What Is Small Business Insurance and What Does it Cover?
If you’re looking for the small business insurance definition, we can help. Also known as commercial insurance, small business insurance is designed to safeguard the company you’ve worked so hard to build. It helps protect your business against bodily injury or property damage.
What Is Considered Small Business Insurance?
One of the most common types of business insurance is a Business Owner’s Policy (BOP). It includes coverage from:
- General liability insurance
- Business income insurance
- Commercial property insurance
What Does Small Business Insurance Cover?
Small business insurance can help cover claims that your business hurt someone or damaged another person’s property. It can also help protect your business’ equipment and income.
This type of insurance can help protect your business if:
- A customer slips and falls at your business property
- An employee accidentally puts a hole in a wall while working at a customer’s home
- Your employee falls and gets hurt while making a delivery
What Insurance Do You Need for a Small Business?
Many business owners wonder, “What insurance do you need for a small business?” A BOP is not only convenient, it can also help you save money. In addition to the coverage in a BOP, many small business owners need other types of general liability insurance, including:
- Workers’ compensation insurance
- Professional liability insurance
- Data breach insurance
Learn more about the types of business insurance many small business owners need:
General Liability Insurance
General liability insurancehelps protect your business from claims of:
- Property damage to someone else’s belongings
- Bodily injury to another person while on your business property
- Personal injury, like defamation or libel
Business Income Insurance
Business income insurancehelps replace your lost income if you can’t operate because of covered property damage. This coverage is also known as business interruption insurance.
Commercial Property Insurance
Commercial property insurancehelps protect the owned or rented building and equipment you use to operate your business. It can also help repair or replace business property if a fire, theft,commercial water damage or other covered loss damages or destroys it.
Additional Coverages for Small Businesses
You can help protect your small business with other types of business insurance, such as:
- Data breach insuranceto help pay your costs to respond to a data breach if personally identifiable information gets lost or stolen.
- Professional liability insurance, also known as errors and omissions insurance, to help protect your business from lawsuits claiming mistakes were made in the professional services given.
- Workers’ compensation insuranceto help your employees recover from a work-related injury or illness. Most states require this coverage.
- Commercial umbrella insuranceto help extend the coverage limits for certain general liability insurance policies.
- Commercial auto insuranceto help protect you and your employees on the road while driving for business.
- Employment practices liability insuranceto help cover employment-related claims against your business.
- Business insurance to helpentrepreneurs protect their home-based businesses. Homeowners insurance may not insure your business assets.
To learn more about the liability coverage you need to protect your business from financial loss, get a quotetoday.
Common Questions About Small Business Insurance
Are Small Businesses Required To Have Insurance?
If you have employees, you’ll need workers’ compensation insurance. Most states may also require:
- Commercial auto insurance
- Professional liability insurance
- Liquor liability insurance
What Does Small Business Insurance Cost?
Small business insurance costs vary depending on the type of company. That’s because every small business is unique. An LLC's insurance cost may be different than the insurance for a startup business.Some factors that determine the cost of your small business insuranceinclude your company’s:
- Size
- Experience
- Industry risk
- Payroll
Why Do Small Businesses Need Insurance?
As a small business owner, you may be wondering, “Is it illegal to run a business without insurance?” You should check the laws where you live, because every state has different rules and regulations. If you don’t comply with those laws, your business may face fines and penalties. And in some cases, you can also face criminal charges.
Without insurance to protect your business, you’ll also have to pay for claims out of pocket. Not many small business owners have the resources to cover costly claims.
Get more answers to small business insurance frequently asked questions and get a quotetoday.
We Support Small Business Owners
We know there are a lot of insurance companies out there, but not all of them are dedicated to small businesses. We are a top digital small business insurance company.We have more than 200 years of experience and a dedicated team of specialists to help small business owners get the coverage they need. From lost income and medical expenses to car accidents, we can help you every step of the way. Get a small business insurance quotetoday.
Last Updated: May 14, 2024
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