Does my social worker insurance extend coverage if I work in different provinces?

Yes, your social worker insurance (Malpractice Insurance) will cover your business activities throughout Canada.

Does my insurance cover social workers while in training?

Yes, insurance may cover the liability of full-time employees, including apprentices or social workers in training. However, your policy limit will apply to all employees rather than each individual. To make sure you’re sufficiently covered, you have the option to increase your limit. Alternatively, you can ask employees to carry their own insurance.

Is it required to get my insurance from an association?

No, you don’t have to get insurance from an association. There’s an assumption social workers need to get insurance from the Canadian Association of Social Workers (CASW). That is incorrect – there are many insurance policies equipped for social workers. It’s definitely worth researching the coverage that best suits your business.

Social Worker Insurance

As a social worker, it’s crucial that your professional services are covered with malpractice insurance.

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Insurance for social workers

As a social worker, you do amazing things, but things don’t always go to plan because you work closely with those relying on your expertise. You can be held responsible for almost any negative impact that your services have on your clients. Without insurance, claims made against you professionally can cause unmanageable financial issues. Insurance is essential for your financial and occupational security in any industry that involves looking after public wellness.

What is social worker insurance?

Social worker insurance is a specialized professional liability policy designed to accommodate the various services that social workers may offer and protect against specific risks associated with them, such as allegations of malpractice, professional errors in diagnosis and damage to third parties.

What does it cover?

As a social worker, you’ll need a combination of coverages that protect you from the specific professional risks you may face, and from the general risks of running a business. Here are the main coverages you should consider:

Medical Malpractice Insurance: Also known as professional liability insurance, this insurance protects social workers against client allegations of malpractice, errors and omissions, and misconduct. Suppose you fail to deliver a service as expected. Your client can sue you for damages (‘damages’ can be in the form of a financial loss or third-party bodily injury). Say you failed to notice a young client wasn’t taking their prescribed medication and experienced a mental health relapse. Their guardian could sue you for your failure. In this case, medical malpractice insurance could cover the defence fees and other related costs.

Commercial General Liability (CGL) Insurance: Commercial general liability insurance covers accidents that can happen within any business for which you may be liable. Some examples are alleged third-party bodily injury (e.g., slip-and-fall), property damage, false advertising, and libel or slander. Consider a client who comes to your office and badly scolds themself due to a faulty paper coffee cup you handed to her. Should you be sued for their injury, CGL may cover legal defence and medical costs, regardless of the lawsuit’s outcome.

Commercial Property Insurance: This insurance policy protects your business location and the property inside from a covered event such as a fire, vandalism or theft. For example, suppose your office was vandalized while you were away for a long weekend. In this case, commercial property insurance could cover the cost to replace any damage to the building or business equipment.

Cyber Liability Insurance: As more and more data is kept online, cybercrime is sadly becoming increasingly common. Cyber liability insurance helps business owners to cover the costs associated with cyberattacks, such as loss of income, notification costs, or data infrastructure repair. For example, your highly confidential client data becomes compromised due to clicking on a bad email link. In this case, cyber liability insurance can help your business with financial expenses such as customer notification and legal fees.

How much does social worker insurance cost?

Insurance requirements will vary by the type of social services you provide. However, social workers can expect premiums to start around $207 annually for a malpractice insurance policy with a $2M per claim and $5M aggregate limit.

When you fill out our online application, specific questions will be asked about your business to help us understand your requirements better. Here are some of the major factors that determine your quote:

Annual and projected gross revenue
Years of experience
Number of employees
Claims history
Education background
Types of professional services

Do social workers need insurance?

It’s recommended that all social workers have insurance, particularly malpractice insurance. Social workers provide professional advice that clients rely on, regardless of whether that advice is given in person or virtually. Should you make an error – or there are allegations against your professionalism – malpractice insurance can provide the financial coverage to protect your business.

We’ve insured social workers practicing in a range of sectors, including:

Mental health or substance abuse social workers
Justice and corrections social workers
Child welfare social workers
School– or college-based social workers
Health care social workers

Getting insured is quick and easy!

Complete our 5-minute online application for a free social worker insurance quote.

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Common claims scenarios

Problem: You accidentally email confidential client information to numerous people rather than just the client. The client sues you for your breach of confidentiality.

Outcome: Your professional liability insurance (malpractice) could cover the legal fees and other relative costs.

Problem: You’re trying to help an elderly client move some boxes down the stairs, but end up falling and breaking their stairlift system.

Outcome: Your commercial general liability policy could cover the replacement cost of the lift system.

Problem: Your office suffers serious smoke damage when the building next door has a large fire. Much of your furniture and equipment is damaged beyond repair.

Outcome: Your commercial property insurance could cover costs to replace or repair the damaged furnishings and fixtures.