Commercial Property Insurance – What Are the Options?
Commercial Property insurance provides protection and valuable peace of mind so you can operate your business knowing you’re covered for what you own and what you do.
When you own and/or operate a business in a commercial property it’s important to have protection for physical assets such as buildings and their contents, equipment and inventory, property in transit, as well as possible business interruption coverage.
Become familiar with the various facets of Commercial Property Insurance so you know you’re appropriately covered for the type of property you have and the work that you do:
Commercial General Liability
It only takes one accident or claim to jeopardize your business. Purchase the appropriate liability insurance to know that you’re covered for anything.
General liability insurance offers protection for your business against claims for situations such as bodily injury and property damage suffered by a third party on your premises or due to your products or operations.
Additionally, it also offers protection for any advertising liability or personal injury to third parties, as well as defence costs you might incur.
But, is it enough? Perhaps you need something more specific:
Products Liability
If you’re a manufacturer and/or vendor of goods, understand that you are responsible for the products you create, distribute, and sell. And, in cases of injury due to defective merchandise, your business may be liable for compensation.
Professional Liability
Are you a spa owner? Do you offer health services or personal-care? Professional liability insurance is a very specialized form of insurance that benefits both individuals and organizations that provide services or consulting in BC.
This type of insurance, sometimes also called errors and omissions insurance, is required in certain cases and covers more than commercial general liability insurance.
The purpose of this type of insurance s it to cover costs associated with claims being filed against an individual or a business. These costs can include the fees of lawyers, various court costs, and settlement payments.
What kind of claims are covered under professional liability insurance?
- Negligence: A client may claim that their service provider was negligent in some regard while delivering their service, resulting in a negative impact for them.
- Misconstrued information: If the client of a service provider or business believes they have been given information which was presented with errors, and they have acted on it to their detriment, they may take the company or individual to court for damages.
- Providing the wrong advice: An individual or company is summoned to court because the client deems them to have given the wrong guidance in a particular situation and they want compensation for it.
Ask your broker what you need to protect yourself against claims related to the delivery of your professional services.
Privacy Breach Coverage
Whether there is a loss, theft or unauthorized access to or use of your customers or employees personal information, the impact of a privacy breach can be significant to your business.
This specific insurance offers expense coverage that ensures you can get back to business quickly after a privacy breach. It often includes:
- Legal expense coverage for certain legal fees or defence expenses from civil proceedings resulting from a covered privacy breach.
- Remediation expense coverage for certain expenses that could include notifying your customers, post-breach fraud or credit monitoring, and, if necessary, securing forensic services.
- Business interruption coverage to cover certain loss of income resulting from the breach, including necessary extra expenses.
Directors and Officers Liability
Directors and officers are accountable for the organizations they oversee.
They are required to act in good faith and in the best interest of the organization – whether it’s a non- or for-profit enterprise.
Most directors and officers understand that in their required duties they, at all times, are required to act with:
- Care, diligence, and skill
- Honesty, loyalty and good faith
However, agreeing to these behaviours doesn’t necessarily protect directors and officers from being sued. Consequently, there are still legal costs at stake, even if negligence isn’t found.
Often directors and officers assume that they will have indemnity from their corporation or organization but that isn’t always the case – if the organization is insolvent, or not legally able to provide indemnity, or in cases of fraud or malicious acts, then the company’s policy will not provide protection.
Find trouble before it finds your business. We help business owners identify and prevent potential losses. Have questions about Commercial Property Insurance? Talk to us!
