Your Restaurant Insurance Policy: What Does It Cover?
Restaurant insurance is an essential tool that protects your business against property damage, liability, or lost income. It’s also a major investment, and it’s important to understand just what your restaurant insurance policy covers and what it doesn’t. Here, Muller Insurance offers a brief overview of restaurant coverage so you can be sure your business has the protection it needs.
The Importance of Restaurant Insurance
Starting and running a business is hard work. The last thing you want is to watch all your careful planning and effort go down the drain because of theft, fire, or legal matters. Problems happen no matter how hard you try to keep everything perfect, and they’re rarely your fault. That’s why it’s so important to invest in insurance for your business. Restaurant insurance applies to a variety of business types, including:
- Cafes and coffee shops
- Fast food restaurants
- Full-service restaurants
- Ice cream shops
- Take-out and delivery shops
- Food trucks
No matter what your restaurant looks like, insurance can help protect the business you’ve worked so hard to build.
Covering the Necessities
Restaurant insurance packages usually cover a range of necessities to make sure your business is protected in various situations. A few of the common coverage types that you’re likely to see in your policy include:
- Business property: This covers your building, equipment, signage, and furnishings against fire, sewer backwash, vandalism, and theft. It’ll also cover the cost of replacements or repairs.
- Business income: When disaster strikes, you may have to temporarily shut down your business for repairs. Business income insurance will cover some of the lost income while you’re closed.
- General liability: If a guest slips in a spill, gets food poisoning, reports a stolen belonging, or brings charges of libel or slander, general liability will cover the expense of the lawsuit.
- Liquor liability: This covers you if a guest is served liquor at your establishment, then destroys property or harms others due to intoxication.
- Workers’ compensation: If one of your workers gets hurt or sick while on the job, workers’ compensation insurance will help pay medical fees and lost wages.
- Commercial auto: An essential coverage for food delivery and caterers often on the road, commercial auto insurance covers theft, vandalism, damage, and medical bills related to your business’ vehicles.
What It Doesn’t Cover
Most standard restaurant insurance policies don’t include flood or earthquake coverage. If your restaurant is near water or in a location vulnerable to earthquakes, you should take a look at flood or earthquake insurance to make sure you’re covered in all scenarios.
Second, consider if you’ve decorated your restaurant with fine arts, antiques, or collections of valuable memorabilia. These touches are a great way to set the mood and draw a crowd, but they’re also expensive and often unique. Most restaurant insurance policies won’t cover your valuable décor, so you should consider investing in fine arts and collections protection to make sure those items are safe.
Protect Your Restaurant
With the right protection in place, you can have peace of mind while focusing on what’s most important: serving great food and drinks to your valued customers. For restaurant and business owners in New Jersey and around the country, Muller Insurance offers quality service and will help you find policies to fit your needs. Contact us to find out more about restaurant insurance.