Insurance FAQ

The carrier is Great American Insurance Group.

Yes. Please see coverages and costs below:

Increased Liability - The insurance company offers an additional $1 million in coverage (making it $2 million total). The additional coverage is optional and is being offered because some fairs/shows and wholesale buyers require $2 million in liability coverage. When you sign up, you will be given an option to purchase the increased insurance. The cost is $55.00 per year.

Professional Liability - If you teach soapmaking in a professional capacity, you can get additional professional liability coverage that will cover you if a person claims that what you taught them caused damage or liability of some kind. The cost of the professional liability insurance endorsement is $135 per year.

Additional Business Personal Property Insurance - If you need additional property insurance (over the $5,000 already included) you can increase the limits. Up to $10,000 in coverage is an additional $16; up to $20,000 is $120; and up to $30,000 is $205. Higher amounts are also available, but that would require an application process. Contact Veracity Insurance if you want to increase your property insurance limits above $30,000.

The insurance broker is Veracity Insurance Solutions, LLC. They can be contacted at (888) 568-0548 or by email at hsmgins@veracityins.com.

Yes, you can. You will need to contact Veracity Insurance Solutions to get a copy of the most up-to-date policy.  They can be contacted at (888) 568-0548 or by email at info@soapguildinsurance.com.

Since there are literally hundreds of ingredients and products that this policy does respond to, Veracity provides a list of what the policy excludes. Therefore, if you have any of the following excluded products/ingredients, this policy will not provide coverage for them. 

• Any product requiring a prescription
• Any product containing cannabidiol (CBD)
• Alcoholic products
• Drugs or medicines
• Ingestible hemp products
• Nutraceuticals
• Pharmaceuticals
• Plug-in electrical products
• Toys (except when sold in conjunction with an eligible beauty product)
• Vitamins or supplements
• Any product containing talc
• Any product developed or containing human stem cells or human stem cell media
• Any product that is mean to be ingested or left inside the body.

If you have questions about a product you don't see listed here, or would like to ask about coverage for a specific product, please call Veracity Insurance Solutions directly at 888-568-0548 for assistance.

There are specific products that are not covered by Veracity. If you make or produce an of the following excluded products/ingredients, this policy will not provide coverage for them.

• Any product requiring a prescription
• Any product containing cannabidiol (CBD)
• Alcoholic products
• Drugs or medicines
• Ingestible hemp products
• Nutraceuticals
• Pharmaceuticals
• Plug-in electrical products
• Toys (except when sold in conjunction with an eligible beauty product)
• Vitamins or supplements
• Any product containing talc
• Any product developed with or containing human stem cells or human stem cell media
• Any product that is meant to be ingested or left inside of the body.

To qualify for a Professional Membership (and thus the insurance) you must make handcrafted soap and/or cosmetics. It doesn't have to be any particular percentage of your total revenue, just so long as it is somewhere in your product line. Remember, however, that the other benefits of HSCG membership are geared towards soapmaking.

If you don't make soap or cosmetics and don't want to add it to your product line, then you don't qualify for membership in the HSCG and will need to look elsewhere for product liability insurance.

The policy excludes fungi and mold that affect a structure and which could be harmful. It doesn't exclude fungi or mold if it got into your product and caused you some liability exposure.

Yes - this policy will resond to businesses that are based out of the home. The policy is not tied to any specific location as it follows you where you go to conduct business.

No, there is no cap on gross revenue.

No. The membership dues and insurance premium must be paid in full before your membership and insurance become active.

The policy excludes covering hazardous materials and any kind of cleanup of hazardous materials. If you or your employee were damaged by lye (or slipping and falling in the workplace) it wouldn't be covered under this policy anyway.

For more information about how coverage would work in the event of a customer being harmed by a lye heavy product, please contact Veracity Insurance Solutions directly at 888-568-0548 or via email at info@soapguildinsurance.com.

Yes, you are able to add as many additional insureds/certificate holders that you need throughout the year, at no additional cost. The following entities may request to be added as additional insureds: landlords, wholesalers, events, and shows.   

You may add additional insureds by logging in to the insurance portal at www.soapguildinsurance.com, or you can call Veracity Insurance Solutions directly at 888-568-0548 for assistance.   

This is a Commercial General and Product Liability policy. The base limits are:

• $1,000,000 General Aggregate Limit
• $1,000,000 Products-Completed Operations Aggregate Limit
• $1,000,000 Personal and Advertising Injury Limit
• $1,000,000 Each Occurrence Limit
• $300,000 Damage to Rented Premises Limit
• $5,000 Medical Expense Limit

Business Personal Property coverage includes "miscellaneous property of a floating nature". It basically covers "tangible property you own or is in your care, custody or control", like when you go to a show or have items on consignment in a store. The limits are:

• $1,000 Maximum payout per any one Item
• $5,000 Total
• $100 Deductible

Identity Theft coverage limits are:

• $15,000 Aggregate Limit
• $250 Deductible

No. The policy becomes effective as soon as payment is processed when you join HSCG. The policy will cover you for a year in exchange for payment in advance of the policy premium. You may choose to renew it or not when it expires, but it is in place for a year and the premium is not refundable.

Join the HSCG as a Professional Handcrafter Member and reside in the 50 US states or Washington DC (all US territories are excluded). Your insurance will be effective as soon as your payment is processed and you will receive a link to your Certificate of Insurance by email shortly thereafter. You can download the insurance policy as a .pdf file at any time (you will not receive a copy of it by mail).

The sign-up process for Canadian Handcrafters is slightly different; see the Canadian Insurance FAQ for details.

There is an option to increase your liability coverage to $2M. If that still isn't enough, contact Contact Veracity Insurance Solutions at info@soapguildinsurance.com  or (toll free) (888)-568-0548 to see what can be done to fill your needs.

You can get a Professional Membership with the insurance waived so you aren't paying for double insurance just to be a member of the HSCG. You can sign up for a Professional Handcrafter Membership with insurance waived.

You may sell your product in any way you want. As long as the law suit or claim is brought back to Canada or the US, the insurance policy will respond to your claim.

No. The new owner would have to procure their own coverage.

An additional insured is a person or organization that is added to your insurance policy by endorsement

If you open your own store where you sell beauty products, there is no need to purchase separate liability insurance. However, your landlord by contract may require you to carry additional coverages. For example, higher liability limits, property coverage not only for your property but also for flooring, glass windows and doors and other permanently fixed items in the rented space.

The majority of venues, promoters, vendors, or stores will require you to add them as an Additional Insured before they will allow you to occupy their premises and/or sell your product.

Those that will require an Additional Insured status on your policy, will usually have it written into a contract or agreement. It is a simple procedure to add them onto your policy.

There is NO liability deductible. The only deductible you have is $100 per claim under Inland Marine Coverage (business personal property). And there is $250 deductible for Identity Recovery.

A deductible is the amount of the loss that is your responsibility. For example, if you have a theft claim of $500 dollars, you will be responsible for $100 dollars of that claim. The insurance company will pay you $400 dollars.

For coverage information, please contact Veracity Insurance Solutions directly at info@soapguildinsurance.com or 888-568-0548. If you have questions about membership, please call HSCG Headquarters at 866-900-7627 or email us at mbrservices@soapguild.org.

More than one entity can be covered under the policy as long as there is common ownership and both businesses would qualify. It is important to have both entities named on the policies. 

These rates are based on having a large group of participants. We have enough participating members to make it worthwhile for the insurance company. With many members it reduces what the insurance companies call "adverse selection". Adverse selection is the idea that the people who need insurance most will buy it (like a sick person wanting to get health insurance).

When everyone participates, the insurance company knows they aren't just getting the people who feel they are likely to have a claim; so their underwriters think there is less risk, and the price goes down. The whole idea may or may not be true, but that's one of the things they take into account when calculating the insurance premiums.

An HSCG Soapmaker Member who resides in the 50 US states or Washington DC (other US territories are excluded). Also, in order to qualify more than 80% of your products must be handmade. Canadian members have the option of participating in the Canadian Insurance program.

No, you do not have to have a business in order to qualify for the insurance.

If you are operating as a Sole Proprietor, you will list your Legal Name as your own name, and under DBA, the name you are marketing your products under.

If you decide to register your business as an LLC, LLP, etc. at any point during your policy, please call Veracity Insurance Solutions directly to update your information at 888-568-0548.

Yes, you can join the HSCG as a Professional Handcrafter without purchasing insurance if you already have insurance or choose to decline coverage. 

Disclosed retail and wholesale operations are covered as long as the business activites are not ineligible or excluded under the policy.

The majority of your products have to be made by hand with minimal use of mechanized equipment, and a large portion of the processes must be under your control. Products that are made from scratch by hand, or products you purchased in bulk that are unscented and/or uncolored in which you add your own scent and/or color qualify as handcrafted.

Products that are made for you by an outside company that you purchase packaged and ready to sell do not qualify as handcrafted.

The HSCG is unable to answer hypthetical coverage questions not pertaining to Veracity; this being said, it is extremely rare that homeowner's insurance will cover your business. We strongly recommend reaching out to your homeowner's insurance company to discuss exact coverages with them. 

Yes. There is one other known carrier of General & Product Liability Insurance (in a competative or lower price range) and that is RLI. Their policy is excellent for businesses that are just starting out, policies run from about $200-$300 per year. RLI does, however, have a cap on annual gross sales of $5,000 in annual sales; once sales reach that level their coverage is dropped. In addition, their policy does not cover candles, nor does it include any business property insurance.

If you are small enough, don't make candles, and don't need any property insurance, this may be the best insurance choice for you and you can still be an HSCG Member with insurance waived. If you make more than $5,000 in annual gross sales, make candles or need property insurance, the HSCG Member Benefit Insurance is the best way to go.

The HSCG implemented the member benefit insurance program in September 2006 as a way for handcrafters to have access to reasonably priced insurance. It was at a time when insurance options for small businesses were limited. The lack of affordable insurance was threatening many members' ability to stay in business and making it extremely difficult for new handcrafters to start businesses, and the industry had the potential to be crippled.