Business insurance exists for a good reason. Whether it’s a public liability claim, an injured employee or the theft of your tools or property, having a good insurance policy that can cover these worries can ensure your business is protected financially. In fact, a study conducted by The Hartford even suggested that 40% of small businesses are could face claims in the next 10 years.
However, not every policy will cover every claim made, so it’s important to understand what the most common claims are, and how to protect your business against them. Here are our top 10.
1) Slips, Trips and Falls
Around 10% of all insurance claims against businesses are related to customer slips, trips and falls. If a customer or a member of the public were to trip, slip or fall as a result of poor housekeeping by your business, they could be entitled to thousands, depending on the severity of the injury or the level of fault your business is at. Having a good Public Liability Insurance policy will ensure that you are protected against these claims, though you should maintain proper maintenance and housekeeping to reduce the risk of a slip, trip or fall.
2) Water Or Freezing Damage
Damage to your businesses property caused by water or freezing temperatures may be more common than you might think, covering around 15% of claims. If your business faces damage to the property or assets as a result of weather concerns, you could make a claim providing you have commercial property insurance.
3) Burglary And Theft
Burglary and theft can occur at your property, while you’re working on a job or even during transport and is said to be one of the most prominent causes of claims, with around 20% of business claims coming from these incidents. Commercial property insurance can cover loss of items within a property and any damage incurred as a result of a break-in, but specific covers such as Plant Cover, Tools Cover and Goods in Transit Cover can provide protection for loss or theft outside of the office or main business property.
4) Customer or Employee Injury
While accidents do happen, having the right cover to ensure that your business is protected not only ensures your safety but that your customers and employees can get the compensation they deserve. In order to provide cover for customer injury, you’ll need Public Liability Insurance for your business and to protect you and your employees, you are legally required to have Employer’s Liability Insurance.
5) Crashes And Collisions
While crashes and collisions only make up for less than 5% of claims, they can be some of the most expensive. Any automotive accident involving a commercial vehicle, regardless of whether it’s a lorry, van or simply a company car, can be costly for your business where there’s damage to your vehicle, damage to another person’s vehicle, damage to property or where an injury occurs. Commercial vehicle insurance can provide financial protection in these cases for your business, your vehicles, and any employees who may be operating the vehicles.
6) Customer Property Damage
If your business operates within a customer’s home, whether that’s decorating, maintenance, building work or something else entirely, accidental property damage can lead to an expensive claim. Property damage, alongside customer injury, make up for just under 5% of total business claims, but again, can be some of the most expensive to settle. Damage to property can range from something as simple as spilt paint to any number of other incidents caused by business-related accidents. Public Liability Insurance will also provide your business with protection in these cases.
7) Struck By An Object
‘Struck by an object’ claims usually refer to workplace incidents involving an employee being hit by a piece of equipment or object. This can include anything from machinery to falling products. Cases can be as simple as a bruise, or as severe as a fatality, but all should be taken seriously. It’s due to this that Employer’s Liability Insurance is an obligatory cover for all businesses, to ensure that your employees are protected against such incidents.
8) Reputational Harm
Reputational harm refers to any incident where your business causes another business to ‘lose face’, or where an incident negatively affects your own reputation. Media companies or any business with a strong community or online presence, or even any company that stores customer data can be subject to these kinds of claims. They make up for less than 5% of total claims but are also some of the most costly, with claims going up as high as £50,000 or more.
9) Fire
While we all do our bit to protect our businesses against fires, but unfortunately, they can still happen. Fire damage claims are common in every industry and usually cover any financial loss that occurred as a result of damage or time out of business, as well as the costs of repairs, rebuilding and replacing damaged equipment and supplies. To claim on damage and rebuilding and repairs, you’ll need commercial property insurance, and to claim for income lost due to time out for repairs, you will need business income insurance.
10) Product Liability
Product liability claims cover any injury or illness that a customer may suffer a result of a faulty product where you are held liable. For this reason, the retail, manufacturing and distribution industries are particularly prone to these kinds of claims. Liability insurance can protect you against any medical costs that the customer may have as a result of the product fault, as well as any compensation.
If you have any questions about what kind of insurance your business needs to protect yourself against claims, feel free to contact our team for more information, today.