fault. Injuries can also include natural disasters, violence at the workplace, or terrorist attacks.

Commercial Auto Insurance 

Many businesses need to get to and from clients and work sites. Thus, having commercial auto insurance covers bodily injuries or property damage resulting from business-owned vehicles driven during business operations. However, employees’ personal cars or car rentals can also be covered if a non-owned auto policy is added to your commercial auto insurance.

Home-Based Business Insurance

Homeowner’s insurance can have home-based business insurance added as a rider to protect work equipment or critical business files and against third-party injuries for freelancers who work from their personal homes.

Business Owner’s Policy or Bundle

A bundle of general liability insurance and commercial property insurance make up a business owner’s policy. This can save the insured on costs in contrast to purchasing two separate policies.

Cyber Liability Insurance

Data breaches can happen often, and it is essential to keep client data, money transactions, and personal information safe. Dealing with cyberattacks can be costly due to informing affected customers, having to monitor credit, and pay for any legal expenses.

Frequently Asked Questions