While making your working environment safe is relatively easy, thanks to sites such as SecurityDirectUK, finding the right business insurance can be a complicated and drawn out process. There’s a lot of jargon to wade through, but if you have your own company and are responsible for members of staff, it’s important to understand the ins and outs of the policy you sign up for. And this means reading the small print, because you might think you’re fully covered against accidents, injuries and numerous other disasters when you’re not.
So with this in mind, here are five things your business insurance probably won’t cover you for:
1. Employee injuries
Business liability insurance is something most companies simply must have as it can safeguard against many known or unknown risks. The only problem is, there are many different types of liability insurance, so if you don’t have Employers Liability cover your staff might not be protected if they are hurt on the job – and you could still be legally liable.
2. Motor insurance
If you’ve multiple vehicles out on the road, make sure they’re correctly insured. You might think your current policy covers you but unless it includes a specific section protecting vehicles for business use then you could be mistaken. Many company owners make this error and end up having to pay big bucks when an accident or incident occurs.
3. Professional mistakes
As a rule, most general liability policies won’t cover professional mistakes. Therefore if you don’t have sufficient cover you’ll be left to resolve the problem yourself and this could prove extremely costly. The good news is, professional liability will cover you should a mistake occur, so always take out insurance policies that are most-suited to your business needs.
4. Intentional acts
What’s more, your business cover probably won’t insure you against expected or deliberate acts. If an employer insults a customer, for instance, and they decide to sue, there’s probably very little you can do about it with general liability insurance. If the employee was acting in self-defence, however, liability insurance would usually offer the correct cover.
5. Injury to members of the public
Accidents and injuries involving members of the public can and do happen, so it’s wise to take out public liability insurance – particularly if you work in the public sector. This is because general liability cover typically won’t cover you for damage against property or persons that you might come across during working hours, such as customers. You can also go one step further by carrying out a thorough risk assessment and acting on your findings, to ensure you workplace is as safe as possible.
The complexity of business insurance can stop many firms taking a policy out in the first place, but it’s important to remember that the law requires all business to be insured. To make sure you are appropriately covered, however, always read the small print.