What insurance do I need for my small business? UFG Underwriting Manager Ryan White explains a BOP

Part of the heavy lifting that comes with opening your own business—and maintaining your well-established one—is making sure you have the right insurance coverage in place. There’s a lot to consider; for example, is your building space well covered in case of a fire? Do you have enough liability coverage to protect the company against an injury? 

We sat down with UFG Underwriting Manager Ryan White for a Q&A session to take some of the guesswork out of small business insurance before you meet with an independent agent to make decisions that are right for you.

I’m ready to open my own business, but where do I even begin when thinking about insurance?

White: Great question. A good place to start might be a businessowners policy, BOP for short. A BOP is designed for small businesses and bundles together commercial insurance coverages like property, business income, and liability into one convenient policy. 

Not only is coverage conveniently packaged together on one policy, the price of a BOP is usually less than paying for similar coverages that are separated into singular policies, which can be one of many great benefits of selecting BOP coverage to insure your business.

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What coverages does a BOP typically include? 

White: BOPs usually include four basic types of coverages: property, business income, liability and crime. 

• Property protection may include buildings, business personal property, equipment, inventory and, in some cases, it may even cover personal property of your customers.
• Business income is a type of coverage that supports continued payment of financial obligations like mortgage or rent, employee payroll and more. 
• Liability coverage is what offers you protection for claims like medical expenses, bodily injury or property damage and lawsuits.
• Crime coverage will have your back if your business is the target of fraud or theft.

Keep in mind, some coverages may be right for your business that aren’t included in a BOP—like auto insurance, workers’ compensation and employee benefits—so you’ll want to be sure to have a conversation with your insurance agent for help identifying all the additional coverages that may be good choices, too. 

Can a BOP be tailored for industry-specific needs?

White: Yes, depending on the industry, optional coverages may be added to a BOP. 

Protection for breaches in data, food spoilage, business income for off-premises utilities—there are plenty of opportunities to tailor a comprehensive BOP, giving peace of mind to businessowners in a wide variety of industries, from a restaurant owner to a mechanic and lots of entrepreneurs in between. But, remember BOPs aren’t available for every type of small business, which is another reason why a visit with your agent will be key.

To find out if a BOP is right for your small business, contact your independent UFG agent today.

Learn more about small business insurance from UFG.