Many restaurants operate as small, sole-proprietor businesses. As a result, they need considerable insurance. However, affordability remains a critical point. Rather than buy several policies with various premiums and deductibles, you can often get many elements of coverage in
one package. Business Owners Policies (BOPs) are policies that have different protection in one place. What do they contain that can benefit restaurant owners?
BOPs come in many shapes and sizes. Ask your insurance agent how you can tailor yours effectively to your restaurant. You can likely add several types of protection to your policy.
Standard BOP Coverage
On a baseline level, most BOPs come with a few standard elements of protection. These are the most frequent, and critical, elements of coverage you can expect to need.
- General liability coverage: Someone could get hurt when visiting your restaurant. As a result, they might have grounds to sue your business. Use this coverage to settle with those who sustain harm when dining with you.
- Property insurance: Belongings like your building, equipment and utensils could sustain damage from hazards like fire, theft or vandalism. This coverage can help you receive funding to rebuild or repair lost assets.
- Interruption coverage: A damaging incident could force you to close temporarily for repairs. But, that doesn’t mean your standard bills will stop. You’ll still have to pay these costs, but without income, you could lose significant assets. Use this coverage to get those funds. Your policy might even help you move temporarily before reopening.
These pieces of coverage often prove the most critical to business owners. Nevertheless, they aren’t the only protection you’ll need.
Adding Coverage to Your BOP
Many BOPs come with several options you can add to your protection.
- Cyber liability protection: Damage to your computer networks might expose sensitive private data. This coverage can help you do damage control, notify state regulators and more.
- Workers’ compensation: Employees who get hurt on the job often have an entitlement to supplementary income, by law. Therefore, this coverage helps repay them.
- Identity theft coverage: Can often cover both the business’s and customers’ lost costs if sensitive information, like financial receipts, gets stolen.
Keep in mind, not every BOP will offer these optional pieces of coverage. Furthermore, most will exclude certain types of protection like commercial auto coverage. Ask your agent at 708.423.2350 specifically what types of protection come with a restaurant BOP. They’ll help you set up your coverage to your satisfaction.
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