Business Insurance Costs, Don’t Cut Corners
By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Carmel_Baird]Carmel Baird
When we go into business for ourselves, either purchase an already existing business or start a business up from scratch, it is usually because we have a flair or it is our trade.
| That is the part of the business we know very well. There are many areas we will find ourselves not knowing all the ins and outs and an important one of these areas is the business insurance. |
It is also important not to cut corners with your business insurance costs.
Business insurance for small to medium businesses can be like a minefield but you need to know you have the right cover so that all areas of your business are protected sufficiently. There is insurance for these size businesses called a Business Owners Policy or BOP.
| This type of insurance package combines protection for all the main property and liability risks you could face in one package. Of course you can obtain all these covers separately if you wish. The business insurance packages were developed for |
small to medium sized business that had similar risks. A larger company would normally customize their policies to suit their circumstance.
Business Insurance Packages for small businesses, would include:-
1. Insurance cover for the property, which included the buildings (if you own them, if you are leasing the premises then the owner of the building carries this insurance) and the contents, this includes the fixtures and fittings you have installed to set up your business and you would need to make sure about the stock you have on hand. A business carries basic stock normally, so you would be asked to nominate a value. If you have peak periods, like holiday trading where you carry extra stock, then this is the value you should nominate, as disasters don’t pick normal trading times to hit.
2. Business interruption insurance, this covers any loss of income that results from things like fire or other catastrophes disrupting the operation of the business. This could also cover any expense for you having to run your business from temporary premises.
3. Liability protection, this will cover your businesses legal responsibility for any harm caused to anyone by you or your employees during the operation of your business. Things like injury to persons or property caused by defective products or faulty services and installations.
What is not covered by these type of business insurance packages are professional liability, worker’s compensation, health or disability insurance and auto insurance. Separate policies are needed to cover these.
When you are in business, having an independent insurance agent or broker can be very beneficial. Getting to know this person and them getting to know you and your needs for your business insurance, will take so much pressure from you and as this is their business to know the insurance field, then they will make sure you have the right coverage. There are areas you may not think of that need cover
You will need to keep your business insurance broker informed regarding any changes to your business, like expanding, downsizing, major purchases, employing more staff or staff reductions or you may change your premises. This will ensure you have the right insurance coverage to suit your needs.
Ask about higher deductibles. You could save on your insurance premiums by electing to pay higher deductibles, the higher this figure is, the less you pay. Depending on your circumstances this could be false economy, so make sure you understand what your broker tells you about this area of a policy.
There may be other ways to reduce your premiums too, so follow your insurer’s recommendations for workplace safety and disaster preparations.
The important thing is to get the right business insurance at the right price and for the right coverage so you have all the protection you need.
©2007 CTBaird. Carmel Baird contributes to InsuranceInfo-Online a site dedicated to helping people obtain information, hints, tips and get [http://www.insuranceinfo-online.com]insurance information online
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