Insurance for your Family Day Care is required by law. Family Day Care Insurance is also called Public Liability Insurance (PLI). Every Educator that operates a Family Day Care must have a PLI. Also, Educators must renew the policy every year. Then, your Service Provider needs a copy of the policy each year.
The families using your service may ask to see proof of insurance, too. To learn more, we’ll review what types of insurance you need, why you need it, how to find it, and how much insurance can cost.
What Is Family Day Care Insurance
Any insurance product is to protect you and your assets if something happens that causes harm to a person or property during your business operation. It will often include Professional Indemnity coverage if a failure of duty causes harm. The significant components of PLI are:
- Public Liability
- Landlords Liability
- Products Liability
- Errors and Omissions
- Criminal Defence Coverage
- Fines and Penalty Coverage
- Accidental Death
It’s important to review your car and home insurance policies. They likely do not cover any business activities. Suppose you’re going to be transporting children in your vehicle for outings or field trips. In that case, it’s essential to make sure those business uses are covered.
Why Do I need Family Day Care Insurance
You need insurance for your business because it’s good business and makes good financial sense. Also, it legitimises your business in the eyes of the families you serve. Lastly, you want to make sure your home is protected if someone decides to sue you. Without adequate insurance coverage, you could lose your business.
It only takes a split second for an accident to happen. Children require constant focus and attention. So that means the Educators who look after young children need to have a continual focus. That’s an almost impossible goal.
An Incident, injury, trauma and illness record details every incident in relation to a child while that child is being cared for by the Educator. In addition to record keeping requirements, notification of serious incidents must also be provided to the regulatory authority within the prescribed timeframes. These timeframes need to be adhered to in order to ensure that you are protected under your insurance policy in the event that the incident leads to a claim in the future.
Other things to consider (that many don’t) are things like property and crime coverage for your business. If there’s a flood or fire, your home insurance might not replace your business equipment. Similarly, if someone steals your playground equipment – that’s an enormous expense to have to replace all that. Your other policies might not cover the theft of business equipment. Also, those other policies wouldn’t cover accidental damages.
Cost and Where to Find Insurance
Costs vary by region. And each insurer sets its prices. However, the average is around AU$480 per year.
Family Day Care Australia (FDCA) is the most popular insurance provider for Educators and offers its members payment plans. It would be best if you look for insurers who cater to the family day care industry. However, there are many providers. Whoever you choose, they must provide packages that match your needs but do not include the coverage you don’t need. And you shouldn’t have to pay for it if you don’t need it!
Want to know about meeting the requirements for your Family Day Care? Enrol the How to Start a Family Day Care Business course. It will teach you everything you need to know to a successful journey!
