If you’re an educator, you’ve probably heard one of these before:
“Teachers are covered by their school or union, so they don’t need insurance.”
“Tutors don’t need insurance if it’s just a side gig. What could happen?”
Teachers and tutors share a passion for learning, but the way they’re protected (or not) is often different. From school policies with hidden gaps to the what-ifs of online and home tutoring, each role carries risks many educators were never told to expect.
If you’ve ever wondered whether educator liability insurance is meant for you, you’re in the right place. As we explain insurance for teachers and tutors, note which risks apply to you and match them to the right professional coverage with our teachers vs. tutors insurance chart.
Teachers vs Tutors: Same Goal, Different Risks
Teachers and tutors both shape learning outcomes for their students, but the settings, responsibilities, and protections of each role create different risk scenarios.
Teachers work within districts or schools, supported by established curricula, administrative oversight, and their employer’s insurance policy.
Pros:
- Structure for teaching content, conduct, and risk management if an accident happens
- A safety net with some protection from their school’s or union’s policy
Cons:
- Limited clarity in and control over how they’re covered
- Gaps in protection around after-school programs, field trips, and off-campus events
Tutors design their own lessons and meet students wherever learning needs to happen, from their homes, libraries, and student centers to video calls and online tutoring platforms.
Pros:
- Freedom to teach how and what they think is best
- Independence to select and manage their own insurance coverage
Cons:
- 100% responsibility for liability risks or getting insured
- Greater chance for data breaches, property damage, contract disputes, and professional errors
Both teachers and tutors have role-specific risks that aren’t always obvious until something goes wrong. Let’s get into the specific liabilities teachers and tutors face, and where those risks come from.
What Liability Risks Do Teachers Face?
Teachers dedicate their days (and, let’s face it, often their nights and weekends) to helping students succeed. But even in a structured classroom environment, things may not go according to plan.
Schools and districts often carry general liability policies that also include their employees. However, those policies exist to protect the school or district — not necessarily teachers. That means what school insurance doesn’t cover can become a teacher’s responsibility to pay, or to fight out in court alone.
Here are a few key teacher risks a school insurance policy might not cover:
“But those risks aren’t common for teachers, are they?”
Many teachers never face an allegation or lawsuit (and we hope you never do). But it only takes one claim to derail your career and your finances. Read these real examples of teacher insurance claims to see how liability lawsuits played out for real-life teachers.
Did you know? If your union and association policy doesn’t list you as a named insured, it can have many of the same weaknesses for teachers as a school policy.
Learn why teachers need insurance to understand your risks and see which questions to ask your union or association.
What Liability Risks Do Tutors Face?
Tutors have the flexibility that classroom teachers lack. They can set their own hours, choose their students, and teach just about anywhere.
But that freedom also means they accept full responsibility for what happens in a session. Unlike teachers, tutors don’t have a school policy to back them up if something goes wrong.
Many tutors are independent contractors for tutoring companies or sole proprietors. That means, legally, you’re self-employed and running a tutoring business (even if you consider tutoring a side gig). Like any small business, tutors need insurance because they’re vulnerable to personal lawsuits.
Here are a few major risks that tutors face:
Did you know? The specific risks for your tutoring business are mostly tied to where you teach and advertising your tutoring services.
Our private tutor insurance guide breaks down where your risks come from for tutoring in students’ homes, a learning center or afterschool program, your home, online, on a tutoring platform, and more.
Teachers vs Tutors Insurance: Which Coverage Matches Your Risks?
No matter where or how you teach, every educator faces what-ifs that can steal your peace of mind. An accident, a misunderstanding, or a simple mistake can quickly become a financial and legal headache.
The good news? The right type of coverage can manage all of those risks, and Insurance Canopy designs protection with your needs in mind.
Use the guide below to match your most common risks to the right kind of educator insurance — whether you’re a classroom teacher, a private tutor, or both.
Risk-to-Coverage Guide for Teachers and Tutors
| Common Risk | Affects | Coverage |
|---|---|---|
|
Student injury or school property damage during a lesson |
Teachers |
|
|
Student injury or damage to a tutoring space or student’s home; online ad mistakes |
Tutors |
|
|
Claims of negligence, professional errors, and contract breaches |
Teachers & Tutors |
|
|
Extracurriculars or off-campus activities |
Teachers |
|
|
Online data theft, data breach lawsuits, and ransomware |
Tutors & Hybrid Educators |
Cyber Liability Coverage (Add-On) |
|
Sexual misconduct allegations and misunderstandings |
Teachers & Tutors |
|
|
Damage to teaching tech or materials you own |
Teachers & Tutors |
Covering Teacher Risks
Student injury or school property damage
Covered by: General Liability Insurance
Extracurriculars or off-campus activities
Covered by: Teacher Liability Insurance
Covering Tutor Risks
Student injury or damage to a tutoring space or student’s home
Covered by: General Liability Insurance
Online advertising mistakes
Covered by: General Liability Insurance
Covering Shared Risks
Claims of negligence, professional errors, and contract breaches
Covered by: Professional Liability Insurance
Online data theft, data breach lawsuits, and ransomware
Covered by: Cyber Liability Insurance (Add-On)
Sexual misconduct allegations and misunderstandings
Covered by: Sexual Abuse and Molestation (SAM) Coverage (Add-On)
Damage to teaching tech or materials you own
Covered by: Equipment and Materials Insurance (Inland Marine) (Add-On)
How to Use This Chart (And Choose the Right Insurance Coverage)
How to Choose the Right Insurance Coverage
1. Identify your risks. Find the scenarios in the chart that fit how and where you teach.
2. Check your coverage.
Teachers, check your school or union plan.
First, see if your name is on the policy (if it’s not, your protection will have gaps), then see if it includes the coverage you need.
Tutors, review what’s included in your current policy (if you have one).
3. Close the gaps. If any risks aren’t covered, explore an insurance policy that fills those gaps.
4. Check the price. You’re an educator, so we know you’re looking for a good deal. Check your current insurance cost or dues to see if you could get coverage for less. Educator Insurance from Insurance Canopy starts at $21.08/month for teachers and tutors.
Insurance Canopy’s teacher insurance and our tutor insurance make finding the coverage you need easy. Both combine general and professional liability protection. Plus, they let you customize with add-ons like SAM insurance, cyber liability, and equipment and materials insurance to fit your unique risks.
Want some help finding and pricing your perfect coverage? Get a quick, free quote from Insurance Canopy to see how easy it is to protect your career.
Why Both Teachers and Tutors Need Insurance
Whether you lead a K-12 classroom or tutor part-time, your teaching is built on trust. Even one incident can put that trust at risk, along with your career, reputation, and income. Educator liability insurance is designed to protect you by covering legal fees, property damage, and professional error claims.
For teachers, your own teacher liability insurance adds a layer of personal protection beyond your school, union, or association policy.
Instead of hoping you don’t fall into a coverage gap, you can feel confident with a policy in your name designed to protect you first.
For tutors, tutor liability insurance is vital to your financial safety, even if tutoring is just a side gig for now.
It also proves your credibility as a business to any partners or employers who require insurance, like tutoring centers, charter schools, landlords, and more.
The right policy lets you focus on supporting students while backing you with protection, professionalism, and peace of mind. Get educator insurance today, or keep exploring coverage for different kinds of educators with these helpful guides:
Frequently Asked Questions About Insurance for Teachers and Tutors
What’s the difference between teachers and tutors when it comes to insurance?
Teachers and tutors both shape learning outcomes for students, but because they’re employed differently, they also need different types of protection:
- Teachers typically need their own teacher liability insurance policy to supplement their school, union, or association policy — which may not always prioritize them first.
- Tutors often rely completely on tutor liability insurance to protect their business from property damage and injury lawsuits. It also protects their tutoring against professional and contract mistakes or dissatisfied students and parents.
Does a school cover teachers with its insurance policy?
It depends. While many schools offer teachers some level of coverage through the school’s or district’s insurance policy, teachers may not be covered if:
- An incident happens off school grounds or after/before regular school hours. For example, if a student gets injured at a weekend band competition, the supervising music teacher may be held responsible.
- Your actions were deemed outside of the normal scope of your role. Extra practices, study sessions, or projects outside of class may fall into this risky gray area.
- A class-action lawsuit drains the district’s policy, so there’s nothing left to protect individual teachers. Remember, the school or district’s policy protects them first and will cover all its expenses before it covers yours. Protecting you is secondary.
What risks do tutors face that teachers don’t?
Since tutors are often independent contractors for a tutoring company or small business owners, they don’t have a school insurance policy as a first line of defense. Tutors’ unique risks may include factors like:
- In-home tutoring risks: Property damage to students’ or their parents’ homes and belongings
- Online tutoring and data risks: Ransomware or data breaches involving students’ personal information and payment details
- Advertising risks: Tutors often have to market their services, which can lead to costly mistakes like copyright infringement, breach of privacy, false advertising, and more.
How much does insurance cost for tutors vs teachers?
Tutors and teachers can get comprehensive liability coverage from Insurance Canopy starting at just $21.08/month.
Your final cost depends on the state where you teach and extra coverages like equipment and materials insurance that you add to your policy. Read more about tutor insurance, or check out our teacher insurance page for all the details.
