Six Types Of Insurance A Small Business Owner Should Have

As a business owner, you expose yourself to a host of risks as soon as you get the entity of the ground. Starting a business and running it successfully day in day out, is stressful enough without having to worry about the risks involved. Fortunately, we have various insurance products designed to help businesses and their owners mitigate the impact of the occurrence of covered risks.

As a small business owner, it is upon you to take the time to look at the available business-related insurance policies and come up with the right mix meant to ensure that the business is comprehensively covered against the risks it is exposed to on a daily basis, in furtherance of its operations.

This mix and match approach is especially important considering the simple fact that small businesses have a limited amount of money to invest in insurance policies. Choosing the right policies from the available selection eliminates the likelihood of spending limited resources on securing too much insurance cover by buying policies that overlap each other.

To make your work much easier, we have come up with a list of the most important types of insurance small business owners should consider for purchase.

Professional Liability Insurance

If your business is involved in the provision of professional services, professional liability insurance is definitely for you. This type of insurance is designed to protect businesses that provide professional services from being sued under negligence charges by their clients for the provision of erroneous advice or recommendations.

It is important to mention that professional liability insurance policies differ in terms of the cover they provide, as such, it’s important for you as the business owner to take the time to consult with your provider before choosing the most suitable option.

General Liability Insurance

As a small business owner, you can be sued for damages in case negligent conduct on your part or that of the business ends up causing harm to third parties. The harmful effects suffered by third parties must be attributed to the products or services offered by the business.

A general liability policy will help you meet legal costs in defending the business as well as cover any damages that are as a result of the lawsuit. This policy also helps meet the medical expenses of third parties harmed by the entity.

Due to the risky nature of business operations, this policy is considered to be among the most important for any business.

Business Interruption Insurance

It is common for the occurrence of catastrophes and disasters, man-made or otherwise, to interrupt normal business operations. During these interruptions, businesses suffer lost income as employees are unable to work, and therefore deliver any products or services.

Business interruption policy is specifically designed to help businesses meet their daily operational expenses even with the loss of income.

In most cases, businesses that require a physical location to facilitate normal day to day operations tend to be hardest hit by such occurrences; and are therefore the best candidates for this policy.

Motor Vehicle Insurance

Businesses that rely on the use of motor vehicles in their day to day operations, including delivery of services and products, should carry the appropriate vehicle insurance. Generally, commercial vehicles used in the operations of the company should carry commercial vehicle insurance. Motor vehicle insurance, whether commercial or personal, should be able to cover the business against the cost of any damage or bodily injuries caused to third parties by the vehicles used in furtherance of the business’ operations.

Personal car insurance should be enough to cover personal vehicles that are also used in business operations. It’s is however worth noting that businesses can take up non-owned car insurance to cover themselves against any risks arising from the use of personal vehicles used by employees that might not have the necessary amount of insurance cover or might not be insured altogether.

It’s also worth noting that for personal vehicles used in the delivery of products for a fee, personal vehicle cover does not apply.

Property Insurance

This type of insurance is usually used to cover losses or expenses associated with the destruction of the business’ premises due to the occurrence of a covered risk. The policy cover extends to the costs associated to damage to the property as well as its contents; so long as they are used in the furtherance of the entity’s operations.

It also covers any expenses associated with preventing further damage to the property and its contents. Property insurance may also extend to paying for the business’ expenses for as long as the damage persists.

For small businesses operated from home, be sure to consult your home insurance provider, and confirm whether the cover provided extends to business inventory or equipment stored therein. If not, consider taking up additional or separate cover as needed.

Business Owners’ Policy

Perhaps the most important type of insurance for any small business is the Business Owners’ Policy. This type of insurance is made up of a bundle of policies designed to provide small business owners with all the insurance cover they need without having to purchase separate insurance policies.

The fact that this bundle is cheaper than taking up separate policies means that business owners get to make substantial savings while getting all the protection they need.

It is however worth noting that to qualify for this policy small businesses must fulfill a number of predetermined conditions. Be sure to check whether your business satisfies the established criteria before getting the Business Owners’ Policy.

The occurrence of one of the many risks faced by small businesses can have a significant effect on their continued operation; or in extreme circumstances, cripple them altogether. Having the right amount of insurance cover can help protect small businesses and their owners against the crippling effects of such risks, and therefore facilitate their continued operation, and success.

With the above information in mind, small business owners where ever they reside be it Florida or somewhere else will definitely have an easier task choosing small business insurance cover needed to provide the right foundation for a successful future.