Insurance Tips to Help Small Business Owners

When starting a new business, the details may seem overwhelming.  Many things that seem simple, like buying insurance, become more complicated when you add a business into the mix.  That’s why it’s important to understand what kind of insurance is available, what you need and what you don’t.

Here is a quick overview of the different types of insurance you may or may not need for your business.

Whether your run a home business, or own or rent an office, you need to not only insure the place where you work, but also everything inside it.  If you run a home business, or are starting one, then you need to talk to your insurance company to make sure your business is covered under your current policy.  If not, you will probably need to make changes.

As a business owner, you probably know that you need health insurance, but many people don’t consider the loss of business if you do have an accident or severe illness. It’s important to not just insure your health, but also your time.  Many insurance companies now offer policies that cover your expenses if you cannot work.

So what if your business is targeted by a crime, causing you a loss of money?  Sure, many business owners have policies that replace stolen property, but that may not be your only expense.  Insurance companies can offer businesses protection against crime and even lost business from dealing with the crime.  While this kind of protection can help pretty much any business, some businesses are more vulnerable and will need more protection.

If your business requires a vehicle, you need to make sure that it is insured – not only for you, but anyone that will be driving it.  If it is your personal vehicle, you need to make sure it is covered as a business vehicle as well.  You can notify your company of this when you get or update your auto policy, or when you go to an insurance agent to get business coverage.

We all make mistakes and we all mess up sometimes, and sometimes things just don’t always go our way no matter what we do.   Depending on how your business is set up, a small mistake could not only ruin your business, it could hurt you personally as well.  That’s where liability insurance comes in.  It protects you if there is financial or other loss that is deemed to be your fault, protecting you and your assets.

If you have employees, you will likely have to pay into workers’ compensation.  This covers their medical expenses if they have a work-related accident or get injured on the job.  This is not only important, in most places it is also a legal requirement.

When it comes to getting insurance for your small business, you may not know which insurances you really need and don’t need.  There are also all kinds of choices once you choose the general categories you need to be covered in.  That’s why you probably not only want to speak to an insurance agent to find out what coverage they think you need, but also shop around to other insurance agencies to be sure you get a good price along with good coverage.