If you own a small or medium-sized business, you’ll need to know the best type of business insurance to cover you should the worst happen. With so many different options for insurance for your company, finding the best business insurance can often be confusing. In this post, we explain what a business owners policy is, who needs it and talk about the different things a BOP will cover.
Business Owners Insurance also referred to as BOP is a special type of insurance for a company that combines liability cover and commercial property insurance into a single insurance policy. It is most popularly used by small to medium-sized businesses and contractors.
Business Owners Insurance will combine commercial property coverage, business liability coverage, and business income coverage into a single comprehensive insurance policy. It can cover a business against any claims that are related to personal and advertising injury, along with property damage and claims of bodily injury. It will also cover your company assets and inventory from damage and theft, along with some external items such as company signage, landscaping, and fencing.
The cost of a business owners insurance policy can range on average, from between $400-$2200 a year. However, when you consider the two different types of cover that are included with a BOP, namely general liability and commercial property insurance; the individual costs of these policies if purchased in isolation of one another could easily cost anything up to $3000 per year on average, but it could be higher.
Companies that belong to low-risk sectors with a small footprint will typically qualify for a BOP insurance policy. The usual requirements for a company to be eligible for business owners insurance are as follows:
Every business insurance company will have slightly different requirements; it is important to check your eligibility for BOP with a number of different business insurance companies.
A standard business owners policy will combine a number of individual business insurance cover types; such as general liability, business income, and commercial property cover. There are many types of BOP insurance coverage options, and the specific elements will depend on the company you choose to buy business insurance from.
There is a range of additional coverage options for your business insurance policy. Here are the most popular, with a short summary of each.
This can provide business insurance against attacks to your company data and your IT systems.
This business insurance will protect against any losses from invoices that are unpaid.
This is a type of additional business insurance that offers liability coverage for any vehicles that you borrow, hire or lease.
This business coverage will specifically help to pay for the costs of any breakdown or repairs to your company equipment.
This is a business insurance add-on that covers your company for any wrongful acts that arise from the employment process.
This business coverage will specifically cover you for any libel, copyright infringement, or slander.
The main difference between business owners insurance and commercial general liability coverage is the general liability will only cover liability losses, whereas a BOP will cover you for liability and provide you with additional commercial property cover.
If you are thinking about buying a business insurance policy for your company, you should always evaluate the different types of policies in detail. Some BOP coverage will be tailored to your sector, and this can often include a range of useful add-ons that are connected to your sector or to the type of services you provide. For eventualities such as workers compensation, professional liability or disability coverage; separate policies would usually need to be taken out.
Not all companies are eligible to buy business owner insurance, and eligibility will vary from one business insurance provider to another. The size, location, business class, and annual revenue are the key determining factors. If you need to buy BOP cover but cannot find a policy online, talking with an industry-specific insurance broker could help you get the coverage you need.
Disclaimer: This information has been written for the public as informational only. Since coverage varies from state to state, it is important to speak to a licensed insurance agent in your state.