Alabama Malpractice Insurance

The Alabama malpractice insurance landscape is positive. Premiums are among the lowest in the nation. And while the state is still known to hand down large awards in tort cases, Alabama has passed important tort reforms to its medical liability system. Rates can vary greatly between companies writing malpractice insurance in Alabama.

Our 2023 Physician Buyers Guide for purchasing malpractice insurance in Alabama gives you the information necessary to obtain the strongest, most financially secure policy at the best price. When shopping for coverage, you need a full view of the Alabama marketplace to find the company that best fits your situation. Choose a broker that can offer multiple quotes from all the major malpractice insurance companies in Alabama.

How to buy malpractice insurance in Alabama

The best way to buy malpractice coverage is to work with a reputable malpractice insurance broker in Alabama who can generate multiple quotes. Your broker will walk you through the lengthy insurance application and underwriting process. Click to get medical malpractice insurance quotes from every major Alabama malpractice insurance company.

Typically, the malpractice insurance purchasing process goes like this:

  1. Submit your information for your free medical malpractice insurance quote from every major insurance company in Alabama.
  2. One of our veteran malpractice insurance agents who specializes in the Alabama market will contact you to learn more about your specific needs.
  3. We shop your coverage to every major insurance company in Alabama.
  4. We present you with a number of insurance quotes and give you the information necessary to make an educated and informed decision. Don’t worry. We’re here every step of the way, helping you get the best price with the best company
  5. At renewal time, we restart the process of shopping your coverage among every major carrier to keep your policy properly priced

How to save money on your malpractice insurance

  • The easiest way to save money on your medical malpractice insurance policy is by working with a broker who has the access to generate quotes from every major insurance company, offering an accurate view of the marketplace. As one of the top brokers in Alabama, we can guide you through the application and underwriting process so you’re confident you secured the best price with the right insurer for your situation
  • The most common limits in Alabama are $1 million/$3 million. Limits of liability play a major role in determining the overall cost of your policy. Some companies will offer lower limits to save you money. We don’t recommend this. We want your risks fully indemnified so you never have to pay an award out of pocket. Let us save you money by shopping your coverage rather than skimp on protection
  • Check out our 7 secrets your medical malpractice insurance agent won’t tell you page to get insider information on buying coverage in Alabama

How much does medical malpractice insurance cost in Alabama?

Rates for physician malpractice insurance don’t vary much depending on where you practice within the state. Most major insurance companies classify Alabama as a single territory, which means your specialty’s base rate does not vary depending on your practice address. But you still want multiple quotes to get an accurate view of the marketplace. This is one of the many reasons it’s important to work with an insurance agency that specializes in medical malpractice insurance. Below are mature, base rates with no credits or discounts. We typically get our clients a 30-50% reduction from these rates:

Alabama

  • Internal Medicine Average Rate $7,023
  • General Surgeon Average Rate $27,464
  • OB/gyn – Average Rate $37,563
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Medical malpractice requirements in Alabama

Limits of Liability: The most common limits of liability in Alabama are $1 million per claim with an annual aggregate cap of $3 million.

Most hospitals require a physician carry malpractice insurance prior to granting admitting privileges. Some of the hospital systems requiring this include, but are not limited to, Huntsville Hospital, Brookwood Baptist Medical Center and St. Vincent’s Birmingham.

Best Medical malpractice insurance companies in Alabama

  1. Medical Protective
  2. The Doctors Company
  3. NORCAL

Why partner with Cunningham Group?

Partnering with Cunningham Group will give you a full view of the Alabama marketplace. We can get you quotes from all the major insurance companies and help you choose the policy that best fits your needs and budget. Our veteran insurance agents average 10+ years of industry experience. Let us help you secure medical malpractice insurance quotes from every major insurance company in Alabama.

Historic Medical Malpractice Insurance Rates in Alabama for Physicians

Brief History and other important facts of medical malpractice insurance in Alabama

In 1987, Alabama passed laws intended to curb the high jury verdicts in medical malpractice cases. Those laws required a plaintiff to show by “clear and convincing” evidence that a defendant acted with “wanton” conduct for the recovery of punitive damages and limited the award of punitive damages to $250,000, limited the award of noneconomic damages to $400,000 and limited the award of damages in medical liability cases to $1 million. Almost immediately the new laws restricting recoverable damages were contested by trial lawyers, and in 1991 the caps on punitive and noneconomic damages were overturned by the Alabama Supreme Court on the grounds that limiting damage awards in healthcare liability actions violated the right to a jury trial and equal protection provisions of the state constitution. Five years later, the Alabama Supreme Court overturned the damage limits in wrongful death liability actions on identical grounds. Tort reform efforts remained mostly stagnant following these defeats, until, in 2010, an influx of newly-elected “Tea Party-types” took office. These new legislatures showed a renewed enthusiasm for lawsuit reform and five new tort reform bills were quickly signed into law during the 2011 legislative session. These included reductions to the statute of repose in civil cases from 13 years to seven (similar to a statute of limitations in criminal cases); prohibited forum-shopping in wrongful death lawsuits; and changed the state’s expert witness rules to conform to stricter federal standards. Tort reform aside, Alabama is a very physician-friendly state when it comes to medical malpractice claims. Around 90 percent of malpractice claims that reach trial are decided in favor of the defendant physician, and a recent study of claim data from the National Practitioner Data Base (NPDB) found that — between 2004 and 2014 — Alabamans received fewer payments per capita in medical liability cases than any other state. During that decade, there were only 169 medical malpractice payments per one million residents. By contrast, New York experienced 1,082 medical malpractice payments per one million residents during that same time period.