Embalming Service Insurance
Written by
Ann Herro has been writing about insurance and employee benefits for over 15 years. She has covered topics as easy as insuring a car, and as difficult as transparency in healthcare costs.
Reviewed by
Paul Martin is the Director of Education and Development for Myron Steves, one of the largest, most respected insurance wholesalers in the southern U.S.
Many funeral homes offer embalming as part of their full array of services. If you’re a funeral home owner who offers embalming services, you need to be sure that your business insurance is sufficient to cover the unique risks that you face.
You need to work with an experienced independent insurance agent who knows your business, and who can find the right embalming service insurance from reputable insurance companies.
Why Do You Need Embalming Service Insurance?
Embalming is a multi-step procedure that is used to preserve bodies of the deceased from decomposition. Decomposition starts as soon as death occurs; embalming utilizes formaldehyde-based chemicals to slow down the process and preserve bodies for wakes and viewings.
Embalming is a highly complex process involving expert embalmers who use complex processes, tools, and equipment to ensure that the process is completed to exacting standards and the deceased person is properly prepared according to the wishes of the family.
It should go without saying, but a lot can go wrong. You need embalming service insurance to protect your business from property losses (e.g., unexpected events like fires that damage your expensive embalming facilities, tools, and equipment). You also need insurance that protects you from lawsuits, and your risk for lawsuits is high.
What Does Embalming Service Insurance Cover?
If you’re a funeral home that offers embalming services, you’ll already need to purchase several insurance policies to cover all of your business risks. Many of these policies can be applied to property losses and lawsuits that specifically involve embalming services.
- Commercial general liability (CGL) insurance: Slip and fall injuries to visitors, delivery people, or vendors are typical for any type of business, and general liability insurance protects you from lawsuits related to these types of events. What’s more, CGL policies protect you from lawsuits related to your embalming activities if they cause bodily injury or property damage to a third party.
- Commercial property insurance: Property insurance covers losses to your embalming facilities, equipment, and tools if they are totally or partially damaged or destroyed by fire, smoke, severe weather, vandalism, theft, or certain other covered perils.
- Business interruption insurance: Business interruption insurance covers lost income and certain ongoing expenses if you cannot perform embalming services due to a covered property loss, such as a fire. This means that if you cannot perform embalming services because all of your equipment was destroyed in a fire, your business interruption insurance would help replace your lost income while you repair or rebuild your facility.
- Utility interruption/loss of refrigeration coverage: A power failure can be devastating for a funeral home, especially one that offers embalming services. You need coverage for expenses that you incur to move and store remains away from your premises following an off premises or on premises failure of power or other utility services caused by a covered loss.
- Professional liability insurance: This is also known as errors and omissions insurance: Professional liability insurance covers you when the family of a deceased person claims that you have caused them financial harm due to negligence, errors, or omissions in your professional services. Even if the lawsuit is unfounded, your professional liability policy will help cover the costs to prove your case.
- Workers’ compensation insurance: Workers’ compensation insurance protects your employees from the costs of injuries and illnesses related to their work. Embalmers can be injured or become sick from unsafe handling of embalming fluid or human blood. Workers may also suffer cuts or abrasions from using of sharp equipment, or back injuries due to long hours spent standing or from heavy lifting.
- Environmental liability insurance: This coverage is important if you use and dispose of certain chemicals, medical waste, or other pollutants.
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How Much Does Embalming Service Insurance Cost?
If you offer embalming services in your funeral home, expect your insurance costs to be higher than a funeral home that does not offer embalming services. The addition of specialized equipment and additional highly trained employees, along with the additional liability risks involved with embalming services, will understandably increase the cost to insure your business.
Your insurance costs are also impacted by the size of your business, the number of employees you have, the amount and value of your commercial property, the location of your business, and a variety of other variables.
An independent insurance agent can guide you though your options so you get coverage that meets your needs and budget.
Benefits of an Independent Agent
Our agents simplify the search process for finding the right embalming service insurance. They’ll walk you through the handpicked policy options and explain the details.
Most importantly, they’ll be there for you when claim time comes. They know the ins and outs of the process and will make sure your claim is handled appropriately.
The Lowdown on Online Quotes
Online quotes can be tempting. They are fast and easy to get — but are they accurate? And are you getting quotes for the right coverage? For business owners, choosing speed over accuracy can cost you.
Online quotes can’t and don’t see the whole picture. They can omit important coverage that will leave you devastated if something unexpected happens. And they can leave out cost-saving opportunities that an agent can help you take advantage of.
Instead of getting an online quote, find an independent insurance agent now, and get one-on-one consultation and affordable options for the best coverage for your unique needs.