retail insurance

Convenience and Drug Store Insurance

Why Do Canadian Convenience And Drug Stores Need Insurance?

Canadian insurance can be murky, to say the least. This is especially true for Canadian business insurance. This is because there are not only a number of insurance providers available, but there are all kinds of different policies to choose from. It doesn’t help that policies and insurance documents are worded in such ways that it nearly takes a professional to understand. Simply put, business insurance is confusing. What makes the situation even worse is that certain policies are pertinent. Pertinent if you want to protect yourself, your business, your employees, and your family to the fullest.

 

Why Insurance Is Necessary?

The first thing you are probably wondering is why retail business insurance is necessary. Well, it is obvious that there is a risk of slip and falls. Any time a customer, vendor, or anyone is in your store there is always the potential for an injury, Not only is the customer at the potential for injury, but their property is at risk of damage as well. If a customer’s vehicle is injured while sitting on your property, you will be responsible for the damages. There are also risks of employees getting hurt on the job. There are risks of theft and robbery.

What about natural disasters and equipment breakdowns? All of these are possible potential scenarios when it comes to convenience and drug stores. And, these events occur more than you’d imagine. Regardless of the potential for these scenarios, the most important coverage that the right policies offer is protection against lawsuits. For instance, just because a person slips and falls in your store, it doesn’t necessarily mean that covering their medical expenses will be enough. 

You have to consider the fact that they’ll also suffer mental anguish, they’ll need rehab, they’ll be out of work, and it is likely that their body will never be the same. Even if you are found liable or not, you simply don’t want the case in the court systems. And, this is because once it enters the courts, it is possible that the case will remain in suspension for years, The longer the case stays tied up, the more and more you’ll spend.

Every time you talk to your lawyer, every time he or she talks to someone on your part, every court date, every deposition and every meeting will cost you money. Just imagine how many times events like this can take place over the course of a year. It should be more than easy to see how such cases could lead to hundreds of thousands of dollars in court-related expenses. At the end of the day, this is the main reason for business insurance because the right policies will cover all court-related costs, including part or all of the settlement if you are deemed liable.

 

What Policies Are Needed To Protect Your Store?

As was mentioned above, one of the most confusing things about Canadian business insurance is that there are so many different policies available. While it might seem best to invest a little in each policy, this is actually not the way to go. This would not only be ineffective, but it would get expensive. Along with this, it simply wouldn’t offer the coverage that you need. You’d be spending money on something that wouldn’t even offer what you were looking for.

No one wants to do that, and this is why it is pertinent to understand the types of policies available to you, and which ones apply to your specific business.

 

A Mixture Of General Liability And Business Owner’s Insurance

If you call up any insurance provider like ProfessionalsCoverage and ask about business insurance, it doesn’t matter the industry or niche that you are in, they are going to offer business owner’s insurance and general liability insurance. While these two policies might be basic and seem basic at their very core, they offer protection that could mean the difference between staying operable and closing down. When bundled together these policies protect against customer injuries, stolen inventory, business interruption incidents, slip and falls, damaged customer property, and libel or slander.

Given the potential for all of these situations in the convenience and drug store industry, it only makes sense that these two policies would be at the of your list. More importantly, it’ll protect you from all related lawsuits associated with the incidents. The only problem is, these aren’t all the risks that you are posed to.

 

Workers’ Compensation Insurance Is Needed

If you want to be successful and competitive in the convenience and drug store industry, you’ll need to be open for long hours. Most convenience stores are open 24/7. This not only increases the risk of robberies or other related incidents, but it means that you’ll have to bring on employees. You can’t stay at your store 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. While employees can help you expand your business, they also pose unique risks as well. Not only is there always the potential that they could fall and get hurt, but there is the potential that they could steal from you, harm a customer, or even damage the customer’s property.

While the above-bundled policies will protect you against employee theft and injuries related to customers, they will not protect you if the employee is injured on your premises. Fear not, because this is exactly what workers’ comp insurance will do. This policy will not only cover your employee’s medical expenses related to the incident, but it’ll cover rehab costs, mental anguish costs, and any court-related costs in the event that the customer wants to take the case to court.

You’d be surprised just how much this happens. And, this is because workers’ comp, while it is good, it only offers protection for so long. If a customer is permanently disabled, he or she might feel like they are owed more. And, in a lot of cases, the courts would agree. Suits like this usually end up resulting in millions on top of millions of dollars. Luckily, workers’ comp will cover court-related costs as well as part or all of the settlement.

 

Umbrella/Excessive Insurance Policy Will Come In Handy

The above policies might seem like enough, and they will cover you for most events, you do need to know they are still limited. Limited in the amount of coverage they offer. Most providers usually only offer anywhere from $1 to $10 million in protection, Some might not even offer this much, It really depends on the provider. This is where umbrella coverage kicks in. It’ll cover the amount that exceeds the original coverage limit. However, you do have to know that even this policy has its limits. Just make sure you know how much coverage you’re privy to and always have a plan in the event that you exceed your limit. Even just a million might seem like a lot of money, but it’ll go faster than you imagine.

 

 

 

 

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Other Types of Retail Insurance We Provide:

If your business is not mentioned below, have no worries. Our insurance markets can provide liability coverage for the majority of retail industries.