For many business owners, your business is your home away from home…your baby…your life. Regardless of it’s size your business, is a representation of yourself. It’s how your known in the community, it’s how you’ve built many relationships, and of course, it’s your source of income. Your livelihood is dependent on the survival of your business, so it’s important that you protect it against any potential threats. Just as you insure your home, auto and personal belongings, you need to insure your business as well. A fire could destroy your business’s warehouse and the contents, a burst pipe could damage important documents, and if a tragedy isn’t enough, you could lose employees because of being unable to pay their wages during the rebuilding period. So what do you do? Where do you start? Don’t worry, we can walk you through it.
The Basics
First you need to determine the types of property you may need to insure. Each business is different, but below is a basic list of some common items found in many businesses.
- Buildings and other structures (leased or owned)
- Furniture, equipment and supplies
- Inventory
- Money and securities
- Records of accounts receivable
- Leasehold improvements and betterment you made to the rented premises
- Machinery/boiler
- Electronic data processing equipment (computers, laptops, etc.)
- Valued documents, books and papers
- Mobile property (construction equipment, etc.)
- Property in transit
- Cargo
- Satellite dishes
- Signs, fences and other outdoor property not directly attached to the building
- Intangible property (goodwill, trademarks, etc.)
- Business contingency for suppliers
- Ordinary payroll
- Extra expenses as a result of loss
Types of Property Insurance Policies
Basic property insurance covers losses due to fire or lightning, including the cost of removing property as a way to protect it from further damage.
Standard property insurance provides coverage for extended perils, such as floods, windstorm, hail, earthquakes, acts of terrorism, explosion, riots, smoke, civil commotions, and vehicles that damage your property. Beyond that, coverage for vandalism and malicious mischief can also be included.
Are You Buying Enough?
This is a very important aspect of purchasing business property insurance. A typical policy will provide the replacement cost value for your building and the actual cash value for your business property.
Replacement cost value is the amount that is necessary to replace or rebuild your building or repair damages with similar materials, without considering depreciation. Actual cash value, on the other hand, is the value of your property when it is damaged or destroyed. The amount is typically determined by subtracting the depreciation from the replacement cost value.
More details on Replacement Cost vs Actual Cash Value can be found here.
Most property insurance policies include a coinsurance clause, which requires you, the policyholder, to share the cost of covered services up to a moderate percentage of the actual cash value of the property. This will allow you to receive full coverage for your losses. Should you decide to purchase inadequate coverage for your property, you may be obligated to pay a percentage of all losses, even if they are listed in the property.
Business Property Insurance will be one of the most important coverage’s you purchase when it comes to the future of your business. We understand that determining your business’s value is critical, so we’re here to help. At Rinehart Insurance we customize your Business Property Insurance Policy to fit your business needs. Call or email an agent today to review or add coverage to your business.
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