Why Toronto Professionals Need E&O Insurance
Errors are part of human nature and they can and do happen in business. Toronto professionals need errors and omissions (E&O) insurance for protection against claims of professional negligence or claims of errors and mistakes.
With E&O insurance, you will have protection from financial loss and reputational damage that can result from allegations of professional negligence, errors, misconduct, or failure to deliver services. You may also hear it called professional liability insurance.
Specialist insurance provider CFC is one of Western Financial Group’s insurance partners to deliver tailored errors and omissions insurance and professional services insurance. CFC covers a wide range of professionals and their services and it’s a pioneer in emerging risks and cyber threats.
Are you a professional working in downtown Toronto or are you located in one of the city’s many neighbourhoods?
As a professional, are you located in Scarborough, Etobicoke, North York, York, and East York, or in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) or elsewhere in Ontario?
Your Western Financial Group business insurance expert will give you top-notch insurance advice about errors and omissions insurance at the right value for you as a Toronto professional.
What professionals need errors and omissions insurance?
If you are providing professional services, consulting, or advice, you need to protect yourself with professional liability (E&O) insurance.
Some examples of Toronto professionals who need this type of insurance:
- Architects
- Accountants
- Consultants
- Contractors
- Directors and officers on boards
- Engineers
- Event planners
- Financial services professionals
- Health professionals
- Interior designers
- Lawyers/Paralegals
- Marketing professionals
- Mediators
- Real estate agents
- Social services professionals
- Technology consultants
- Wedding planners
Do I need E&O insurance if I am not in a traditional field as a Toronto professional?
Yes, you do in order to protect yourself from lawsuits and reputational damage. Any professional providing services can face claims of negligence.
Do I need E&O insurance if I’m a self-employed professional in Toronto?
Yes, you do. It’s yet another reason to protect yourself from claims of negligence, mistakes, and lawsuits.
Did you know? General liability insurance covers third-party property damage or bodily injury. It typically doesn’t provide coverage for professional errors. It’s not a substitute for errors and omissions insurance.
What is E&O Insurance?
E&O insurance, also known as professional liability insurance, gives you financial protection from errors, omissions, and negligence when providing agreed-upon services.
It also covers failure to deliver a service as promised and media and advertising services that result in your client getting sued for defamation, libel, or slander.
Errors and omissions insurance builds on your credibility and trust with your clients and shows them that you are committed to professional standards.
3 examples of how errors and omissions insurance protects you
1. You are an event planner and you mistakenly put the wrong time for an event both online and in print advertising. The host of the event sues you for the error. E&O insurance would help protect you in this case.
2. You are in interior designer and have gone over budget and over the homeowner’s deadline to complete a redesign of a client’s house. E&O insurance would help cover the liabilities stemming from the budget overruns and delays in the completion of this project.
3. Your financial projections were wrong for a company and you are being sued for negligence. E&O insurance will help cover your legal expenses, including defence costs, settlements, and awards up to your policy limit.
What are other examples of how E&O insurances protects me as a Toronto professional?
Professional negligence
If you have been accused of being professionally negligent in your work and face a lawsuit.
Omissions
You failed to provide your client with all the information needed to make a business decision and the client has filed a claim for damages.
Failure to deliver services as agreed upon
A client has accused you of not providing the services you agreed to or you failed to meet the expected level of care. Your client says she may lose her business as a result and you face legal action.
Cyber-attacks and data breaches
It helps protect you should a client claim financial losses as a result of a cyber-attack or data break and accuses you of not securing their data.
Copyright infringement
You haven’t secured the necessary copy rights to use an image and the creator sues you for copyright infringement.
Reputational harm
The threat of a lawsuit or a lawsuit can negatively impact your relationships with your clients and any business opportunities going forward, even if you are not found at fault for your professional services.
Without E&O insurance, Toronto professionals who provide services will face the cost of defending themselves out of pocket against liability claims. This can drain your personal finances and affect your future as a professional.
What determines how much errors and omissions insurance will cost you as a Toronto professional?
- Your field of professional services
- Years of experience
- Annual revenue
- Number of employees
- Location
- Past claims
Here’s an insurance checklist:
- Do you have the best Toronto business insurance rate that suits your work?
- Do you have the right amount for your deductible and regularly review it to make sure it’s the right amount for you?
- Are you or your employees using personal vehicles for work?
What do I do if I need to make an insurance claim as a Toronto professional?
- Contact your broker immediately after any business-related mishap. Waiting to file a claim can confuse insurers about the severity of the damages to your business.
- Know your policy so that when you contact your broker you are familiar with what will be covered or not.
- If there’s any damage, document it. Take photos right away and write down what happened.
- Do not throw away damaged goods after taking photos. Keep the physical evidence so that your adjustor can see it.
- Do not invite lawsuits. Don’t say anything that could be used against you, especially if you aren’t sure what happened.
- Be honest about what your damaged property is worth. Damaged commercial property is generally valued according to its actual cash value or replacement value.
Western Financial Group has licensed BUSINESS INSURANCE EXPERTS to get you errors and omissions insurance for you as a Toronto professional. Our experts are available now to help you navigate the business insurance journey to protect you as a Toronto professional.
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