9. Insurance A safe house has the responsibility to maintain liability insurance.627 An organization must obtain liability insurance coverage in the amount of $300,000 for each occurrence of negligence.628 An insurance policy must cover injury to a child that occurs while the child is on the premises of the safe house or in the care of a caregiver.629 An organization should file with DFPS a certification or other evidence from an insurance company showing that the organization has an unexpired and un-cancelled insurance policy.630 If (for financial reasons or lack of availability of an underwriter willing to issue a policy) an organization is unable to secure the required insurance, it should notify the parent or guardian of each child whom the safe house has in its care that the liability coverage is not provided.631 DFPS should also be notified if insurance is not offered.632 In no case will the inability to secure insurance coverage serve to indemnify the license holder for damages due to negligence.633 The only acceptable reasons to not obtain liability insurance are financial reasons, lack of availability of an underwriter willing to issue a policy, or exhausting of policy limits.634 Failure to maintain or renew an insurance policy without good reason is grounds for suspension or revocation of a safe house’s licensing.635
B. Operational Legal Requirements: Maintaining the License After applying for and receiving the initial license a safe house is free to begin operating. When the safe house begins operating, they must: • Designate a full-time child care administrator who meets the minimum qualifications of §748.531; • Be inspected by the fire marshal and Health Department; • Be inspected by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) if using a private well; • Operate according to the written policies and procedures adopted by the governing body; • Maintain true, current, accurate, and complete records at the operation for review; • Ensure that all required documentation is current, accurate, and complete; • Allow inspections of the operation during its hours of operation; 627 40 Tex. Admin. Code § 748.103 (2012). 628 40 Tex. Admin. Code § 745.249 (2012); see also Tex. Hum. Res. Code Ann. § 42.049 (West 2001). 629 Tex. Hum. Res. Code Ann. § 42.049 (West 2001); see also 40 Tex. Admin. Code § 745.253 (2012). 630 Tex. Hum. Res. Code Ann. § 42.049 (West 2001); see also 40 Tex. Admin. Code § 745.253 (2012). 631 Tex. Hum. Res. Code Ann. § 42.049 (West 2001); see also 40 Tex. Admin. Code § 745.253 (2012). 632 Tex. Hum. Res. Code Ann. § 42.049 (West 2001); see also 40 Tex. Admin. Code § 745.253 (2012). 633 Tex. Hum. Res. Code Ann. § 42.049 (West 2001); see also 40 Tex. Admin. Code § 745.253 (2012). 634 40 Tex. Admin. Code § 745.251(2012). 102 635 Tex. Hum. Res. Code Ann. § 42.049 (West 2001).