MEDICAL MARIJUANA CULTIVATORS & DISPENSARY INSURANCE

Kelly Insurance Group can provide various property and casualty coverages for all facets of the medical marijuana industry.  From dispensaries, cultivators & farmers, processors & manufacturers, wholesalers, to their respective directors & officers, we can help. 

COMPREHENSIVE MEDICAL MARIJUANA & CANNABIS INSURANCE PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS

    The insurance coverage utilized by rigging type businesses are not unlike coverages enjoyed by many other businesses whether or not you are a reading operator, stage crafter, lighting array installer, insurance agent, concert promoter, and frankly any other type business. The main issue that rigging operations present to the insurance carrier, is that most insurance companies do not want to be in a position where they are paying claims due to material or equipment falling or getting picked up by wind.  

Having access to your store, your warehouse, and ultimately your land is critical for the survival of your business. Let’s face it, if you couldn’t open your store this morning due to a small fire in the grow room, your business could be in serious jeopardy if the doors remained closed for too long. If you already have property insurance chances are that will take care of getting the cost of repair taken care of, but what about the lost revenue due to your store being closed? Without business loss coverage, sometimes referred to as business overhead expense, your cannabis operation’s future could be in jeopardy. How will your business pay for rent? Employee salaries? License Agreements? How will your business plan to pay bills if the dispensary is closed due to a fire? This is why you need Business Income Loss Insurance.

Admittedly, there are so many important coverages to consider, this is no exception. Fortunately for most businesses the loss of income types of coverage would be included under your commercial property set of coverages (that is, if you are a small business owner). If you are a business that pushes north of $1,000,000 in annual revenue you need to have a conversation with your insurance broker about this coverage set especially because it may not be included. If you are a dispensary or a cannabis related business this coverage is extremely necessary.

We don’t like to think about it but without this type of coverage for 1st party theft, any loss you sustain due to the criminal activity of your employees would most likely be denied.

Every business owner needs to consider adding data breach and cyber attack coverage into their portfolio. Let us share a personal experience as an example: Our agency can provide both personal insurance and business insurance in most states-we are about 60% commercial lines and 40% personal lines in terms of premium dollars. In 2021, we had 5x the amount of cyber attack calls than home fires. It’s getting more and more difficult not to make this coverage front and center. Could it be more important than general liability? We are happy to discuss this interesting topic with you. Call us today!

We discuss this topic in various sections on this website. E and O coverage is typically class specific so a ‘blanket’ malpractice type of policy that covers all of your efforts is usually not possible. I would say impossible but there could be some insurance carriers out there that would provide an ‘everything’s covered’ type of policy for beaucoup dollars, but we still have not found one yet.

Most certainly if you are in the business of prescribing medical marijuana to patients you would have medical malpractice based errors and omissions coverage (otherwise known as Professional Liability Insurance).

Coverage for your professional recommendations or your professional failures comes from professional liability insurance. Hence the reason behind the same coverage named ‘Errors and Omissions Insurance.’ Many titles are used to represent this specific coverage set but it is almost never included with your standard general liability insurance policy. You will find most insurance agents will have this type of coverage, doctors of course, attorneys, those distributing intellectual property, just to name a few. There are times when professional liability may be a more beneficial coverage as compared to general liability in very specific circumstances. Talk to us today, we can get you insured.

Most certainly if you are in the business of prescribing medical marijuana to patients you would have medical malpractice based errors and omissions coverage (otherwise known as Professional Liability Insurance). However, for those that are on the retail side or growing side, this type of coverage could be a good idea as it could include a number of different coverage option: 1) Improper labeling 2) Infringement Type Claims where an allegation of intellectual property theft is made 3) Misreading an identification card resulting in wrongful and wrongful dispense claim.

The Lurking misfortune of commercial package policies and business insurance policies (and of course for personal home insurance, but that’s on another webpage of ours). Click here to learn more about protecting you and your business from claims due to water damage. Did you know that if your stock is damaged due to a roof leak you probably won’t have coverage for the damaged cannabis products? Not to be a debbie downer but so many policies do not cover these types of claims. Unfortunately, coverage may not be available for your business property that is damaged due to a water leak from a gutter, downspout, or crappily installed roof. If this sort of claim worries you, the most important thing you can do is make sure you get your landlord to fix the roof problem or downspout problem because even the best policies in the world may still not cover these types of claims for you.

Although typical businesses may need $1,000,000 per occurrence and a $2,000,000 general liability aggregate, your growing operation or dispensary probably needs significantly higher limits of coverage; $5,000,000 and even $10,000,000 or regular and customary limits of insurance as it relates to dispensary and cultivator insurance programs.

(Rented Vehicle Physical Damage Coverage) – The coverage will pay to fix the vehicle you are legally required to fix. Keep in mind this coverage only applies to the vehicles you ‘hire’. An example of a ‘hired’ car would be when you rent a vehicle from Enterprise through your business. You may think that your personal auto insurance or commercial auto will pay to fix the vehicle you are renting, but buyer beware.

We strongly suggest all businesses have this type of coverage whenever possible. An underestimated asset saving protection mechanism.

(seen on Directors and Officers Insurance) – This type of coverage is getting more and more difficult to purchase as D and O is getting ludicrously expensive for marjiuana type businesses. K&R based coverage utilizes the expertise of crisis managers and hostage type negotiators. Some of the coverage available include workplace violence and active shooter type situations.

This coverage may go unnoticed for some businesses, but for those businesses in the medical cannabis industry, it’s super important. As an example, say one of your vape cartridge manufacturers mistakenly cleans their containers with a chemical not suitable for human consumption. If people become sick upon consumption, not only will the vape maker be put on notice but most likely you will also. Remember, not everyone sues everyone to make a buck; some have to sue in order for medical bills to be paid, or for their home to be retrofitted. Your best coverage is meant for those that unequivocally need it.

Does your cannabis operation manufacture vapes or vape pens, syringes, or some other type of THC delivery device? Having recall coverage in place would pay to help notify the affected parties and coordinate the return of the affected devices. This coverage usually only extends to 3rd party types of claims. Whereas a 1st party type of claim would be to actually have the affected vape pen or other device be replaced by the insurance company – such insurance is not included under the typical Product Recall coverage form.

Coverage for your real property (building) and business property. We can also offer inland marine and coverage for rented equipment.

When you are in the marijuana cultivation business, liability only coverage is not an option. CRB’s need 1st party property coverage sometimes referred to as Stock Coverage or medicine coverage. This coverage will help indemnify your CRB in the event of your stock getting damaged or stolen. Many policies will exclude a significant amount of perils so its super important you read the entire application, proposal, and insurance policy to be sure you know what you are getting. Even when you get insurance with us, we still have limitations and coverage gaps that need to be considered. Talk to us today about your CRB!

Consists of 1st party property coverage for flower and other similar types of inventory related to your medical marijuana operation.

Did you know that Workers Compensation will pay for your injured employee’s medical bills if they were hurt while working under your employ? You probably knew that but did you know that the insurance company’s limit of insurance as it relates to your employee’s medical bills is unlimited? Did you know that? In other words, if one of your employees lost the use of their legs due to an accident at your business and the medical bills reached $5 million, the workers compensation insurance company is obligated and required to pay the bill. Now, if the employee claims you put them in a precarious situation and exacerbated the injury (negligence) the employer’s liability is the coverage that would kick in to protect the business owner. Make sure you read and internalize your workers compensation policy because some do not include the employers liability coverage automatically.

No matter your political views, world views, or favorite ice cream flavor, problematic sexual behaviour is being ‘outed’ by those courageous enough to share. Although all business owners have a responsibility to hire responsibly, many simply have no way of telling if certain behaviors will be exhibited by current and future employees. In the event an allegation is brought against the dispensary or cultivating facility for the inappropriate touching of a staff member by another staff member, sexual abuse and molestation coverage is the only coverage line item that will help fund counsel and a limited amount of coverage for damages.

HEMP BUSINESS & MEDICAL MARIJUANA INSURANCE POLICIES: LEGAL CONSIDERATIONS

There are still so many unknowns when it comes to the legitimate business operations of a cannabis based company. For instance when will the federal law follow the individual states in which medical marijuana has been legalized? How will certain claims be adjusted in the event an incident happens with a patient while in another state within the United States?.  
Until federal law and individual state/commonwealth law follow each other’s form, liability claims could be called into question even when a CRB has proper insurance coverage. Remember, the insurance policy must follow the rules of the land so when there is a conflict between state law and federal law, insurance dilemma’s are guaranteed to follow suit.  

NEED EXPERT ADVICE?

or just a quote? Call our friendly team of agents today at (412)325-1650 or text (412)212-8577. We are licensed in most states.
ALL STATES

WHAT INSURANCE COMPANIES ARE BEST FOR CANNABIS & HEMP BUSINESSES?

When it comes to Cannabis Business Insurance and Hemp Business Insurance, not all insurance is the best.

Who are the Best Cannabis Insurance Companies? 

  • Canngen
  • Conifer Insurance Company
  • Golden Bear Insurance Company
  •  Admiral Insurance Group
  •  Berkley Connect
  • Cannasure

LEGAL OBSTACLES YOU SHOULD THINK ABOUT

Because marijuana use, specifically the legal use of the drug, is still not legal under Federal Law, there may be legal implications not yet considered.  Below is an example of a possible situation that could present a problematic result. 

A patient is prescribed medical marijuana in Pennsylvania then subsequently travels to a state in which it is not currently legal. If that patient has an adverse reaction caused by your dosage negligence (as an example), there could be serious coverage ramifications if the suit is filed within a state that has yet to legalize medical cannabis. Hopefully by the time these web pages are read some of these issues will have remedied themselves, but maybe not.

TYPES of BUSINESSES & CLASSES THAT COULD QUALIFY FOR COVERAGE

Marijuana Cultivators – Extraction Operations – Vertically Integrated Growers – Vape Cartridge Manufacturer – Paraphernalia Manufacturer – Medical Marijuana Branding Firms – White Label Manufacturers – Multiple State Cultivators  – Processing Facilities  – Networks & Franchises – THC Infused Food Products – Consumption Lounges On Site – All in One operations  – Distributors – Medical Marijuana Dispensaries