Starting out a business is a momentous event in a person’s life. You will be expected to dedicate your time, money, and energy to its growth and sustainability. And as your endeavor grows, you’ll be hiring people and those people will depend on you for their livelihood and the needs of your family. Also, in many cases, small business owners have their personal finances tied to their business, it’s not uncommon for them to bank everything into their shop.
Looking into the future, it’s important that you safeguard your interests from untoward events and that includes your business. Here is some basic commercial insurance that you should consider:
1.General Liability
This is one of the most basic and important coverage you’ll need for your business. It covers expenses derived from medical, attorney, and damages you may be responsible for. This liability insurance covers damages that your product has caused to individuals who used it. Consider the scenario, a small business operating at around $1million per year will have to shell out $20,000 for litigation fees once it goes to court. Most businesses won’t survive the implications much less have anything left after the proceedings.
2.Commercial Property Insurance
Businesses with physical assets like a warehouse, equipment, materials, inventory, and miscellaneous assets rely on their safety and integrity for continuity. If something were to happen to them, most owners will have a hard time recuperating from the losses. This is why you need commercial property insurance coverage for your assets. Make sure you discuss with your agent how to customize your policy to match your business needs. For example, a landlord and somebody in retail or manufacturing will have nuances in their needs but both have physical assets that require protection.
3.Business Owner’s Policy (BOP)
This policy covers a bulk of interests in your business. It combines various policies like commercial property, general liability, business income, and equipment breakdown. It’ll protect you from suits pertaining to business practices claimed by clients or employees. It’ll also be a good overall blanket if you’re unsure of what you need for your insurance.
4.Business Interruption Insurance
The recent pandemic has shown us the importance of this type of insurance. Businesses that don’t get the required utility to operate or may have sustained some damages which caused them to stop operation will still have to pay for fixed financial obligations even without revenue for that day.
Business Interruption Insurance will help keep your business afloat even if it closes temporarily. It’ll pay for the net income loss and the continuing expenses such as a mortgage. It’ll also help in relocating your business to a temporary site.
5.Workers’ Compensation Insurance
This is mandatory insurance coverage by the government on business owners. It will cover injuries incurred by employees performing work-related tasks during work hours. To claim the benefits, the employee must not sue the employer for the injury sustained and an agreement must be signed.
There are still a number of commercial insurance available like health, data breach, and security but it’ll be easier to identify your needs after a thorough assessment. Insurance for your business will cushion blows that may come upon your establishment, it’ll give you a chance to recover and continue operation as well as protect your family’s and personal finances.