Next Insurance is a small business insurance company that sells policies directly to customers online while also working with agents. It offers the core coverages of general liability, professional liability, business owner’s policy, and workers’ comp insurance for more than 1,300 different types of businesses. Policies can be obtained online without speaking to anyone after receiving a custom quote or purchasing a prepackaged policy. Next is trusted by more than 400,000 small business owners.
Pros
- Instant certificate of insurance (COI)
- Fast quoting system
- Mobile app to manage your policy
Cons
- No 24/7 call center
- Limited specialized coverage
- Commercial auto handled by another carrier
Standout Features
- Custom quotes tailored to match industry
- No fee for monthly payments
- Mobile app lets you manage your policy and claims as well as create and share an instant COI
Average Annual Pricing*
- General liability: Starts at $132
- Professional liability: Starts at $228
- Commercial property: Starts at $204
*Prices are per Next’s website. Each one is the potential starting amount for a low-risk industry, so business owners in high-risk industries should expect to pay more.
- You work in construction: Next has developed liability policies that are specialized to meet the needs of general contractors and construction workers.
- You need to create a COI regularly: Some industries need to create and share a COI frequently. Next’s app makes this easy—and it doesn’t cost extra.
- You want easy policy and claims management: A mobile app for your policy is rare for small business insurance, but Next lets you manage your policy and claims via a web browser and its app.
- You have a small business with five or fewer employees: Simply Business, one of our best business insurance brokers, specializes in finding coverage for microenterprises.
- You need specialized coverage: Some businesses need specialized coverage like director and officers (D&O) insurance. Nationwide is one of our top providers for key man insurance.
- Your business only needs short-term coverage: Thimble offers short-term liability for handypersons and other makers. You can learn more about it through our guide on the leading handyperson companies.
Next Insurance Alternatives
 |  |  |
|---|---|---|
Better For: Small businesses with five or fewer employees | Better For: Small businesses that need short-term liability coverage | Better For: Small businesses looking for specialized coverages |
AM Best rating: A++ (Superior) | AM Best rating: A- to A (Excellent) | AM Best rating: A+ (Superior) |
Next Insurance Options: Policies & Coverages
Next has the core policies most small businesses should consider to protect their assets. These are:
- General liability
- Professional liability, otherwise known as errors and omissions (E&O) insurance
- Workers’ compensation (available to businesses with up to 20 employees and an annual payroll that doesn’t exceed $5 million)
- Commercial property insurance
- Business owner’s policy (BOP)
It also has a limited number of more specialized coverages available. However, as it grows, it will continue to add coverage. Current available coverages are:
- Liquor liability
- Product liability
- Hired and nonowned auto liability
- Employment practices liability insurance (EPLI)
- Tools and equipment (inland marine as an add-on to general liability)
Some of the more specialized coverages are unavailable nationwide, but Next is slowly expanding the territory of its offerings. For example, EPLI is currently available in 28 states.
Also, while Next paused offering commercial auto insurance in 2022, it plans to provide it again in the future. In the meantime, it partnered with Progressive, one of our top-recommended commercial auto insurance companies, to provide customers with coverage. As such, it’s still, technically, an option commercial auto is one of the coverages you need.
More than 400,000 small businesses from more than 1,000 industries are insured with Next. Some industries it insures for general liability are auto service and repair, beauty and personal care, cleaning and janitorial services, and contractors. For professional liability, the industries include architects and engineers, arts and entertainment, financial services, and real estate services.
Next Insurance Cost
Next has a premium estimator widget built into most of its coverage web pages. Enter your state and industry, and it will provide an estimated monthly premium. Usually, Next will provide tailored insurance for your industry, with multiple levels of coverage. Each level is presented as a policy package from which you can choose.
For this review, we obtained a quote for a residential cleaning business in Georgia. We received three quotes, and the coverage was available on the same day as the quote and purchase:
- Basic cost $481.67 monthly. It carried general liability with an occurrence limit of $1 million and an aggregate limit of $2 million. Professional liability was included with a separate limit of $25,000 per occurrence and $50,000 aggregate. It also had $25,000 for lost key coverage and unspecified broadened enhancements for cleaning companies. It also carried $5,000 per occurrence for tools and equipment with a total limit of $10,000. This coverage carried a $500 deductible.
- Premier cost $1,331.76 monthly. It carried the same coverages as Basic, with the addition of workers’ compensation, which had a $500,000 policy limit and a limit of $100,000 per incident and $100,000 per employee.
- Deluxe cost $14,07.51 monthly and had the same coverage as Basic. It included workers’ comp with an increased limit of $1 million per incident, employee, and policy. It also had $17,000 in business personal property, such as office furniture and computers, and a $500 deductible for it.
To pay, you can choose monthly or annually. There’s no financial difference between paying for a monthly or annual policy. For monthly, Next requires the first and last month’s premium upfront, followed by 10 “monthly” payments.
Next Insurance Policyholder Services
Next has put technology and user experience (UX) at the forefront of what it does. You’ll receive your policy within one business day of purchase. You also gain access to your policy documents and COIs through the customer portal, where you can manage your policy, make payments, modify payment information, and file a claim.
It also offers an Android and iOS mobile app, which functions like a 24/7 call center. From the app, you can:
- Make changes to your policy including changing coverage
- Live chat or text with Next team members
- Instantly create and share a COI
- Submit a claim
- Receive important updates
Note that if you want to speak with a person, its hours of operation are Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Central time.
Next Insurance Customer Satisfaction
We examined third-party organizations and user review sites to determine how Next Insurance performs in customer service. While the reviews we could find were mostly positive, there were a few negative trends.
- National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC): Next has a complaint index of 0.75, meaning its complaints are below the national average. (NAIC’s complaint index is 1.00.)
- Third-party review sites: Unfortunately, there aren’t many user reviews on third-party sites. On Trustpilot, Next has a rating of 2.3 out of 5 from about 10 reviews. Most of the negative reviews are related to the audit process for workers’ comp. However, few reviews for a company with over 400,000 policies in force is a difficult sample size for the overall experience.
- Google Play: Next’s Android app has 4.3 out of 5 stars from more than 150 reviews. Some of the more recent comments skew negative—with two being issues related to the app directly, such as not being able to change an address, and another related to canceling the policy. All comments were responded to by a representative from Next.
- App Store: The iOS app has around 50 reviews and is rated 3.8 out of 5 stars. A few users said it’s amazing and easy to use, although one reviewer complained that there’s no customer support anywhere on the app.
- Next’s website: There are currently more than 4,700 reviews with an average rating of 4.5 out of 5. The positive comments usually focus on the ease of use and the instant and unlimited COIs, whereas most of the negative reviews highlight rate increases and trouble canceling the insurance.
How To Get a Policy with Next
Online, you can get a quote and purchase a policy. Be prepared to answer questions about your business, specifically:
- Year it was founded
- Business name and address
- Number of employees
- Projected revenue
- Projected payroll
- Claims history
Depending on the type of coverage, it will ask more specific questions, and you cannot proceed without providing the information. For example, a workers’ comp quote will require a federal employer identification number (FEIN).
Most industries can get a quote online, but if your business is at higher risk, Next will work to schedule a call with you to finish the process. For example, if you’re looking for a workers’ comp quote for a roofing contractor and you work higher than 15 feet, it will most likely halt the process and let you know someone is going to contact you to finish the quote.
Most types of coverage are available for same-day insurance, meaning within a matter of minutes, you can purchase insurance for your business for a year without needing to speak with anyone.
Bottom Line
Next, one of our best small business insurance providers, makes it easy to get a quote and purchase a policy online. It has created a complimentary mobile app for managing your policy. Visit Next to get a quote for your business in minutes.
