Independent Contractor Insurance: Best Companies, What Coverage You Need
Business insurance can help protect 1099 contract workers from liability and other risks.
Many, or all, of the products featured on this page are from our advertising partners who compensate us when you take certain actions on our website or click to take an action on their website. However, this does not influence our evaluations. Our opinions are our own. Here is a list of our partners and here's how we make money.
Updated · 3 min read
Written by
Lead Writer & Content Strategist 
Edited by
Managing Editor Independent contractor insurance protects 1099 workers against the risks that come with operating a business.
In general, most 1099 workers need one or both of the following:
- General liability insurance: Necessary if you sell products or services to the general public. This coverage can protect your business if it’s sued for causing injury or property damage.
- Professional liability insurance: Necessary if you provide services directly to clients for a fee. This coverage can protect your business if it’s accused of faulty or incomplete work.
Why trust NerdWallet
250+ small-business products
reviewed and rated by our team of experts.80+ years of combined experience
covering small-business and personal finance.Objective, comprehensive small-business insurance ratings
based on the financial strength, complaint records, digital features and customer service availability of insurance market leaders. Read our methodology.NerdWallet's small-business insurance content — including our ratings, reviews and recommendations — is produced by a team of writers and editors who specialize in small-business finances. Their journalism has appeared in The Associated Press, Washington Post, MarketWatch, Nasdaq, Entrepreneur, ABC News, MSN and other national and local media outlets. Each writer and editor follows NerdWallet's strict editorial guidelines to ensure fairness and accuracy in our coverage.
Best insurance companies for independent contractors
If you’re shopping for independent contractor insurance, several business insurance companies allow you to get a quote and make a purchase online.
Next Insurance
Best overall for independent contractors.
Next Insurance lets you upload some basic information about your business, get a quote and buy insurance online within a few minutes. If you purchase a policy with Next, you’ll get an electronic certificate of insurance that you can share through email or text with anyone who asks to see it. Read NerdWallet’s review of Next insurance.
Thimble
Best for temporary coverage.
Thimble sells general liability insurance policies by the month, year or for a single job or event. If you need coverage to comply with the requirements of a contract but don’t want to pay a premium on an ongoing basis, Thimble might be a good option. Read NerdWallet’s review of Thimble insurance.
USAA
Best for military members and their families.
If you're a member of USAA — open to current members of the military, their spouses and children — consider turning to the organization for general liability insurance and other types of coverage. USAA policyholders can access their certificates of insurance online. And while you currently can't add an additional insured and file a claim online online, a company spokesperson told NerdWallet that USAA is working on adding these features. Read NerdWallet's review of USAA business insurance.
Hiscox
Best for professional liability insurance.
Professional liability insurance policies from Hiscox cover work done all over the world, and retroactive coverage may be available for some customers. That coverage protects your business against claims arising from before you bought your policy. Read NerdWallet’s review of Hiscox business insurance.
What coverage do independent contractors need?
As a 1099 contractor, you can be held liable for harming another person or their property just as any small-business owner can be. General liability insurance can help protect against these risks.
Beyond that, what insurance you should get depends on the type of contract work you do. For example, a self-employed accountant should have professional liability insurance in case they make a mistake that costs their customer money.
Dig deeper: General liability insurance
General liability insurance protects you if you’re accused of causing harm to a third party or their property. It can also protect you against claims of libel, slander and reputational harm.
If you clean homes and are accused of damaging someone’s furniture, for example, general liability insurance could help cover your legal costs.
In some cases, the company that hires you as a contractor may be able to add you to its general liability insurance policy. In others, the company may require you to carry your own policy and ask to see a certificate of insurance before hiring you.
Professional liability insurance
If you provide services to customers for a fee, you should have professional liability insurance.
This coverage is also known as errors and omissions insurance, and it protects you if a client or customer accuses you of making a mistake. If you’re a graphic designer, real estate agent or any other type of contractor who provides services, clients could sue you for inadequate performance.
This includes claims of:
- Mistakes or oversights in performing your service.
- Breach of contract.
- Professional negligence.
- Failure to deliver a service on time.
Other coverage types you might need
Depending on what kind of work you do, you may need additional types of business insurance beyond general and professional liability insurance. For instance, a musician who uses their own instruments and sound equipment may need commercial property insurance that will pay out if their inventory is stolen, damaged or destroyed.
| Type of insurance | Who needs it |
|---|---|
| Commercial property insurance covers property that is damaged in accidents, weather events or other hazards. | Independent contractors who rely heavily on particular materials or pieces of equipment to do their work, such as musicians, photographers or videographers. Also, if you rent office or retail space, your lease may require it. |
| Commercial auto insurance covers your personal vehicle in the course of doing business, not just vehicles owned by the business. It can help you cover costs related to crashes, including property damage and medical expenses. | Independent contractors who own a business vehicle or who often use their personal car in the course of doing business, such as construction contractors or delivery drivers. |
| Business interruption insurance covers the income you would have earned while your business was unable to operate due to an accident or disaster. | Independent contractors whose work would be significantly set back by a disaster, such as a pipe bursting and causing water damage to equipment that the business relies on. |
| Cyber liability insurance covers damage resulting from data breaches or software hacks, including the costs of notifying customers and setting up credit monitoring. | Independent contractors, such as accountants, who handle sensitive information. |
You may be able to package several kinds of insurance into a business owner's policy, or BOP. Business owner's policies usually include general liability insurance, commercial property insurance and business interruption insurance.
How to get independent contractor insurance
Follow these steps to shop for 1099 contractor insurance.
- Figure out what coverage you need. Your insurance coverage should protect you from the risks your business faces based on what kinds of lawsuits, accidents or disasters might happen.
- See if you can add an endorsement to your homeowners policy. If you run a home-based business, you might be able to add an endorsement to your homeowners insurance policy to get some commercial coverage. Read your homeowners insurance policy carefully to see what coverage is available, and talk to your insurance provider if you have questions about whether the coverage is sufficient.
- Get quotes. Get business insurance quotes from multiple companies to compare costs and coverage before choosing a policy. You can usually get a quote in just a few minutes online.
- Buy your policies. After you choose a policy, make sure you know how to make payments and file claims if necessary.
- Add the person or business that hired you as an additional insured, if necessary. An additional insured endorsement extends your coverage to another party. Most commonly, you’ll be adding your client or your landlord. That way, if you’re sued on the job and the injured party also names your client in the lawsuit, your client won’t have to file an insurance claim of their own.
It’s possible for the person or business that hired you to add you as an additional insured, too. But since that could increase the cost of their coverage, they may insist you buy your own coverage instead.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do 1099 workers need insurance?
In general, 1099 workers should have general liability insurance. This kind of coverage protects you if you’re accused of damaging someone’s property or causing them injury. You may also need professional liability insurance, also called errors and omissions insurance, which protects you if you’re accused of making a mistake in your work.
What does independent contractor insurance include?
Independent contractor insurance may include general liability insurance, E&O insurance, commercial property insurance, commercial auto insurance and other types of coverage. Which policies you need can vary depending on the type of work you do.
Why do independent contractors need general liability insurance?
General liability insurance can help protect your business finances if you face a lawsuit. Specifically, these policies can cover you if you’re sued for causing injury or property damage or harming someone’s reputation.
Your clients may require you to have general liability insurance before they’ll work with you.
How does an independent contractor get general liability insurance?
You can buy general liability insurance online in minutes from insurance companies like Next, Chubb and Thimble. You can also work with an insurance agent if you want hands-on support.
Article sources
NerdWallet writers are subject matter authorities who use primary,
trustworthy sources to inform their work, including peer-reviewed
studies, government websites, academic research and interviews with
industry experts. All content is fact-checked for accuracy,
timeliness and relevance. You can learn more about NerdWallet's
high standards for journalism by reading our
editorial guidelines.
Methodology
Business insurance ratings methodology
NerdWallet’s business insurance ratings reward companies that offer small-business owners reliability and ease of use. Ratings are based on weighted averages of scores in several categories, including financial strength, customer complaint data, shopping experience and customer service. Learn more about how we rate small-business insurance companies.
These ratings are a guide, but insurance policy details and prices can vary widely from business to business and provider to provider. We encourage you to shop around and compare several insurance quotes.
NerdWallet does not receive compensation for any reviews. Read our editorial guidelines.
Insurer complaints methodology
NerdWallet examined complaints received by state insurance regulators and reported to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners in 2018-2021.
To assess how insurers compare to one another, the NAIC calculates a complaint index each year for each subsidiary, measuring its share of total complaints relative to its size, or share of total premiums in the industry. To evaluate a company’s complaint history, NerdWallet calculated a similar index for each insurer, weighted by market shares of each subsidiary, over the three-year period.
Our star ratings consider ratios for both general liability insurance and commercial property insurance. When an insurer sells policies that are underwritten by several different insurance companies, we consider the NAIC complaint ratios of all the underwriters.
More like this
