Business insurance can be complicated. From insuring against fire to employee injuries, it seems like the myriad of risks can be too much to shop for when you are shopping for business insurance. Itemizing these risks one by one and getting insurance for them is one way to go.
In New Jersey, for example, you could shop for insurance at an insurance agency for one item and go out of a state of another. You can even go national for some insurances like fire and shop local to New Jersey for others like HIPPA insurance. But most people prefer combining their insurance policies into one convenient policy called Business Owner’s Policy.
A Business Owner’s Policy makes insurance payments convenient. It combines things like data breach insurance, renters insurance, and both employee and customer liability insurance into one policy. Of course, you can expect to get discounts from most people when you shop for more than one policy with them. So combining your policies with the company that has treated you the best is a good idea if you are looking for discounts.
However, the real benefit is that you have to speak with only one company for all of your insurance needs once something happens. Many times a business has only a few people who can handle insurance issues. You don’t want them to spread too thin once an event occurs that requires attention from the insurance company, like fire or flood.
Pressed on time? Watch our quick video summary below.
Commercial Coverage
Commercial insurance is included in some Business Owner’s Policies. It covers things like auto, property and crime damages to a business. But it can also include employee dental, vision, and disability or life insurance policies that cover the group of employees. You can also include a contractor’s insurance policy in the BOP.
Contractor’s Insurance
Many times in running a business the owners retain a contractor. Since these businesses bid on projects with estimated times of completion and stages of completion, it can be a little risky working with contractors you don’t know.
A Business Owner’s Policy can cover your contractor’s work if they are late or if you have to litigate to get certain terms completed for some reason. The policy can help you open your business up to new contractors by providing coverage for unforeseen circumstances. They can also help you take on bigger projects than you might normally take on, and in doing so help expand your business.
Liability Insurance
Business Owner’s Policy also includes liability insurance. There are several types of liability that business owners take on regularly. One is a personal bodily risk. Contractors and people with shops and equipment like garages or lawn care equipment should consider liability insurance a top priority since lawsuits can be very expensive.
A good policy will protect business owners against potentially libelous behavior as well. When people know that the business owner has good liability insurance on their side, they are more likely to think twice about risky behavior on the job site or at the owner’s place of business.
The Importance of Liability Insurance
Liability insurance is very important for most businesses. Sometimes what goes through to the legal system is not bodily injury, but a case of responsibility. In cases like large spilled buckets of paint, equipment breakage on a job site, administration mishaps liability insurance can help make sure a business is covered legally. Liability insurance can also cover things like employee file handling and other administrative issues in the Business Owner’s Policy.
In the end, these policies help a business owner rest easier and get assistance with the day to day dealings and legal issues that come up in managing a business. Staying on top of legal and administrative issues when it comes to employees and equipment make for less work than if there were no insurance, which can lead to piles of paperwork.
Covering Property Damage
Another very important aspect of a Business Owner’s policy is property damage and theft coverage. The items do not have to be at your place of business to be covered. They can be cars or trucks at a job site or on the road. Some other commonly covered items are food manufacturing machines, buildings, and tools or trailers.
They can be computers that are necessary for the business to run, hard drives, or high powered cleaning equipment used in the parking lot or the shop at the place of business.
Commercial Auto Insurance
Auto insurance is very important at most companies. A lot can happen on the road or in a vehicle. Commercial auto insurance insures regular cars like sedans, but it also covers heavy equipment like tractors and hauling vehicles. This insurance can include umbrella insurance also, meaning that whoever drives the car is covered. Businesses can also get fleet coverage with this insurance, which can give a little bit of a discount over insuring per vehicle.
A Business Owner’s Policy is a custom policy. A business owner puts together the policy with their insurance company and it is important for all business owners that have a physical work site or place of business. The Business Owner’s Policy can cover everything from fire and water damage to employee pay in case of an emergency.
Interesting Extras
Some interesting extras besides commercial auto insurance and employee dental are rent insurance on the place of business and cyber security breach insurance. These depend on the package that the owner puts together with the insurance company. So, if you need specific types of insurance such as contractor’s insurance, be sure to bring it up with your insurance company to see if it can be included in your Business Owner’s Policy.
The price of the Business Owner’s Policy are dependent on several variables. They include the age of the business and whether the place of business is owned or rented by the business owner. They also include the number of vehicles, location, and the gross annual revenue, among other things.