Business Insurance Premiums Are On The Rise For Education Institutions
The education world is ever changing, and with that change comes new challenges. From technology, student mental health and behaviors, even more shortages of resources, labor gaps, poverty, classroom sizes, and more, superintendents and administration leaders have a lot to juggle when it comes to priorities and decision making.
Whether you are a superintendent with a school district for public education, a private school, or higher education, these challenges make it more important than ever to reduce unnecessary spending. Our team of experts is here to explain what education leaders can do to lower their insurance costs and ensure they get the best policies at the best price.
Business insurance is necessary for education institutions, particularly business owner’s policies which typically bundle business income insurance, commercial property insurance and general liability insurance. Health insurance is another important coverage area, with the role of unions in many areas making health insurance even more complex, both helping and hurting the ability to get the best premiums at an affordable rate.
You Likely Have More Options For Commercial Insurance Than You Think
As leaders for your schools, teachers and support staff, it’s important to uncover the many savings opportunities that exist within your business insurance policies without jeopardizing the ability to provide meaningful coverage. Rising costs for group health benefits, liability concerns and more add to the mounting pressure to ensure you, your property and your people are covered. However, that doesn’t mean there isn’t room for negotiation. After all, saving money in these areas will only help you in prioritizing other budgetary needs that support the long-term success of your organization.
In public education institutions, most teachers and employees fall under union insurance plans. This typically helps prevent schools from being able to raise premiums, but that means coverage requirements are often kept fairly low and some school districts feel their hands are tied in being able to offer better coverage, including with health insurance. While charter schools that are independently run have more opportunity to explore cost savings in this area, most government sanctioned schools don’t feel they have room to negotiate. There are options though, either way. RateCraft understands the needs specific to education institutions and how to find the best possible rates, despite these challenges.
Commercial Insurance For Schools Isn’t Designed With Cost Savings In Mind
No matter the industry, the ugly truth behind commercial insurance is that your agent makes more the higher your premiums are – a blow to all, but even worse for education institutions running on tight budgets with numerous worthy priorities for spending. Insurance agents are also incentivized to work with specific carriers, so chances are you’re never actually getting to choose from the most competitive bids specific to your needs. Instead, your agent is most likely only presenting you with the offers that best benefit their wallets, not yours. That means that your budget isn’t being wisely allocated when it comes to insurance costs, and you could be wasting precious dollars that could instead support your administrative operations, teacher salaries and student resources.
Even if you have an agent you love and trust, this means that it’s nearly impossible to get the lowest business insurance rates if you’re only working with one person. You don’t have to stop working with your agent, but keep in mind that everything is negotiable, including the options they present you with. At the end of the day, the most important thing is that you get the best insurance coverage at the most affordable rates.
Superintendents Can Get The Best Insurance For Their Institutions
You don’t have to wait for your renewal period to start the process of finding the best insurance. In fact, this can be done at any point and there is no better time to uncover savings than now. Ask your agent to present you with different options from multiple carriers and recruit assistance to ensure you ask all the necessary questions along the way. At RateCraft, we are a team of experts that are completely unbiased and know the industry like the back of our hands. This type of third-party business insurance advocate can be invaluable in helping you review the fine print of quotes, ensure you’re receiving all the right options and even support negotiations in finding the best possible rates and policies, all while working with your current agent. And, we aren’t incentivized by how much you spend. In fact, our team only gets paid by saving you money. We’re committed to doing just that, with an average savings per business of 35%, and some even saving as much as 74% on their existing commercial insurance.
Insurance Considerations for Education Institutions
- Business Owner’s Policy (BOP)
- General Liability Insurance
- Health Insurance
- Commercial Property Insurance
- Business Income Insurance
- Professional Liability Insurance or Errors and Omissions Insurance
- Employee Benefits Liability
- Workers’ Compensation Insurance
- Commercial Auto Insurance