Small Business Insurance

Owning your own business is something to be proud of, so insuring what you’ve worked so hard to build is not something that should be overlooked. Your insurance agent has the ability to find the right fit for insuring your business while staying within your budget. Let’s take a closer look at some of the more common commercial insurance policies that protect different aspects of your business.

General Liability

Probably the most common commercial policy is a general liability policy. It protects the business if there were any physical damage or injury for which your business is deemed liable.

Professional Liability

Similar to general liability, a professional liability policy also protects the liability of your business. However, a professional liability policy primarily covers monetary losses from a business’s negligence. Another name for a professional liability policy is an Errors and Omissions policy (E&O). If any legal action is taken against your business for a defective product or a mistake by an employee, your professional liability policy will cover you.

Property

A property policy can insure the building (if owned by the business), the business’s personal property, and the personal property of others (employees).

There can also be an added coverage that insures the business’s loss of income if there were a covered loss where the business cannot operate. This coverage is normally called Business Income & Extra Expense. The key point here is that it must be a covered loss that triggers this coverage.

Commercial Auto

Commercial auto insurance insures vehicles titled to your business. The insurance is almost identical to a personal auto policy, except for a few additional coverages offered.

The additional coverages are called hired and non-owned coverage which extends coverage to vehicles used by the business but not owned by the business. Rented vehicles and employee vehicles are a couple of examples that would be covered if the vehicle is used for business purposes.

Workers’ Compensation

A very common and important policy for your business is workers’ compensation. If an employee gets injured on the job, workers’ compensation covers their medical payments and lost wages if they need to miss time. If you have one or more employees working for your business, you will most likely need a workers’ compensation policy.

Inland Marine

This type of policy is useful for businesses with highly valued tools or equipment. These items can be scheduled on an inland marine policy for their agreed value. A blanket type coverage can also be placed over a category of items, for example, $5,000 for contractor’s tools.

Commercial Umbrella

A commercial umbrella acts much like a personal umbrella policy. It provides excess liability coverage over the underlying commercial insurance policies.

Important Notes for Small Businesses

Here are a few key notes for small businesses to note when it comes to insurance:

• If you run your business from your home, your home insurance policy does not cover the liability or property of the business. A commercial insurance policy would need to be written.
• Similar to the last point, your home insurance policy does not cover the property used for business purposes if you are working from home. Coverage from your employer’s insurance would need to be extended.
• Commercial use of a vehicle is excluded from a personal auto policy. If you are using a vehicle for your business, a commercial auto policy is needed.

Trusted Agent

Every business is unique, so it is often unclear what insurance policies you need. Having an agent to guide you through the process of insuring your business is an extremely valuable tool. Your CRG agent will ask specific questions as to what you are looking for and make sure they provide you with the best policies for your situation. You focus on running your business and we’ll be here to protect it.