What Is a Commercial Property Insurance?
When running a business, there are many different factors to think about and responsibilities to cover, from hiring a top team to marketing your products and services effectively. You also need to think about protecting your business property from potential accidents, crimes, and disasters, and this is where commercial property insurance comes into play.
Also commonly known as business property insurance or commercial real estate insurance, this type of insurance is available for business owners who want to protect their properties in case of things like fires, thefts, storm damages, and so on. Not only can it protect your physical workspace, but also your business equipment and assets too, so it’s a very valuable and highly recommended form of insurance.
What Does Property Insurance Cover?
In order to fully understand what is commercial insurance, we have to know what a typical policy will actually cover. If you choose to take out some commercial property insurance, you can expect the average policy to offer the following areas of coverage:
- Building – Commercial property insurance coverage should cover the actual physical building in which you carry out your work, such as an office building or retail store location, protecting against the likes of fire damage, storm damage, and so on.
- Equipment and Tools – The vast majority of businesses rely on certain tools and pieces of equipment in order to function and carry out their day-to-day processes. Examples may include computers, machines, and so on. Commercial insurance will cover these items too.
- Inventory – If you’re running some sort of retail business, you may have a lot of stock or inventory in your business location. A clothing store, for example, will have many items of clothing stored at the location. Business property insurance covers your inventory in case of damage or theft.
- Furniture – Items of furniture are also included in commercial property insurance coverage too. So if you have an office space with desks, tables, lamps, chairs, and so on, you can get these items insured.
All of the above items will be covered in a wide range of situations, including criminal situations in which items are stolen or damaged intentionally, storm situations where lightning strikes and weather conditions cause damage or fires where flames and heat damage property and possessions. It can cover the necessary costs to have damaged, destroyed, or stolen items repaired or replaced, including items that aren’t actually yours but are under your care.
How Do I Buy Property Insurance?
It’s clear to see that commercial property insurance can be very important for any business, but how do you go about buying it? Well, this is quite simple. You can conduct research to find trusted business insurance companies online, reading reviews, and comparing options to find a policy that works for you, and then you can contact the company and make arrangements to buy a policy.
A lot of the purchasing process for this kind of insurance can be carried out online or over the phone. You’ll need to select and customize your plan according to your own personal needs and budget, as well as providing the necessary information to calculate your monthly or annual premium. If you have any doubts or confusion, you can speak with an insurance agent directly for more details.
What If I Don’t Own the Building?
There are many situations in which business owners run their businesses out of properties that are leased, rather than owned. In this case, you might wonder whether or not the commercial property insurance coverage will actually protect you in case something happens to the building in which you’re working, or if you’re even able to take out a policy at all.
Well, it is still possible to get business property insurance, even if you don’t own the building you’re working in, but it isn’t always necessary. It’s important to check the details of your lease to find out more. In some cases, the building owner will be the one to handle building insurance, and you can simply take out insurance for your business equipment, inventory, and possessions. In other cases, the tenant may be responsible for getting business property insurance.
What Determines My Insurance Cost?
When it comes to calculating the cost of your business property insurance, there are several factors that come into play, and it’s important to focus on calculating commercial property value and considering the specifics of your plan too. Here are a few factors that may affect the cost:
- The total value of the property that needs to be covered, including equipment, furniture, and all other assets. If you want coverage for higher values of property and possessions, you’ll usually need to pay a higher premium.
- The location of the business in question, as some areas are more prone to crime or storms than others, so may have higher monthly or annual premiums to pay as the risks of claims are higher.
- Coverage limits and deductibles are chosen by the policy owner. Choosing higher deductibles and lower limits will reduce the price you have to pay each year, but could also increase the costs you pay if and when accidents or incidents happen.
Does Property Insurance Cover All Legal Risks?
It’s important to note that business property insurance will not cover every single legal threat to your business. There are various other components and assets you might use as part of the business that could require additional or separate insurance policies, like vehicles, securities, land, outdoor structures, and so on.
Your policy might also not protect you in cases of flood or certain types of crime, and you may need to expand your plan with add-ons for extra coverage if you want protection against these kinds of risks. This is why it’s wise and strongly recommended to speak with your insurance agent in detail and ask questions about your plan so you’re fully aware of exactly what is and isn’t covered.
