Choosing the right shop insurance is about matching the cover and costs against the financial risks of day-to-day trading.
Shops have a steady flow of customers, staff and visitors and each one presents a possible financial threat if they have an accident, damage goods or even steal stock or cash.
Shop insurance covers four main risks – liability, business disruption, buildings and contents.
Liability
Every shop needs public liability cover to pay out for incidents leading to the sickness or injury to clients and any visitors to the premises.
By law, any business with staff must take out employer liability insurance that extends the same cover to employees.
Read more about shop liability cover
Business disruption
Business disruption or interruption protects profits when a shop cannot open for business – examples would be after a fire, flood or extreme vandalism after a break-in.
Buildings insurance
Typically, buildings cover is only needed by shops that own the premises they trade from; otherwise the landlord should have their own policy.
Add-ons to standard buildings cover can include:
• Accidental damage to fixed glass – including boarding up and replacement windows, frames and doors
• Property owner liability – Extra protection should someone outside your shop premises suffer an injury related to the shop. For instance, if someone was passing by on the pavement and was hit by a falling slate or signage
Contents insurance
Contents covers stock, computers, business records, machinery and equipment the shop needs to trade and is the responsibility of the trader not the freeholder if the premises are rented.
Add-ons to standard contents insurance can include:
• Money cover – Not only includes stolen cash, but gift cards, tokens, stamps, cheques and postal orders
• Stolen key replacement – Pays for new locks and keys
Shop insurance comes as a core policy with add-ons that cost extra, so business owners can customise cover to suit their needs and budgets.