Being your own boss allows for many cool business opportunities, one of which is the ability to run your business from pretty much anywhere. Over the last ten years, working remotely has skyrocketed in popularity, and for entrepreneurs in the early stages of running their business, it is an extremely cost-efficient option.
While running your business from a home office or on the road offers flexibility and the chance to save on overhead costs, one aspect of your business that shouldn’t be swapped for convenience is insurance. That’s right; even if you operate your business from home, you still need protection.
Ontario business insurance allows business owners to run their business from anywhere in the province while benefiting from comprehensive coverage.
What Is Ontario Business Insurance?
Explicitly designed to cover the everyday risks you face as a business owner, Ontario business insurance covers the costs of loss or damages resulting from your business operations.
Whether you’re a freelance consultant or run an e-commerce store from home, at the core of every business insurance policy are three types of coverage:
- Commercial General Liability Insurance: protects against claims alleging third-party property damage or bodily injury caused by your business operations. This policy is essential for all business owners, especially those who travel to other’s property for business or have clients visiting their home office.
- Professional Liability Insurance: protects business owners against claims alleging negligence or failure to deliver a service as promised. There are different types of professional liability insurance, such as errors and omissions, which protect against claims alleging, well, errors, or omissions related to your services. There is also medical malpractice insurance, which protects against claims alleging bodily injury or property damage as a result of your professional services. Speak with your broker to identify which policy makes the most sense for your business.
- Commercial Property Insurance: You’re probably wondering why this is on the list if you work from home or a mobile office, but there’s a good reason. Commercial property insurance doesn’t just protect your business’s physical location from loss or damage; it also protects the other physical assets of your business, like technology and equipment. For those with home-based offices, most home insurance policies don’t cover damages or accidents resulting from your professional activities, making commercial property insurance essential for protecting both your home and business.
These three policies build a strong foundation for your business, but depending on your business operations, you may require additional coverage.
Extra Coverage for Remote Businesses
Different companies have different risks; for example, a marketing consultant won’t require the same type of coverage as a mobile dog groomer. Speak with your broker about adding additional types of coverage to meet your specific business needs, such as:
- Cyber Liability Insurance is a type of coverage growing in popularity. With more businesses moving online, you must protect your business data and customer information in the event of a cyber attack. Cyber liability insurance provides coverage for the damage, loss, or theft of your electronic data. If you don’t think it’s important, consider the fact that 43% of cyber attacks are targeted at small businesses. source
- Product Liability Insurance provides coverage for claims alleging bodily injury or property damage that results from your products. This policy is a must-have for business owners who manufacture, source, or sell their products and can cover issues ranging from a design defect to an allergic reaction to a skincare product.
- Equipment Breakdown Insurance covers costs related to repairing or replacing business equipment that has been damaged due to an electrical or mechanical breakdown. This coverage can range from computers to large, industrial equipment
- Business Interruption Insurance is a necessary add-on. It provides coverage for income lost due to an interruption in business operations, as well as coverage for overhead costs required to keep your business running in the interim, such as rent or electricity.
- Business Contents Coverage is coverage for your business’s most valuable assets. This policy provides reimbursement for the costs associated with repairing or replacing your business’s stock, content, or inventory.
How Much Does Business Insurance in Ontario Cost?
The cost of insurance for business owners in Ontario depends on several factors. When determining the price of your insurance premium, the size of your business, industry and annual revenue will be taken into consideration.
The types of risks your business may face will also be taken into consideration when determining the price of your insurance premium. On average, a small business owner in Ontario can expect to spend $450.00 annually on business liability insurance with a two million dollar limit.
Your business is unique, which means your insurance policy is too.
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