Professional services
Insurance Cost Calculator
Totals insurance across lines, where the gaps between policies cause the losses.
Result
The point of adding the policies together is that they are usually managed separately and renew on different dates, so nobody sees the total until it is a budget problem. Expressing it against revenue and against payroll is more useful than the raw figure, because those are the two bases most policies are rated on and a total growing faster than either means something changed in your rating rather than in your business. Financing a premium monthly is convenient and it is not free, which is why the charge is shown rather than absorbed. Note this totals what you pay and says nothing about whether the cover is adequate: a low total can simply mean you are underinsured, and limits and exclusions are a separate question from price.
Get a Free Business AuditHow the calculation works
Each line of cover added up to an annual and monthly total, with the largest line identified and the total shown against revenue so it can be judged as a share of the business. Lines typically include general liability, property, vehicle, workers compensation, professional liability and any umbrella cover sitting above them.
What moves the number
- Revenue and payroll, which drive several lines directly.
- Trade or specialty classification.
- Claims history.
- Deductibles and limits chosen.
Where this one goes wrong
The expensive problem is not the premium but the gap, and the gaps are predictable: professional liability for advice given, cover for work performed by subcontractors, vehicles used for business but insured personally, and tools and equipment away from premises. A business can hold several policies and still be uninsured for the loss that actually happens. Read what is excluded rather than what is covered, and have the exclusions explained by the broker rather than assumed.
Before you quote
- Read exclusions, not just coverage summaries.
- Confirm subcontractors are covered or carry their own.
- Check that business vehicle use is on a commercial policy.
Questions
About this calculator
What insurance gaps are most common?
Professional liability for advice given, work performed by subcontractors, vehicles used for business but insured personally, and tools away from premises. A business can hold several policies and still be uninsured for the loss that actually occurs.
Does a higher deductible save money?
It lowers the premium, and the question is whether the business could absorb the deductible on several claims in a year without difficulty. A deductible set to minimise premium and beyond what you could comfortably pay converts an insurance problem into a cash flow one.
Are personal vehicle policies enough for business use?
Usually not. Personal auto policies commonly exclude or limit business use, which means a claim during work can be denied. Commercial cover or a business-use endorsement is the route, and it is worth confirming with the insurer rather than assuming.
The formula
total = sum of every policy premium + finance charge if paid monthly; share of revenue = total / revenue
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How to use this calculator
- General liability ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $2,400.
- Property and contents ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $1,800.
- Workers compensation ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $6,800.
- Commercial auto ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $5,200.
- Professional liability ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $1,600.
- Cyber ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $1,200.
The result updates as you type, so you can try a figure, see what it does to total insurance cost per year, and change it back. Nothing you enter is sent anywhere or saved.
A worked example
These are the figures the calculator opens with. Every number in the results column below is produced by the same calculation the page runs, so you can follow it through before putting your own figures in.
What goes in
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| General liability | $2,400 |
| Property and contents | $1,800 |
| Workers compensation | $6,800 |
| Commercial auto | $5,200 |
| Professional liability | $1,600 |
| Cyber | $1,200 |
| Umbrella | $1,500 |
| Bonds, EPLI and anything else | $900 |
| Paid | Monthly, financed |
| Finance charge on monthly payment | 8% |
| Annual revenue | $1,450,000 |
| Annual payroll | $520,000 |
| Employees | 9 |
| Expected renewal increase | 8% |
What comes out
| Result | Value |
|---|---|
| Total insurance cost per year main result | $23,112 |
| Per month | $1,926 |
| Premiums before finance charges | $21,400 |
| Finance charge | $1,712 |
| As a share of revenue | 1.6% |
| Per employee | $2,568 |
| As a share of payroll | 4.4% |
| Largest single policy | Workers compensation |
| At the expected renewal increase | $24,961 |
Insurance costs $23,112 a year, or $1,926 a month, which is 1.6% of revenue and $2,568 per employee. Your largest policy is Workers compensation. At the expected renewal it becomes $24,961.
How sensitive the answer is
Holding everything else steady and changing only general liability, this is what happens to total insurance cost per year. It is worth knowing which of your inputs the answer actually hinges on, and which barely move it.
| General liability ($) | Total insurance cost per year |
|---|---|
| $1,200 | $21,816 |
| $1,800 | $22,464 |
| $2,400 example above | $23,112 |
| $3,600 | $24,408 |
| $4,800 | $25,704 |
Every other input is held at the example value while this one changes, which is not how a real job behaves. Treat it as a guide to which number matters most, not as five separate quotes.
What each figure means
- General liability ($)
- A money amount, between 0 and 1000000, starting at $2,400.
- Property and contents ($)
- A money amount, between 0 and 1000000, starting at $1,800.
- Workers compensation ($)
- A money amount, between 0 and 5000000, starting at $6,800.
- Commercial auto ($)
- A money amount, between 0 and 2000000, starting at $5,200.
- Professional liability ($)
- A money amount, between 0 and 1000000, starting at $1,600.
- Cyber ($)
- A money amount, between 0 and 500000, starting at $1,200.
- Umbrella ($)
- A money amount, between 0 and 500000, starting at $1,500.
- Bonds, EPLI and anything else ($)
- A money amount, between 0 and 1000000, starting at $900.
- Paid
- Choose from Annually, in full, Monthly, financed.
- Finance charge on monthly payment (%)
- A percentage, between 0 and 40, starting at 8%.
- Annual revenue ($)
- A money amount, between 0 and 500000000, starting at $1,450,000.
- Annual payroll ($)
- A money amount, between 0 and 100000000, starting at $520,000.
- Employees
- A number, between 1 and 10000, starting at 9.
- Expected renewal increase (%)
- A percentage, between 0 and 100, starting at 8%.
What the results tell you
| Result | What it is |
|---|---|
| Total insurance cost per year | The headline result. A money figure. |
| Per month | A money figure. |
| Premiums before finance charges | A money figure. |
| Finance charge | A money figure. |
| As a share of revenue | A percentage. |
| Per employee | A money figure. |
| As a share of payroll | A percentage. |
| Largest single policy | A category or planning selection, rather than a measured quantity. |
| At the expected renewal increase | A money figure. |
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