So, you run a business. Whether your business is small or large, you probably already know that the business landscape is treacherous. Never mind having to boost your retention or acquire new leads or make new interesting products that will captivate the market – your business faces risks, and those are best addressed through risk mitigation and business insurance, i.e. commercial insurance.
But what exactly is commercial insurance? Do you need commercial insurance?
If you own a business, it’s not a question of whether you should or not. Commercial insurance is a necessity for any business looking to survive in the long-term; it’s more a matter of what kind of commercial insurance you need, how much, and where you should get it. LMBF offers commercial insurance quotes from top providers in Quebec. Click below to get started.
The Origins of Business & Commercial Insurance
The insurance industry is and has always been rooted in the principle of pooling together various people’s finances to mitigate the risks of the general population and help respond to natural unexpected disasters such as theft, fire, and other risks.
You may already know that the concept of insurance goes back to as far as there was a monetary society. The first formal insurance company established (on Canadian soil) was in 1809, known as the Nova Scotia Fire Associ-ation, a mutual. It was later renamed Halifax Fire. As insurance expanded, and so did businesses, the insurance industry moved towards covering businesses from risks like fire. As the years went by, there became a need to protect employees from work accidents and plan for lawsuits. Thus, the modern business insurance policy was born.
And, of course, in more recent years policies have evolved to become more industry-specific and customized against the varied risks that individual businesses face. Business owners today will buy several different coverage options, including general liability insurance, business interruption insurance, and so much more.
What is Commercial Insurance?
By definition: commercial insurance, also known as business insurance, is an insurance package designed specifically to financially protect a business against common risks, from physical damages to potential client or third-party lawsuits.
That’s commercial insurance – in short. Commercial insurance may be designed, tailored, or customized to include multiple other kinds of coverage. We’ll get into that in the section below.
Types of Commercial Insurance
What is commercial insurance but a compilation of numerous other different insurance policies? Evidently, commercial insurance is not one overarching policy but a grouping of many. Business owners, small and large, need protection from liability risks and physical damages. Below, we’ll address some of the most common types of commercial insurance to give you an idea of what your policy could include.
Commercial General Liability Insurance
If you interact with clients in any manner, you need this insurance. Full stop. Commercial general liability insurance is easily one of the most important coverage(s) to need, especially considering the propensity of civil lawsuits that all businesses, of any size, may be faced with. It protects against third-party claims if a client or visitor is injured/their property is damaged by your business operations.
Commercial Property Insurance
If your business has any kind of physical presence, even if that’s just in the form of its inventory stored in a warehouse somewhere, commercial property insurance is a must to protect it against physical damages. If you rent out a commercial space, the likely chance is that your lender will require that you obtain this coverage to protect their peace, as well as your own.
Business Interruption Insurance
This business goes together with commercial property insurance. If you suffered an insured loss to your business property, this policy activates to cover you for loss of income during a time where you are unable to carry out operations as per usual. It can cover the cost of a temporary relocation, lost revenue, employee wages, ongoing rent, and more. It can cover you from the moment the loss occurs to when your business is able to restart operations once more.
Workers’ Compensation Insurance
If your business has any employees, whether that’s just one or six hundred, you’ll likely be required to carry some form of worker’s compensation insurance. What this insurance does is it provides compensation for any employees you have that become injured or ill at your workplace, to counter them from suing your business. It ensures that your employees have some compensation to tide them over while they are potentially unable to work.
This is just a few samples of the kinds of commercial insurance that exist, but there are many others. The (non-exhaustive) list can include:
- Equipment Breakdown Insurance
- Equipment and Tools Insurance
- Employer’s Liability Insurance
- Professional Liability Insurance
- Directors’ and Officers’ Insurance
- Cyber Liability Insurance
- Cargo Insurance
- Commercial Automobile Insurance
- Product Liability Insurance
- & More!
LMBF Has Easier Business Insurance Solutions in Quebec
Now that you’ve gained an idea of what commercial insurance actually is, it’s time to get a policy of your own. Each business is unique in the way that it runs, and running any kind of business comes with its own set of risks. You don’t have to simply sit back and accept that risks are a way of life. Risk management is an integral part of being a successful business owner, and part of risk management is purchasing commercial lines insurance unique to the business that you run.
LMBF makes sure that every size of business, every business in various industries, has their own unique coverage. We don’t do “one-size-fits-all” policies. Give us a call or click the button below to get started on your own business insurance policy by beginning with a free quote.
