It doesn’t matter what business or industry you’re in. It also doesn’t matter how long you’ve been in business. All companies deal with risks and incidents, even the most cautious ones. So, it makes sense to have a business insurance policy to protect you against anything like theft, hurricane, or vandalism.
Like many other states, Pennsylvania requires all enterprises to at least have several types of business insurance policies. But, whether required by law or not, business insurance is a vital tool because it can protect your company against unexpected losses that can hold you back for months or even years.
The right coverage can give you peace of mind. These are some of the main business insurance policies you must have.
General Liability Insurance
Accidents are inevitable, even if they’re not particularly related to your specific line of work. General liability can arise from a simple slip and fall on a wet floor to a broken elevator. In any case, you want to always protect yourself and your business against third-party claims. This is where general liability insurance can help you.
You don’t want to end up paying a large medical bill and related legal fees out of your pocket. A smart move is to purchase this kind of business insurance so you can protect yourself. Of course, there are other cases where you might need this type of insurance. Besides third-party incidents, you may struggle with:
- Loss of credibility & reputation
- Property damage
- Business asset damage
Professional Liability Insurance
As said before, general liability insurance covers you against damages that are not related to your specific operations. For instance, a department store is not in the business of building or fixing elevators. But, it may still struggle with claims if someone suffers harm through an elevator incident.
As the name suggests, professional liability insurance specifically covers you against dangers that are related to your operation. It can protect you against cases of negligence, wrong business decisions, and the overall quality of your services.
Suppose you run a restaurant in Pennsylvania. In that case, if someone becomes sick because of the poor quality of your food, you’ll face some charges and have to cover the bills. The same applies when you don’t properly clean the premises and many other cases that may harm the customers or even the building.
Workers Compensation Insurance
No matter the industry or business, employees may suffer an injury while working. In addition to dealing with their absence, you also have to cover their medical bills and keep paying them while they undergo recovery.
This is where you need workers’ compensation insurance. In fact, it’s a must-have policy in Pennsylvania for any business that has workers.
Other Types of Required Business Insurance Policies in PA
Besides these major three policies above, there are many other business insurance plans that you can get. Some of them are required in PA, and some are not, but absolutely useful.
- Business income insurance: It offers coverage for missing earnings, payments, taxes, staff paychecks, and other financial obligations.
- Cyber liability insurance: It may offer liability protection if sensitive client data is compromised, including bank account details, SSNs, driver’s license details, and medical histories.
- “BOP,” or “business owner’s policy.”: A small-to-medium business (SME) insurance plan that includes property, liability, and business interruption insurance. If you get both policies together, you’ll probably get a better deal than if you would’ve bought them separately.
- Business vehicle insurance: This is one of the required policies in PA. According to the Commonwealth, any business with a vehicle has to have this policy. In the case of an accident, it will pay for the costs of replacing or repairing the cars (minus depreciation) as well as the cost of renting a substitute vehicle to allow your company to keep running.
- Business property insurance: A reliable business property insurance policy covers the physical assets of your company against dangers like fire, collapse, ruptured pipes, hurricanes, robbery, and vandalism.
How Much Does Business Insurance Cost in PA?
It’s not easy to answer this question because there are so many types of insurance plans with different levels of coverage. There are also so many industries and businesses that carry varying degrees of risk.
The easiest way to get an estimate is to ask some agency for a quote. For instance, if you need business vehicle insurance, you can reach out to The Kind Insurance to discuss your specific situation and get a quote.
How to Find a Comprehensive Business Insurance Plan?
With all the options on the market, it may be a bit overwhelming to find one that fits your specific needs and budget. You can take some steps to make the search a bit easier. Here are some pointers:
Do Some Risk Assessment
You must first choose the type (or types) of business insurance that you require. There are many different coverage choices available, ranging from general liability insurance to more specialist cyber liability insurance. The coverage you require will mostly be specific to your company.
So you should begin by assessing your company’s risks to better choose the right type of policy you need. As you can expect, some enterprises will be intrinsically riskier than others. For instance, a factory or development firm will carry more risk than a home-based online store.
Do Some Research
You probably do a lot of research before buying anything online. Business insurance should be no exception because it can literally be a matter of life and death for your company. So, make sure to read all you can about different types of business insurance.
Check out online reviews and testimonials for every potential agency you consider. You need to find one with a long track record in dealing with your sector. With a little bit of research, you can save a lot of money and time down the road.
Review the Policy Every Year
Set a date to review your business insurance policy a year from the time you get it, just before the term expires. At that moment, you could have made changes to your company that call for your policy to be updated, such as hiring more staff or moving into a new facility. Your insurance must account for the increased risk because you could even have more customers than you had a year ago. Every year, you’re given the option of expanding or limiting your coverage.
Best Business Insurance in Harrisburg, PA
With all the brokers and agencies available on the market, you may not know which way is right for you and your staff. When shopping for insurance, you need to consider that your business will grow in time. So, you need an agency that can flexibly extend or limit its coverage based on your needs.
It should also be a place that can offer all of these policies, saving you from dealing with multiple agencies. It’d be even great if you can get all of this at a competitive price. Luckily, that’s exactly what we offer at The Kind Insurance. You just need to contact us and let our experts set up a perfect business insurance plan for you.