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How do I get the Cheapest Insurance Rate Possible as an IT business?

With the current state of the economy and the COVID virus looming over everyone’s head, more and more people are looking for ways to be frugal. This is especially true for small business owners. Heck, most small Canadian businesses are pooling in all their resources and doing everything they can just to stay open. Whether you are just starting your business venture or you have been in business for years, you likely already know that having IT business insurance is a big part of that business. Not only will it be a big part, but it’ll be a big expense as well. Luckily it’s not as hard as one might think to find affordable rates or even get reduced rates. This is, even so, more true for today’s IT firms.

Want to know how you can find affordable insurance rates?

 

Getting Affordable Small Business Insurance

While you might be seeking the most affordable options and rates out there, you have to remember that the cheapest isn’t always necessarily the best. Sure, it might save you some money upfront, but what good is it going to do if it ends up costing you more in the long run? Not only this, but you might end up inadequately protecting yourself, which is never a good thing. Cheap business insurance might leave your business unprotected on a variety of levels if you’re sued. You’ll need to determine your risks while also looking for the right policies to safeguard against those risks. This will give you the peace of mind that it won’t end up costing you in the long run.

That being said, there are several steps that small Canadian business owners can take to lower their overall costs without compromising their business.

 

Comparison Shopping

If there is one thing that you’ve already learned, it is likely that each insurance provider is different. Each insurance provider is completely different in every way. It starts with their business locations. Different providers are located in different regions throughout Canada. Heck, if you want, you could likely get insured through an American provider, although it would likely cost more. That being said, not only are providers located in different regions, but they offer different policies, different amounts of coverage, and different protection.

Some providers might be more experienced with your specific field of IT than others. These are the providers that you’ll want to work with because they’ll not only help you get better rates, but they’ll help you design a package plan that’ll protect you, your business, and your employees in every possible foreseeable and unforeseeable situation. However, as you start comparing policies, you don’t want to solely focus on premiums alone. The details of what is covered within these policies can be just as important.

This could, in fact, explain why certain policies are so much cheaper than others. For instance, when looking for general liability insurance, if you notice that a provider is offering you a quote of $100 or $200 less a month, you’ll certainly want to look into what is and what is not covered in the policy because it is likely missing something. This is how they can offer much cheaper rates. Before you make a final decision, you want to speak with a qualified agent from ProfessionalsCoverage to discover whether or not the policy offers adequate protection.

These Canadian insurance professionals will be more than willing to help you with your insurance whether or not you get coverage through them.

 

Bundling Those Policies

From dealing with homeowner’s insurance, auto insurance, or maybe even business insurance in the past, it is likely that you are familiar with bundling. At the very least, you have a good idea of what the term means. Just in case it still isn’t clear enough, it simply means combining one or two policies together through the same provider. Bundling policies is without a doubt one of the best ways to keep your overall costs down.

As an example, a lot of providers will recommend bundling general liability insurance with commercial liability insurance in what is known as a business owner’s policy or BOP. It is usually much cheaper to invest in a BOP than investing in both general liability and commercial policy alone. That being said, it is also important to know that, unfortunately, BOP policies will not be available to every industry. They usually aren’t available to higher risk businesses. As an IT professional, you’ll more than likely have this bundling option available to you as well as others.

At any time if you are not sure which bundles make sense for your business all you have to do is get in touch with ProfessionalsCoverage. They are more than familiar with your industry and the specific risks that it faces on a daily basis.

 

Going With A Higher Deductible

There is simply no denying that business insurance is confusing, to say the least. And, this is because there are not only different policies, different bundling options, and different providers to choose from, but there are different ways of paying. In comes the deductible. You’re likely at least familiar with the term. What it basically means is the amount that you’ll have to pay before your insurance company steps up and starts paying. It is important to note, not ever commercial insurance policy offers a deductible, but ones that do can be raised to lower your monthly payments.

However, this does mean that if there is a claim, you will have to pay out more out of pocket before the provider steps in and starts offering a financial reprieve. At the end of the day, a good rule of thumb is to make sure that your deductible is never more than you are comfortable paying. Cheaper monthly payments won’t do you any good if you can’t cover the deductibles first.

 

Matching Your Limits Perfectly

As was mentioned above, one of the things that make Canadian business insurance so confusing is that it is available in different limits. For instance, you can get a general liability policy of one million. You could also get a BOP of one-million. As you’ve probably already surmised, the higher the cover you get, the higher the monthly premiums. It is entirely possible that you have some policies that are offering way more protection than you’d ever need.

For instance, you may have a commercial auto policy of five-million. With just one or two employees, you might not even need this amount of coverage. The tricky part is trying to determine the exact amount of coverage that you need without putting your business at risk. Once again, this is likely something that companies familiar with the industry can help out with.

 

Managing Those Risks

While your insurance is there to protect you, every time you use it, it will end up costing you more in the long run. That’s right, every time a claim is filed against your insurance, it’ll end up raising your monthly or yearly payments. This is because when claims are made, it makes you look like a high-risk company. High-risk companies always pay more for coverage! The good thing is, there are ways that you can reduce your overall chances of an incident. First, start by informing yourself as well as your employees.

This means studying safety and offering safety meetings or classes. Let your employees know how they can lower their risks. For instance, proper bending and lifting techniques might prevent a back injury. Taking the time to stretch every morning before every job might loosen the body up enough to prevent similar injuries. Learning some defensive driving maneuvers might prevent vehicular accidents.

Something as minor as keeping your floors mopped when it’s raining outside so people are less likely to slip and fall could go a long way to limiting your risks. Everything from installing new security cameras to eliminating potential trip hazards could lower your overall risks of injuries. You can even establish a more effective means of communication with your customers to limit the chances of error and omissions claims.

 

 

 

 

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Helpful resources for IT professionals and their companies

 

Other types of IT Businesses we insure:

If your specializing is not mentioned below, have no worries. Our insurance markets can provide liability coverage for the majority of information technology related businesses.