Water on the floor, slippery entry in the winter, broken glass/hazardous debris, dim lighting, etc. These are all accidents waiting to happen that make your business susceptible. Claims may arise due to bodily injury, property damage, personal injury, and more. Outside, there is also a security risk in parking lots and with potential physical altercations between guests and/or staff.

Commercial general liability insurance is an absolute necessity for any business. It provides broad coverage when you are deemed responsible and liable and will also pay to defend any covered lawsuit or action, regardless of its merit.

If a patron is over-served at your establishment, you may be held responsible and liable for damages or injuries related to the patron’s intoxication.

Liquor liability insurance covers defense costs and damages to persons and property caused by intoxicated patrons. Training staff to recognize patrons who pose a liquor liability risk is a key risk control measure to consider.

What will you do if one of your trusted employees is found guilty of doing something dishonest as it relates to his or her work with you?

Crime and fidelity coverage is designed to provide coverage for employee dishonesty, forgery and depository, theft, destruction and disappearance, and more. Discuss the details of this coverage with your agent to learn more.

Traditional general liability and property coverage are not designed to adequately cover workplace violence claims.

Workplace violence and crisis response policies are created to provide coverage for damages related to third-party liability, loss of business income, and other expenses related to workplace violence.

If one of your employees receives an injury or becomes ill due to a work-related occurrence, you are required by law to have the proper coverage in place.

State disability and workers' compensation protects your employees should a job-related injury or sickness occur during the course of employment. This coverage is required by law, so be sure that you have it.

Your business property is a significant financial investment. What if something happens to it?

Commercial property insurance can help protect the property your business owns or leases, including things like equipment, inventory, furniture, and fixtures. Whether you own your building or lease your space, commercial property insurance can be purchased separately or can be combined with other necessary coverages to protect your business’ physical assets.

In the event of a covered cause of loss, most policies include coverage for the income you cannot collect. What happens if one of your key suppliers, such as your food or beverage distributor, is incapable of supplying you with what you need to keep your business running?

Make sure that your business income insurance includes contingent business income coverage to protect against the loss of potential earnings to your restaurant caused by the inability of a key vendor to provide a component necessary for the completion or execution of your services.

Exterior signs associated with your business are vulnerable to fire, vandalism, and weather. Most commercial property policies offer a sublimit of coverage for signs, but it might not be enough.

Evaluate your sign exposures and determine if your existing commercial property insurance policy provides sufficient coverage. If not, increase the policy limit as required.

Flooding is the most commonly occurring natural disaster in the United States. It can occur in almost any location and to any business, even if your area isn’t designated as a high-risk flood zone. Are you protected?

Flood insurance is typically not included in a commercial property insurance policy but can generally be added by endorsement as long as the property is not in a high-risk flood zone. If coverage is excluded from the policy, you should look into the cost to add it. If your property is in a high-risk flood zone, you will need to obtain a standalone policy. In either case, it’s important to have coverage.

On average, it's estimated that three out of five businesses will be sued by their employees. Companies are vulnerable during the pre-hire process, throughout employment, and during a reduction in workforce. Claims can arise in any size operation. You can do everything right and still be sued.

Coverage to protect you against this risk normally comes as a standalone policy. The right coverage is critical to your risk management process as it protects against discrimination, wrongful termination, sexual harassment, and other employment-related allegations. Typically, the policy will cover your business, as well as your directors and officers. Third party coverage is an added option, usually accomplished via a policy endorsement, and addresses claims made by customers or vendors against you from acts committed by employees.

Just about all businesses rely on technology in some way; it's increasingly used to store sensitive information, such as credit cards, passwords, and social security numbers. However, you're at risk if this information is lost, stolen, or compromised. In fact, you may even be legally obligated to alert those impacted by the breach and possibly pay for any financial loss incurred.

Experiencing a data breach is often not a question of if but when. Securing a cyber liability policy can offer coverage for expenses associated with compliance regarding data breach notification laws, securing legal counsel to advise on incident response, credit monitoring services, as well as paying for regulatory defense and penalties arising from privacy law violations.

Providing a valet service is convenient for your guests, but damaging a vehicle, property, or causing injury is a very real risk associated with it.

Obtain a general liability policy to protect your business from lawsuits by a third party. Be certain that a garagekeepers legal liability policy is also in effect with adequate limits to cover any physical damage to your guest's vehicle or other vehicles on site. If you are using an independent valet service, obtain a certificate of insurance to verify they have the proper coverage with adequate limits. Also make sure that your business is named as an additional insured under their policy.

What happens when your business faces a large liability loss that exceeds the basic limit of your standard policy?

You should consider purchasing a commercial umbrella insurance policy which provides higher limits, typically between $2,000,000 and $10,000,000, and often broadened coverages. Coverage is extended over various policies, including general liability insurance, business auto, and directors and officers liability insurance.