Insurance for Domestic Help and Other Workers in Your Home

Foreign residents living in Mexico who hire some type of home help ought to consider taking out an insurance coverage in case workers get injured or cause an accident.

Domestic workers can include housekeepers, nurses or other home assistance;  gardeners, pool cleaning and maintenance workers; and may occasionally include other specialized workers like plumbers and electricians.

You can mitigate the cost of liability

This article describes certain risks that can emerge from having people working in your home and how a suitable insurance policy can mitigate the financial costs and related treatment expenses if someone working there suffers an injury, as well as defend you against civil liability costs in the event of a major adverse incident.

You can obtain home insurance coverage, including third party liability, whether you own or rent your home in Mexico.

Accidents can and do happen in the home

When you have a regular helper or helpers working in your home, you ought to consider what would happen if one of those workers or helpers has an accident and needs treatment, or becomes disabled, or dies.

Examples include:

• if your housekeeper slips and falls badly, and sustains a substantial injury;
• if your gardener injures himself using a power tool, or falls off a ladder;
• if the pool maintenance guy trips and falls into the pool, knocking his head during the fall.

Accidents happen and if someone working in your home (whether the property is owned or rented) suffers an injury or worse, you can become liable for:

• expenses related to their treatment;
• loss of income if they’re unable to work due to an injury in your home; and,
• in the event of their death, you might face a civil lawsuit.

Civil liability can cause financial hardship

Additional risks arise where someone working in your home inadvertently causes an accident and hurts someone else or damages someone else’s property; or where an injury suffered by someone working in your home prevents them from working for a time and they pursue you for loss of income.

Examples of this include:

• the gardener cuts down a tree branch that falls on an adjacent property and injures your neighbor;
• a plumber who comes to replace old pipework on your property causes the condo below yours to be flooded;
• the housekeeper watering plant pots that are placed on a wall accidentally causes the plant pot to fall out onto the street and it injures a passer-by;
• your housekeeper or other worker suffers a severe injury while working at your home that prevents them from working for an extended period—and pursues you for loss of earnings.

An adequate home insurance policy can defend you against these types of unforeseen accidents and mishaps and provides civil liability cover in the event of a serious incident.

Third-party liability insurance for your home

A satisfactory home insurance policy will cover the home’s structure (if you own the home), and your personal goods (whether you own or rent).  The best policies also offer third-party liability coverages or offer third-party insurance as a stand-alone coverage option.

Typical situations that third-party home liability covers

Third-party liability coverage protects you when someone working in your home suffers an accident or inadvertently causes an accident that creates an injury or loss to themselves, or someone else.

For example, if:

• A worker comes to your home, regularly or ad-hoc, to undertake some work for you and, while doing that work, they injure themselves, the insurance coverage will reimburse you for medical and other related expenses you incur for the treatment of that person’s injuries.
• Someone working in your home causes an accident that has an impact on a third party, the insurance will cover medical and other losses suffered by that third party. For example, if a worker is painting an outside wall and the paint pot falls off the ladder onto someone’s parked car, the insurance would cover you for the car owner’s expense in getting that damage repaired.
• A worker at your home suffers a serious accident or injury that prevents them from working for a time, and they pursue you for lost earnings, the insurance would provide coverage up to the insured amount.
• A person working in your home suffers a serious accident and becomes permanently disabled, or dies, the insurance would cover any civil lawsuits that may be brought against you.
• When someone you know is visiting your home and suffers an accident or loss unintentionally caused by you (the policy holder) —or by your immediate family member— or caused by someone working at your home, the insurance would cover expenses for treatment and damages to the visitor.

In the case of civil liability suits, the insurance will also cover your legal expenses in relation to those, usually up to 50% of the insured amount—check the policy for details about this.

Typical limitations and exclusions

Domestic third-party liability insurance policies carry limitations and exclusions that you ought to be aware of; check the policy wording for details.  Significant situations that are almost always excluded include:

• The policies exclude injury to the named policy holder and their immediate family; so, if you or your partner or children suffer an accident on the property or are injured by a person working at the home, medical expenses and liability for those events are not covered.
• Any loss or damages to goods and persons where the home is in process of construction, assembly, or dismantling are explicitly excluded—so these policies will not cover you when you are building or extending a home, or having major remodeling done. The insurance does cover workers when they are attending your home to make repairs and/or undertake maintenance
• When you are host to guests like friends or extended family members, any injuries, or damages they might sustain while on or near your property will not be covered under the policy unless the accident or damage was caused the named policy holder or their immediate family member, or by someone working at the home.
• The insurance will never cover any damages, injuries, or losses arising from any events or situations where criminal or unlawful activity is involved; or if willful negligence is apparent; or for suicides.

How a third-party insurance policy protects you

You can arrange a policy online and the insurance will provide immediate home coverage for you in Mexico on acceptance of your application.

In the event of a claim, the insurance will reimburse you for medical and other related expenses you incur to provide immediate necessary treatments to the person or persons who were injured while working in your home, and it will provide legal help and civil liability coverage as per the policy if the person who was working in your home subsequently pursues you for civil damages.

Arrange a policy online and get immediate coverage

Our home insurance associate, MexPro, offers comprehensive home insurance coverages including third-party liability that can be purchased by itself or as an integral part of a complete home insurance coverage plan.  MexPro is a long-established US-licensed insurance broker that only works with A-rated underwriters.

• You can purchase home insurance whether you own the home, or are renting the home
• If you are renting, you can only insure your personal goods and/or third-party liability
• You can purchase third-party liability by itself as stand-alone coverage
• Choose how much coverage you would like: US$300,000 is a recommended minimum, and you can insure for up to US$2 million
• There is no deductible for third party liability claims, unless the claim is to cover an injury for a person working in your home, in which case a deductible of MXN$600 pesos (about US$30) per claim applies.
• The policy premium is quoted for and paid in US dollars, and any payouts are made in US dollars, or the US dollar equivalent amount in Mexican pesos when you ask for the payment to be wired to a bank account in Mexico.

Learn more about caring for your home in Mexico

Mexperience publishes extensive information to help you plan and care for your home life in Mexico through guides, articles and free eBooks:

• Free eBook: House maintenance and home security
• Articles about property insurance
• Articles about real estate in Mexico