Private practice · May 28, 2026 · 7 min read
Malpractice insurance for therapists: what you actually need
Occurrence versus claims-made, how much coverage is typical, what telehealth and records requirements change, and the riders worth considering.
Professional liability insurance is inexpensive for therapists relative to the risk it removes, yet the details trip people up. Here is the short version of what matters.
Occurrence versus claims-made
Occurrence policies cover incidents during the policy period whenever they are claimed later. Claims-made policies cover claims made while the policy is active, which means you need tail coverage when you switch carriers or retire. Occurrence is simpler for most solo practices; claims-made with tail works fine if you understand the tail cost before you buy.
How much coverage
Policies in the range of one million dollars per occurrence and three million aggregate are typical for solo practitioners, and many landlords, group practices, and payers require proof at that level. Students and pre-licensed clinicians need their own policy, not a borrowed one.
What your practice changes
Telehealth, record storage, and supervision each carry coverage implications. Confirm your policy explicitly covers telehealth in every state you practice, ask about coverage for licensing board complaints, which is separate from malpractice but often included, and add a cyber or records rider if you store protected health information, which you do.
Review the policy annually alongside your general business insurance. It is a fifteen-minute task that protects everything else you are building. The PrecisionMind platform supports the other half of risk management: complete, timestamped, audit-ready documentation on every client.
