Every small business needs insurance – there’s no getting away from it. It’s necessary as it covers business owners for anything from losses occurring as a result of accident or injury in the workplace – even severe weather events that cause damage to property.
Want to know more? Here is the lowdown on the different types of insurance that are required for small businesses.
What does small business insurance cover?
Firstly, it provides financial cover in the event a business is burglarized or loss occurs. Secondly, policies such as liability insurance are recommended. These provide cover if workers are absent, injured, or out sick for long periods of time. Small business insurance will often cover data breaches and the costs that will occur if customers need to be contacted. It’s also a good idea to make sure there’s a policy that covers if customers complain about goods and services provided.
What are the different types of small business insurance policy?
There are individual policies that can be taken out, depending on the type of small business that needs cover. There are also ‘all purpose’ policies known as Business owner’s policy (BOP). These are what’s known as bundle packages and combine policies like general liability insurance, property insurance, and business income coverage into one. They can help small businesses cut costs and still have a high level of coverage. Let’s look at some of the individual policies in more detail.
Firstly, there’s business income coverage. This is a policy that’ll cover any losses that occur to small businesses like cafes and restaurants in the event they need to shut down, if they’ve had a fire or flooding.
Next is commercial property insurance. This is required for any business with physical property as it will cover the building – and all equipment and furniture if there’s a burglary or a freak weather event.
It’s a good idea to think about general liability insurance, which is suitable for all small businesses. This covers any injuries that might occur to people in the event of damage to property. It’ll also cover medical expenses.
There are home-based business insurance policies – suitable for businesses that run out of the owner’s house. These are often just added onto an existing home insurance policy and will include protection for any business equipment and even injuries that occur within private property. This is useful for people who perhaps offer beauty treatments or therapies within their personal space.
Next, product liability insurance. This is a type of cover that’ll help with legal costs in the event someone claims that a small business has caused them harm. Again, useful for people who work in hairdressing and beauty or other hands-on industries.
Finally, workers’ compensation insurance. This is especially for small businesses that have employees and is designed to cover when staff get injured at work – or become sick and need to take extended time off to recover.
Small business insurance is a must-have and can’t be avoided. It’s important to consider which package best meets the needs of staff and customers – and the level of protection needed to ensure laws are complied with at all times.
About the Author/s
The New Jersey Digest is a new jersey magazine that has chronicled daily life in the Garden State for over 10 years.
