There are two policies--the General Liability and the Workman's Comp. Every independent contractor is supposed to have Workman's Comp insurance but I have yet to meet one who does (it is the equivalent, I think, of paying Workman's Comp as part of paycheck). As a company, we have both at a cost of around 1000 a year each (I am not at work and can't check the exact figures.) Getting a lot of contracts is contingent on our having them--the colleges and some large employers in the area needed the General Liability (for $1,000,000) before they would sign a contract with us. I believe it covers you for things like getting hurt at their locations, etc. It is not liability insurance for bad programming or getting sued for some professional negligence. That insurance is something a lot of contractors talk about needing, but I have never heard of one actually getting it or getting sued. I have worked with Blair, Cutting, Smith in Amherst (now Encharter) for years and years and they are always responsive. Definitely talk to an insurance person about it. I could be wrong on some of the details, so you want to find an expert.