Home care
Are we liable for a caregiver we treat as a contractor?
Frequently yes, and worker classification is contested territory in this industry. A plaintiff will argue whichever characterization reaches the agency, and a regulator may reach its own conclusion about classification for wage and tax purposes independently.
On the insurance side, confirm your policy covers your liability arising from the acts of independent contractors. Liability forms distinguish employees, who are generally insureds, from contractors, who generally are not, and the treatment of the agency own liability arising from contractor acts varies by form.
If contractors carry their own coverage, collect and read the actual endorsements rather than filing certificates unread, and confirm the additional insured endorsement names your current entity. A certificate is evidence, not coverage.
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More home care questions
Do we need auto coverage if the agency owns no vehicles?
Yes. Hired and non-owned auto responds when caregivers drive personal vehicles on agency business, and their personal limits are frequently minimal.
What covers damage to a client home or property?
General liability handles damage you cause. Allegations of theft from a client home are a crime and reputational exposure that general liability does not answer.
How do we defend a claim when supervision is remote?
From the documentation, because it is the only evidence of what happened. Competency assessment, supervisory visits and an escalation path are the record.
Why is wage and hour the claim we actually get?
Because it arises from how the work is structured rather than from any manager conduct, and structural practices apply uniformly across a role.
Does HIPAA apply to a home care agency?
It depends on the services and billing arrangement, but the practical exposure is the same either way: you hold health and identity information about a targeted population.
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