Running a business in this litigation-happy society is risky. Any business, customer, client, employee or member of the public can be aggrieved by what you do and file a lawsuit in court against your business. Whether the lawsuit is merited or not, it can dent your reputation and put a strain on your finances. If the lawsuit is successful, you may go bankrupt and be forced to close shop just to pay the award. Aside from lawsuits, businesses also face a wide range of other liabilities. There is the risk of property damage, theft, economic depression, physical injuries and business disruption among other things. Business owners need to protect not only themselves, but also their business from all possible risks.
Why Consult an Insurance Broker?
An insurance broker is a professional who is well-versed with the different types of insurance policies that are available on the market for different types of clients. This type of professional can easily assess your coverage needs and help you choose the most suitable insurance policy for your coverage needs. An insurance broker can also scour the market, compare policies and help you pick the right insurance policy for your needs. Ideally, you should only work with independent insurance brokers as they will take care of your needs as opposed to forcing you to take up policies from a given insurer whom they have an agreement with. If you choose a Smart Insurance broker, you can be assured of having all your coverage needs taken care of. Please note that while you’ll have to pay for insurance brokerage services, these professionals can still help you save a lot of money by choosing an affordable, but sufficient policy for your coverage needs.
Types of Insurance Policies Every Business Needs
i) Property Insurance
Whether you are in the services industry or goods industry, you have assets that need to be protected. This includes vehicles, furniture, computers, documents, equipment, inventory and many others. To protect your business from liabilities arising from fire damage, earthquakes, floods and theft, you need to purchase business property insurance for your business. If your business property gets damaged in any way, the insurer will compensate you for your losses. This compensation can help you reopen and continue with your business as opposed to closing shop after a theft, fire or flooding incident.
ii) Professional Liability Insurance
This is also known as errors and omissions insurance. It is one of the most important business insurance policies to have today in this litigation-happy society. It protects you and your business from claims of negligence if another party claims you failed to perform or you made a mistake that caused them injuries in one way or the other. If a lawsuit is filed against you by a client, employee, business partner or any other party, professional liability insurance will pay for legal fees and damages awarded. Many businesses have had to wind up just to pay legal fees and damages awarded by the court in favor of customers or employees who filed a lawsuit against those businesses. To ensure your business continues to thrive in a litigation-happy society, consider buying professional liability insurance.
iii) Product Liability Insurance
If you’re in the manufacturing industry, you may be making the highest quality products, but a lawsuit can still be filed against you for manufacturing and selling a defective product. While you may have the best quality assurance team in the world, one or more persons may be aggrieved with one or more of your products. Your business will need product liability insurance to offer protection against possible lawsuits. Depending on the type of product you’re manufacturing, you should purchase a policy that is tailored to suit your unique coverage needs. By working with a licensed insurance broker, you can be assured of finding a suitable policy.
iv) Workers Compensation Insurance
In many industries, business owners are required to purchase workers insurance policies for each of their employees. While some business owners usually feel like they are being forced to spend money on this type of policy, it is incredibly helpful to both the employer and employees. For starters, one of the conditions for work comp coverage is that employees have to give up their right to sue their employer in case they are injured at work. This means that injury-related lawsuits from employees are avoided, which is a huge advantage for business owners. Workers compensation insurance also pays all the medical bills associated with work-related injuries and comes with disability benefits among other important benefits. If you want to protect both your business and workers, you need this type of insurance. Just make sure every eligible worker is properly enrolled.
v) Business Interruption Insurance
There are disasters that can have a significant impact on businesses. For instance, a pandemic may hit and bring business revenues almost to zero. If workers get ill and are unable to go to work, or they succumb to the illness during the pandemic, your business will also suffer. Also affected will be your customers who will not be able to come to your business. The best way to protect your business from catastrophes, such as war, pandemics, natural disasters, election violence and economic depression is to purchase business interruption insurance.
vi) Commercial Auto Insurance
Your business vehicles have different coverage needs than personal cars. If you have one or more business vehicles, you need to purchase commercial auto insurance to protect those vehicles. The ideal policy should cover personal injuries as well as property damage.
As you can see, there are many types of insurance that businesses need. An insurance broker is the right professional to consult whenever you need to get the best coverage for your business, and at the right price. Since there are many types of insurance brokers out there, be sure to give special consideration to the most experienced brokers who have a wonderful reputation in the industry and competitive pricing. This will help to ensure you get the best results.
