The human mind is fragile. And hardships in one’s life decisions, career goals, or even relationship with peers can result in stress, paranoia, and lack of sell. As a mental health counselor, you are handling people who are at their most vulnerable. As a result, you take on a lot of responsibility and risk.Â
You need a liability insurance for mental health counselors if a client oversteps their boundaries or if you face a legal claim. There are different insurance covers you can get to insure against these risks. This post discusses some of these covers and discloses the median cost you can expect to pay for some of these premiums.
| CoverWallet | NEXT (Best) | Thimble | Hiscox | The Hartford | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Per occurrence limit | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000/$2,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000/$2,000,000 |
| Aggregate limit | $2,000,000 | $1,000,000/$2,000,000 | $1,000,000/$2,000,000 | $2,000,000 | $1,000,000/$2,000,000 |
| Products and completed operations aggregate limit | $2,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 |
| Advertising injury coverage aggregate limit | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 |
| Tenant’s legal liability coverage limit | $100,000 | $100,000 | $5,000 | $300,000 | $1,000,000 |
| Waiver of subrogation included? | Yes | No | Included | Can be included | No |
| Hired/non-owned auto liability coverage included? | Yes | No | Excluded | Can be included | Can be included |
| Equipment breakdown floater included? | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Can be included |
| Can you get a certificate of insurance online? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Name additional insureds? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Deductible | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
General liability insurance covers most of the typical business risks. They can include customer injury, advertising injury, and customer property damage. A client could slip into your psychology clinic and even break an arm. This mental health counselor insurance can cover such risks.
Additionally, you may pour coffee on the laptop or smartphone of your client. These items may be expensive to replace, and with general liability insurance, you can cover such costs. Some of these accidents happen even to the best mental health counselors, so it is essential that you won't be naïve and assume that you won't need general liability insurance for mental health counselors cover.
General professional liability insurance for mental health counselors can cover you for the following;
Claims of accidental damage to people's property, slander and libel accusations
Fire damage to the landlord's premises
Legal fees, medical bills, and compensation to the injured third party
Copyright infringement claimsÂ
Your client may sue you for injuries or property damage caused by your employees. The patient can sue under the principle of vicarious liability. The doctrine assumes that you are eligible for your employees' negligence. Therefore, you can be sued for any damage they cause to your patients. The good news is that this LMHC liability insurance can cover your employees, including volunteers and your temporary staff.
| CoverWallet | NEXT | Thimble (Best) | Hiscox | The Hartford | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Per occurrence limit | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000/$2,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 |
| Aggregate limit | $2,000,000 | $1,000,000/$2,000,000 | $1,000,000/$2,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $2,000,000 |
| Name additional insureds? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Waiver of subrogation included? | Yes | No | Yes | Can be included | No |
| License defense coverage included? | No | No | No | No | No |
| HIPAA coverage included? | No | No | No | No | No |
| Sexual harassment coverage included? | No | No | No | No | No |
| Deductible | $500 | $500 | $500 | $50/$10,000 | $500 |
As a mental health counselor, you may face a lot of challenging ethical decisions. You have to decide if a third party is facing a threat from your patient and whether you should report it to the police. The decisions you make may have certain legal hurdles. These legal challenges may cost you a fortune, and you should get malpractice insurance. Malpractice insurance offers you the following;
Legal help by hiring you a lawyer who has a comprehensive understanding of your state's malpractice laws. A good lawyer can give you a zealous defense and if the lawsuit is frivolous, the courts will dismiss it in no time. It is essential to have an experienced lawyer because he/she can develop the right strategies to ensure a lawsuit falls in your favor
Intervening to ensure that a patient doesn't sue you. An insurer may write letters to protect you from a lawsuit
Payment for the lawsuit. An insurer can prevent your practice from being bankrupt due to a settlement or a verdict
When you make some professional decisions that harm your client, you can be subject to a malpractice suit. Malpractice suits can be very problematic when mental health counseling without insurance as you might be required to shoulder hundred or even millions worth of settlement. Some of the common scenarios leading to a malpractice suit are
Failing to report child abuse
Neglecting the duty to warn. Some therapists have been subject to malpractice lawsuits when their clients have committed violent acts
Failure by the therapist to protect their client, for example, failure to prevent suicide
Providing advice that does the opposite of what you intended
These issues may happen at any time. It’s even possible for clients to sue even though the therapist may not have done anything. Therefore, it is essential you get a professional liability insurance for mental health counselors.
Malpractice insurance can help you in a lot of ways. It can help you spend less time worrying and focus on treating your patients. Also, malpractice insurance for mental health counselors can help guarantee financial security as it caters to investigation fees, settlements, and court costs, which can be hefty.
Litigating a malpractice suit can demand hundreds if not thousands of dollars. Also, it can prevent you from operating your business because it is time-consuming. However, professional liability insurance for mental health counselors can save you from this by getting you a lawyer and handling all the issues with the trial. You can, therefore, continue assisting patients without worrying about losing a significant amount of finances.
Also, some of the complaints may be before a licensing board, and the insurance company can represent you before the licensing board. The lawyer can even save your practicing license, which many therapists lose due to malpractice complaints. Therefore, LMHC malpractice insurance is one you must get.
