A model is injured on set, and the agency gets named in the claim.
WC in the model's own name keeps the injury a comp claim, not a lawsuit against the agency.
WC and GL issued in the talent's name, not the agency's, giving the same protection without the misclassification exposure. New York's Fashion Workers Act already made this the standard, and other states are moving the same way.
The Fashion Workers Act raised the floor. Five places the old agency playbook now sits below it.
WC in the model's own name keeps the injury a comp claim, not a lawsuit against the agency.
Per-booking coverage in the model's name closes the gap, with no payroll conversion.
It holds them to new licensing and fiduciary duties. Models stay independent contractors, and coverage in their own name protects them without a W-2 conversion.
Issued in the model's name, client and agency added, with no certificate chase the morning of the shoot.
Handling compliance well becomes a reason talent signs with you.
What runs from deal memo to call time: real coverage for your talent, without converting models to W-2.
The Assignments API takes the booking as input, returns a per-booking rate, and binds when the model opts in. Coverage issues in the contractor's name, agency named as additional insured, structured the way a booking actually runs.
Booking fees go in, premium comes out, line by line, per model, per state. The audit trail your accountants and clients ask for is already structured the way they need to read it.
WC and GL issue in the model's name; the agency and client get listed as additional insureds per booking. The structure that keeps talent independent and the agency protected, without a W-2 conversion.
Each booking confirms what matters for coverage: insured in the model's name, the agency named, the COI current, and the window matched to the dates. The documentation builds itself as you go.
I used to 1099 all our talent, but the payroll services kept pushing everyone to W-2 and charging all these fees, and we couldn't even track the money. Per-gig coverage in the talent's name is what lets us stay 1099 without the trauma.
Per-booking WC and GL mechanics, agency additional-insured options, and how coverage fits while your models stay independent contractors.
Often, yes. The real exposure is misclassification, not the 1099 label. In ABC-test states like California, New Jersey, and Massachusetts, and under New York's analysis, talent can be reclassified as employees based on the degree of control and how the booking is set up. If that happens, or if an uninsured model is injured on set, the agency or brand can become the de facto employer on the workers'-comp claim. WC carried in the talent's own name keeps an injury with their policy and is one supporting signal of genuine independence. It's not a substitute for the full classification test, but it closes the gap that would otherwise land on the agency.
Not workers' comp. The Act regulates New York modeling agencies and management companies: registration, fiduciary duty to talent, written agreements, consent for AI and digital-replica use, a 20% commission cap, and prompt payment. It took effect in June 2025. Its one insurance provision requires the client booking a model to carry liability coverage for the model's health and safety. It's part of the broader push toward documented, in-name protections for creative workers.
Not when the policy is issued to the model as the named insured. 1099Policy issues coverage to the talent and adds the agency or client as a blanket additional insured. That's structurally the opposite of an EOR arrangement, where the worker becomes a W-2 employee. Coverage in their own name supports independent-contractor status rather than undermining it.
Coverage binds around the booking window and its certificate requirements: dates, client, and additional-insured language. Each policy is issued in the model's name, with the agency and client added where the booking requires it, so the paperwork is ready before call time.
The talent's policy is designed to respond first: workers' comp covers medical and lost-wage benefits, while the agency's separate GL and additional-insured status address secondary liability. The claim stays with the model's coverage instead of becoming a suit against the agency.
The model or talent, always. Their name or business entity is on the COI, the carrier holds the policy in their name, and claims pay out to them. The agency and client are added as additional insured where required.
WC and GL issued in the talent's name, available before call time. The lightest credible audit trail in the industry.
