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How much does ambulance insurance cost?
Running an EMS or a non-emergency medical service is expensive. You have to pay for the vehicles, the supplies, the personnel, and the insurance. You certainly don’t want to skimp on any of these essentials. But you also don’t want to get an unfair price.
Whether you’re a startup paratransit service or an established for-profit emergency ambulance service, you owe it to yourself to get the best deal on insurance. It’s important then to know how much the average policy costs. Insurance for commercial ambulance services depends on many factors, but most policies average somewhere between $9,000 to $12,000 per vehicle per year. Your might have to pay more than that or you might pay much less. It all depends on you and your business.
What factors determine how much insurance costs?
As an insurance agent quotes your medical transport service, he will look at details about your business to calculate your cost. The main things he looks at are as follows.
Location
The state that your EMT or NEMT service is located in plays a big role in your final price. States with lower accident rates are less expensive than those with higher rates. Rural areas are cheaper than urban areas.
Accident history
If you’re an EMS, your ambulance drivers are 4.8 times more likely to get into a crash than other drivers on the road. Insurance companies understand that accidents do happen. That said, they prefer to insurance businesses with very few or zero accidents.
Type of ambulance service
- Emergency Medical Service – There is significant risk associated with EMTs who perform advanced life support. Expect higher premiums.
- Non-Emergency Medical Service – There is less risk associated with wheelchair and paratransit personnel who only perform basic life support. Expect cheaper premiums.
- Crossover Service – If you perform both emergency and non-emergency medical transport, your premium will fall somewhere in between.
Credit history
Your credit history contributes to your overall price. Insurance agencies like to see companies and business owners with a history of paying their bills on time.
Experience
Startups are more expensive to insure than ambulance services that have been in business for several years.
The Cost of Ambulance Insurance by Coverage
When you buy insurance, you’re paying for different coverages. The coverages you get determine your overall price. Some businesses won’t require all these insurances, so it helps to see which ones you need and which ones are extraneous.
Coverage | Average Cost |
Primary Liability | $2000-10000 |
General Liability | $1500-3000 |
Physical Damage | $500-2500 |
Workers’ Comp | $2000-5000 |
Medical Payments | $1000-6000 |
How to reduce the price of ambulance insurance
Nothing about the medical transportation industry is cheap. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t ways to save. We’ve outlined the best tips below.
Comparison shop
The number one way you can get a more affordable insurance policy is to check several prices before you commit to a single policy. We’ve made this easy. We connect you, for free, with three agents who compete for your policy. You compare their offers and pick the best one for your business. There’s not a better way to do it.
Request lower limits and higher deductibles
While it might put you in a worse financial situation if you get into an accident, lowering your limit and raising your deductible is one way to lower your monthly premium.
Enforce safety rules in your business and among your drivers
- Make sure your drivers use their safety belts.
- Add a “How’s my driving?” bumper sticker to the back our your ambulances. It’s a simple, low-tech solution that will measurably improve your ambulance driver’s performance.
- Add surveillance cameras to your place of business.
- Perform regular vehicle maintenance.
- Teach your drivers to stay aware. Most ambulance collisions occur at intersections. If your drivers know to stay alert, you can prevent a majority of these accidents.
Bundle your coverage through a single insurance company
Insurance companies will often offer discounts to medical transport services that bundle all their business and auto insurance through just them.