Tax preparer insurance

$25.83

$25.83

Courtney Hayes

Why Does a Tax Preparer Need Insurance?

What Type of Tax Preparer Insurance Do I Need?

What Type of Insurance Do I Need for My Tax Business?

Your clients rely on you to prepare their taxes accurately and on time. After all, audits are expensive, and they want to avoid costly penalties. But here’s the truth: no matter how detail-oriented you are, mistakes can still happen. And even if a mistake isn’t your fault, you still will likely need to defend yourself if you’re accused of negligence.

Fortunately, professional liability insurance (PL) can protect you.

This type of policy is designed to cover the costs of a lawsuit, up to your policy limits. That can include hiring a lawyer, settlement fees, and any other litigation costs.

Think you won’t get sued? Unfortunately, it’s estimated that 43% of small businesses have ended up with a court case or the threat of one. Lawsuits are very real—and very common.

Here’s an example. Let’s say you make a mistake while preparing a client’s tax return, and the IRS conducts a time-consuming audit. Your client gets angry and sues you to cover the costs of the audit and a loss of revenue while working with the IRS.

Depending on the size of your client and the audit’s complexity, this can cost anywhere from $2,000 to more than $7,500 depending on the state you’re based in.

If you have professional liability insurance, your policy can cover some or all of these costs, including hiring a lawyer, obtaining evidence or witnesses, and more. This means you may not have to worry about the financial consequences or rely on your personal savings to pay for your case. It is important that tax preparers consider getting professional liability insurance.

Do you own an office or rent a space to meet with clients? If so, you’ll probably need commercial general liability (GL) insurance. This plan covers costs resulting from third-party accidents, property damage, and bodily injury to third parties, including clients and vendors.

General liability insurance may be considered critical for tax professionals, and here’s why: it can protect you from very expensive claims. In fact, the average customer injury or damage claim is about $30,000. Without general liability insurance, you may have to pay for those costs on your own. For many tax professionals, this could be enough to put their businesses at risk.

Consider this example. Let’s say a client walks into your office and trips over a stack of papers you placed on the floor. The client bumps his head on the way down, which causes an injury resulting in a visit to the emergency room.

If you have general liability coverage, your policy can help cover your client’s costly medical bills, plus legal costs if you get sued (up to your policy limit).

If you have full-time or part-time employees working for your tax business, you may be required to hold workers’ compensation insurance. Consider administrative staff, other tax preparers, and even students or interns. This type of coverage can cover you if one of these employees experiences an injury or illness on the job.

If you have employees, workers’ compensation insurance is usually a requirement. But it’s important to check to see your state’s laws first. It makes sense as workplace injuries are incredibly costly. In fact, the average work injury cost totals $41,000, and in 2018 alone, there were $170.8 billion of claims. Workers’ compensation insurance is an important way you can protect your business if you have employees.

Why Should I Get Tax Preparer Insurance?

Consider this, then. Just one accident or mistake is enough to put your business under if you don’t have coverage. Even if you work at home or have just a couple of clients, you’re exposing your business to risk. Just imagine if a person gets injured while meeting with you or if an unhappy client sues you, even if you didn’t make a mistake.

No matter how safe you are, incidents can happen. Maybe you keep a tidy office and carefully shovel snow in your walkway—or maybe you meticulously review your work to avoid all mistakes. Even then, you’re still at risk for a costly accident, property loss, or error. And the costs can be expensive. Take a look at these averages:

  • Reputational Harm — $50,000
  • Client Injury or Damage — $30,000
  • Client Slip and Fall — $20,000

Chances are, you probably don’t want to face a claim with those price tags. But if you have tax preparer coverage, your plan can likely cover some or all of the costs of a claim or lawsuit.

Think you won’t face a lawsuit? Think again. Our society is quick to sue, especially when it comes to businesses. You can get sued for claims of negligence or reputational harm from your tax services, even if you’ve done nothing wrong.

Plain and simple: you don’t want to put your business at risk. You’ve worked hard to build your livelihood. Protect it, along with your personal assets. At Simply Business, we can help you find affordable business insurance plans that cover your company. It’s easy to use our online tool to compare free quotes from top insurers across the nation. Get started by answering a few quick questions first.

Another bonus? We’ll provide you with a certificate of insurance (COI) that you can share with your clients and vendors. It can position you as credible and professional, which is especially important if you’re just starting out.

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It depends. You may be required to have workers compensation if you have employees. But other policies, like professional liability and commercial general liability insurance may not be required. It all depends on where you’re located.

Even if your state doesn’t require you to carry insurance, it’s a good idea to get coverage. Your clients and vendors may ask for proof of insurance or require it in their contracts. Plus, if an incident ever happens, insurance could provide you with some financial protection.

Good news—in general, you can deduct the cost of business insurance from your tax returns. It’s just one more reason business insurance is worth the cost. We recommend speaking with an accountant if you have specific questions about your business deductions.

Every tax business is a little different. We recommend coverage based on:

  • The size of your business
  • Where your business is located
  • Your annual revenue and payroll
  • And more

You don’t need to necessarily know how much insurance you should get. After all, we’re here to make it easy. All you have to do is answer a few questions on our quote form, and we’ll help you find the right plan options, with the right amount of coverage.

Have more questions? No problem; our licensed insurance agents are ready to help!

At Simply Business, we want to make getting insurance as easy and fast as possible. To help, we ask that you have the following information on hand as you go through our quote tool:

  • Annual revenue estimates
  • Payroll estimates
  • Information on any previous claims

It’s possible. Many states have different insurance requirements for tax preparers. This is especially relevant for workers compensation insurance.

Fortunately, our quote process makes it easy to see policies that work in your state. After you answer a few questions, we can show you insurance plans that meet your state’s requirements.

Your tax preparer coverage depends on what insurance plans you bundle. For full coverage, we recommend general liability, professional liability, and workers compensation if you have employees. Together, these plans can cover:

  • Bodily injury
  • Accidents and damages
  • Employee injuries
  • Negligence or alleged negligence
  • And more

It really depends on the nature of your business. The cost of insurance can vary from one tax preparer’s business to another. In general, the cost is determined by:

  • Payroll and revenue estimates
  • Your business’s location
  • What services you offer
  • And more

If you’re wondering how much tax preparer insurance plan may cost you, take a look at our online quote tool. It takes just 10 minutes or less to get free quotes and compare plans.

Courtney Hayes

Courtney Hayes is an experienced freelance writer with expertise in small business and commercial insurance.  She has experience writing for business insurance brands like Simply Business and Travelers. Courtney translates complex financial and risk-management concepts into accessible, actionable guidance for entrepreneurs. Her extensive portfolio spans essential industry topics, including comprehensive risk assessments, small business continuity, and navigating policy reviews to protect growing enterprises from financial setbacks.

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