Being a business owner means that you have a lot to consider and ensuring you’re covered against all of the potential risks is vital. All businesses require different types of cover dependant on the size and type of business you’re actually running. If you’re struggling to decide exactly what your business may need, we cover some of the basics to get you started.

Property Insurance
Arguably the most important type of cover and one of the first considerations for any business is protecting the building itself and the assets inside.

While it may be obvious to cover your business’ building against disasters such as fire or flooding, it’s important not to forget just how valuable your tools or equipment are to your business. Most businesses would struggle to replace all of their assets if they were stolen or destroyed, so when it comes to insuring the contents of your building, ensure you’ve taken your time to determine the full value of all your assets to prevent being caught out if you need to make a claim.

Employer Liability Insurance
Unless you are running your business solo, employer liability is essential regardless of whether your employees are full-time, part-time or temporary.

If your employees are not covered against injury or illness because of their work, not only is your business breaking the law but if your employee were to seek compensation, you’d be left with a hefty bill. Employer liability insurance is designed to cover compensation and legal fees defending any claims against your business.

Public Liability Insurance
Public liability insurance is especially important if your businesses that have customers visiting a store or clients visiting the office on a daily basis.

If a customer or client were to slip or trip on your premises and suffer an injury, without public liability cover, you may be left in a vulnerable position once again in regards to compensation and legal fees. Public liability is also worth considering if you come into contact with the public outside of your premises e.g. construction. If the work carried out by your business injured a member of the public, you would be vulnerable to claims for compensation.

What do you need?
As mentioned earlier, every business has different needs when it comes to insurance depending on how they operate and the scale they operate on. While some types of cover such as employer liability are required by law if your business has employees, determining exactly what cover and how much cover you need can be difficult.

The best place to start is to consider your business regular activities, think about what could go wrong and what your plan of action after an incident. Can you afford to pay the legal fees or for replacement of equipment if the worst were to happen? What are the risks to your staff or the public? How much are all of your assets really worth? These are the sort of questions you need to ask yourself.

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