Pet owners appreciate the pet boarding services you provide. But even so, it's critical to understand, similar to catteries, that your pet boarding business is always exposed to risks.
Even for an experienced and professional pet boarder like you, it's impossible to know how a dog will react after being separated from its owner and left to stay overnight in a new setting. It may become aggressive and bite one of your groomers, pet trainers, or any other employee.
In another case, a dog groomer you hired might accidentally injure a pet. The thing is, he might not have a pet groomer’s insurance package. In this case, your own insurance can fill in and cover the costs.
Pet boarding insurance can protect you and your business from the financial losses caused by the unexpected. Just like a dog feels protected and safe when you're walking them on a leash, pet daycare insurance puts you at ease.
In case your client, a pet, or an employee suffers an injury or property damage because of your business activities, you can relax knowing that your insurance will cover the financial costs and your pet care business will continue to boom.
The pet care industry is pretty diverse, with various operators providing different solutions. Basically, small businesses involved in the care and custody of domestic pets need pet boarding insurance.
Pet boarding insurance is a packaged and tailored insurance program that’s made up of general liability, professional liability, commercial property, animal bailee, workers' compensation, and other types of business insurance. Related insurance programs are dog walking insurance and pet sitting insurance.
The majority of insurance companies shy away from home-based pet boarding facilities. And so, the usual pet boarding insurance package might not be available. Nonetheless, you can get covered through pet home boarding insurance.
Pet sitting is different from pet boarding. Therefore, this might be an excluded activity in your insurance program. Consider investing in pet sitting insurance in case you deploy employees to a client’s house to provide pet care services.
Yes. Some insurance companies grant coverage to kennels and dog boarding businesses through their pet boarding insurance package.
The main benefit of pet boarding insurance is that it grants immediate protection against financial losses caused by liability and property risks.
Another perk of investing in tailored insurance for pet boarding business is that it helps you alleviate the worries of fur parents in case something happens. It’s because this insurance policy allows you to immediately cover veterinary expenses in case something happens to the pets.
Good reputation is the third benefit. After all, with the appropriate insurance for pets, pet owners will see your business as trustworthy.
General liability and professional liability policies are the two types of pet boarding liability insurance. You need either or both to satisfy clients who ask for proof of insurance before leaving their pet in your custody.
| CoverWallet | NEXT (Best) | Thimble | Hiscox | Pet Care | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Per occurrence limit | $1,000,000 | $500,000/$1,000,000 | $1,000,000/$2,000,000 | $300,000/$2,000,000 | $1,000,000 |
| Aggregate limit | $2,000,000 | $1,000,000/$2,000,000 | $1,000,000/$2,000,000 | $300,000/$2,000,000 | $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 | $100,000 | $100,000 |
| Waiver of subrogation included? | Yes | No | Included | Can be included | No |
| Hired/non-owned auto liability coverage included? | Yes | No | Excluded | Can be included | No |
| Equipment breakdown floater included? | No | Yes | Yes | Can be included | Yes |
| 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 |
Pet boarding general liability insurance covers the basic risks associated with your business activities. They include:
Third-party bodily injury
Third-party property damage
Personal injury
Advertising injury (e.g., slander, libel, and copyright infringement)
Use the table above to see which insurance company offers the best general liability insurance for pet boarding facilities.
General liability insurance, which is also offered in pet training insurance programs, can be used in situations where third parties, such as clients or visitors, experience an accident in your pet boarding business’s premises that results in bodily injuries or property damage.
For example, a dog might escape its enclosure, run down the hallway, and then stumble upon an unsuspecting client who is about to pick up her pet. In this case, general liability insurance will cover medical treatment and legal expenses if the injured client decides to sue.
In another occurrence, a customer purchases dog food from your facility, but the dog dies because the food was unsuitable for consumption. The customer discovers that the item was actually recalled, but your employees forgot to remove it from the shelves. The pet owner files a lawsuit. Your pet boarding liability insurance can cover the legal defense fees and any compensation to them.
Yes. The general liability policy for your pet boarding business comes with products and completed operations coverage. This will cover costs if a client you’ve had in the past decides to file a claim in the present time due to the bodily injuries or property damage caused by your business’s products and services.
A limit is the maximum amount of money an insurance policy can provide. The general liability insurance for pet boarding businesses has a $1 million-$3 million per occurrence and aggregate limit.
| CoverWallet | NEXT | Thimble (Best) | Hiscox | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Per occurrence limit | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000/$2,000,000 | $1,000,000 |
| Aggregate limit | $2,000,000 | $2,000,000 | $1,000,000/$2,000,000 | $2,000,000 |
| Name additional insureds? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Waiver of subrogation included? | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| License defense coverage included? | No | No | No | No |
| Deductible | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 |
Negligence and errors are also common reasons for clients to file a claim against your pet boarding business. You can cover these exposures by including a professional liability policy in your animal boarding insurance package. Use the table above to see which insurance company offers the best professional liability insurance.
These are some of the situations where professional liability insurance can help your pet boarding facility:
A client’s cat breaks out of its confinement and gets lost
An employee forgot to follow the client’s reminders and fed the dog a food that it's allergic to
A client’s pet is being hurt by another pet, and your employee failed to rescue it
Your pet boarding facility failed to take the client’s sick dog to the vet’s clinic
You're liable for the animals in your pet boarding facility. Animal bailee insurance provides comprehensive protection in case something happens to the pets in your care, custody, and control. Coverage applies when a client’s pet’s dies or gets injured because of:
Fire
Theft
Vandalism
Escape
Flood
Attack
Food allergy and poisoning
Other covered perils
Animal bailee insurance is designed to cover the following costs:
Vet expenses for treating the client’s pet
Reimbursement for the value of the client’s pet (in case of death)
Cost for public relations and rewards (if ever the client’s pet gets lost
Pet ambulance expenses
Animal bailee insurance is usually available as an automatic or optional add-on to the general liability policy of pet boarding insurance programs. This has a $5,000-$25,000 per occurrence and aggregate limit.
Get all the best quotes from leading providers in a click of a button!
| CoverWallet | NEXT (Best) | Thimble | Hiscox | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Building coverage limit (minimum) | $50,000 | $25,000 | $25,000/$500,000 | $25,000 |
| Contents coverage limit (minimum) | $50,000 | $25,000 | $25,000/$500,000 | $15,000 |
| Outdoor signs | Excluded | $2,500 | Excluded | Included |
| Accounts receivable | Excluded | Excluded | $5,000/$10,000 | Included |
| Money and securities | Excluded | $2,500 | $1,000 | Included |
| Lock and keys | Excluded | $2,500 | Excluded | Included |
| Business interruption floater | Excluded | Included | Included | Included |
| Equipment breakdown floater | Excluded | Included | Excluded | Included |
| Inland marine insurance floater | Excluded | Excluded | $10,000 | Excluded |
| Employee dishonesty floater | Excluded | $5,000 | $2,500 | Excluded |
Pet boarding facilities rely heavily on their real property to operate, which means any disaster that damages the building's structural integrity can be devastating. Commercial property insurance enables you to avoid this. Use the table above to see which insurance company offers the best commercial property insurance for pet boarding facilities.
Commercial property insurance covers the damage or destruction of business property that’s caused by fire, sprinkler leakage, vandalism, theft, weather, sinkhole collapse, volcanic action, aircraft, vehicles, and other covered perils.
Commercial property insurance covers the building of your pet boarding facility. Coverage applies regardless if your physical location is owned, rented, or leased.
Contents coverage is also included. This allows commercial property insurance to cover the value of crates, leashes, pet food refrigerators, relief stations, air conditioning systems, pet food, grooming equipment, and other valuables.
| CoverWallet | NEXT (Best) | Hiscox | Thimble | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General liability aggregate limit | $2,000,000 | $500,000/$2,000,000 | $300,000/$2,000,000 | $1,000,000/$2,000,000 |
| Commercial property coverage limit | $50,000 | $25,000 | $25,000 | $25,000/$500,000 |
| Optional policies can be added? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Name additional insureds for free? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| BOP discount? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
A business owner’s policy fuses the function of general liability and commercial property insurance. That said, you can use this small animal boarding insurance policy to cover claims and recover financial losses in case business property gets lost or damaged. Use the table above to see which insurance company offers the best business owner’s policy for pet boarding businesses.
A business owner’s policy provides a $1 million-$2 million general liability coverage and $25,000-$50,000 commercial property coverage. There are insurance companies that allow you to customize limits.
Animal bailee coverage can be included in a business owner’s policy depending on which insurance company you decide to work with. So far, the most common inclusions that we know of are hired/non-owned auto liability coverage and business interruption insurance.
| NEXT (Best) | Thimble | Pet Care | Hiscox | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aggregate limit | $3,000/$10,000 | $2,500/$5,000 | $50,000 | $15,000/$25,000 |
| Covers hired and borrowed equipment? | $3,000/$10,000 | $2,500/$5,000 | $50,000 | No |
| Miscellaneous equipment also covered? | $5,000/$10,000 | No | Yes | Yes |
| Offered as an endorsement to general liability insurance? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Deductible | $500 | $500 | $0 | $0 |
Tools and equipment insurance will cover repair and replacement expenses if dog crates, air conditioners, and other dog boarding equipment sustain damage or become destroyed because of fire, theft, vandalism, and other covered perils. Use the table above to see which insurance company offers the best tools and equipment for pet boarding facilities.
Unintentional third-party bodily injury and property damage are not the only events that can dent your pet boarding business' finances and reputation. There are so many facets of your business operation that bear their fair share of risks. Here are other types of policies you should have in your big and small pet boarding insurance:
Business interruption insurance-This insurance policy is designed to reimburse lost income and operating costs if you're forced to halt your business because of a covered peril. The commonly covered events include fire, relocation, renovation, and economic crisis
Commercial auto insurance–The chances are that you have a business vehicle used to transport pets to the vet. Insuring your commercial vehicle protects your finances if the car is involved in an accident and causes third-party bodily injuries and property damages. The insurance covers the medical expenses, as well as repairs and replacements of destroyed property
Workers' compensation insurance–Most states require businesses with employees to have workers' compensation insurance; this insurance policy provides medical and financial benefits to employees if they suffer work-related illnesses or injuries. It's a crucial insurance policy for pet boarding establishments because the employees are usually at higher risk of injuries, such as animal bites, scratches, and illnesses
Cyber liability insurance-Cyber liability insurance takes care of costs if your pet boarding facility’s website or computers gets breached and sensitive information, as well as important files, gets damaged or lost. You can use this to cover lawsuits, public relations expenses, and data breach containment services
Pet boarding is a service that requires a lot of time and resources. And so, you want to make sure that your clients can adequately pay.
To answer the question, clients can pay provided that they have pet insurance that covers boarding. This is called the boarding fee or boarding coverage inclusion.
But note that pet insurance will only cover boarding fees if the parent can’t take care of his pet due to an underlying sickness and needs your help.
| Cost per Month | Cost per Year | Deductible | |
|---|---|---|---|
| General liability insurance | $39 | $468 | $0-$500 |
| Professional liability insurance | $50 | $600 | $500-$1,000 |
| Commercial property insurance | $41 | $492 | $1,000-$2,000 |
| Business owner's policy | $80 | $960 | $1,500 |
| Animal bailee insurance | $110 | $1,320 | $500 |
| Commercial auto insurance | $60 | $720 | $500 |
| Workers compensation insurance | $70 | $840 | $2,500 |
| Cyber liability insurance | $42 | $504 | $1,000 |
The average pet boarding insurance cost is $39 per month or $468 per year for a $1 million general liability policy. This estimate is based on the following factors:
Business location
Number of employees
Projected annual income
Pre-occurrence policy limit
Aggregate policy limit
Deductible
Your choice of insurance company greatly affects the cost of premiums. That said, here’s a table showing the cost of the $1 million general liability policy from carriers we recommend you work with:
| Cost per Month | Cost per Year | Best for | |
|---|---|---|---|
| NEXT | $26 | $312 | Best overall; Fastest general liability insurance for pet boarding businesses |
| CoverWallet | $28 | $336 | Comparing pet boarding insurance quotes online |
| Tivly | $29 | $348 | Comparing pet boarding insurance quotes over the phone |
| Hiscox | $31 | $372 | Pet boarding insurance with automatic renewal |
| Thimble | $35 | $420 | On-demand insurance for pet boarding businesses |
| Travelers | $37 | $444 | Risk management resources |
| Pet Care | $41.25 | $495.00 | Animal bailee insurance for pet boarding businesses |
Get all the best quotes from leading providers in a click of a button!
Many insurance companies provide products and services to the pet industry. What you need is a carrier that understands the industry and its risks and can offer custom-tailored insurance to meet your unique business needs. If you're looking for comprehensive coverage, here are the best pet boarding insurance companies to consider. Read to know their pros, cons, and cost of a $1 million general liability policy.
Best overall
Issues an online proof of insurance instantly
Fastest general liability insurance for pet boarding facilities
Great customer service and reputation
Excellent rates
Outstanding value for money
Get a 10% discount if you buy two or more policies
Couldn’t find any
Compared to other renowned insurance companies, NEXT is a relative newcomer in the industry, having been established in 2016. It's a technology-first insurance carrier that sells its products online, making it the best insurer for small pet boarders who want to manage their insurance policies online.
NEXT provides basic insurance for pet boarding business in three plans, allowing customers to choose the package that best suits their coverage needs. Each plan combines general liability, workers' compensation, and commercial property coverage (with a standard per-occurrence limit of $25,000). The only difference is the general liability coverage limit and workers' comp' per accident limit.
Basic plan–General liability per-occurrence limit: $500,000; workers' comp per-accident limit: $100,000
Premiere plan–General liability per-occurrence limit: $1 million; workers' comp per-accident limit: $500,000
Deluxe plan–General liability per-occurrence limit: $500,000; workers' comp per-accident limit $1 million
While other online insurance companies are financially backed by their parent companies, Next is independently rated for financial strength by A.M Best–one of the top insurance rating agencies. That means it handles and pays out claims on its own.
Best for: Best overall; Fastest general liability insurance for pet boarding businesses
Average cost: $26 per month
Our rating: 10/10
Compare quotes and purchase insurance online
Easy online policy management
Cancel a coverage anytime
General liability insurance comes with a waiver of subrogation
Not an insurance company but an insurance broker
CoverWallet isn’t an insurance company but an insurance broker. Nonetheless, it sells its own tailored coverage by curating the quotes of its partners.
You can avail the needed policies through CoverWallet’s pet care service insurance program. These features the following:
$1 million-$2 million general liability insurance
$1 million professional liability insurance
$50,000 commercial property insurance
Business owner’s policy
Workers compensation insurance
If you talk with a representative while purchasing coverage online, it’s possible to endorse animal bailee coverage to your general liability policy.
Best for: Comparing pet boarding insurance quotes online
Average cost: $28 per month
Our rating: 10/10
Responsive customer service
Compare quotes over the phone
Curates the limits of its policies based on your needs
A partner of many reputable insurance companies
You need to call to get a quote
Tivly’s pet boarding insurance offers a general liability policy, animal bailee coverage, professional liability, and more. Call and talk with a representative to compare quotes over the phone.
Best for: Comparing pet boarding insurance quotes over the phone
Average cost: $29 per month
Our rating: 10/10
Sells a short-term general liability insurance
A partner of Tivly
Allows for convenience
Quickly issues an estimate of your rates
Only covers up to $500,000 worth of commercial property
Thimble covers your pet boarding business through its pet services insurance package which consists of a business owner’s policy, workers' compensation insurance, and general liability insurance.
Thimble’s general liability insurance has a $1 million-$2 million per occurrence and aggregate limit. You can add a $1 million-$2 million professional liability insurance to this.
The business owner’s policy, on the other hand, offers a $1 million-$2 million general liability coverage and $25,000-$500,000 commercial property coverage.
Thimble, by the way, also sells a short-term general liability coverage that lasts for hours, days, weeks, or months. You can use this as an emergency policy if ever your existing insurance policy has expired.
Best for: On-demand insurance for pet boarding businesses
Average cost: $35 per month
Our rating: 9/10
Automatic policy renewal
Worldwide coverage
Fast to handle claims
Consistently good AM-Best ratings
Earns a lot of negative feedbacks from BBB
Hiscox covers pet boarding facilities through its insurance program for pet hotels, motels, and daycare businesses. What you can avail are business owner’s policy and cyber liability insurance.
The business owner’s policy offers a $300,000 general liability insurance and $25,000 commercial property insurance. These limits can be customized. Hiscox’s cyber liability insurance has a $250,000 per occurrence and aggregate limit.
Best for: Pet boarding insurance with automatic renewal
Average cost: $31 per month
Our rating: 9/10
Specializes in the needs of pet professionals and businesses
Online quotes
Comprehensive business equipment coverage
You might be referred to a partner
Pet Care covers pet boarding business through its dog boarding insurance program. This consists of general liability insurance, professional liability insurance, animal bailee insurance, and veterinary medical expenses insurance. Note that you’re only eligible if you board less than 6 pets. In case your operations are more expansive, Pet Care Insurance will refer you to its partner, CNA.
Best for: Animal bailee insurance for pet boarding businesses
Average cost: $41.25 per month
Our rating: 9/10
Provides an online portal for easy workers-comp claim monitoring
Large selection of risk management resources
Insurance is available in all 50 states, including Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico
Online quotes are not available
Travelers is one of the longest-standing insurance companies. It was established in 1863 and has since expanded its insurance products and services to pet boarding businesses.
The New York City-based insurance carrier offers a range of business insurance policies, including pet boarding liability coverage, commercial property, commercial auto coverage, cyber liability, workers' compensation, and professional liability insurance.
The company also provides a business owner's policy (BOP). With Travelers, you can choose to introduce optional policies to your BOP coverage. You can add the following types of policies:
Business income and extra expenses
Employee dishonesty coverage
Coverage for medication spoilage
Apart from pet boarding insurance, Travelers has an extensive library of risk management tools and resources. You can access the company's risk control portal to access articles and training programs geared toward risk mitigation.
Travelers' animal boarding insurance is available in all 50 states including Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C. The only limitation is that the company doesn't provide online quotes.
Best for: Risk management resources
Average cost: $37 per month
Our rating: 8/10
Use anyone except Employers. Period. They are non-transparent and shameful. After I complained long enough to warrant a call from a supervisor, the supervisor called back from a PRIVATE NUMBER (no caller ID), left a message that they are not reversing their decision (without any communication with me), and failed to leave a phone number for me to call back. She was hiding! They also fact find via email and phone calls, which is terrific for speed and communication. However, after setting a precedence of email or phone calls, they send time sensitive information via email, without any heads up... they are hoping you miss it and forfeit via expiration. Evil policies. Go elsewhere.
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!
Not all those who wander are lost.
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