There are more than 130,000 professional photographers around the country and each one of them should have business insurance.
Many people think if they have their own small business without a storefront, physical products being sold, or many employees that they don’t need insurance. But those people are completely wrong. Every business, no matter how small, needs insurance.
Photography business owners are no exception. Here are the top five reasons why you need to insure yourself and professional assets.
1. Breeches in Contract
Unfortunately, no matter how great you are at your job or how great you think your relationship is with your clients, there is always the possibility of a lawsuit. Customers sue the businesses they work for all the time, it’s a serious threat for photographers.
Many photographers work with their close friends or relatives so they think this terrible thing won’t happen to them. But they can be wrong too.
The court system is full of people suing others they aren’t happy with, regardless of the previous relationship they’ve had. If a client doesn’t feel like they got what was agreed upon from their photographer, they have the option to sue.
While it might be ridiculous and seem far fetched, it’s important to be prepared just in case this type of situation comes up.
Having photography business insurance will give you the protection you need to be able to pay for any damages to the client to avoid a lawsuit or for a lawyer and any other associated fees.
2. Equipment Loss or Damage
While a lawsuit may seem impossible, or at least very unlikely, equipment loss or damage is something every photographer fears.
When you’re starting a photography business, you invest a lot of money into your equipment. On average a professional photographer spends around $10,000 to get the right setup.
The equipment a photographer uses is one of the most important factors in their success. They can’t produce high-quality work without high-quality tools.
But most photographers won’t have the cash on hand to re-purchase some of their equipment if something happens to it. And this is why insuring all of your business equipment is so critical.
Photographers should be insuring their camera, extra lenses, computers or monitors they use for editing, lighting tools, backgrounds, and anything else they need.
If they have the insurance and file a claim quickly, whatever has been broken or lost can be replaced quickly. Since a photographer can’t do their job without their equipment this quick turnaround is important to avoid downtime and lost wages.
No matter how careful you are, there’s always the potential of an accident happening or a break-in occurring, you need to be prepared for anything.
3. Medical Emergencies
A much less common problem that photographers run into while on the job is medical emergencies that they are responsible for.
This could be something as simple as a person tripping on your lighting equipment’s wires and breaking their arm. Or get cut by a branch while moving to the right location and needing stitches.
It may be uncommon but it does happen. And it’s always better to be prepared to take care of medical costs incurred during a photoshoot than find yourself strapped for the cash or in a lawsuit.
It’s easy enough to add this type of coverage to your photography business insurance, just in case there’s a particularly clumsy client.
4. Potential Liabilities
When you’re creating your photography business plan, it should definitely include liability coverage in your insurance policy. This is important for any kind of business you’re starting.
Liability insurance is a broad, umbrella-type plan that covers most of the general liability possibilities for owning a business in general.
This would include all of the things we have previously mentioned, while also adding in others like medical emergencies that happen to you or building issues. A policy like this has very few exclusions, which have to be listed explicitly.
Most new business owners should at least have this type of general liability insurance policy because there are really no limits to what could go wrong.
Having a general insurance policy helps you feel confident that if something terrible comes up you won’t have to completely shut down your business to cover the costs. It will give you the resources and time you need to make a plan and move forward.
5. Issues at Venues
Many small business photography businesses don’t work in a set location, instead, they go where their clients are and photograph them in a variety of settings.
This is great and can lower overhead costs for the photographer who isn’t paying rent for a studio. But that mobility needs to be in their insurance policy to make sure they’re covered even on location.
If you’re photographing at an event venue, it’s highly likely that they’ll have their own insurance policy to cover any accidents. But you should be covered in case the accident is caused by you and you’re responsible.
This would include any times where your equipment or you yourself caused damage to the building or space.
It’s also important to have insurance when you’re traveling to and from your photoshoots. We all know the potential for an accident when driving in a car. It’s very high and you don’t want to find yourself in a bind for not having transportation covered in your policy.
Insuring Your Photography Business
When you work so hard to build up a photography business, the last thing you want is to have it all taken away for financial reasons. This is where insurance comes in and why it’s so important.
Having a good business insurance policy can make all the difference in your ability to grow and be successful. Not to mention the peace and confidence you’ll have knowing that if there is some kind of accident you can handle the consequences.
If you’re a business owner and are ready to look at your insurance options, contact us today for a quote!
