Dental Malpractice Insurance

Dental malpractice coverage insures you against claims that you were negligent or made a mistake as a dentist, resulting in bodily harm to another. This includes providing you with a lawyer to defend yourself and funds you can use to pay judgments or settlements.

AMOUNT COVERED:
Limits of liability include $1M per claim/$3M aggregate (additional options available)

If a claim is filed against you, we’ll retain an experienced dental malpractice lawyer for you. We’ll pay for related defense costs (e.g., lawyer fees, court fees, expert witness costs). These defense costs are “outside” the limits of your insurance. This means that their services don’t cut into the settlement amounts you may need to pay to the injured party.

AMOUNT COVERED:
Paid in addition to your policy’s limits

We work with your defense attorney to reach the best possible outcome for you. We won’t settle a claim without your approval.

Your policy applies on a worldwide basis, as long as a claim is brought against you in the United States (which includes any U.S. territories or possessions).

If you provide professional care to someone who is not your patient in a first aid or emergency situation, and that person files a claim against you, your policy would still apply.

If you are investigated for potential HIPAA violations, we provide you with access to counsel and will reimburse you for costs related to HIPAA proceedings — including HIPAA fines.

AMOUNT COVERED:
$25,000 per policy period

If your disposal of medical waste is the subject of an administrative proceeding brought by the Federal or State Environmental Protection Agency, this coverage reimburses you for your expenses to defend the proceeding.

AMOUNT COVERED:
$25,000 limit each claim, up to $25,000 for all claims

If there is an accident unrelated to your dental professional services at your practice and someone is injured, their first aid expenses can be covered under your policy, provided that the person injured is not covered under workers’ compensation or similar benefits.

AMOUNT COVERED:
$10,000 limit per person

This coverage applies to the expenses to defend a dispute, usually regarding treatment or billing decisions, that is brought by a dental peer review board or committee. The dispute might be between you and a patient, a third-party payer like a Preferred Provider Organization, or even your dental association.

AMOUNT COVERED:
$25,000 limit per policy period

If the professional licensing authority is investigating matters related to your professional conduct, our policy provides you with legal defense.

AMOUNT COVERED:
$25,000 limit per policy period

If we ask you to attend litigation activities (e.g., a deposition), our policy will reimburse you for actual lost wages and any necessary expenses you incur (e.g., travel, meals).

AMOUNT COVERED:
Up to $1,000 per day

This provides coverage for dental procedures and treatments you perform outside of your usual practice, as part of an interview to join another practice or facility.

AMOUNT COVERED:
Included within policy limits

This provides coverage for claims brought by an administrative agency or dental insurance payor for damages or injunctive relief for errors you committed in your billing practices.

AMOUNT COVERED:
$25,000 each claim, subject to a maximum of $25,000 for all claims

Dental malpractice insurance is professional liability insurance for dentists. It helps protect dental professionals from the legal and financial burdens of a malpractice claim by covering things like legal costs and damages. In short, if a patient claims you made a mistake that caused alleged injury or harm , your dental malpractice insurance can help pay for an attorney to defend you and cover potential settlement costs.

The financial toll of defending or settling a malpractice claim can be substantial. Dental malpractice insurance helps minimize the disruptions and out-of-pocket costs that come with such claims, while supporting you through every step of the claims process. Having the right coverage can give you the peace of mind and confidence you need to stay focused on what matters: caring for your patients.

A good malpractice policy can also give you the chance to get ahead of a potential claim and work toward an alternative resolution with your patient. If, for example, you’re trying to pull a patient’s tooth and it breaks, your patient may want you to cover the cost of their resulting trip to a specialist.

With the right dental malpractice coverage, you may be able to file an incident report with your insurance company. Your insurer can then work toward a resolution that makes things right for your patient, while taking that stress and financial burden off your shoulders.

Every policy and provider are different, so coverage varies widely. But most dental malpractice policies include core coverage for:

• Attorneys’ fees
• Arbitration costs
• Expert testimony fees
• Court costs
• Settlement costs (reimbursement to the injured party for hurt, loss, or damage)

In addition, the amount of coverage you will receive depends on the limits of liability you choose, meaning the maximum dollar amounts that your insurance provider will pay out in damages. The higher your limits of liability, the more financial support you’re eligible to receive for settlements.

Beyond these core coverages, there are also a number of more detailed coverage options and benefits that you should expect from your dental malpractice insurance. For example, a Berxi policy includes:

• Board action & license protection coverage
• HIPAA violation defense coverage
• Peer review coverage
• Good Samaritan coverage
• Wage loss & deposition expense coverage
• Legal fees & defense counsel covered outside the limits of liability

There are many reasons why a patient might file a claim against a dental professional. In general, if a patient claims to have suffered harm due to a dentist’s mistake or negligence, including injury, loss, or death, the patient or their family can sue for malpractice. Some common reasons for dental malpractice claims include:

• Improper crown or bridge placement
• Prescribing incorrect drugs or dosages
• Improper tooth extractions
• Endodontic procedure issues
• Orthodontic treatment complications
• Improper treatment after procedures
• Failure to diagnose oral health issues
• Dental anesthesia complications

This is by no means a complete list, but it can give you an idea of the scope of dental malpractice insurance. However, there are certain things a malpractice policy will not cover. For example, claims involving criminal acts or sexual misconduct are not covered by malpractice insurance. If a patient files a claim alleging one of these acts, a dentist may have to find representation outside of their malpractice provider.

The short answer is that all dental professionals should protect themselves from risk with malpractice insurance. In fact, most states require dentists to obtain insurance before practicing. Berxi provides dental malpractice coverage for:

• Individual dentists
• Entire dental practices
• Orthodontists
• Endodontists
• Periodontists
• Dental hygienists
• Pediatric dentists
• Prosthodontists
• Oral pathologists
• And a wide range of professional services, including consulting, utilization management review, teaching, and more.

As you know, practicing dentistry is a risky business – like any medical profession. No matter how diligent and careful you are, there’s a risk you could face a malpractice lawsuit or “adverse action” (which could include a licensing board action, peer review, or challenge to your clinical privileges).

According to data from the National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB), there were 31,685 payments for dental malpractice made between 2001 and 2021, as well as 29,211 adverse actions in the same timeframe.

No dentist wants to make a mistake or harm a patient. But these things happen, and you need to be prepared. Without adequate protection, you risk being blindsided by a claim and finding yourself on the hook for legal fees and a potentially massive settlement. That’s why it’s so important to protect yourself with a good dental malpractice policy.

The cost of your policy will depend on a number of factors, including your specialty, location, claims history, the size of your practice, and whether you choose an occurrence or claims-made policy.

In addition, prices vary between insurers. For instance, Berxi is a direct-to-customer insurance provider, meaning our customers don’t have to pay broker or association fees. As a result, our customers save an average of 15% on dental malpractice insurance.

To give you an idea of how these different factors affect costs, we pulled together some quotes for dental malpractice insurance from Berxi. Each of these quotes is for an occurrence policy for a dentist working in Massachusetts full-time:

• $100 for first-year dentists
• Less than $2,100 for general dentists with less than 4 years of experience (significant discounts apply to new graduates for 3 years after graduation)
• $2,100 for dentists who have been practicing for 6 years or more
• $101 for hygienists
• $3,465 for periodontists

Of course, the best way to find out how much your policy will cost is to compare quotes from different providers. Get a quote from Berxi today – in only takes a few minutes.

While insurance requirements and licensing regulations vary, most states require dentists to have malpractice insurance. That’s why it’s good practice to confirm these requirements with your local dental board.

Not all malpractice insurance providers are created equal. When choosing a provider and policy, you should consider whether it has:

• Flexible options for the limits of liability
• Legal defense costs paid outside the limits of liability
• No deductible
• Convenient payment plans and options
• Availability of both occurrence and claims-made coverage
• Expert claims professionals who specialize in dental and medical claims
• Consent to settle
• Special rates for recent grads 1-5 years out
• Online access to manage your policy
• Coverage extensions for dental hygienists and dental assistants who work in your practice.
• Financial strength ratings that prove its ability to pay future claims (A++ ratings are ideal)
• Easy-to-reach, knowledgeable customer support
• Educational materials
• Happy customer testimonials
• Discounts for members of dental organizations
• Discounts for taking risk management courses

There are a few ways to get dental malpractice insurance. These include buying directly from a provider such as Berxi, going through a broker or agent, and getting insured through your professional association.

Because Berxi sell directly to you, with no middlemen, brokers, or association fees, our customers save an average of 15% on dental malpractice insurance. Plus, you don’t need to be a member in a dental organization to buy our insurance – and if you are a member, we’ll give you a discount.

Start your search with a quote from Berxi – it only takes a few minutes.