Radon Mitigation Insurance Requirements: Only 3 States Set a Figure

Quick Answer: Do Radon Mitigation Contractors Need Insurance?

Usually not by law — only three of the states we checked write a liability insurance figure into their radon rules. About twenty states license or certify radon testers and mitigators, but most of those licensing schemes require training, exams and quality-assurance plans, not insurance. Customers, home inspectors and real estate transactions are what usually make radon contractors insure.

---

The "$500,000 Is Required" Claim

Several licensing-guide sites repeat the same sentence on every state page: "Liability insurance of at least $500,000 is required in [state]." Checked against the rules, it is wrong for most of the states it appears on:

• Most licensing states require no insurance at all in their radon rules — Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Florida, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Indiana, West Virginia, Virginia and New Hampshire among them.
• Missouri and Tennessee do not license radon work as a separate trade.
• Minnesota asks mitigation companies for workers' compensation evidence, not liability insurance.
• Illinois applies a home-repair standard of $100,000 / $300,000 / $50,000, and only to mitigators.
• Kentucky's figure for measurement contractors is $250,000, not $500,000.

$500,000 is correct for mitigation in only two states we verified: Colorado and Kentucky.

---

Colorado: Two Tiers and a Sunset Date

Colorado began licensing radon professionals on 1 July 2022. Under C.R.S. 12-165-109, a licensee must hold general liability insurance from an insurer authorised in Colorado, kept in force for the whole licence period:

• Radon measurement professionals: at least $250,000
• Radon mitigation professionals: at least $500,000

The whole radon licensing article is scheduled for sunset review: under C.R.S. 12-165-113 it is repealed on 1 September 2027 unless the legislature continues it. A Colorado radon professional reading this after that date should check whether the programme was renewed.

---

Kentucky: The Same Split, Under a New Citation

Kentucky requires radon contractors to register with the Kentucky Board of Radon Safety and to carry general liability insurance:

• Measurement contractors: at least $250,000
• Mitigation contractors and radon laboratories: at least $500,000

The Board must be named as certificate holder, and the insurer must give the Board 10 days' notice before a cancellation takes effect.

Most sources still cite this requirement as KRS 211.9113. That section was repealed in 2022: House Bill 77 (2022 Ky. Acts ch. 73) moved the radon programme into KRS chapter 309 under the Department of Professional Licensing. The figures carried over; the citation did not.

---

Illinois: No Insurance, No Tag

Illinois handles radon insurance differently. Its radon rules do not set their own figure. Instead, a mitigation professional engaged in the business must carry insurance meeting the Home Repair and Remodeling Act standard:

A mitigator with a net worth of $1,000,000 or more is exempt from the insurance requirement under the Act.

The enforcement mechanism is concrete: every mitigation system installed in Illinois must carry an IEMA-issued system tag, and the agency will not issue tags to a mitigator who has not provided proof of insurance. Radon measurement licensees in Illinois have no insurance requirement.

---

Rhode Island and Minnesota

Rhode Island's radon contractor application does not set its own figure. It asks the applicant to describe bonding or "other financial assurance", and it requires registration with the state's Contractors' Registration and Licensing Board. That registration has its own liability insurance requirement, so in practice Rhode Island mitigators carry the general contractor-board cover.

Minnesota licenses radon mitigation companies but requires only evidence of workers' compensation coverage — no liability insurance.

---

Why Most Radon Contractors Carry Insurance Anyway

Even in states that require nothing, insurance is usually a business necessity:

• Real estate transactions. Radon testing and mitigation often happen under a contract deadline, and agents, lenders and relocation companies commonly ask for a certificate of insurance.
• Home inspectors. Many radon testers are home inspectors, and the states that regulate home inspectors may set their own insurance rules.
• Contractor registration. Mitigation involves drilling slabs, sealing foundations and running fans and pipe through the house. In states that register home improvement contractors, a mitigator may fall under that registration and its insurance requirement even if the radon rules say nothing.
• Professional liability. A missed or mis-read radon test is an errors-and-omissions risk, not a general liability one. No state radon rule we found requires E&O coverage, but clients and certification programmes may ask for it.

---

FAQ

Do radon mitigators need liability insurance?

Only in a few states. Colorado and Kentucky require $500,000 for mitigation, and Illinois requires $100,000 / $300,000 / $50,000 under its home-repair standard. Most other states that license radon work require no insurance.

Is $500,000 of insurance required for radon contractors?

Only for mitigation in Colorado and Kentucky. The claim that every state requires $500,000 is wrong; most licensing states have no insurance requirement, and Kentucky and Colorado require $250,000 for testers.

Do radon testers need insurance?

In Colorado and Kentucky, yes — $250,000 of general liability. Illinois requires nothing for measurement licensees, and most other states require nothing for testers either.

What happens in Illinois without insurance?

The state will not issue the system tag that every radon mitigation system must carry, so a mitigator without proof of insurance cannot complete compliant installations.

What is the current Kentucky radon insurance law?

It is in KRS chapter 309, after 2022's House Bill 77 moved the radon programme to the Department of Professional Licensing. The old citation, KRS 211.9113, was repealed.

---

Key Takeaways

• Only three states we checked put a liability insurance figure in their radon rules: Colorado, Kentucky and Illinois.
• Colorado and Kentucky: $250,000 for testing, $500,000 for mitigation.
• Illinois borrows its Home Repair Act figures and withholds system tags without proof of insurance.
• Most licensing states require no insurance — the repeated "$500,000 everywhere" claim is wrong.
• Kentucky's citation moved from KRS 211.9113 to KRS chapter 309 in 2022.
• Colorado's radon licensing law is scheduled for repeal on 1 September 2027 unless continued.

---

Sources

• C.R.S. 12-165-109, 12-165-113 — Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies
• 2022 Ky. Acts ch. 73 (House Bill 77); KRS ch. 309 — Kentucky Board of Radon Safety
• 32 Ill. Adm. Code 422.70; 815 ILCS 513/25 — Illinois Emergency Management Agency and Office of Homeland Security
• R.I. Gen. Laws § 5-65-7; Rhode Island Department of Health radon contractor application
• Minn. R. 4620.7250 — Minnesota Department of Health
• Ohio Admin. Code ch. 3701-69; 25 Pa. Code ch. 240; N.J.A.C. 7:28-27; Fla. Admin. Code 64E-5 Part XII; 22 M.R.S. §§ 771–785 (Maine)

Last verified: 2026-10

---

Important Disclaimer

This guide provides general information about insurance requirements based on publicly available sources as of the "Last verified" date above. It is not legal, insurance, or financial advice. Requirements, penalties, and statutes can change; individual circumstances vary. Always confirm current rules with your state's Department of Insurance or DMV, and consult a licensed insurance professional for advice specific to your situation.