Counselling insurance (A complete guide)

In this brief article, we will be discussing counselling insurance, the purpose of counselling insurance, the coverage of counselling insurance, and more information about counselling insurance.

What is counselling insurance or psychotherapy insurance?

Counselling insurance or psychotherapy insurance is a kind of insurance available for counsellors or psychotherapists with their varied specialisations.

These kinds of specialisations can range from cognitive-behavioural therapy, arts therapy, music therapy, holistic therapy, and more specialisations revolved around counselling. 

Counselling insurance tends to be offered in different policies by different organisations which will be explained in the further sections.

The average annual instalment for this kind of insurance is £61.00 for eligible therapists who have Liability Insurance at £34.36, Legal Expenses at £6.72 both inclusive of 12% Insurance Premium Tax and an Administration Fee of £19.92.

The policy on counselling insurance or psychotherapy insurance allows £41.00 which consists of comprising Liability Insurance £26.88, Legal Expenses £6.72 both inclusive of 12% Insurance Premium Tax, and an Administration Fee of £7.40 and these kinds of expenses will give you cover for your work placement, case studies and any practical work you need to finish to earn your qualification.

The following are the common conditions followed in most policies in counselling insurances:

• Malpractice, professional indemnity, public and products liability counselling insurance
• A restriction in indemnity of £5,000,000 or £1,000,000 for students on a losses occurring basis
• Cover whether you work from a clinic, from home, or visit client’s houses for consultation
• Full retroactive cover for previously insured periods
• Libel and slander cover up to the £5,000,000 or £1,000,000 for students as a restriction for indemnity
• Cover for extra therapies where most are at no additional cost
• Legal defence of non-motor criminal and civil actions, disciplinary hearings and tax protection where there is a restriction for indemnity £500,000 with an inner restriction for £100,000 per claim
• Jury service compensation
• Legal advice helpline for both personal and business legal concerns
• Availability to confidential counselling and wellbeing helplines

Typical characteristics of counselling insurance

The following are the typical characteristics of counselling insurances.

Cover for working in a number of different settings

As a counsellor, you are known to be a flexible mental health professional which isn’t surprising if you get to work anywhere whether you are online or offline.

You can be reassured that some counselling insurances can help you with your private practice if you are having one.

Some organisations can give you building permissions and rent benefits for you to make your counselling business once you buy their insurances.

You can learn more about how to develop your private practice for your counselling services by buying this book on this website.

Professional indemnity

You might have been a little hasty with your counselling skills that you have stated the lacking rights of a client and this insurance can cover you when you are sued by this client which is up to £10 million.

This amount can be adjusted based on your current circumstances in your counselling career.

Some organisations would even offer discounts for counsellors who are members of governing bodies for counselling and psychotherapy such as BACP.

For instance, you are a BACP member, some organisations can give you a 10% discount on your insurance. 

In your counselling quote, you need to indicate to your chosen organisation for your insurance that you are a member of a professional body for counselling and psychotherapy.

Some organisations may place in your insurance guides and other coverages that can help you grow your counselling business.

Kinds of counselling insurance

If you are seeing your clients at a professional proximity, you need to get the professional policy insurance for counselling.

Employers and service providers can give you insurance but in a private practice, you can make your own policy on what needs to be covered in your insurance for counselling. 

It’s your responsibility to know what your insurance for counselling should be covering and it should include the benefits and risks involved when you are in practice.

The following should be conceptualized in this kind of insurance and these kinds of insurances are common types of this insurance and there are other special kinds that will be discussed in the further sections:

• public liability or third party cover is useful in an instance where a client is harmed while visiting your premises, for example
• professional indemnity cover is helpful as well when you are sued by a client for negligence or malpractice in your career

You should also make sure that your insurance covers your travelling fees since you might be obligated to visit a client in his or her home or have other business appointments that are related to your career.

You can learn more about the public liability cover by buying this book on this website.

Cyber and data counselling insurance

Computers have become useful ever since technology decided to upgrade in several gadgets that have become a lifestyle for people.

This places your counselling career at high risk since computers mean that your data on your clients will get hacked if you don’t know how to secure these valuables of your clients properly. 

Some organisations may give you insurance where your loss of documents, data recovery, and other forms of risks involved in the counselling practice where technology is involved.

Malpractice counselling insurance for counsellors

Malpractice insurance can help you cover up your business when you are being sued by a client with a credible case.

Most organisations who have this insurance for counsellors will be covering the following:

• Legal help. Your insurer will make sure you are represented by a lawyer who comprehends malpractice laws in your country. This will make sure that a credible defence and maximizes the potential that a frivolous lawsuit will promptly be dismissed.
• Interventions to avoid lawsuits. If a client threatens a lawsuit, your insurer may come to the case before the client’s suit is filed. They can deliver letters on your behalf and begin creating a strategy to defend you and your counselling practice.
• Payment for the expense of lawsuits. You’ll be covered up to the policy restrictions for any lawsuits that fall within your policy which means you don’t have to be concerned about a settlement or jury verdict making you lose your money or your counselling business.

The following are the advantages of having this insurance:

• Less time spent concerned about lawsuits. When you have coverage, you know you’re defended if you make a flaw or a client makes an unbiased threat.
• The stability that comes from having a good lawyer. If you’re sued, it’s difficult to know whom to hire. Malpractice insurers choose an exceptional lawyer in your case.
• Financial security. You won’t have to be concerned about a lawsuit making you lose your counselling practice. Lawyers can be expensive and typically make you pay several hundred dollars an hour. Litigating a malpractice lawsuit typically make you spend hundreds or even thousands of hours of work. Even if you win the case, you could suffer overwhelming financial losses if you pay for your lawyer yourself.
• Legal assistance with licensing board complaints. Many malpractice insurers will also represent you before licensing boards if you are found to have a case against these authorities.

You can learn more about how to minimize a common malpractice in counselling practice by buying this book on this website.

How do I look for the right policy for my counselling insurance?

You should look for the right policy for your ideal counselling insurance by looking at their several conditions and what this kind of insurance can do if you are found in a situation where you have committed a mistake which leads you to find someone to defend you when you are in that perilous situation such as court hearings.

If you work from home in counselling, you need to get the public liability insurance for your house insurance. 

You need to tell your insurer on how many clients you can address in your work time when you work from home.

Some organisations will provide insurance for counsellors who are working in a professional context such as an office at school. 

You should always go through the quotes when organisations advertise you to their counselling insurances so that you can go through and think about possible situations that you will be protected by this kind of insurance offered by the organisation.

How do I apply for counselling insurance?

You can apply for counselling insurance by following the format used by the organisation in applying for this kind of insurance.

You can also get some coverages in your insurance that are available at discounted prices from an organisation for counselling such as APA.

The things that you have to do to apply for this kind of insurance is to complete a form and tell the insurer about your counselling practice.

The obstacle in this kind of insurance is that the necessary coverages you need to protect your counselling practice.

In this case, you should learn about the specific forms of concerns in this kind of insurance.

You can study up on the typical policies by looking over the prices, restrictions in the coverage of this insurance, deductibles, and other factors that might come your way and affect your insurance.

For instance, malpractice insurance can be maintained if you prevented malpractice in your counselling practice in the first place.

You should look through other online resources on how to do this kind of practice where you can keep yourself from causing malpractice. 

You can learn more about the policies of the APA by buying this book on this website.

How much does counselling insurance typically cost?

The counselling insurance will typically cost based on the coverage you have placed on your insurance but the standard for this insurance is £10 million public liability cover.

This is because the prices begin at £65.17 or £43.80 for counselling trainees.

You can also visit the website of the organisation that you are interested in buying an insurance with and check out their choices in prices.

Why do you need counselling insurance?

You need this kind of insurance due to the following reasons:

Injured client

A client might have caused harm on himself or herself while going to his or her counsellor’s office.

This means that your affected client will need medical treatment which will hold your counselling sessions for a while to check on your client.

The client may make a legal claim against you for compensation but the public liability coverage can handle this legal claim by covering the legal expenses made by your client.

You can learn more about taking care of your injured client by buying this book here.

Unhappy client

Some clients may think that they are unhappy about the counselling you have given and will bring legal action when they feel that their psychological complications got worse due to your counselling.

The professional treatment liability coverage can cover this legal action so that you can still have your counselling business by being defended in court thanks to this coverage.

Computer hacked

Your computer may have a virus that allowed confidential client data to be easily accessed by the wrong hands such as a hacker who use this information against by letting you pay ransom money for your client’s data.

The insurance can cover the ransom money that you have to pay and the insurance can also allow you to have an accessibility to a specialist risk consultancy firm to help you with your cyber and data insurance cover which can alleviate this issue.

Conclusion 

In this brief article, we have discussed counselling insurance, the purpose of counselling insurance, the coverage of counselling insurance, and more information about counselling insurance.

If you have any questions about counselling insurance, please let us know and the team will gladly answer your questions.

Side Note: I have tried and tested various products and services to help with my anxiety and depression. See my top recommendations here, as well as a full list of all products and services our team has tested for various mental health conditions and general wellness.

What we recommend for Counselling

Professional counselling

If you are suffering from depression or any other mental disorders then ongoing professional counselling could be your ideal first point of call. Counselling will utilize theories such as Cognitive behavioural therapy which will help you live a more fulfilling life.

FAQs: counselling insurance

Citations

Bacp. Insurance. 

GoodTherapy. Malpractice Insurance for Counselors: What You Need to Know.

Hiscox. Business insurance for Counsellors.

Holistic Services Insurance. Counselling & Psychotherapy Insurance.

Oxygen. Counsellors. 

Towergate insurance. Counsellors’ Insurance.