The home my mother calls her own is in my husband's name. If a home care aide somehow gets hurt, can she sue my husband?

Is sister wanting to hire from an agency? If not tell her she needs to do so or buy workmans compensation insurance. The latter should be checked for your area, it might throw other requirements into the plan, ie matching SS and Medicare pmts, state tax, unemployment tax, federal tax. I have never had in home care so I'm not sure, I do run a business and all of these must be paid.

I would also check about the waiver, some states will not allow documents that give away people's rights. Maybe a caregiver contract would be the way to avoid being sued. I would consult an attorney and a cpa.

To many times I have heard about the person that will sign a waiver, hold harmless, etc, until they get hurt, then all if that goes out the window.

Maybe rent the house to sister and make her provide insurance, I'm sure an attorney will lead you to the best way to protect yourselves that let mom have some help.

Please come back and let us know what happens, we are all learning. Good luck!

I worked Elder Care and I was insured by my company for injury, probably with Worker's Comp. The family also carried a little extra insurance for "me" as they were all actually IN the insurance business. I did get hurt at work several times (Lifting my way too heavy client and once, shoveling their enormous driveway!!) but neither required a drs visit, or a lasting injury. If I had a caregiver here, I would talk to my ins guy and add some kind of extra coverage.

My MIL owned a rental house, the mailman walked across the lawn and stepped into a hole in the lawn--(barely sprained his ankle) and sued my inlaws for $250K! SO stupid, and he actually lost b/c he was not supposed to walk across lawns, only on sidewalks, which are "owned" by the county--anyway, people can and will sue over some pretty stupid stuff, so it's better to be prepared than be sorry.

The mailman lawsuit lasted over 2 years. It was so stressful for MIL.

Call your insurance agent. S/he will be able to tell you if your current liability plan covers this, and tell you how much it would be to have this property listed as a rental - just a quote, not a policy yet.
 
If there is any possibility that grandma might not have enough money to pay for her care when she needs a nursing home, the Medicare spend down allows her to pay rent. You can always give her back the rent (less taxes) if she does not need medicare assistance for a NH later on, once she's out of money. She can pay renter's liability insurance (really cheap) and she should be the one hiring the aide and having the consult with CPA. If grandma realizes she can't handle all this money talk, she needs to give her durable POA to someone local so they can take care of it in HER name, not anyone else's.

Who pays the house insurance? This is the first one you would file a liability claim. Suing the owner would come in if the person sued beyond the insurance cap. If an agency, find out if they cover their aids. Private pay is a whole other ball. The answer: is yes your husband can be sued.

We've addressed this issue, not for in home care but for chore services. I contacted our insurance agent with the request to add a worker's comp rider and learned that this can't be done in Michigan. W/c insurance is a commercial, not a homeowner's insurance. There's no such thing as a comp rider to a HO policy.

It would cost between $750 and $1,000 annually (with guaranteed price increased over the year(s) ) to purchase a commercial w/c policy. And that's only the base cost of the policy. If the person was injured actually was, and filed a successful w/c claim, then the payments for the injury could go on for an indefinite period, depending on the award.

We went the route of hiring people through an agency. There's too much risk not to do this.

The claim would be filed against the individual who's of record as holding title to the house.

As to waivers, one potential issue could be proof that the individual who signed it actually understood what she was doing - "informed consent" might be the best way to describe it. I.e., did she realize what she was waiving?

If you go this route, definitely have an attorney draft the waiver. This isn't a DIY job.

A waiver is only a piece of paper.   It will not protect you fully.

Yes, in my opinion, she could sue - but I believe it would be covered under your House/Home Insurance. Ask your Insurance Agent about this. He/she should know the answer.

Hospice worker's work for a company that should be carrying w/c policy. Hired employees by homeowner are a different story altogether. I'm sure each state, maybe even county has its own rules. I personally have never found an insurance agent that could answer the "how should this be strucutured to protect us?" Can they tell me if my insurance covers me if....they should be able to. Realize that not all agents are familiar with the nuances of commercial or asset protection. Make sure your agent knows the whole story, mom, sister, paid worker. You would not want to have a worker hurt, hire an attorney then find out that you are not protected. It is to late at that point.

Yes, is seems simple enough insured or not? Paying them is the game changer and unless they are in this country illegally if they get seriously hurt you can guarantee someone will advise them to sue. Who wouldn't, hurt, can't work, no workers comp insurance to pay medical bills and 2/3rd of salary.

Just an example of how crazy the judicial system is. We were building a playground shade cover out of structural steel, the area was fenced off and posted under construction keep out. A mom helped her child through the construction fence and allowed them to play on the stacked up construction material, the child fell breaking their arm injuring their head, they turned around and sued our company . They actually won medical expenses and damages, even though we had complied with the law providing a barrier with written notification. They illegally entered the area and still made enough for this child to go to college on. That is why I recommend talk to your agent and find out if the worker is covered but also talk to a lawyer to guarantee that your assets are protected. Attorneys are hungry and will take any kind of care. If you are sued, all of your personal assets could be at stake if this worker is not insured. Insurance companies will not even provide an attorney if it is deemed that the situation was never covered under your policy. 

YES. It doesn't mean that the claim would prevail, but you would likely be sued. Get insurance.

Please also read this,
dwyerlaw.com.au/blog/2016/june/the-consequences-if-someone-is-injured-on-your-p.aspx

I'm certainly no expert on liability but my understanding is that claims are generally based on the degree of negligence involved, so aside from having good insurance you would be wise to go through the home and the caregiver's duties with that in mind. For example it isn't reasonable to expect someone to transfer a patient without the appropriate assistive devices, or to attempt to work with any equipment that is in poor repair, or to work in a home that may have unsafe areas such as broken steps or non gfi electrical outlets in hazardous areas, etc