3 Steps to a discount on your dental malpractice insurance

The cost of dental malpractice insurance

If it feels like dental malpractice insurance premiums are increasing, they are.  Why?  One reason is because jurors continue to award larger and larger settlements in medical malpractice cases, and the effect trickles into all areas of malpractice insurance.  Additionally, we all know that our society has become increasingly litigious, especially in the past few years.  Law firms are no longer strictly marketing to the upper class.  They are making themselves available to lower and middle class Americans, and thereby increasing the number of malpractice suits across the board.  The effect is a snowball.  More lawsuits.  Higher jury awards.  Increased cost of insurance.

It’s important for your bottom line to make sure that your malpractice insurance is both adequate and affordable.  You cannot practice without it.  But it doesn’t need to bankrupt the monthly budget either.

3 Steps to a discount

There are 3 main things that dentists can do to lower the cost of their dental professional liability policy.

1.  Take a risk management course.  You have to take CE courses anyway.  Find a course that provides both CE credit and risk management credit.  A risk management course provides a discount on your malpractice policy for up to 3 years.
2. Become a member of a dental organization.  The ADA and AGD provide all kinds of valuable resources to their members.  However, if the cost of joining these organizations is too high, joining your state or local dental society can still provide you with a discount on your insurance.
3. Are you claim free?  Use this to your advantage.  You’ve earned it.  With many insurance companies, the longer you remain claim free, the greater the discount.  In addition, some companies will not hold a claim against you, if there was no pay-out.

Lastly, if you are planning on moving or going to work for a different practice, call your insurance agent first.  Malpractice insurance rates can vary within your state.  If you are considering crossing the county line, it may be worthwhile to call your agent ahead of time and find out if your insurance costs are going to increase.  This will allow you to make an informed decision ahead of time.