There are many different reasons to blog, including improving your business potential, sharing personal experiences with friends and family, and informing customers of upcoming products or events. However for a blogger, it is often their part-time or full-time job. While it can be a rewarding experience and give you a creative outlet, it also poses a number of liability risks. It is important to get blogger liability insurance, just in case a claim is made against you.
What is a Blogger?
A blogger is someone who writes for, maintains and updates a blog. The term blog is short for “web log” though most people don’t refer it to that anymore. There are many different types of blogs, including various templates, styles and uses. If you are a professional blogger, you may run your own blog or maintain blogs for various clients. You are often responsible for coming up with unique and interesting blog topics, researching, writing and editing them followed by keeping the blog updated on a regular basis.
The Liability Risks of a Blogger
As a blogger, you may be exposed to a wide number of liability risks, which is why liability insurance is essential in your line of work. Many bloggers work on a freelance basis and therefore don’t consider blogger liability insurance. However one small legal claim could mean thousands of dollars in legal costs you may not be able to afford. Some risks include being accused of defamation of character, libel, slander, invasion of privacy or going against copyright laws. For instance, if you use an image that is licensed without permission, you could be facing a copyright law. If you posted about someone using their name and personal information, you might get sued for invasion of privacy. If a statement was made that was untrue but caused them injury or harm, it could be libel or slander. In many cases, you are not found to be guilty of the claim, but are still responsible for the cost of legal counsel.
Choosing Liability Insurance
The next step is making sure you have proper blogger liability insurance. When looking for business insurance, you will notice it is difficult to find liability insurance specifically for bloggers. However, since it is a growing occupation, it is more than possible to get liability insurance tailored to your profession. You want to have a list of your risks as a blogger and be sure the liability insurance policy covers every risk, not just a few of them.
What Does Liability Insurance Cover?
If you’re having trouble deciding what policy you need as a blogger, it can help to know what liability insurance should cover. Generally speaking, you want to cover advertising injury, libel, slander, defamation, copyright issues and invasion of privacy. The policy should cover judgments, legal costs, settlements and preferably additional protection of your reputation as a blogger if you’re found to be not guilty.
Now that you know what to look for, you can get adequate blogger liability insurance coverage for the different liabilities you are exposed to. As a blogger, it is essential that you opt for this coverage even if it is the only business insurance policy you have.
