Clients hold real estate agents to incredibly high standards by their clients.
It may be a homeowner looking to sell their home for the lofty price they presume it to be worth, or a homebuyer in the market for their dream home (but at a bargain they can afford).
It may even be a rental property owner who constantly pushes you to squeeze more and more rent from their tenants at every lease renewal.
Throughout your real estate career you have probably had clients who expect you to conjure real estate miracles with the click of your fingers.
Yes, you are good, but perhaps not that good!
As great a real estate agent as you are, the lofty expectations of some clients may just be a bridge too far.
Because your advice is critically important to the outcomes for your clients, it often comes wrapped up in no small amount of liability and risk.
Real estate agents’ exposure to errors and omissions need to be covered, because the alternative could prove very costly for your real estate business, both financially and in terms of your reputation.
It is clearly in real estate agents’ interest to reduce their exposure to errors and omissions.
After all, nobody can be all right all of the time.
How Professional Indemnity can keep you in the game
Real estate agents are trusted advisors, but they also wear many other hats too – financial expert, interior decorator, psychologist, and sometimes even life coach and chauffeur.
That can be a lot to manage – even for seasoned real estate agents.
It is no wonder that real estate agents turn to business insurance* to reduce their exposure to risk.
Many real estate business owners reduce their exposure to risk via Professional Indemnity insurance, which may be a mandatory requirement for real estate businesses in certain Australian states or territories.
This type of insurance can provide financial protection if you ever face a claim**.
Take the following example of a Professional Indemnity policy saving the day for a real estate agent.
An insured BizCover customer operates a real estate agency.
One of the property managers, by accident, renewed a client’s building insurance instead of their landlord insurance policy.
The tenants of that particular address vacated that property whilst in rental arrears and left the home in poor condition.
The agent was unable to recover the unpaid rent and the owners were left out of pocket.
In addition, they were unable to undertake repairs on the building, which in turn resulted in the property remaining vacant.
The insurer paid $4,262.46, which helped provide financial assistance and extra peace of mind.
If your real estate business faced similar circumstances, how equipped would you be to respond?
Get BizCover in your corner for business insurance made easy
Professional Indemnity is an important part of being a professional real estate agent.
Regardless of how many times you cross your T’s and dot your I’s, mistakes can and do happen – and they are often frustratingly easy to miss, no matter how many times you double-check and triple-check a document or contract.
Building a successful real estate business doesn’t happen overnight.
Don’t let your real estate business come undone due to financial losses and reputational damage.
By switching to BizCover, you can compare policies and save money on your business insurance without the drama.
Visit bizcover.com.au to easily compare multiple competitive quotes from selected leading Australian insurers and get instant cover for your real estate agency in less than 10 minutes – no dramas!
*This information is general only and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. It should not be relied upon as advice. As with any insurance, cover will be subject to the terms, conditions and exclusions contained in the policy wording.
**The provision of the claims examples are for illustrative purposes only and should not be seen as an indication as to how any potential claim will be assessed or accepted. Cover for a claim will depend on the specific circumstances around the loss and would be subject to the terms and conditions of the policy concerned. © 2023 BizCover Pty Limited, all rights reserved. ABN 68 127 707 975; AFSL 501769.
Based in New York, Stephen Freeman is a Senior Editor at Trending Insurance News. Previously he has worked for Forbes and The Huffington Post. Steven is a graduate of Risk Management at the University of New York.