Daycare Insurance in Massachusetts
What is daycare insurance?
Assuming responsibility for children comes with certain risks, and it’s important to safeguard against those risks whenever possible. In addition to training and policies, daycares in Massachusetts can also purchase daycare insurance.
Daycare insurance is tailor-made for daycares and child care centers. It could provide essential financial help in the case of a child tragedy or other incident.
What Massachusetts child care providers need child care insurance?
Most Massachusetts businesses that provide child care should have child care insurance. For-profit companies, nonprofit organizations and individuals may all need coverage. A few more specific examples of the types of businesses that get child care policies are:
- Large daycare centers with multiple locations
- Single-site child care facilities
- Home-based child care providers
- Public pre-K educational programs
- Faith-based nursery schools and preschools
- Other preschools and daycare centers
Even businesses that offer child care as an ancillary service, like ski resorts or supermarkets with in-house child care, may need a child care policy for this aspect of their operations.
What types of coverage do child care insurance policies typically offer?
Child care policies can come with a variety of coverages, which work together to protect against many of the risks that these businesses face. Some common coverage options include:
- General Liability Coverage: Might cover routine accidents, like trips and falls, that occur on the child care center’s property and result in third-party injury.
- Abuse and Molestation Liability Coverage: Might cover claims alleging an employee had inappropriate contact with a child.
- Corporal Punishment Liability Coverage: Might cover accusations alleging the improper use of corporal punishment on children.
- Commercial Umbrella Coverage: Might cover liability expenses that exceed other liability coverages’ limits, in the event of an expensive legal battle.
- Commercial Property Coverage: Might cover physical assets, namely buildings and items kept in them, against loss or damage.
- Commercial Auto Coverage: Might cover vehicle accidents involving company cars, or when other vehicles are used to transport children.
What liability limits should child care providers select?
Many child care providers would be well served to choose substantial limits for their liability coverages. Any lawsuit can become expensive if it’s heavily contested, and the costs only increase if the suit is over serious harm that a child has suffered.
An insurance agent who specializes in child care insurance will be aware of what some commonly chosen child care liability insurance limits are. They’ll be able to help a child care provider select a limit that affords them robust protection.
Do child care centers need to have workers compensation coverage?
Massachusetts law generally mandates that employers must have workers compensation insurance for their employees. The coverage broadly protects against various workplace injuries and illnesses that employees could suffer.
While businesses without employees might forgo workers compensation, few day care centers have no one employed by them. Even the smallest home daycares usually have at least one person who’s an employee. For this reason, child care businesses normally do need to purchase workers compensation coverage.
Workers compensation might be procured as part of a child care insurance policy, or as a separate workers comp insurance policy.
Do child care providers need insurance if parents sign waivers?
Waivers might give a business limited legal protections, but any protections afforded by a waiver aren’t the same as what insurance provides. Child care centers normally should have insurance regardless of whether they have waivers that parents sign.
Do daycare policies cover field trips?
Whether daycare policies extend coverages to off-site events, such as field trips, depends on the terms of a policy. Some may cover field trips, while others may not.
A knowledgeable insurance agent will be able to review a daycare policy to see whether the policy in question has off-site coverage for field trips.
Where can child care providers find daycare insurance?
For help insuring a daycare or child care business that’s in Massachusetts, contact the independent insurance agents at PIKE Insurance. We’ll work with you to assess specific coverage and limit needs, and then help you find the best daycare insurance policy based on those particular needs. Together, we can make sure your child care business is protected against many risks it could face.
