Photography Insurance Costs & Coverage
Photography insurance is a policy or combination of policies that protect your photography or videography business from claims of negligence or damage to your equipment and property. General liability insurance, the most common insurance type for a photographer, can range from $200 to $800 annually.
Are you looking for quick and affordable photography liability insurance? The Hartford is our top-recommended photography insurance provider. It offers every type of policy your business needs with customizable limits. Get a quote and be covered in minutes.
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Photographer Insurance Costs by Policy
Policies |
Coverage Limits |
Estimated Annual Premium |
Deductible |
---|---|---|---|
General Liability
|
$1 million per occurrence; $2 million aggregate |
$200 to $800 |
$0 |
Commercial Property
|
$35,000
(equipment only) |
$175 to $700 |
$1,000 |
Business Owners’ Policy (BOP)
|
$18,000
(equipment only) |
$530 to $1,546 |
$1,000 |
Inland Marine
|
$15,000 |
$200 to $2,500 |
$500 to $1,000 |
Professional Liability
|
$1 million per occurrence; $1 million aggregate |
$400 to $1,500 |
$500 |
Cyber Liability
|
$1 million per occurrence; $1 million aggregate |
$500 to $1,800 |
$2,500 to $5,000 |
When insurers calculate a photographer’s insurance premium, many factors come into play. The most common are:
- Deductibles:A deductible is like co-insurance—the higher you are willing to pay on a claim, the lower your premium may go.
- Limits:The amount of coverage can raise or lower your premium, but a lower limit can also increase your risk exposure.
- Claims history:If you have a history of filing claims, this may lead to a higher premium.
- Type of work:What you photograph or record—such as wild animals, models, aerial shots using drones, or anything in the adult film industry—can lead to a higher premium.
- Storage:How you store and maintain your customers’ prints, negatives, and personal identifying information is factored into your premium.
What Policies Do You Need?
Every photography business is different, so some may need more coverage than others. The core policies to consider are first-party coverage (property) to protect your equipment and liability for any potential claims against your business. The other policies are additional layers of protection you may want or need depending on the size of your business.
Liability insurance for photographers, orgeneral liability, is the most common policy and a key policy for every photographer. This policy protects your business against claims of negligence. There are three areas of coverage:
- Property damage.
- Bodily injury.
- Advertising injury and libel.
For example, youtake photos of staged homesfor a real estate company, and while working in a home, your tripod falls over and breaks a glass table. This situation would be an example of a property damage claim.
Many event venues may require this coverage and request proof of insurance (also known as acertificate of insurance or COI).有时,会场将要求被包括d as an additional insured. Some providers offer this as a free service but others will charge between $15 and $30 to your policy to designate an additional insured.
Commercial property is first-party coverage that protects your owned structures and their contents. A studio, showroom, and furniture are all examples of what you would want to cover under this policy—or you can limit it to your equipment. A homeowner’s policy usually will not cover business activities, so even if your photography business is out of your home, you will still want to look into this coverage.
Typically, these policies have a blanket limit, which means there is one limit for all of the property at the listed location.
ABOPis a package that combines liability and property. Its advantage is that it usually costs less than if you buy standalone policies for liability and commercial property. Providers will typically let you add equipment coverage for your photography equipment.
Inland marine insurance is property coverage for your equipment. Unlike commercial property, inland marine follows the equipment and isn’t limited to a specific location. This coverage helps if you accidentally drop and break your camera or someone steals your gear from your car. Discuss whether this is included with a BOP or general liability when shopping for insurance.
Sometimes referred to as errors and omissions (E&O), this is for situations usually not covered by a liability policy. For example, your contract promises a couple that you will capture their wedding day perfectly. When the newlyweds receive the pictures, they discover you didn’t take any pictures of family members or key ceremony moments and failed to deliver on your promise. This would be a situation where you could file a claim for professional liability.
摄影师今天在线,你做这么多工作u should considercyber liability insurance. This protects your business from data breaches and cyberattacks by helping with the cost of notifying the parties involved, handling ransomware attacks, or ensuring your response complies with the related laws.
If you have employees, then you will need to look intoworkers’ compensation. This will help your employees if they get injured while on the job by handling medical and rehabilitation expenses and offering wage replacement.
Where To Buy Photographer’s Insurance
Most small business insurance providers will offer photography insurance, and you can check out our roundup of thebest photography insurance companies. Visit a company’s website or contact a local agent to get a quote started.
An alternative route to working with a provider is using a broker. A broker works on behalf of the customer to help them find the right insurance for their business by gathering quotes from multiple providers simultaneously. This lets you compare the price and coverage and then purchase a policy. Simply Business is an online small business insurance brokerage that can provide multiple quotes and allows you to purchase a policy online without speaking to anyone.
To Compare Costs Visit Simply Business
Whether you go through a provider or a broker, be prepared to answer questions about how many employees you have, your anticipated revenue, the types of work you photograph, and how long you have been in business.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
If you are a photographer or videographer who charges for your work, you need to consider purchasing insurance. If an event space contracts with you to take pictures, don’t assume its coverage extends to you. In fact, should something go wrong, they may first ask for proof of your insurance. Or if your office and showroom are in your home, odds are your homeowner’s policy won’t cover your videography equipment or any liability from your business.
Prices can vary from $200 to $800 annually. A general liability policy with The Hartford is approximately $259 annually—and this quote is for a $1 million limit with $18,000 in equipment coverage. Meanwhile, NEXT Insurance provided a quote for $16.67 a month for $1 million in coverage, with property coverage being an additional $17 monthly.
Photography insurance can protect your business from various scenarios—depending on the particular policies you include. Here are a few to consider:
- General liability:The officiant trips over your camera tripod and breaks their nose. This is an example of a third-party bodily injury claim.
- Professional liability:Because of the officiant’s broken nose, the wedding is delayed for 3 hours, impacting the couple’s departure for their honeymoon cruise. They decide to sue you. This is an example of a situation where professional liability insurance may step in and help.
- Property:While taking photos at a school dance, a guest knocks the camera out of your hand, causing it to fall and break. This is a claim you could file under your equipment coverage.
Bottom Line
As a professional photographer, people let you into their special moments so that you can capture and preserve those memories. To do that well, you have to invest in equipment, which will cost a hefty sum. Photography insurance for providers can bring you peace of mind—protecting your business, equipment, and employees—so that you and your clients can truly focus on the moment.
The Hartford offers coverage for all sizes and types of photographers, including drone insurance. You can get a quote online in minutes, and once you have the policy, you can count on top-quality customer service available 24/7.