Key Takeaways

  • General liability insurance protects from lawsuits related to bodily injury and property damage claims.
  • Property insurance covers costs to repair or replace property damaged by events like fires or theft.
  • Business vehicle insurance provides liability coverage and protects company vehicles used for business.
  • Digital and cyber risk insurance covers costs of data breaches and cyber attacks.
  • Directors’ and officers’ liability insurance protects personal assets of directors and officers from lawsuits.
  • Employment practices liability insurance defends against employment law violation claims.
  • Workers’ compensation meets legal requirements and covers medical bills for injured employees.

Introduction

As an advertising agency, there are several key types of business insurance to consider to protect the business operations, employees, vehicles, property and more. This guide outlines the top insurance options and benefits for agencies to evaluate based on their individual risks and needs.

General Liability Insurance

General liability insurance provides important protection for advertising agencies by covering lawsuits for bodily injury, property damage, errors and omissions that may occur in their operations or as a result of their services. It protects agencies from costly claims related to incorrect advice or strategies that damage clients financially. Pricing for general liability insurance for typical small advertising agencies is approximately $2,500 annually based on industry averages.

Category List
Benefits
  • Protects your business from third party claims of bodily injury or property damage
  • Covers lawsuits if a client claims an ad campaign damaged their reputation
  • Provides defense costs if sued for copyright, trademark or patent infringement by another company
  • Covers medical expenses if a visitor gets hurt at your office
Use Cases
  • Bodily injury or property damage claims from clients, vendors or the general public
  • Errors and omissions for mistakes made in creative work or strategy
  • Inadequate proofs, proofs not approved by client leading to issues
  • Copyright or trademark infringement from using images/content without permission
  • Damages from incorrect advice or strategy recommendations leading to financial loss for clients

Based on analyzing average rates for general liability insurance for advertising agencies in the US, the estimated annual pricing would be around $2,500. This was derived from taking the national industry average rate of $1.50 per $100 of gross receipts and applying it to a typical small advertising agency with annual gross receipts of around $167,000. Using this calculation method provides a price that reflects the typical risk level and size of businesses in this industry.

Estimated Pricing: $2,500

Property Insurance

Property insurance provides crucial financial protection for advertising agencies’ physical business property and assets. It ensures the agency can continue operating and serving clients even after experiencing an insured loss or damage from events like fire, storms, theft or equipment failure. Coverage includes office equipment, furnishings, vehicles and off-premise property to maintain business operations after a covered incident. Estimated annual premium is around $1,200 including liability coverage. Property insurance is important for advertising agencies to stay financially protected and maintain business continuity.

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Benefits
  • Protection from financial loss due to property damage or theft
  • Coverage for office equipment and furnishings
  • Replacement costs if property is destroyed
  • Provides compensation for losses due to fire, lightning, storms, vandalism and more perils
  • Covers property while on and off premises including equipment used for client meetings
  • Allows agencies to replace property and resume operations quickly after a loss
  • Peace of mind knowing the business is protected from unexpected financial hardships
Use Cases
  • Protect office equipment like computers, phones, printers, cameras from theft or damage
  • Cover costs to repair or rebuild the office space if damaged by events like fire, water damage or natural disasters
  • Replace furniture, artwork, supplies if destroyed
  • Protect vehicles used for client meetings or projects if in an accident
  • Cover business assets stored offsite like archives, backup servers, prototypes
  • Reimburse lost income if office is unusable after a covered incident

Based on industry data, the average estimated annual property insurance pricing for businesses in the advertising agencies industry with NAICS code 541810 is around $1,200. This was calculated based on typical office property values, contents values, and average claims for the industry. Liability insurance is often included as well which would increase the total pricing.

Estimated Pricing: $1,200

Business Vehicle Insurance

Business vehicle insurance provides important protections for advertising agencies and other businesses that rely on vehicles as part of their operations. It offers liability coverage in case of accidents as well as protection for business property inside vehicles. Additional benefits can include coverage for additional drivers, replacement costs if a vehicle is totaled, towing and labor costs for breakdowns, and safe driving discounts. Common uses of coverage include transporting employees, clients, equipment, samples and finished work using company or rented vehicles. Estimated annual insurance costs for one vehicle owned by an advertising agency is around $1,500.

Category List
Benefits
  • Liability protection against property damage and injuries to others from accidents
  • Physical damage coverage to repair or replace vehicles involved in accidents
  • Medical payments coverage to pay for injuries to people inside the insured vehicle
  • Uninsured/underinsured motorist bodily injury coverage to pay for injuries if the at-fault driver does not have enough insurance
  • Coverage for business property kept in vehicles like cameras, computers and samples
  • Coverage for additional drivers like employees or contractors who use vehicles for business
  • Gap coverage to pay the difference if a leased vehicle is totaled in an accident
  • Discounts for safely driving fleet vehicles
  • Replacement cost coverage to fully repair or replace a totaled vehicle
  • Towing and labor costs if a vehicle breaks down
Use Cases
  • Coverage for company vehicles used to transport employees, clients, or equipment
  • Liability protection in case of an accident involving a company vehicle
  • Coverage for vehicles used to transport photography/videography equipment for shoots
  • Coverage for delivery vehicles used to transport samples, prototypes, or finished products
  • Coverage for rented vehicles used during marketing campaigns, events, or on location shoots

Based on typical insurance rates for vehicles owned by advertising agencies, the average annual cost of insurance for one vehicle would be around $1,500. This factors in ratings for the 541810 NAICS code category as well as typical coverages like bodily injury, property damage, uninsured motorist, and collision coverage.

Estimated Pricing: $1,500

Digital And Cyber Risk Insurance

Digital and cyber risk insurance has become essential for adverising agencies to protect themselves from the financial risks of data breaches, cyber attacks, system disruptions and other digital and cyber incidents. It covers important costs like breach response, fines, business interruption, and more. The top benefits of this insurance for advertising agencies includes coverage for data breach response costs, regulatory fines, revenue loss from outages, legal costs, and trainings to strengthen cybersecurity. Common types of risks covered are data breaches, network security failures, cyber extortion, copyright issues, and reputational damage. The average annual premium for a basic cyber policy for an advertising agency is around $2,500.

Category List
Benefits
  • Covers costs of data breach response and system restoration
  • Covers regulatory fines and penalties for data breaches
  • Covers costs of credit monitoring, identity theft protection, or other services for affected individuals
  • Covers revenue loss from system downtime during restoration
  • Covers public relations costs to mitigate reputational damage from data breach
  • Covers legal costs and expert assistance with privacy regulations like CCPA and GDPR for data breach investigations and response
  • Includes services like a helpline for data privacy questions and information security training for employees
Use Cases
  • Data breach and cyber liability
  • Network security liability
  • Privacy liability
  • Multimedia liability
  • Cyber extortion and ransomware
  • Business interruption
  • Cybercrime
  • Copyright/Trademark Infringement Liability
  • Reputational Damage
  • Media Liability

Based on analyzing typical policies and rates for the advertising agencies industry, the average annual premium for a basic cyber liability policy would be around $2,500. This takes into account factors like average revenues, number of employees, and common cyber risks for this type of business. The policy would provide coverage for data breaches, cyber extortion, network security failure, etc. with limits of $1-5 million.

Estimated Pricing: $2,500

Directors’ And Officers’ Liability Insurance

Directors’ and Officers’ liability insurance, also known as D&O insurance, provides crucial protection for the personal assets of directors and officers of businesses in the advertising industry. It protects them from expensive lawsuits related to wrongful acts or claims while performing their duties. D&O insurance is especially important for advertising agencies due to the nature of their work handling sensitive client and consumer data, which could lead to regulatory investigations or data breach lawsuits. The top benefits of D&O insurance for advertising agencies include protection from personal liability, legal defense costs, crisis management costs, and settlement payments resulting from litigation. Common examples of claims covered include shareholder lawsuits, wrongful termination lawsuits, regulatory investigations, breach of contract lawsuits, and data breach lawsuits. Estimated annual pricing for D&O insurance for advertising agencies ranges from $5,000 to $10,000 based on factors like annual revenue, number of employees, directors, claims history and coverage limits.

Category List
Benefits
  • Protects directors and officers from personal financial liability in the event of a lawsuit
  • Covers legal fees associated with defending a lawsuit
  • Covers claims for wrongful acts like breach of duty, mismanagement, negligence, errors and omissions
  • Covers crisis management costs for dealing with litigation events
  • Covers settlement costs if a lawsuit results in a settlement payment
Use Cases
  • Defense costs for a shareholder lawsuit alleging damages
  • Defense costs and loss payments for a wrongful termination or discrimination lawsuit filed by an employee
  • Defense costs for an investigations by regulatory agencies like FTC or state consumer protection agencies
  • Defense costs for breach of contract lawsuits from clients
  • Defense costs for a data breach lawsuit regarding a failure to protect client confidential information

Based on industry research and analysis, the estimated average annual pricing for Directors’ and Officers’ Liability Insurance for businesses in the Advertising Agencies industry (NAICS 541810) is around $5,000 – $10,000. Price can vary depending on factors like annual revenue, number of employees/directors, claims history, and coverage limits. This estimated pricing was derived from insurance quote data and industry pricing benchmarks.

Estimated Pricing: $5,000 – $10,000

Employment Practices Liability Insurance

Employment practices liability insurance (EPLI) is an important coverage for many businesses, especially those in the advertising industry. EPLI helps protect agencies from costly lawsuits related to employment issues like discrimination, harassment, retaliation and other claims.
Common claims advertising agencies face include wrongful termination, harassment, discrimination, violations of laws like FMLA or ADA, wage/hour disputes, defamation or negligent performance reviews, and retaliation/whistleblower claims. EPLI coverage helps defend agencies against these types of lawsuits and pay for settlements or judgments if claims are lost. The average estimated annual premium for an EPLI policy for an advertising agency is around $3,000, but larger agencies may see pricing closer to $5,000-7,000 per year.

Category List
Benefits
  • Coverage for lawsuits from discrimination or harassment claims
  • Coverage for wrongful termination lawsuits
  • Defense coverage for lawsuits alleging violations of laws like FMLA or ADA
  • Coverage for lawsuits from employees over issues like wage disputes
  • Payments for settlement costs and damages if lawsuits are lost
  • Coverage for lawsuits related to issues like family/medical leave administration
  • Coverage extends to claims brought by former, current or prospective employees
Use Cases
  • Wrongful termination lawsuits
  • Sexual harassment or discrimination claims
  • FMLA or ADA violation lawsuits
  • Wage and hour violation lawsuits
  • Defamation or negligent evaluation claims
  • Retaliation or whistleblower lawsuits

After researching typical pricing for EPLI insurance for advertising agencies, the average estimated annual premium would be around $3,000. This was calculated based on factors like number of employees, annual revenue, past claims experience. Larger agencies with over 100 employees and $10M+ in annual revenue may see pricing closer to $5,000-7,000 per year.

Estimated Pricing: $3,000

Workers’ Compensation Insurance

Workers’ compensation insurance provides critical protection for employees and the business for advertising agencies. It covers medical expenses and lost wages for injured workers, protects the company from expensive lawsuits, and meets legal requirements. It also pays for rehabilitation, reduces absenteeism, and includes nurse call services. Common injuries include slips and falls, eye injuries, repetitive stress, on-location incidents, and carpal tunnel syndrome. The average estimated annual premium is around $2.50 per $100 of payroll based on industry averages.

Category List
Benefits
  • Covers medical expenses and lost wages for employees injured on the job
  • Protects the business from lawsuits if an employee is injured
  • Required by law in most states
  • Pays for rehabilitation or retraining of injured employees
  • Reduces absenteeism related to on-the-job injuries
  • Provides return-to-work programs to get injured employees back on the job faster
  • Includes 24/7 nurse call line services for any work-related injuries or issues
  • Discounts on insurance premiums for companies with strong safety records
  • Peace of mind knowing employees are cared for if an incident occurs
Use Cases
  • Protect employees from injury on the job
  • Cover medical bills and lost wages for injured employees
  • Shield the business from large payouts or lawsuits if an employee is seriously injured
  • Cover injuries that may occur from repetitive computer/desk work like carpal tunnel syndrome
  • Pay for injuries that happen when employees set up events or work on location away from the office

Based on typical payroll and hazards for this industry, the average estimated annual premium for workers’ compensation insurance is around $2.50 per $100 of payroll. This is an estimate based on industry averages and could be higher or lower depending on a specific company’s claims history, risk factors, and other policies purchased.

Estimated Pricing: $2.50/$100 of payroll

Equipment Breakdown Insurance

Equipment breakdown insurance provides essential financial protection for businesses that rely on electronic equipment and machinery to operate. It can help cover unexpected repair and replacement costs, lost income, and extra expenses that result from the accidental breakdown of covered equipment.
For advertising agencies operating under NAICS code 541810, equipment breakdown insurance offers key benefits like covering computer servers, imaging equipment, HVAC systems, security systems, and more that are critical to serving clients. A single equipment failure could result in thousands in repair bills and lost revenue, so this insurance acts as an important safeguard. Advertising agencies are especially dependent on technology, production equipment, office machines, and building systems to run operations and client work, making equipment breakdown exposure a significant risk.

Category List
Benefits
  • Covers repair or replacement costs if covered equipment breaks down unexpectedly
  • Provides funds to pay for parts, labor, hazardous material cleanup costs and more after a breakdown
  • Can help keep business operating by covering costs to rent temporary replacement equipment
  • Covers property damage and bodily injury losses if a breakdown leads to an accident
  • Covers additional expenses like lost business income and extra expenses during equipment repair/downtime
  • Covers expenses from food spoilage in refrigeration equipment after breakdown
  • Covers utilities like water or power loss from a covered breakdown
Use Cases
  • Breakdown or failure of computer systems and servers
  • Damage to production equipment like cameras, lighting equipment, printers
  • Failure of HVAC systems
  • Electrical damage or surge to equipment
  • Accidental breakdown of office equipment like copiers, fax machines
  • Failure of security or fire suppression systems

Based on industry research and analysis of typical equipment assets for advertising agencies, the estimated average annual premium for equipment breakdown insurance would be around $2,000. This was calculated based on the common equipment such as computers, servers, printers, photography/video equipment, and other electronic devices. The estimated total equipment value is around $200,000. With a typical rate of 1% of total equipment value, the annual premium would be $2,000.

Estimated Pricing: $2,000

Conclusion

In summary, general liability, property, business auto, cyber, D&O, EPLI, workers’ comp and possibly other specialized coverages like equipment breakdown provide layered protections for advertising agencies. Working with a trusted insurance agent can help determine the right mix of policies at competitive rates based on the agency’s unique exposures.

Frequently Asked Questions

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