What Type of Insurance Coverage Does Your Small Business Need?
If you own a small business, you need to protect your investment with insurance. Ideally, you’ll have multiple policies to fully protect you against lawsuits and much more. If you would like to know more, check out the types of insurance that your small business may need.
General Liability Coverage
Every business should have general liability insurance because it covers the legal costs and settlements associated with personal injuries. For example, if an elderly customer slipped and broke their hip, they could sue for medical bills and even pain and suffering.
In addition, it covers your employees if they cause damage or bodily harm to someone outside of the business. On top of that, it can help with other legal issues, such as copyright infringement and reputational harm to someone outside of the company.
Professional Liability Coverage
Professional liability coverage can also benefit many companies because it protects you against lawsuits related to negligence, inadequate work, and bad advice. Typically, you only need professional liability coverage if you provide a service.
This type of insurance benefits any business that handles customer finances like an accountant. However, you can also benefit from professional liability coverage if you provide health-related services like therapy, counseling, and medical care. Technology professionals should also consider professional liability coverage.
Alternatively, if you are a medical professional or legal professional, you should consider malpractice insurance instead of or in addition to professional liability insurance.
Product Liability Coverage
If you provide a product instead of a service, get product liability coverage to provide money for lawsuits related to personal injury caused by your product. This doesn’t only include the manufacturers who make the product, but it includes:
- Retailers
- Suppliers
- Distributors
- Tradespeople
Product liability covers defective products, which include design defects, manufacturing defects, and marketing defects. Design defects refer to problems with the overall design of the product, making all products potentially hazardous. Manufacturing defects occur while the product is being made, and they often only affect some batches. Finally, marketing defects cover problems with the instructions, packaging, and warnings.
Workers’ Compensation
If you have employees, you should have workers’ compensation insurance. In fact, you may be legally required to purchase it or face fines. Workers’ compensation pays for medical expenses for employees who are injured while on the job. It provides money for medical bills, wage replacement, and vocational rehabilitation.
As a benefit, your employees don’t have to prove fault to get benefits. So they can get their money fast, which may help them get back to work faster.
Group Health Insurance
Group health insurance is a great option to help keep your employees happy and healthy. Group health insurance makes it easy for just about anyone to afford health insurance because the company covers much of the cost. Plus, employees can’t be denied for having pre-existing conditions.
In turn, providing good health insurance, dental coverage, vision, and much more boosts employee satisfaction, and it may help with employee retention because employees don’t want to lose their benefits. Plus, when your employees have access to medical care, they are less likely to miss work from illness or develop more severe and chronic issues that can impact their future ability to work.
As a business owner, you need to protect your business and your employees, and one of the best ways to do that is with a robust insurance plan. Luckily, there are many policies that can protect your bottom line and retain employees. If you would like to know more, contact us at Rafail Insurance Agency today. We’ll be happy to help you determine what insurance coverage your small business needs.
