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ABMP & MMIP Massage Insurance Comparison

Massage Magazine Insurance Plus (MMIP) and the Associated Bodywork & Massage Professionals (ABMP) are two of the top companies offering massage insurance for massage and bodywork professionals. Both are well known in the industry and each carry their own unique offerings for insurance and member benefits. 

Here, we’ll run through an MMIP vs. ABMP massage insurance comparison to see how each program stacks up.

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Trying to figure out the right policy for you may seem intimidating, but we’re here to help! It is important to understand your policy and know exactly when your insurance policy is going to cover you in the event of a lawsuit.

Every insurance policy will offer individual limits, however, some policies also have a group shared policy aggregate limit, which some companies will fail to mention.

Individual Limits: Your policy will protect you up to the amount listed on your policy. Every insured person will have their own coverage, and the claims that others make will not affect their individual coverage amount available.

Shared Limits: Each individual policy holder may not have the coverage that they need at a specific time. When the group shared limit is reached for the policy year, anyone who files a claim afterwards will not be covered under their individual limits.

Individual Annual Aggregate Vs. Shared Annual Aggregate

Don't Get Left Out.

Avoid insurance programs with shared limits.

Musical chairs

Much like the game of musical chairs, an insured member with a shared policy, you may find yourself with no seat when the music stops-with no insurance coverage when the money available to pay for claims runs out.

Trying to figure out the right policy for you may seem intimidating, but we’re here to help! It is important to understand your policy and know exactly when your insurance policy is going to cover you in the event of a lawsuit. 

Every insurance policy will offer individual limits, however, some policies also have a group shared policy aggregate limit, which some companies will fail to mention.

Individual Limits: Your policy will protect you up to the amount listed on your policy. Every insured person will have their own coverage, and the claims that others make will not affect their individual coverage amount available.

Shared Limits: Each individual policy holder may not have the coverage that they need at a specific time. When the group shared limit is reached for the policy year, anyone who files a claim afterwards will not be covered under their individual limits.

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Individual annual aggregate comparison chart

Quick Histories of MMIP & ABMP Insurance

Who is ABMP?

According to ABMP’s website, the company was started in 1987 and offers liability insurance as a national membership association. They provide both liability insurance, as well as business property insurance. Under a membership, professionals get general, professional, and product liability coverages. In addition, a membership benefits program is made available. ABMP also works on the legislative side advocating for better positions in various massage and bodywork-related national issues.

Looking at the Price of Massage Insurance

Price alone should never be the sole driving factor in your decision making process. But we totally understand for massage therapists and other professionals, how much massage insurance costs plays a big role in choosing one program over another.

The smartest money play is to compare the coverage types, coverage limits, cost of the program, and factor in any benefits received to get an overall cost-to-benefits figure. We’ll run this more detailed analysis a little further down but for now we’ll hit the prices of each of these two programs.

For a more accurate comparison, we’ll look at the two program tiers within MMIP and ABMP insurance that most closely align to one another in coverage. With these professional programs, MMIP’s one-year program is $179 versus ABMP’s one-year program costing $229—making ABMP’s comparative program nearly 30% more expensive. 

For a cheaper insurance price, you can get MMIP’s rate down to around $139 per year by purchasing a two-year professional policy up front. Comparatively, ABMP offers a “baseline level of membership” for professional policies at $199 per year. Even dropping the level of coverage, ABMP’s reduced policy is still more than 40% more expensive. Both policies do offer monthly payment options with financing based on the applicant’s credit history.

Continuing Education Opportunities Provided

Both MMIP and ABMP insurance offer free continuing education courses with their membership. The NCBTMB-approved courses offered by ABMP are offered in two tiers depending on the membership purchased. With the baseline professional insurance, ABMP members get access to 200+ webinars where they can seek continuing education hours that can coincide with the courses approved by their state board. With a certified-level ABMP insurance plan, members receive access to an additional 400+ courses offered via the World Massage Conference. With any MMIP massage insurance policy, the policyholder receives free and unlimited access to a host of professionally-curated courses. These interactive CE courses are available in both video and text format and come with an instant proof of completion after you pass the course’s final exam. 

The Story Behind MMIP

MMIP got its start more than 35 years ago as an insightful publication for massage therapists. Providing this resource required a deep and intimate knowledge of the real issues facing professionals. After many years with the Massage Magazine publication and working closely with therapists, the need for additional career support in the form of liability insurance was apparent. Insurance at the time was either too generic, too expensive, or not yet available for the specific practices of certain massage and bodywork professionals—leaving them dangerously exposed should an injury or other accident occur during a session.

With all the experience of living the life of massage therapists and catering to the needs of the industry, MMIP was well-poised when it set out to create a tailored insurance program just for massage therapists. MMIP has since grown into the leading national insurance provider for massage therapists by staying focused on providing the most amount of coverage, at competitive rates. 

Comparing Coverage Types & Limits

Professional liability, general liability, and product liability should all be present on a massage insurance policy and both MMIP and AMBP offer these. AMBP offers high coverage limits at $2 million per occurrence and $6 million as an individual annual aggregate. MMIP also offers $2 million per occurrence but only $3 million as an individual annual aggregate. This decision is strategic, built on many years in the industry. 

Limits are set by an actuarial analysis of the types of risks facing massage therapists. Setting them appropriately means providing adequate coverage for professionals but never more than what’s needed. Having too much coverage means your paying for something that’s highly likely you’ll never need. Setting MMIP’s coverage limits at more industry-appropriate levels allows for lower premiums without sacrificing overall protection.

Both policies use an individual annual aggregate which is preferred over a shared annual aggregate. By “pooling” the coverage limit with other members, a shared annual aggregate can actually lessen the amount of coverage available when there are multiple claims in a single term. As well, both policies utilize occurrence form coverage, another industry-favorite since it provides the most appropriate protection timing-wise for massage professionals. 


Additional Protections Offered

Additional protections included with the “big three” liability coverages (general, professional, and product) include rental damage coverage, stolen equipment coverage, and identity protection.

Rental Damage Coverage

ABMP and MMIP both offer rental damage coverage in their massage insurance programs. This important coverage applies to damages caused in a rented space. Most of the time a lease agreement stipulates the renters are responsible for damage but even when this hasn’t been directly spelled out, a landlord may still seek restitution for damages to their property. Both MMIP and ABMP include rental damage coverage in the amount of $100,000 but ABMP only covers damages related to fire or water. 

Stolen Equipment Coverage

No one ever thinks they’ll be a victim of a robbery until it happens. After such a distressing experience is a terrible time to be thinking about how you’ll cover the costs of replacing what you lost. That’s why MMIP includes up to $1,000 in coverage with a $250 deductible to help our members purchase new equipment after a robbery takes place. With ABMP, stolen equipment coverage isn’t included with an insurance plan but may be added on for an additional fee.

Identity Theft Protection

Today’s massage professionals rely on the internet to stay connected more than ever before. With more reliance on online platforms to run your business, there are simply more opportunities for a cyber incident to take place. When your identity is compromised, MMIP identity theft protection kicks in with up to $25,000 in identity restoration services. ABMP insurance does not currently offer this additional protection with their plan.

Additional protections above liability insurance is how to develop an all-around protection strategy for your career. Long-term success in the industry requires putting in the best protection possible, which is exactly what MMIP’s massage insurance was designed for.

Hour Requirements for Insurance

In order to get the baseline professional insurance from ABMP, massage therapists need to be licensed with 100 hours of experience. For the Certified level, professionals need a whopping 500 hours. MMIP does not include any hours requirements in order to get massage insurance. Therapists do need to be properly licensed as required by their state board, for the fact that we aren’t able to insure an activity that’s not legal to do. 

Massage Modalities Covered by Insurance

MMIP knows that just almost every practitioner of massage will be trained in multiple modalities in order to provide the best experience and treatment plan for clients. Even so, a lot of insurance programs only cover a core group of massage types only to charge a premium or not extend coverage for other modalities. 

MMIP provides coverage for more than 350 different massage and wellness activities. ABMP’s website lists that they cover cupping and hot stone massage as additional modalities but do not provide a list of further modalities covered under their massage insurance.

Ratings from Verified Purchasers

Reviews on the company websites tend to be somewhat slanted so we're glad that both companies utilize TrustPilot—a completely unbiased, third-party review gathering website. Good, bad, or ugly, TrustPilot garners real reviews from verified users of these programs. 

Based on present information listed on the TrustPilot site, each companies scores are as follows:

As you can see the ratings are pretty close on scoring these two insurance companies. At present, MMIP’s score is based on about 20% more professionals’ ratings.

Comparison in Review: More Coverage for Less Money

Understanding the amount of coverage received relative to the price paid provides the best understanding of the value of a massage insurance plan. With a greater number of additional protections, more services covered, and more benefits offered, the lower premium offered by MMIP truly offers one of the best values available in massage insurance today.

Get career coverage made just for massage therapists now. Signing up is easy and only takes a few minutes.

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3948 3rd Street South #279,
Jacksonville Beach, FL 32250

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The Liability master policy is issued to the Healthcare Professionals Purchasing Group, LLC. The Identity Protection Plan is powered by Identity Fraud, Inc., Walnut Creek, CA, whose members include members of Healthcare Professionals Purchasing Group, LLC. Arthur J. Gallagher Risk Management Services, Inc. is the insurance partner for Healthcare Professionals Purchasing Group, LLC. Arthur J. Gallagher Risk Management Services, Inc., a 50-state licensed broker, is the broker for all coverage under Healthcare Professionals Purchasing Group, LLC. Arthur J. Gallagher Risk Management Services, Inc. also serves as excess and surplus lines broker for Healthcare Professionals Purchasing Group, LLC. Professional Liability and Commercial General Liability coverage under Healthcare Professionals Purchasing Group, LLC is underwritten in the surplus lines market by Arch Specialty Insurance Company, which is rated A+(Superior) by A.M. Best Company. Persons insured by surplus lines companies are not eligible for recourse through any state guarantee fund for the obligations of an insolvent insurer. Healthcare Professionals Purchasing Group, LLC is for health, wellness and beauty professionals and students created for the purpose of providing valuable and important benefits and services to its members. Healthcare Professionals Purchasing Group, LLC is not an insurer. 3948 3rd Street South #279, Jacksonville Beach, FL 32250

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