As a business owner, you always seek ways to protect your business. You may have thought about insurance but need help knowing where to start. If you are a business owner in New York, you have a few options for small business insurance.
Workers’ compensation insurance is required for all businesses in New York. This type of insurance benefits employees who are injured or become ill due to their job.
Consider general liability insurance. This type of insurance can protect your business from lawsuits alleging that your business caused someone bodily injury or property damage.
Please get in touch with us if you have any questions about small business insurance in New York. We would be happy to help you find the right coverage for your business.
1. General Liability Insurance
General liability insurance is a type of insurance that can protect a business from lawsuits alleging that their business caused someone bodily injury or property damage. This type of insurance can also pay for medical bills if someone is injured at your business’s premises and attorney fees associated with defending you against these lawsuits.
General liability insurance can help protect your business from a wide range of risks, including:
- Advertising injury
- Personal injury
- Product liability
- Reputational damage
- Copyright or trademark infringement
General liability insurance can also help cover the cost of damage to property that you rent or lease and provide coverage for medical expenses if someone is injured at your business.
No matter what type of business you run in New York, it is essential to ensure you have the proper insurance coverage to protect yourself and your business. If you have questions about general liability insurance or any other type of small business insurance in New York, contact an experienced insurance agent to help you find the coverage you need.
2. Property Insurance
Property insurance can help protect your business and its assets from damage caused by various circumstances. The type of property insurance you need will vary from company to firm.
Business owners need to consider the type of property insurance they need carefully. Some business owners might need coverage that covers fires, floods, and other natural disasters, and other businesses may need protection against theft, vandalism, equipment breakdown, or machinery malfunction.
Property insurance can also help protect against business interruption losses. This type of insurance can help cover income losses if your business has to close its doors due to an unexpected event.
No matter what type of business you run in New York, it is essential to ensure you have the right property insurance. An experienced insurance agent can help you understand your risks and develop the right policy to protect you and your business.
3. Professional Liability Insurance
Professional Liability Insurance is an insurance policy specifically designed to protect business owners from the damages that can arise from their company’s negligent acts, errors, and omissions. Business owners in New York are often legally liable for their employees’ professional mistakes or negligent actions.
Professional Liability Insurance helps cover a business’s legal defense expenses and pay for settlements. Professional Liability Insurance may also help cover the costs of defending a company in court.
In addition, many Professional Liability Insurance policies offer coverage for judgments, settlements, and other defense costs arising from claims of libel, slander, copyright or trademark infringement, and loss of clients’ confidential information.
Professional Liability Insurance is an essential type of insurance for businesses operating in New York. An experienced insurance agent can help identify the best insurance policy to meet the unique needs of a business.
4. Workers' Compensation Insurance
As a small business owner in New York, you must provide workers’ compensation insurance for your employees. This insurance covers medical expenses and lost wages if an employee is injured.
You may be wondering why you need to purchase workers’ compensation insurance when you already have health insurance for your employees. The answer is simple: health insurance does not cover workplace injuries.
Workers’ compensation insurance is a type of insurance that is required by law in most states. In New York, this insurance is known as “workers’ compensation insurance” or “Worker’s Compensation Benefits.”
You are required to purchase workers’ compensation insurance if you have one or more employees working for you in New York State. This includes full-time, part-time, and seasonal employees. You must also purchase workers’ compensation insurance if you are a sole proprietor with one or more employees working for you in New York State.
5. Business Interruption Insurance
When running a successful small business in New York, business interruption insurance is one of the most overlooked areas. Business interruption insurance is designed to provide financial security when your business is forced to suspend operations due to an unexpected event like a natural disaster.
Business interruption insurance in New York is paramount as the state has recently suffered from major hurricanes, wildfires, blizzards, and flooding. Even if your business is fortunate enough to avoid these events, you could still experience a drop in income due to a pandemic, civil unrest, or other unforeseen circumstances.
At its core, business interruption insurance will provide you with a source of income to cover certain costs, such as fixed operational costs, employee salaries, or rent. It can also cover the cost of relocating and restoring your business when the original location is not suitable for operation anymore.
Finally, the support provided by your business interruption insurance can give you the confidence and peace of mind to continue running your business with minimal disruption, even in the face of an unexpected and unfortunate event.
6. Commercial Auto Insurance
Commercial Auto Insurance is an essential type of insurance for small businesses. No matter what type of business you have in New York, getting a commercial auto policy that protects you in the event of a car accident is necessary. If you are transporting products or employees to and from the office, commercial auto insurance covers unexpected costs related to any damages, injuries, or medical bills that could befall you.
When considering different policies, make sure you look into the following factors:
- Liability Coverage – Commercial auto liability covers damages/injuries the other party might suffer in a car accident caused by you.
- Property Damage Coverage – This will cover damages to other vehicles/third-party properties in an accident.
- Medical Payments – This covers medical bills in an accident caused by you.
- Comprehensive & Collision Coverage – This will cover repairs or replacements of your vehicle in the event of a car accident, regardless of who is at fault.
- Uninsured & Underinsured Motorists Coverage – This will cover damages/injuries sustained in an accident caused by a driver without insurance.
Small business owners in New York need the right commercial auto insurance policy. This will protect them, their business, and their employees from any unexpected financial losses related to car accidents.
7. Cyber Liability Insurance
Cyber Liability Insurance is an essential type of insurance for small businesses in New York. The cost of cyber-attacks and data breaches is increasing yearly, meaning companies risk substantial losses due to unauthorized access to their networks or confidential data.
Cyber Liability Insurance helps protect businesses against these data breaches by covering costs associated with lost or stolen data and any reputational damage done as a result. It also covers the costs of notifying customers about data breaches and any legal and regulatory claims or fines associated with data loss.
It is essential for small business owners to understand the risks they face from cyber-attacks and data breaches and to get the right Cyber Liability Insurance policy for their needs. This will give them peace of mind while allowing them to focus on running their business without worrying about potential losses.
