This is a question that may be quite confusing to many business owners. The answer is not black and white because each business is different. We asked our Commercial Lines Manager, Gail Bortolotti to give us her thoughts on how we could best answer this question for you in blog format. Here is the answer she provided.
That depends on the kind of business you engage in. All companies need basic liability insurance to protect them against acts of owners or employees for which they might be considered legally liable.
Professional service providers often need special liability protection.Examples might be professional liability protection for lawyers, doctors, architects or software designers.
Another example is businesses that manufacture or distribute a product. They would typically need product liability protection.
Businesses that own autos or use non-owned autos to conduct their business will also need a business auto policy.
All businesses have property which can be divided up into several categories: office or other equipment, inventory, real property, etc. and it is a good idea to think about your ability to replace any damaged or lost property in these categories. If the possible amount of loss exceeds your comfort level then insurance might be a good alternative.
You need to think about how long you could afford to be out of business. Insurance, known as business interruption insurance, can pay taxes, mortgages, suppliers, salaries and other costs you might incur even if your business income were to be interrupted by a covered cause of loss.
If you have employees you are required by Massachusetts state statute to carry a Workers Compensation policy. If you are a sole proprietorship or partnership you can also purchase a policy to provide coverage for yourself and your partner.
It is always a good idea to review the kinds of liability exposures your business might have when updating or initiating an insurance program and speak to an insurance professional to ensure that you are properly protected. If you have questions about your existing Business Owners Policy or would like to have your policy reviewed please call the FBinsure team at one of our six convenient locations.
