Is Your Business Adequately Covered?

The insurance world can be a foreign place to navigate through. Without the right professional advice, you may be opening yourself and your business to unnecessary exposure and liability. In today’s litigious world, proper insurance coverage is a necessity.

But what does YOUR business NEED?

Well, always talk to a professional that you trust to start. Work through where your liabilities are and what you can do to cover the gap.

The following is a breakdown of different types of business insurance and what they do.

PROPERTY:

Property insurance breaks down into two categories: BUILDING and CONTENTS. Ensuring to full replacement value is imperative.

LIABILITY:

Commercial liability insurance covers you and your business against the following:
Personal injury while on the premises
Medical payments
Tenant’s legal liability (For rental/lease).
Liability coverage protect your business from lawsuits caused by injuries caused within your business and issues unknowingly caused by you or your employees.

BUSINESS INTERUPTION:

Business interruption insurance kicks in usually after a disaster and during the rebuilding phase. It can cover:
Profits
Fixed costs
Temporary location costs
Some additional expenses

ERRORS AND OMISSION INSURANCE:

This is professional liability coverage required by some industries including service and advice providing individuals or companies (Think investments, insurance etc). It covers against the brunt of the costs associated with a claim won by a client regarding negligence, or as the policy is worded, Errors & Omissions. This does not cover against criminal prosecution but rather only civil suits.

CRIME and CYBER COVERAGE

These policies are to protect your money. They cover against fraud, employee theft, cyber crimes/fraud, robberies and more.

ABUSE COVERAGE

This type of policy is helpful in certain industries where your company is exposed to a vulnerable sector. It covers the agency and it’s employees.

WCB

As an employer, you are required to ensure that your employees are taken care of while at work.
The policy covers their wages if injury occurs while at work or as a result of. Documents are needed to be filled out immediately to ensure proper coverage.
There are a few exceptions where it’s not necessary but make sure to check with WCB before bringing employees onboard.

GROUP COVERAGE

Group coverage is your basic coverage for prescriptions, other medical needs, dental, sometimes optical and other hospital benefits.
It can cover (usually) full time employees, management and owners alike.
There are many different tiers and levels of packages available depending on the size of your business.
Group benefits are a great way to attract the right people to employ and help with staff retention.
This is a glossary of different types of insurance that businesses may come across or need at some point. Find a broker or other professional that can teach you exactly where your exposures are, what type of policies are available to cover that need, and where to get started.

Thank you to Kathy Anders from Foster Park Brokers Inc. in Edmonton, AB for information related to this article. If you have any questions on insurance products, she can be reached at Kathy.Anders@fpb.ca