OWNING AN EYECARE business can be incredibly satisfying, as vision is so core to the way people interact with the world around them. However, in every industry, unintentional mistakes and damages can happen. If you’re an eyecare provider, you’ll want to consider obtaining insurance for incidents such as medical malpractice and even employee injury.
Business Owner’s Policy
As the majority of eyecare providers operate out of a storefront or specified location, they will certainly want to consider a business owner’s policy. This insurance is quite popular as it combines general liability and property coverage, meaning your business is covered for some of the most common claims, such as slip-and-fall incidents. A business owner’s policy can also protect your valuable equipment, and offer business interruption coverage. If, for instance, your office was heavily damaged by a fire, your policy would cover repairs, as well as temporary income loss or relocation.
Malpractice
When dealing with patients, the possibility of an incident is ever present. This could include a patient saying you gave them the wrong prescription or a patient succumbing to an infection. Fortunately, there are policies for these sorts of cases. Medical malpractice, a kind of liability insurance, provides you with coverage needed to take care of claims in which a customer holds your business responsible for damages or injury resulting from the eyecare provided. In addition, medical malpractice also helps to cover legal costs in the case of such a claim.
Workers’ Compensation
Another important insurance to obtain, even for an eyeglass store or optometry business, would be workers’ compensation. Manual-labor businesses aren’t the only kind that need workers’ compensation, as injuries can happen anywhere, even in a quiet office. For example, a receptionist in your office who sits behind a computer screen everyday could develop repetitive motion injuries, such as carpal tunnel syndrome. Alternatively, one of your opticians could be incidentally exposed to a hazardous material or equipment.
For these types of incidents, you’ll want to have your employees and your business protected with workers’ compensation, which can provide: medical treatment coverage for things such as equipment or repetitive motion injuries, coverage for an employee’s lost wages, and coverage for recovery services to help the employee return to work. Check your state’s legal requirements, as it is usually required for businesses with at least three to five employees.
Finding the right insurance can be critical to keeping your business running smoothly, and coverage such as professional liability, workers’ compensation, and a business owner’s policy can help you to save your business from significant costs.