Do I need an LLC to get business insurance?
No. A sole proprietor can buy general liability, professional liability, commercial auto and workers comp in their own name. The standard form insures "you and your spouse" for "the conduct of a business of which you are the sole owner." What matters is that the named insured on the policy matches whoever signs your contracts. If you form an LLC later, add it as a named insured that day, because the form gives no coverage for an LLC "that is not shown as a Named Insured in the Declarations."
Tell us the situation.
One licensed human replies the same business day — not five agents, not an auto-responder. If the policy you have is already the right one, we will tell you.
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Brian Victores
Commercial Insurance Advisor
Licensed in nearly every state, working contractors and small commercial, writing general liability, workers comp and commercial auto. Runs on the principle that the best insurance experience is a boring one: straight answers, fast quotes, no surprises.
Send us what you have. We’ll tell you if it’s right.
Your current policy paperwork, a renewal notice, or nothing at all. A licensed agent reads it and replies the same business day.
The detail
If the named insured is an individual, "you and your spouse are insureds, but only with respect to the conduct of a business of which you are the sole owner."
ISO Commercial General Liability Coverage Form CG 00 01 04 13 (specimen)
If the named insured is a limited liability company, "you are an insured. Your members are also insureds, but only with respect to the conduct of your business. Your managers are insureds, but only with respect to their duties as your managers."
ISO Commercial General Liability Coverage Form CG 00 01 04 13 (specimen)
"No person or organization is an insured with respect to the conduct of any current or past partnership, joint venture or limited liability company that is not shown as a Named Insured in the Declarations."
ISO Commercial General Liability Coverage Form CG 00 01 04 13 (specimen)
What this means for you
- Buy the policy in the name that signs the contracts. If contracts, invoices and the business license are in your own name, insure your own name with your trade name as a DBA. If they are in an LLC’s name, insure the LLC.
- Tell your broker the day you form an LLC. Adding the LLC as a named insured is an endorsement, usually at no cost. Leaving it off means the business your clients now contract with has no liability coverage at all.
- An LLC does not replace insurance. It can keep business debts away from personal assets, but it does not pay a claim or defend a lawsuit, and you can still be sued personally for your own negligence.
- Workers comp follows employees, not the entity. Whether you need it depends on your state and whether you have employees. Sole proprietors and LLC members can usually exclude themselves.
Go deeper on any of these
Related questions
- When I form an LLC, do I have to cancel and start a new policy?
Usually not. The broker adds the LLC as a named insured by endorsement, or changes the named insured if the business has moved entirely into the LLC. Some carriers rewrite the policy for a change of entity, but the coverage does not have to stop.
- I have an LLC but my policy is in my own name. Is that a problem?
Yes, if the LLC signs contracts or employs anyone. The form covers you only as a sole owner and excludes any LLC not shown as a named insured. Fix it now by endorsement, not after a claim.
- Named insured vs additional insured
- Can I put several LLCs on one policy?
Often, yes, if they share ownership and similar operations. Each one has to be shown as a named insured. Very different operations, such as a rental property LLC beside a contracting LLC, are usually insured separately.
- Do I need an EIN to get business insurance?
No. A sole proprietor can be insured on their own name and Social Security number, though many carriers ask for an EIN where you have one, and a workers comp policy for employees will use it.
Need this handled?
Reading about it and having it handled are different jobs, and the second one is ours. We place the accounts other brokers decline — claims history, a cancellation, an unusual operation, a business nobody wants to underwrite twice — and we will tell you when the policy you already have is the right one. Tell us the situation and a licensed human replies the same business day.
Written by the licensed brokers at Boring Insurance. Last updated 2026-10-04. See all guides.