Last updated: September 14, 2026
Hawaii requires child care providers to maintain liability insurance. Compare coverage for the children and activities you actually supervise, then address employee injuries, equipment and transportation separately.
Get a daycare insurance quote
Start your daycare insurance quote with Simply Business. Answer a few questions about your business and let their team help you find coverage.
Affiliate link — we may earn a commission at no additional cost to you.
Choose coverage around your childcare operation
Start with the program you run: a family home, a center or a school-age service. Give the provider your licensed capacity, actual enrollment, age groups and schedule. Include employees, assistants, volunteers and anyone who transports children. A proposal is useful only when the insurer has accepted the activities that create the exposure.
| Operation or exposure | Coverage question to resolve |
|---|---|
| Children and visitors at your premises | Which liability coverage applies to injuries and property damage, and which activities are excluded? |
| Supervision, instruction and care | Is professional liability included or separate? How does the proposal treat abuse or molestation allegations? |
| Staff and volunteers | Who is insured, and what employee injury or employer-liability coverage is needed? |
| Furniture, supplies and play equipment | Who owns the property, what values are insured and which losses or locations are excluded? |
| School pickup and off-site activities | What vehicle and business coverage is needed for the drivers, trips and activities described? |
Ask the provider to walk through a supervision allegation, an injury during play and damage to rented premises. Find out which policy would respond and whether the answer changes off site. Do not infer that professional liability or abuse and molestation protection is included just because the document is described as daycare insurance.
Hawaii daycare insurance requirements
HRS §346-157 makes liability coverage a condition of child care licensure, temporary permission or registration. DHS verifies proof annually. Providers must notify each parent or guardian in writing within seven working days when coverage changes, is canceled or terminates. The statute does not supply a single dollar limit; confirm the applicable program requirements with your licensing worker.
Keep policy renewal and parent-notification dates on the same calendar. Before replacing a policy, ask how the new coverage handles earlier incidents and whether any reporting deadlines apply. For a home program, describe the child care activity to both the home insurer and the childcare insurer; a personal policy should not be treated as proof of business coverage.
Employee injuries are a separate coverage decision
Hawaii DLIR generally requires workers’ compensation when an employer has one or more employees, including part-time or temporary workers, subject to statutory exclusions. Describe ownership, family workers and every paid helper when requesting a coverage determination. General liability does not replace workers’ compensation. Hawaii’s temporary disability and prepaid health-care programs are separate employer obligations; ask DLIR which apply to your workforce.
How much should you budget?
There is no reliable single price for every program. Request quotes using the same enrollment, activities, limits and effective date so you can compare the protection as well as the premium.
Insureon national human/social-services medians: general liability $91/month; BOP $135; professional liability $99. This broader sample is not state daycare pricing or a Simply Business quote.
Read each proposal as a whole. A business owner’s policy may bundle liability and property, so adding separate product prices can double-count protection. Ask which endorsements are included, whether defense costs reduce a limit, and what you would pay at renewal or after a midyear change. Compare the annual total, deductibles, installment charges and uncovered activities.
Check the gaps before accepting a quote
- Abuse and supervision: ask about exclusions, separate limits, covered people and reporting requirements.
- Transportation: identify vehicle ownership, drivers, pickup routes and field trips; obtain confirmation for business use.
- Property: distinguish the building owner’s interest from your furniture, supplies and play equipment.
- Home-based care: disclose the business to the residential insurer and clarify how any business policy or endorsement works alongside it.
- Policy changes: ask about earlier incidents, claims-made dates where applicable and any reporting period needed when switching insurers.
A certificate summarizes insurance; it does not itself expand the policy. If a landlord requests additional-insured status or another endorsement, have the provider review the written request. Keep the resulting endorsement with the policy and make sure the program name and location are accurate.
Prepare for a childcare-specific quote
- Legal operator name, address, permit or certificate type and requested coverage date.
- Licensed capacity, actual enrollment, ages served, hours and all locations.
- Staff, volunteers, payroll and screening/supervision procedures.
- Transportation, field trips, water activities and other services offered.
- Existing policy, claim history and insurance requirements from leases or contracts.
Ask each provider to identify the named insured, covered activities, limits, deductibles, exclusions and endorsements. Confirm whether defense costs reduce any relevant limit and how claims must be reported. If a quote cannot cover an activity, resolve that gap rather than assuming a certificate will make the proposal acceptable.
Before submitting, list activities that may not appear on a standard application: water play, animals, overnight care or work at another address, if offered. Tell the provider when capacity or staffing will change. Ask when coverage would begin and what documents are still needed; requesting a quote does not put a policy in force.
Get a daycare insurance quote
Start your daycare insurance quote with Simply Business. Answer a few questions about your business and let their team help you find coverage.
Affiliate link — we may earn a commission at no additional cost to you.
Frequently asked questions
Is daycare liability insurance required in Hawaii?
HRS §346-157 makes liability coverage a condition of child care licensure, temporary permission or registration. DHS verifies proof annually. Providers must notify each parent or guardian in writing within seven working days when coverage changes, is canceled or terminates. The statute does not supply a single dollar limit; confirm the applicable program requirements with your licensing worker.
Does homeowners insurance cover a home daycare?
Do not assume it does. Disclose the child care business and ask the home and business insurers to identify what is covered, excluded or added by endorsement.
Does a quote include transportation and abuse coverage?
Not necessarily. Describe those exposures and ask the provider to identify the relevant policies, exclusions, covered people and limits in writing.
What should I compare besides the premium?
Compare accepted activities, limits, deductibles, defense costs, exclusions, reporting terms and effective dates. Check any licensing and contract requirements against the actual proposal.
Related guides
Starting a daycare in Hawaii · Hawaii business guide · Daycare insurance by state
Requirements and published benchmarks checked September 14, 2026. Confirm policy terms and availability for your operation.
