6 Best Cannabis Insurance Companies
Nathan Weller is an Insurance Expert focusing on insurance for small business. He has 15 years experience in insurance operations, FNOL, and claims handling.
Marijuana is classified as a Schedule I substance, which is why finding hemp insurance for your business can be challenging. To help you find the best cannabis insurance companies, we’ve evaluated those available according to financial stability, customer satisfaction, ease of use/convenience, and available policies.
Because of the limited number of cannabis insurance carriers, our evaluation almost filled our top recommendations with brokers as these providers can suggest the best policies and prices while offering the greatest convenience. Here are the six best hemp insurance companies for your business:
- Embroker: Best overall for cannabis insurance
- Insurance Canopy: Best for cannabis event insurance
- HUB International: Best for cross-border transactions
- Heffernan Insurance Brokers: Best for workers’ compensation
- Admiral: Best for high limits
- Trichome: Best for risk management
Top Cannabis Insurers Compared
Company | Availability | Quote Process | Certificate of Insurance Process | Financial Stability |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Monday to Friday 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Pacific time | Answer questions online and Embroker will build a quote | Available instantly through online account | A (Excellent) to A+ (Superior) |
 | Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mountain time | Quote and policy purchase online | Available instantly through online account | A (Excellent) |
 | Hours are dependent on your local broker | Fill out an online contact request form | Request through broker | Undisclosed |
 | Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. PT | Fill out an online contact request form | Request through broker | A++ (Superior) |
 | Hours are dependent on your local broker | Call directly or fill out an online contact request form | Request through broker | A+ (Superior) |
 | Monday to Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern time | Fill out a contact request form; quote takes about 48 to 72 hours | Request through broker | Undisclosed |
Embroker: Best Overall for Cannabis Insurance
Embroker, an online brokerage, is the best overall for cannabis insurance because it provides a simple and seamless digital experience. The majority of your interaction with it will be entirely online—from the quoting and binding process, and even when managing your policy—making it easy to use for all policy-seekers.
Cost & Coverage
To obtain a quote, begin by answering a series of questions related to your business. An Embroker specialist will follow up with you by phone to finalize the process.
Embroker has a wide range of policies available for your hemp business. Some of its available policies beyond general liability are product liability, directors and officers, crime, and commercial auto.
Unfortunately, no specific information on the coverages, such as limits or exclusions, is available.
Customer Satisfaction & Convenience
According to its website, it has a net promoter score of more than 70, making it one of the highest-rated insurance companies in that category. Convenience is where it shines, as the majority of the quote process is online. If you decide to purchase the policy, you can pay it in full or work with Embroker on the financing plan it created.
Embroker will be your main point of contact for the policy’s life. There is an online portal where you can manage your policy, update the policy, and request an immediate certificate of insurance (COI). It is the only provider with this service.
You can file and track the claim when a loss occurs through your online account.
Financial Stability
No information is provided about the specific carriers Embroker works with for its cannabis insurance. However, Embroker states that it works with A (Excellent) and A+ (Superior) rated companies by AM Best.
Insurance Canopy: Best for Cannabis Event Coverage
Insurance Canopy is an online broker that has created a policy specifically for cannabis vendors selling at a special event. In our research, we didn’t come across any other vendors targeting the cannabis event space.
Cost & Coverage
Prices start at $139 for one- to three-day policies—you can purchase policies that cover a range of days, including one for 90 days. This is a general liability policy designed for a special event, and the limits are $1 million per occurrence and $2 million aggregate.
Insurance Canopy offers a more comprehensive policy for CBD and ingestibles.
Customer Satisfaction & Convenience
Unlike nearly all other providers of cannabis insurance, you can obtain an online quote quickly. If the price and coverage are right, you can purchase the policy online.
Once you have purchased the policy, you will have online access to your account 24/7. Adding additional insureds is free and, if you need to produce a certificate of liability for the venue, those are available instantly through your account.
Financial Rating
The policy is written through Lloyd’s of London, which has an AM Best rating of A (Excellent).
HUB International: Best for Cross-border Transactions
HUB International is a global broker that began in Canada (where marijuana is legal) and then expanded operations into the US. Because it has operations in two countries with different regulations on the substance, HUB has specialists with extensive experience in navigating cross-border transactions, regulations, and compliance.
Cost & Coverage
To get a quote, fill out a contact request form, and a local HUB broker will contact you.
Because of the multinational position of HUB, you can purchase insurance covering operations in both the US and Canada. Additionally, it provides coverage for a variety of cannabis businesses. If you run a retail dispensary, have an ancillary cannabis business like transportation, or are involved in the extraction or even cultivating and harvesting, HUB has policies for you. You can even purchase benefits for your employees through it.
While it provides a lot of detail on its coverage, specific information, such as limits, is unavailable.
Customer Satisfaction & Convenience
Once you’ve purchased your policy through HUB, you will have access to its online portal, Myaccount. HUB also has an app (one on Android and two for iOS—US and Canada), although it is unclear if a cannabis business would be able to use it.
It has a claims team—and while it doesn’t directly handle the claims, the team is involved in the process, including medical management, litigation, coverage disputes, and subrogation. HUB’s claims department will help you report the loss, coordinate its management, and negotiate any settlement.
Financial Stability
The financial ratings of the providers HUB works with are undisclosed. However, HUB is one of the top global brokers.
Heffernan Insurance Brokers: Best for Workers’ Compensation
Heffernan Insurance Brokers has partnered with Berkshire Hathaway Homestate to offer cannabis insurance, including a specialized workers’ compensation program. While many of the providers on this list provide workers’ comp, Heffernan is the only one with a Dividend Program.
Cost & Coverage
For a quote, you’ll need to fill out a contact request form, and a broker will follow up with you.
To purchase the policy, you’ll have to be a member of the Heffernan Cannabis Association, formed by the broker. The association provides membership benefits, such as risk assessment, networking, and access to specialized insurance products.
The dividend program is available for a number of businesses: cultivation, manufacturing, distribution, and dispensaries. It isn’t cheap—an oil extraction business with armed guards will see premiums starting at $100,000.
Customer Satisfaction & Convenience
While the plans may not be affordable for all, Heffernan offers multiple payment options, such as FlexPay, pay-as-you-go, credit card, and installment plans. Additionally, each policy comes with an account manager, loss control specialists, and claims professionals. If an employee is injured, there are Medcor injury triage services.
Financial Stability
The policies offered by Heffernan are in partnership with Berkshire Hathaway. Berkshire has a rating of A++ (Superior) from AM Best.
Visit Heffernan Insurance Broker
Admiral Insurance Group: Best for High Limits
The Admiral Insurance Group is the only actual insurance carrier in this guide and is the only company we reviewed that provided concrete information on its limits available. You’ll have access to limits up to $10 million for liability and $7 million for total insurable value on property insurance, making it the best provider for companies seeking high limits.
Cost & Coverage
On its website, Admiral lists accounts recently written to give you an idea of limit and cost. A dispensary with a limit of $1 million per occurrence and $2 million aggregate has a premium of $30,200. For a quote, you may call the provider or complete an online contact request form.
Admiral offers policies for vertically integrated operations, processors/manufacturers, distributors, and cultivators/growers. You can purchase additional coverage if you have a business outside those classes, such as a dispensary, through its Comprehensive Cannabis Program.
The Comprehensive Cannabis Program is offered in partnership with Berkley’s family of companies—Berkley owns multiple carriers, including Admiral Insurance Group. If you purchase a liability policy through the Admiral, you’ll have access to other policies for your cannabis business.
Customer Satisfaction & Convenience
It has lower than average complaints with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC).
However, while customers seem to be happy with Admiral, convenience is a weakness for it. The only online function is filing a claim—there doesn’t appear to be any online account management. Everything, including questions about your policy or premium, is handled through the local broker.
Financial Stability
Berkley, the parent company of Admiral, has an AM Best rating of A+ (Superior).
Trichome: Best for Risk Management
Since options for insurance are limited if you have a cannabis business, The National Cannabis Risk Management Association launched Trichome, a captive insurance company. Managing risk is a significant emphasis of this provider—after all, a risk management association launched it.
Coverage
To purchase a policy with Trichome, you must be a member of NCRMA. Its emphasis on risk management means premiums that more accurately reflect the business risk.
Quotes are available after filling out an online application. Once completed, a broker will follow up with you. Part of its quote process is a risk assessment. If you implement its recommendations, your premiums may decrease.
Trichome offers three policies, general liability, product liability, and commercial property, and they have available add-ons to expand coverage. For example, you can add special events, hired, and nonowned auto to the liability policy, or equipment breakdown coverage to the property policy.
Unfortunately, there’s no specific information available regarding limits.
Customer Satisfaction & Convenience
Trichome, launched in 2021, is still very new, and there are no reviews available.
For any specific policy or claim needs, you’ll need to contact one of its reps directly or reach out to your broker. It is open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET.
Financial Stability
As a managing general agent (MGA), Trichome does not have any financial rating, and we cannot determine which company is writing the policy.
Cannabis Insurance: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
In how many states is marijuana legal?
Thirty-eight states and Washington, D.C., have some form of marijuana legalized, whereas 19 states have legalized the recreational use of marijuana. Some states, such as Arkansas, have legalized medicinal marijuana while recreational use remains criminalized. Several factors complicate the legal use of marijuana but, to generalize, it’s illegal on the federal level.
How much does cannabis insurance cost?
Cannabis insurance costs have a significant range. A small-scale dispensary may pay anywhere from $2,500 to $7,500 annually, whereas large-scale operations can expect to pay premiums in the tens of thousands.
What type of limits do I need?
The appropriate limits depend on your business, and you should discuss them with your broker. The challenge to overcome is finding an insurer that will offer the proper limits. This in-depth study on cannabis insurance found many providers won’t have more than $1 million occurrence and $2 million aggregate policies. However, many cannabis businesses need a higher limit.
Bottom Line
Whether it’s through job creation or by providing medicine, the cannabis industry is a part of the economy that doesn’t have access to insurance like other similar-sized industries. We’ve done the research and found the six best hemp insurance companies.
Embroker is the best overall provider because of its ease of use and simple process. Get a free, no-obligation quote today.
