What Insurance Do Nurses Need?
As a registered nurse or nurse practitioner, your patients depend on your medical expertise and care. Nursing, though, can come with risks. Professional liability insurance is necessary to protect yourself on the job.
In the case that a claim results in a lawsuit, nurse liability insurance can help cover the legal costs and damages associated with bodily injury or harm due to negligence.
What is professional liability insurance for Canadian nurses?
Nurse professional liability insurance, or nurse practitioner liability insurance, is a specific type of insurance coverage that protects nurses, registered nurses, and other related practitioners against claims of negligence or malpractice that have allegedly caused patient injuries or harm.
You may also hear it called nurse malpractice insurance or errors and omissions insurance.
What does it cover?
Professional liability insurance could cover the legal costs for negligence claims or bodily injury. Here are some examples:
- Substandard treatment
- Failure to attend a patient
- Failure in consultation or referral
- Failure in diagnosis
- Failure to warn or protect third parties
Nurse liability insurance can come in two categories: Claims-based and per occurrence.
With a claims-based insurance policy, there’s coverage if the policy is in place when the incident is known and the claim is filed.
Occurrence-based covers claims for incidents that occur while the coverage is in place. It does not matter when the claim is filed.
How nurse liability insurance can protect you
You are being sued for allegedly providing substandard treatment to a seriously ill patient. Your nurse malpractice insurance policy could cover the legal expenses and medical fees.
You failed to consult with a specialist about a patient and it had an impact on your patient’s health outcome. You are sued. Your nurse liability policy could cover any medical expenses and legal fees.
How much does nurse liability insurance cost?
How much you will pay for nurse liability insurance depends upon:
- Your experience
- Location
- Level of risk involved in your job
- Place of employment
- Any past claims
- Individual or group coverage
Did you know? A professional liability insurance policy does not include coverage for legal expenses if you are charged with a criminal offence.
What other insurance coverages do nurses need?
If you are a nurse who works at multiple locations, it’s recommended that you have additional coverage to protect yourself.
Commercial general liability (CGL) insurance: This type of insurance protects you from third-party injury or property damage during your business day. For example, a patient slips on a wet floor and is injured and then sues you. CGL insurance could cover the legal fees and medical expenses.
CGL insurance is also known as “slip and fall” insurance.
Cyber liability insurance: If you digitally store patient information, you could be vulnerable to a cyberattack.
Without cyber insurance, you will have to pay out of your pocket for the cost of restoring your -spa’s computer system if it’s hacked.
You may also be liable for damages to third parties whose information has been stolen and you may have to pay for notification expenses to inform customers affected by a breach.
Commercial auto insurance: If you are driving to see patients, commercial vehicle insurance helps protect you should you be in an accident. Your personal vehicle insurance will not cover you in case of an accident.
