What You Should Know About Commercial Property Insurance

No matter the type of business you run, unexpected events like accidents, theft, or property damage due to fire and weather can impact you beyond repair. But commercial property insurance provides coverage for these potentially devastating circumstances so that you can feel confident that your business remains financially secure.

Do you need commercial property insurance?

Yes! Every small business, no matter the type of business that you operate, needs to have commercial property insurance coverage. Whether you run a retail front out of a rented building, run a contracting service that brings materials out to worksites, or offer services like consulting or graphic design, you can benefit from commercial property insurance. Keep reading to learn why.

What does commercial property insurance cover?

Your small business’ commercial property insurance plan should be customized and modified to suit your specific needs. That depends on your business operations and offerings to customers, and some of the items that might be included in your coverage are:

• Equipment like computers, point of sale (POS) systems, special machinery, and even office supplies can be covered by your plan.
• Inventory and stock, whether its clothing, machinery or even food, commercial property insurance, can cover these products in the event of damages and loss.
• Furnishings, fixtures, and signage should be covered by your plan.
• Real estate and other properties, including all the contents of the buildings, are covered by commercial property insurance plans.
• Mobile equipment that you take to different project sites can be covered by your plan too — just be sure to talk to your agent about how your business operates.

Pretty much any piece of property and equipment that your business uses for its operations can be covered by your plan!

When does commercial property insurance take effect?

Now that you know what property these plans cover, it’s important to have a clear understanding of what conditions cause the plan to activate — and what don’t. Some of the most common parts of the plan include theft and vandalism, fire, weather and storm damages, and water damage from burst pipes.

Additionally, some things that most plans don’t include, but that you might want to consider when working with an agent to build your plan, are earthquakes, sewer backups, and flood damages.

When any of these events take place, resulting in a loss for your company, you can make a claim. Depending on the type of contract you built, you will either receive replacements for the damaged property or cash to cover the costs of replacements. You may also have coverage for the loss of business and receive funds to cover these losses.

How much does commercial property insurance cost?

Determining what the cost of your plan will depend on varying factors that are individual to each business. These aspects include what your coverage actually includes alongside the specifics of your property. Some items that will be taken into consideration include:

• Location can affect the type of weather your property is exposed to, crime rates can also affect your costs, so this can be one of the biggest factors.
• Construction of your property, whether you own the real estate or rent, if the construction used fireproof materials or has a strong plumbing system, your costs might go down.
• Fire and theft protection is taken into consideration, and agents will often see how far your property is from a police station or fire department when creating your plan.
• Insurance history is an important piece of constructing your policy and establishing the cost. If you have previously had a plan and made a lot of claims on it, the cost might be considerably higher.

The most influential aspect of your costs, however, will be the property you are actually insuring.

Commercial property insurance is a highly individualized plan that is designed to assist you as a business owner during unexpected events. It is essential that you speak with an agent at Independent Insurance Associates who will help you develop a plan that suits your business’ needs, so that the coverage needed is applied without paying for unnecessary benefits.