You Built It, Now Protect It!
You've worked hard to build your business, and you put a lot of thought into every detail, from the name and location to advertising and décor. In the midst of it all, it may be easy to forget that you need business insurance. With so many different types of business insurance available, how do you know what you need? It really depends on the type of business you own—for example, doctors and lawyers may need malpractice insurance, but a florist might not. Regardless of the business you're in, there are some types of business insurance that are essential.
Business Owners Insurance
What if a tornado damaged your business to the point that you needed to close it for awhile? In addition to helping provide coverage for the damage to your building, business owners insurance may cover loss of income while you get your contingency plan in place. (You do have a contingency plan for emergencies, right?) Business owners insurance can also help provide liability coverage for lawsuits due to negligence, damage to vehicles your company doesn't own, damage to other people's property, medical expenses if someone is injured on the premises, contents of your building and much, much more.
General Liability Insurance
Let's say you own a flower shop and one of your employees was watering a display of plants. The employee stopped watering the plants to help a customer and didn't put up a caution sign that the floor might be wet. Meanwhile, another customer came in and didn't see the water on the floor. She slipped, fell and broke her elbow. If you have general liability insurance, it may help cover reasonable medical expenses for that customer's injuries.
Commercial Fire Insurance
Where there's smoke, there's usually fire. And a commercial fire insurance policy helps by providing coverage for your building if it is damaged by smoke or a fire. What may surprise you is that it may also provide coverage for damage due to lightening, wind, hail, explosions, vandalism and more. You also have the option to add additional coverage for collapse, water damage, falling objects and weight of snow or ice. This plan is often purchased with a general liability policy when a business owners policy doesn't apply.
Business Auto Insurance
Do you own commercial vehicles for your business? If so, you'll need to insure those as well. Coverage requirements vary by state, but it's likely that you will need liability for bodily injury and property damage at minimum. Don't assume your personal policy will be enough. According to the Insurance Information Institute, if you cause an accident in a company vehicle that results in serious injury to someone in the other vehicle, your personal policy limits may not cover it or be enough. If that happens, the injured party may sue your business for damages. To help protect your business, be sure your commercial vehicles are insured through a business auto insurance policy.
Don't let one accident, injury or storm wipe out the business you've worked so hard to build. Ask your local Shelter agent for help in determining which business policies are best suited for your business so that you have the appropriate coverage.
Note: All coverage is subject to your policy provisions. Some types of property are not covered at all, and some types of losses are not covered. The policy purchased and the facts of each claim will control coverage.