Many restaurant and bar owners work hard to own a business that provides them with their income. These restaurants (and the bars, taverns, nightclubs, and breweries they own) need commercial property insurance to cover their buildings and contents from fire, theft, natural disasters, and other perils.
They also need general liability and business interruption coverage. Often, these are sold together in a commercial package policy.
Property Insurance
Many restaurants have a variety of different insurance needs. This is why working with an independent agent specializing in restaurant and bar insurance Denver is essential. They can help you understand and compare quotes for a BOP (which bundles commercial property and liability coverage), food spoilage, business interruption, workers’ compensation, and liquor liability.
This type of policy covers losses like damage to your restaurant’s building or kitchen equipment and can also cover lawsuits, business income loss, and property theft. It also typically includes workers’ compensation and a crime policy covering commercial theft, employee dishonesty, forgeries, and data theft. Restaurants can also purchase a separate liquor liability policy called dram shop coverage. This protects the restaurant in cases where intoxicated patrons hurt a customer.
Business Owner’s Policy (BOP)
Business owner’s policies are an excellent option for small businesses needing insurance coverage for property and liability. They can also include additional options like business interruption insurance and leased equipment/fixtures coverage.
The property portion of the BOP covers any buildings, furniture, and fixtures that your restaurant owns or leases, as well as other items like necessary paperwork and inventory. It can even cover damage to third-party property that happens in the course of business operations.
Liability protection from third-party bodily or advertising injury can help protect your business from costly lawsuits from customer accidents on the premises. It also covers legal and other expenses to defend your business against such claims.
Commercial Auto Insurance
Running a restaurant is a great way to share good food and drinks with your community. While many risks can impact your business, it is possible to limit them by obtaining the right commercial insurance policies for your bar and restaurant.
General liability insurance is essential for all restaurants, as it covers on-site accidents and incidents. Workers’ compensation insurance is also required by law in most states and provides vital benefits for your employees in the event of a work-related injury. Finally, cyber liability insurance protects your business against data breaches and cyber extortion. Business interruption insurance helps cover operating your restaurant during repairs or restoration. Hired and non-owned auto insurance is another coverage you may want to consider.
Employee Dishonesty Coverage
Employee dishonesty coverage, a crime policy or commercial crime insurance, reimburses your business for losses resulting from employees’ theft, fraud, misrepresentation, and other similar acts. It may also provide reimbursement for vandalism, and some policies can include a third-party endorsement that extends the coverage to property, money, or securities leased or owned by clients.
This is rarely one big event; it’s usually a series of small events that add up over the years. Stand-alone crime policies and endorsements to BOPs and commercial property insurance can be written to cover bad internal actors, including trustees, members, directors, part-time workers, and temporary employees. They can also be written to cover forgery, unauthorized alterations, and unauthorized electronic funds transfers. These coverages are generally very inexpensive for the amount of protection they offer.
Commercial Package Policy
Generally, purchasing all the insurance a restaurant needs through one agent is best. This dramatically reduces administrative headaches.
A restaurant package policy combines several policies into an all-in-one insurance bundle that covers a variety of risks, including property damage, liability, and business interruption. It can include business crime coverage which protects restaurants in the event of employee theft or other financial losses related to dishonest employees. It can also have equipment breakdown coverage which can pay for repairs or lost revenue when a piece of vital restaurant equipment goes down.
Besides property and liability, liquor liability must also cover bar and tavern owners. Employment practices liability is also essential to cover discrimination claims, wrongful termination, and harassment.
