Property Management Insurance

What types of coverage do property managers need?

Every individual person and building will have their own specific insurance needs and requirements. These can be based on factors such as your building’s location, if it’s a commercial or residential property or whether you own or lease the building. Thankfully, there are many different coverage options available to you. The following five coverage options are some of the most common and highly recommended for property managers to include in their policies.

1. Commercial General Liability

Almost every single business regardless of the industry should have this type of coverage. Commercial general liability protects you and your business against other’s claims of bodily injury or property damage. This coverage could help to cover the costs of medical bills, legal bills or property repairs and replacements. The types of claims below are ones that you may face as a property manager that can be protected under this coverage.

Resident Injury

This claim can arise when a resident who lives on your property falls and injures themselves. Even if you were not present at the time of their injury, they could potentially sue you for the damages.

Bodily Injury

Similar to the above, if someone injures themselves while on your property, they could present you with a lawsuit. This claim different from resident injury in one way: the claimant does not have to reside on your property in order to sue you.

Third Party Property Damage

If you must enter a tenant’s home, and accidentally break or damage something, they could potentially sue you. Commercial general liability can protect you against these types of claims.

2. Commercial Property

This type of coverage is another important one for any business manager to consider including on their policy. Commercial property insurance protects the physical property of your business. This can include, but is not limited to, your actual building and its structure, furniture, supplies and inventory. Having this coverage can help you with the costs associated with repairs and replacements. Some perils that you can be protected against with this coverage are fires, hail, theft, lightning, smoke and vandalism.

3. Consumer Deposit and Commission Protection

This specific coverage is 100 per cent recommended to any business that deals directly with consumer’s private information, such as credit card details and banking information. Consumer Deposit will protect your tenants in the event of fraud or misappropriation of their money. Commission Protection will protect you from missing out on any sort of commission due to said fraud or misappropriation. This coverage is especially important if you have any staff that is working for you. If an employee of yours commits fraud or misappropriation, it will directly reflect on you and can greatly affect your business.

4. Professional Liability

Professional liability insurance is in place specifically to protect businesses who offer some sort of service. You will be covered against the repercussions of a claim including legal costs, settlements, attorney fees and any judgements that you must pay. For property managers in particular, here are three common claim scenarios that will be covered under professional liability.

Wrongful Eviction

The process of evicting a tenant is one that is quite expansive, and must be followed correctly. If a tenant thinks that they have been evicted for the wrong reason, or if you haven’t followed the correct procedure, they can take you to court. Professional liability coverage can help to cover the costs associated with these types of lawsuits.

Tenant Discrimination

If a tenant (current, prospective or past) thinks that they have been subjected to unfair treatment due to discrimination of any sort, they can engage you in a lawsuit. Discrimination claims can be made if the tenant feels that you have acted unlawfully when choosing who to rent to, their rent price or when specifying any other conditions. Discrimination laws state that you cannot treat someone unfairly due to their gender, age, race religion, sexual orientation, marital status, pregnancy or disability status.

Errors and Omission

This aspect of professional liability will protect you and your business if you are facing any sort of legal action due to your own or one of your employee’s negligence. Errors and omission covers a broad rand of claims, including things such as document loss, conflicts regarding damages, and errors pertaining to security deposits.

How much does property managers insurance cost?

The total cost of each individual property manager’s policy will differ from customer to customer. Firstly, every policy will include different types of coverages depending on your specific needs. A general rule of thumb is that the more coverages included on a policy, the more expensive it will be.

Secondly, the cost will differ depending on a number of factors relating to your business. These factors can include:

• The location of your building
• The number of employees you have
• If you own or rent your property
• Your credit score
• The size of your building
• Your claims history

Are you looking for property manager’s insurance?

Are you the manager of a property, or do you simply have more questions about property managers insurance? Get in touch with one of our licensed insurance professionals.

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