The real estate industry can be exciting, fast-paced, and on-the-go especially in times when the real estate market is on the rise. This makes it a fun and profitable profession, but at the same time increases the likelihood for insurance claims against real estate professionals. Whether you work in Providence, Warwick, Cranston, or anywhere in between, if you work in Rhode Island odds are 98+% of real estate professionals invest in various insurance policies to manage their exposure. Below we explain the 3 main types of real estate insurance and how working in Rhode Island may be different.
Types of Real Estate Insurance in Rhode Island
There are 3 main types of insurance for real estate:
Errors and omissions insurance for real estate agents in Rhode Island is mandatory. Rhode Island is one of 13 mandatory states where typically each agent will obtain their own individual agent-based policy plus an excess policy purchased by the brokerage. At PBI Group we believe there is a better way, one where the agency buys one policy that covers both the agents and the company. This 1 policy has broader coverages and better protection than what is provided by have disparate agent policies topped off by an excess policy.
Errors and Omissions Insurance in Rhode Island
Just as the name would suggest, errors and omissions insurance covers errors and omissions made by real estate professionals working on behalf of a real estate brokerage. Specifically, E&O typically covers situations like not disclosing relevant information about the property, or not showing a property to a prospective buyer to even bodily injury or damage that could happen during a showing. In general terms, broadform E&O policies protect both the brokerages and individual real estate agents if they’re sued by a client because of a mistake they’ve made related to transactions in real estate.
Errors and omissions insurance for real estate often covers defense costs, legal costs, and court costs related to a claim.
Cyber Liability Insurance for Real Estate in Rhode Island
Cyber Liability Insurance for real estate is a relatively new type of insurance policy in Rhode Island that is designed to protect businesses from both 1st and 3rd party risks associated with cyber attacks and fraud. Real Estate professionals are a prime target for these types of attacks, because real estate deals involve complicated, multi-party, high value transactions and sensitive personal data.
First party Cyber Liability policies cover the real estate agent directly and include things like Cyber Extortion, Electronic Transfer Fraud, Deceptive Funds Transfer, and Telephone Tolls, to name a few. Direct coverage is important, but from what we have seen are rarely the reason why real estate professionals decide to purchase cyber liability policies. It’s the 3rd party protection that is usually the consideration, because that coverage would protect the vendor/partner or clients and in real estate deals, this is where the majority of the money is.
General Liability Insurance for Real Estate in Rhode Island
General Liability Insurance or business liability insurance is a common type of coverage in any industry that protects businesses from claims resulting from normal business operations not specifically related to the real estate industry.
Specifically, General Liability Insurance in Rhode Island will cover personal and advertising injury, damage to properties that are rented to your business, as well as, bodily injury or medical claims, and other common business liability exposure.
