Engineering companies and business owners work closely with clients to create unique projects. While you might be a skilled engineer with lots of experience, you cannot rule out the possibility of mistakes. When you make a mistake that results in your clients suffering financial losses, they can sue your business for damages.
This is why you should consider getting engineer insurance for your business. Particularly, professional liability insurance for engineers helps cover professional engineers against claims of errors, omissions, or negligence in the professional services provided. Some of the policies under it include professional indemnity insurance for engineers, errors and omissions insurance for professional engineers and engineer business insurance. And it is quite affordable.
Learn more about professional liability insurance cost and coverage options for engineers in this guide. To shed light on the importance of insurance for engineers, we will discuss what the policy covers and why you need to purchase it. We also highlight the average engineer insurance cost and some of the factors that determine its average cost.
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Engineer Insurance
Professional engineer insurance is insurance specifically tailored to the nature of an engineer’s work. It covers costs when an employee or subcontractor gets injured or when a client suffers and asks for a refund for a half-baked output or property damage.
This insurance doesn’t cover falls, slips, and similar accidents. Therefore, it’s best to bundle engineer insurance with worker’s comp, general, and professional liability insurance to have more coverage.
Also, an engineer’s insurance will have these insurance policies as additional options:
Equipment policy - accounts for repair costs for equipment like tractors, bulldozers, cranes, and trucks.
Machinery policy - covers repair costs machinery such as grinders, jackhammers, and pulleys
Electronic equipment policy - cover repair costs for equipment that use electricity like a welding machine
Contractor’s policy - covers costs made by subcontractors for injuries incurred while working
Engineering insurance isn’t implemented as a one-size-fits-all insurance policy. Insurance companies modify the terms and coverage according to the type of work an engineer does (e.g., electrical, construction, heating, mechanical, marine). And so, you’re sure to get coverage that best fits your needs.
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We hope this doesn’t happen now, but one day you will encounter clients who will accuse you of being negligent and unprofessional with your work. This might result in costly lawsuits and settlements. Without an engineer liability insurance policy watching your back, you’ll spend at least $10,000.
To protect yourself from this situation, we suggest you get engineer liability insurance. This is a type-specific type of professional indemnity insurance and will account for:
Physical injuries caused by poor design and construction of a client’s project
Equipment malfunction resulting in property damage and bodily injuries to a client
Failure to finish a project within a timeframe you promised a client
Lawsuits made by a client accusing you of not doing the job properly
Careless handling of asbestos
Since engineering is a broad profession, engineering liability insurance comes in numerous varieties, such as:
Civil engineer professional indemnity insurance
Construction engineer professional indemnity insurance
Structural engineer professional indemnity insurance
Design engineer professional indemnity insurance
Engineering consultant professional indemnity insurance
If you make errors that result in financial losses for your client, engineering insurance protects you against such claims. This is why you should consider getting architects and engineers professional liability insurance policy for your engineering business.
Professional liability insurance or errors and ommissions insurance for engineers is essential for your business. Professional indemnity insurance for engineers covers your company against lawsuits that a third party might file against you. This could be as a result of damages due to your professional wrongdoing.
It is important to note that professional liability insurance for engineers doesn't cover general claims such as falls and slips, which are usually covered under commercial construction insurance . Engineering errors and omissions (E&O) insurance only covers wrongdoings related to your engineering profession. This helps you know which policy suits your business and how it protects your profession.
Generally, an engineer professional liability policy covers your claim up to specified limits. This policy also covers legal expenses like attorney fees, miscellaneous legal costs, and settlements.
Errors and omissions insurance for professional engineers also protects your business when one of your employees makes a mistake that results in financial losses for your client. If you are an established engineering business with several employees, you will need PI insurance for engineers. This policy protects your business as well as employees against various claims.
Civil engineers design, plan and analyze a construction project. Lots of things that can go wrong for them. For example, civil engineers might make a faulty design or structure without knowing it, implement the wrong concept for a building, or recommend using inappropriate materials for a project. For these mistakes, civil engineers can turn to their professional indemnity for civil engineers, which costs $800 - $2,000 annually depending on deductibles, coverage, and the amount payable.
Construction engineers work hand in hand with civil engineers. While civil engineers are concerned with design and planning, construction engineers realize the building project. Construction engineers’ professional indemnity insurance applies to harmful situations resulting from a failure to understand and carry out plans well. The average cost of annual premiums is $800 - $5,000.
The job of structural engineers is to evaluate building projects from start to finish. Simply put, what they do is ensure that construction follows the standards that ensure safety and durability. A mistake that some structural engineers make is overlooking defects, which might incur losses and injuries for a client. When a claim is made, structural engineers can turn to professional indemnity insurance for structural engineers, which costs $4,000 - $10,000 annually on average.
Engineering consultants, such as safety consultants and security consultants, help with administrative and technical tasks so that engineers can focus on more critical tasks. Still, though their job is not as hectic, mistakes can be committed. An insurance that will save them for major expenses is professional indemnity insurance for engineering consultants. It covers errors and omissions in crafting and preparing documents. Professional indemnity insurance for engineering consultants costs $2,000 - $4,000 annually.
As a design engineer, you must get operating engineers insurance. In your designer role, you are focused on engineering the design process that demands high expertise. No matter how skilled you are as a design engineer, there is always the risk of making mistakes.
This is why engineering contractor insurance is essential for your business. It protects you against such cases and prevents financial losses. Some civil engineering insurance policies also cover claims related to design engineering.
Apart from the insurance policies discussed above, there are other types of insurance that engineers can consider. They include;
This insurance policy protects rented or owned buildings or equipment at your engineering firm. Some of the protected items in this policy include computers, toolboxes, protective equipment, wrenches, and jacks.
This is a crucial insurance for engineering firms. When your income stops due to various reasons, this insurance policy helps cover it. The risk of not generating income due to equipment damage or failure is prevented by this policy.
This is one of the most comprehensive types of engineer business insurance. It basically combines three types of insurance coverages. The policy helps protect engineering businesses from a wide range of risks including property damage.
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However, every business is unique. This means that professional engineer insurance costs vary depending on various factors. For instance, the type of insurance company you purchase the policy from could affect the price.
Furthermore, the amount of coverage you'll get also affects pricing. In insurance, more coverage means more expensive premiums and cheaper premiums means lesser coverage.
Deductibles will also affect the price too. If you decide to make the deductible of your policy higher, you will enjoy cheaper premiums. On the other hand, if you decide to go for lower deductibles, your premiums will be pricier.
To have more idea about the price, take a look at this table that shows the rates of the best engineer insurance companies:
| Company | Cost per month | Cost per year | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| CoverWallet | $29.00 | $348.00 | Engineer insurance online quotes comparison |
| Thimble | $35.00 | $420.00 | Freelance engineers |
| Next | $38.00 | $456.00 | Fastest policy |
| Hiscox | $40.00 | $480.00 | Bigger engineering companies |
The average cost of professional liability insurance for engineers is $150 per month or $1,800 annually. Like any other insurance cost, several factors affect professional liability insurance for engineers.
For instance, the type of policy you choose could affect the cost of insurance. Similarly, the size of your engineering business affects the cost of professional liability insurance for engineers. Engineering insurance companies could also offer a different price range for their policies.
Therefore, it is essential to consider all of these factors when purchasing an insurance policy. This is crucial because engineering insurance coverage is vital for your engineering business.
In any business where you deal with heat and gas, you face a wide range of risks - heaters or boilers can explode, gas can leak, and pipes can cause burns. Working as a heating engineer is never easy indeed.
The chances of getting involved in an accident as a heating engineer are very high. To give you a concrete idea, 170 boiler explosions were recorded in 2019 which killed 259 and injured 555.
Heating engineer insurance covers any professional qualified to work on gas boilers and central heating. In businesses that need certification and qualification to implement, the risk of filing for an insurance claim becomes prevalent. This is why you need to know what your heating engineer business requires.
For instance, if you have a large team of employees, you will need a more comprehensive insurance cover. With heating engineer insurance, all claims resulting from professional negligence are covered. For instance, this insurance policy protects you when a client files a lawsuit for failure to install heaters property, installation of defective heater, and errors while doing repairs.
There are many commercial insurance companies for engineers. However, not all of these companies offer the best insurance policies for engineers. To make things easier, we have sampled some of the best insurance companies and what they are best for. To get the best value for your money though, be sure to click the 'Get Quotes' button, complete the questionnaire and compare engineer insurance quotes online side by side from the best engineering insurers out there.
This is an online business insurance management platform that aims to help businesses manage their insurance policies. If you want to get the best quote comparison, Coverwallet will be an excellent option.
This insurance management company offers the best policy comparison. If you are looking to get comprehensive insurance cover at an affordable price, this company will help you get it.
Easy to use
Free online quotes available
Well-organized platform with online policy management in one place
Top commercial insurers
Live chat with agents
Online brokerage and not a carrier, if that could be considered a con and not a pro
Average cost: $29 a month for a $1 million general liability coverage
Best for: Engineer insurance online quotes comparison
Our rating: 10/10
Thimble Insurance has been in existence for a long time. Its experience in the industry makes it an ideal option for engineers looking for comprehensive coverage. It also offers tailored coverage that is vital for any engineering business.
Thimble prides itself in offering comprehensive insurance for engineers. Its policies work best for freelance engineers due to the claims they cover. Other engineers can also benefit immensely from their tailored policies.
24/7 claims support
You can pause policies for 30 days
Flexible policy terms
Not available in every state
Average cost: $35 per month for a $1 million general liability coverage
Best for: Freelance engineers
Our rating: 9/10
As much as Next Insurance is a newcomer in the insurance industry, it offers comprehensive business insurance for engineers. If you are looking for tailored insurance that protects your business against various claims, consider Next Insurance.
Next insurance company offers comprehensive coverage against various claims. It is highly customizable and you can get tailored cover for your engineering business. It also offers one of the fastest policies.
Easy online application
You can get up to a 10% discount
Affordable
Not available in some states
Average cost: $38 per month for a $1 million general liability coverage
Best for : Fastest policy
Our rating: 8/10
Hiscox is one of the most established insurance companies. As an engineer, you can get tailored insurance cover from this company. Its policies are tailored to meet the needs of your insurance business.
Thanks to its expansive experience in the industry, Hiscox offers insurance cover to almost any type of insurance business. Its policies are ideal both for established and small engineering businesses.
Comprehensive insurance cover
Available in most countries
Quick claim responsiveness
Could be costly
Average cost: $40 per month for a $1 million general liability coverage
Best for: Bigger engineering companies
Our rating: 7/10
Engineering is a profession that allows you to earn a considerable amount of income. However, with high returns comes high risks. That’s why if you’re not insured, you might find yourself broke after paying for significant expenses caused by mistakes. Protect yourself from exposure, decide to get engineer insurance, compare quotes using our website, and purchase from the company that best caters to your needs.
This place is an absolute joke of a company and should be ashamed of the way they conduct business. I was hurt on the job at the end of July and it took them just shy of 7 weeks to issue out a paycheck to me. Yes the amount was back dated but still. Not many have the luxury of not receiving a paycheck for almost 2 months. To top it all off, the original adjuster marked me down for the wrong state which caused a problem from the get go, I've had 3 different adjusters now since each one can't seem to figure out the simplicity of my claim. All my paperwork which includes, my job, house, and drs visits all are from the same state and city but yet some how I have been filed under a completely different state 1500 miles away. They do not answer your phone calls or emails no matter how many you leave. I've had to escalate my frustrations to the supervisors of each of these individuals in order to even get some kind of response. I've had more communication and information given to me about my claim from the customer service representatives then the actual adjusters.......... please tell me how that works?! A serious overhaul needs to happen here in order to serve your clients the way they deserve to be taken care of. 10/10 do not recommend this company to a single soul on earth
I have never had the displeasure of working with a more incompetent and disrespectful person in my life. I’m an injured worker and the adjuster that was assigned to my case was named Carrie Furgeson. In the past 6 weeks that I’ve been injured and out of work I have only been able to get ahold of her twice, not for lack of trying. I have left countless voicemails, countless emails, and she ignores them all. When I am finally able to get ahold of her I’m greeted with terrible customer service. She is rude, she talks over me and I’m hardly able to get a word in edgewise. She spelled my name wrong on my documents even after I spelled it for her properly countless times, this caused a whole new issue with my bank. I have bill collectors from the hospital calling me demanding payment and Carrie Furgeson won’t do a single thing to help, or to get them paid. All of my documentation is in Colorado, my job is in Colorado, my address is in Colorado, all my Dr offices and appointments have been in Colorado and Carrie still managed to hold my claim because she wasn’t sure what state she needed to file it under. It’s been 6 weeks since my Injury and my company still hasn’t received the wage paperwork to fill out so they can get me my correct wages. When she’s not ignoring me she’s answering my questions with “I don’t know” well I don’t know how she got this job, because apparently she doesn’t know anything about it. She is a disgusting morose individual inside and out and I genuinely wish her the worst in all of her future endeavors. I highly recommend you don’t use this company. Please if you are a business owner and your looking into this company please don’t use them. I’m sure they have the cheapest payment and that’s why companies use them in the first place, but you will be doing your employees a grave disservice by forcing them to venture into this absolute dumpster fire of a company. I would rate 0/5 if possible but 1 was the lowest I was allowed.
Their general liability insurance purchase process is simply the best online experience I've ever had in my life!
As long as they cover your line of business, you're literally covered! best rates, best coverage, best online experience, best professionals, can't be happier that I chose them!
It really can't get any better than this... wow
Not all those who wander are lost.
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