Commercial Insurance.. Why is it so important?

There’s no getting away from it. Commercial and Business Insurance is an intricate and extremely complex product to understand. So to help out and educate those who are thinking of purchasing Commercial and Business Insurance, I’m writing a weekly blog simplifying the many aspects you can purchase to help protect what’s most important to you.

Let’s start off with the bad. A staggering statistic shows; 87% of businesses that don’t purchase adequate Commercial Insurance who suffer a financial loss never recover and unfortunately close down. Think about that statistic for a second, 87% of businesses fail when they suffer a loss that isn’t insured. The way I see things, if you’re smart enough to set up a business, why risk it all by not protecting that which you’ve worked so hard to achieve?

For many though, Commercial Insurance is an unfamiliar category of insurance with many different variables to consider. In fact, it wasn’t long ago when I was new to the industry struggling to keep up with the amount of information available, so I can sympathize with business owners who get giddy just thinking about Commercial Insurance.

Fortunately, we have licensed professionals who specialize in identifying what types of exposures your business might be susceptible to. Any good commercial insurance broker knows that by asking the right questions, we can help reduce the financial risks associated when you own a business. It’s important to note, that the relationship you have with your broker is extremely valuable and critical to the decision making process.

In addition to licensed brokers, many of Saskatchewan’s insurance companies now offer Commercial Package Policies (much like home insurance) that offer a multitude of protection for Buildings, Stock, Equipment, Business Interruption, Liability, Crime Insurance and much more under one policy. This has simplified the process (to a degree) by providing a blanketed limit of coverage for many exposures.

Obviously package policies aren’t for everyone. So for larger or more specialized businesses you can still obtain insurance through your broker however the process is inherently complex and dependent upon many different variables associated to the business itself.

Remember that as your business grows and develops, your insurance needs to grow with you also. If your broker isn’t contacting you regularly each year to asses where you are, then maybe it’s time to give that new guy a chance at servicing you more effectively.

Look out for our next installment covering Business Interruption.

Gary Downes