Tag: Employers Liability

10 Types of Liability Insurance Every Small Business Should Consider

Liability Insurance is the Bedrock of a Small Businesses Shield of Protection

Liability Insurance is a way businesses can go about protecting itself from liabilities the business faces that are beyond the funds the business has on hand to cover. General Liability is required by law for most businesses in most states, but this is usually not the only type of liability insurance coverage a business should secure. Partnering with an experienced insurance professional with whom you trust is the first step to properly protecting a small business. This professional can help advise a business owner just what types of risks they face and just what types of insurance policies they should secure. Here are 10 types of liability insurance coverage every small business owner should consider securing.

Small Business Liability Insurance Coverage

General Liability Insurance Coverage

General Liability Insurance is required by law in most states and protects a business from lawsuits, bodily injury, property damage, personal injury and completed work. Two components are included in general liability insurance. Those two components are public and product liability. Public liability protects a business from third-parties filing suit against a business. The suit can be for something as simple as the third party slipped and fell in your store. No matter how trivial the suit is, it can amount to an enormous legal bill to protect the reputation of a business. Product liability protects a business for products or completed work. When a business makes or sells a product, the business is responsible for what happens with those products. It is important to remember product liability does not provide coverage for claims of defective or faulty design alone unless that defect causes injury or damage.

Professional Liability Insurance

Professional Liability Insurance Coverage is also frequently referred to as Errors and Omissions, E&O, or Medical Malpractice. Professional Liability covers a business for financial losses suffered by third-parties due to professional advice given by the insured. The types of professionals who need this type of coverage include: Accountants, Attorneys, Real Estate Brokers, Consultants, Physicians, Architects, and Engineers. A Professional Liability Insurance Policy does not cover bodily injury or property damage, these claims are usually covered by a general liability policy.

Cyber Liability Insurance Coverage

Cyber Liability Insurance is a type of liability that protects a business from the liability the business faces to third parties for a data breach that occurs within the organization. Cyber Liability Insurance covers the costs associated with the liability of a claim or suit related to a data breach, but it does not cover the first party damages to the business.

Dram Shop Liability Insurance

Dram Shop Insurance Coverage applies to businesses that sell and serve alcohol. A Dram Shop Liability Insurance covers a business for personal injury caused by an intoxicated customer. Dram Shop Liability grew from laws passed dealing with the actions of intoxicated patrons who were served when the business knew the patron was severely intoxicated. According to Vernet v. Serrano-Torres, 566 F.3d 254 (1st Cir. P.R. 2009), it was held that the theory of dram-shop liability has been described as one where a bar or tavern may be liable for the wrongful or injurious actions of a patron, if it served alcohol to that patron after it knew, or should have known, that the patron was already intoxicated.

Directors and Officers Liability Insurance

Directors and Officers Liability Insurance is a type of liability insurance that is paid out to the officers and directors of a company or organization, as reimbursement for losses or advancement for defense costs in the event an insured faces a lawsuit as a result of alleged wrongful acts in the officers or directors capacity as a leader of the organization. Directors and Officers of a corporation or a non-profit may be liable for damages if they damage the organization in breach of their legal duty, if they mix personal and business assets, or if they fail to disclose any and all conflicts of interest.

Employer Liability Insurance Coverage

Employer Liability Insurance is an extremely important part of every businesses workers compensation insurance. Workers’ compensation pays a workers medical costs and some lost wages if they are hurt while on the job. If an employee feels their workers compensation benefit has not provided them enough, they can sue a business for damages. Some of those damages and the legal fees associated with those suits are covered under an employer liability insurance policy.

Product Liability Insurance

Product Liability Insurance Coverage protects a business from lawsuits that result from injuries, illnesses, or property damage linked to a product made by a business. These damages include manufacturing error, faulty design, malfunctions, and even misuse. This applies to manufactured products no matter if they are simple or complex.

Umbrella Liability Insurance Coverage

An Umbrella Insurance Policy is a type of coverage that sits on top of other existing policies. When there is a covered loss and the limits of that policy are met, the Umbrella Policy kicks in to cover additional costs up to the limits of the Umbrella Policy. They key part of this policy to understand is that the claim causing the loss has to be a covered loss. An Umbrella Insurance Policy does not cover additional losses that are not covered. The policy only kicks in when the limits of an existing policy are met.

Employment Practices Liability Insurance

Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI) can protect a business in the event the business faces a lawsuits related to hiring, employing, and terminating employees. EPLI can protect a business when someone files a claim due to misconduct or violation of labor laws. These lawsuits could include claims of employee discrimination, wrongful termination, discrimination (age, racial, gender), breach of contract, sexual harrassment, or emotional distress.

Business Owner’s Policy (BOP)

Businesses can package all of the necessary liability policies in to a Business Owner’s Policy (BOP). A BOP includes several different policies.  They are usually designed for a specific industry because a carriers uses historical claims data to know which types of claims are common for businesses within a particular industry. BOP’s can be altered to meet the needs of a business and the level of risk a business owner is willing to take and most times carriers will offer a discount for buying multiple policies in one package.

What Do My Workers Compensation Limits Mean?

We get this question a few times a week because most business owners don’t quite understand their workers compensation limits. They try to compare them to their general liability limits and that is where some of the confusion sets in. The Limits on your workers’ compensation insurance policy provide coverage for a business against lawsuits arising from employment-related injuries or illnesses.  For example, if an injured employee is not satisfied alone with medical and loss of wage benefits because they feel their employer purposefully put them in harm’s way on the job or were grossly negligent, and as a result they were injured, they may sue for punitive damages.  In some cases, even the employee’s family can sue for the same damages. This is where Part II of a workers’ comp policy would kick and provide coverage.

It is important to note that employers’ liability coverage is limited, unlike medical benefits or loss of wages.  This is the spot that a lot of business owners or anyone starts to get confused. They see limits on their workers’ compensation policy and naturally think that is the max that would be paid in an injury scenario. A workers’ compensation policy will pay out whatever it takes to rehabilitate an injured employee. Employers liability or Part II will not pay out unlimited amounts on behalf of employers who were charged with gross negligence or knowingly placing their employees in harm’s way.  Employers’ liability coverage in most states starts at $100,000 each employee, $100,000 each accident and at $500,000 per policy limit for disease- these limits are statutory or minimum limits that come with the purchase of a policy.  These coverage limits can be raised for a nominal additional premium percentage on most policies.  Many businesses opt for increased employers’ liability limits.  They do this because of a need for peace of mind or because their work contracts often require higher limits than statutory requirement.

To give you an idea on how these limits work, think about it in this manner. An employee working in a manufacturing plant is exposed to lead on a daily basis. The employer does not have proper ventilation or does not always check on the employee to make sure they are wearing proper attire. Whether that is long sleeve shirts and pants or to have a respirator so they are filtering the air quality they are breathing. The employee gets injured on the job after many years of never missing work. It is also discovered that they have come down with a serious illness that may be caused by years of lead exposure. The employee and his family are not satisfied with the level of benefits workers compensation is providing and has decided to sue the Employer for negligence. This is where the limits in Employers Liability or Part II would kick in. There are many other scenarios that could come into play outside of illness, but this is just one example of how a 3rd party may potentially bring suit against your company. The best thing to do is always be proactive with safety, etc. which can be hard for a small business.  Because your time is very invested in the day to day activities of the business.