While many people are familiar with home insurance, many are unaware of the importance of business insurance. If you have your own company or are planning to start one soon, it’s essential to make sure you’re protected against lawsuits, natural disasters, and other types of liability that could derail your company before it gets off the ground. To learn more about business insurance in Arizona options and how they can help protect your company, continue reading below.
What is Business Insurance?
Business insurance is a type of insurance policy that protects your company from financial loss caused by lawsuits, natural disasters, accidents, and other unexpected occurrences. Business owners have several options for choosing a business insurance plan—including liability coverage, property coverage, workers’ compensation coverage, general liability insurance policies, and more. To decide which type of policy is best for your needs, you need to understand how business insurance works and what different types of policies do. You can start by comparing business insurance quotes with coverage’s that fit your budget at instant quote engine. It only takes three minutes to get an auto insurance quote online—why not take a few minutes out of your day to see how much money you could save on business insurance?
How Much Does Business Insurance Cost?
Business insurance is a strange beast. Most of us understand that insuring our homes and cars makes sense: They cost a lot and would be hard to replace if damaged or destroyed. But, when it comes to business insurance, many entrepreneurs wonder how much it costs. After all, most people never expect their homes or cars to be damaged or destroyed either—yet we still take out homeowners and auto policies. The reason for that is simple: Because things do go wrong. Homes burn down; automobiles get into accidents; businesses fold unexpectedly. It’s not pretty, but these events happen regularly, at least once every year, on average (and sometimes more). And even though you may know that risk exists, there are situations where you can’t fully anticipate what might happen, which makes business insurance important for any small business owner who wants to protect their operation. With business insurance, you can minimize your risks and ensure your company isn’t crushed by one (or several) unexpected occurrences like theft losses, lawsuits, natural disasters, or employee injuries. This guide will help you figure out precisely what type of coverage your small business needs so you can develop an effective plan for protecting yourself from risk as a small-business owner in Arizona.
Do I Need Business Insurance?
Some states and industries require specific types of business insurance or face strict requirements for businesses that do not have it. Fortunately, most business owners in most places don’t need specialized coverage—like life insurance for their employees—unless they want to have it. If you do need additional business insurance in Arizona, be sure to shop around. You can find many different providers with different packages and rates so getting quotes from multiple insurers is a good idea even if you think your current insurer is reasonable. When comparing policies, pay close attention to deductibles, which are what you’ll have to pay before coverage kicks in when something goes wrong. That way, you’ll know exactly how much risk you are taking on when deciding whether or not more business insurance is right for your company.
What Does Business Insurance Cover?
The basic premise of business insurance is that it covers you against financial loss if you become legally liable for something that goes wrong in your company. For example, let’s say one of your employees hits someone while driving for your business and gets sued. If you don’t have enough liability coverage, you could end up having to pay out of pocket—and lose money even if you win in court. Things like insurance are boring, but it’s essential not to overlook them when starting a new business. It would help if you also considered buying small business umbrella insurance. It won’t cover every potential disaster, but it can be well worth it as an added layer of protection. One more thing: When shopping around for business insurance policies, do some research on specific terms used in different policies; many companies offer similar products with subtly other limitations and exclusions. Make sure you know what those differences are before signing on! (Small Business Trends has an excellent guide here.)
What is Liability Coverage?
To function in today’s business world, a business needs three kinds of insurance: property/casualty, liability, and workers’ compensation. However, a company needs to understand each type of coverage and independently. Liability insurance covers a business when a customer or another third party suffers an injury that your company is responsible for. There are two types of liability coverage: general liability and specific liability. General Liability takes care of many different incidents, including slip-and-fall accidents, defective products, and slander/libel/defamation cases. In contrast, Specific Liability protects against losses from dog bites or other animal bites, as well as injuries from gun discharges or watercraft accidents.
What is Workers' Compensation Coverage?
Workers’ compensation is an insurance policy that protects employers from costs related to injuries sustained by employees at work. It can cover medical bills, wage replacement, and rehabilitation for injured workers. Each state has different rules regarding what employers must provide under their workers’ compensation programs; most states also allow self-employed people to buy into a separate program that offers benefits similar to those offered through employment.
To determine if you need it and how much coverage you should buy, consider these four factors:
- Where your business is located (geographic location)
- Where your employees work (workplace location)
- How many people do you employ (employee count)
- What type of work do your employees do (job description)
For example, in Minnesota, self-employed business owners are required to carry $10,000 worth of coverage. An independent consultant in Scottsdale who works with small businesses would likely want more than that–it may be closer to $50,000. This depends on how often she meets with clients face-to-face in person or via telephone versus emailing drafts back and forth or sharing documents online like Google Drive or Dropbox. Ultimately though, when deciding on your business insurance package, remember you get what you pay for–so make sure there’s enough coverage in place, so no one is left without benefits if something unfortunate does happen on company time.