What Can Commercial Combined Insurance Cover?

Commercial combined can encompass a wide-range of risks, giving you a one-size fits all policy for your business’ needs. Irrespective of whether you have a large manufacturing warehouse with hundreds of employees or a small office-based business, commercial combined can assist you with the cover that you need. Often used for distributors, retailers, hospitality businesses and wholesalers, commercial combined cover can include:

• Public liability – if you have a public-facing business, public liability should be included within your commercial combined insurance policy. Public liability protects you against the costs associated with legal claims from members of the public. So, if your business, it’s premises or its actions lead to illness, injury or damage to property by members of the public, this policy will keep you safe from a hefty compensation bill.
• Employers’ liability – do you have employees of any kind? Regardless of whether they’re temporary, part-time, contracted or full-time, employers’ liability is a legal requirement if you have any staff. Failure to have it in place can lead to a fine of up to £2,500 per day. Employers’ liability will protect you from claims of illness or injury caused to your employees through their work. This means your staff will have the peace of mind of knowing that if things do go wrong that they will be compensated and you won’t have to worry about potentially crippling compensation claims. Including this within a commercial combined policy can allow you to gain the various benefits of the policy whilst still having the necessary cover.
• Products liability – did you know that if products you use, recommend, manufacture or sell cause problems that you can be held liable for damages? As a manufacturer, distributor, wholesaler, cleaning business or retailer, products are likely to be central to the running of your business. Therefore, protecting yourself against the risks that these products can cause is important. Products liability can protect you if your products cause injury or illness and legal claims are brought against you.
• Stock cover – as a manufacturer, distributor, retailer, wholesaler or any other business that is suitable for a commercial combined policy, you’ll likely have a large amount of stock on your premises. In fact, you’ll likely have too much to be included in your building’s insurance policy. This is where stock cover comes in, protecting your valuable goods in the event of storm damage, flood, fire or theft. Crucial cover for any business where physical stock is your main source of income.
• Commercial buildings cover – do you own the building in which your business operates? If so, you’ll need commercial buildings insurance to protect your bricks and mortar. Buildings insurance protects you from the cost to repair or rebuild your building if it’s damaged by risks such as floods, fires or vandalism. Ensuring you provide accurate valuations to your insurer is really important when taking out commercial building’s insurance to ensure you don’t end up being underinsured. Failure to do so may mean your policy may not pay for the full cost of repairs. You’ll also want to make sure you’re not paying for a level of cover you simply don’t need, so make sure you get an accurate valuation of your building. When looking at your valuation, you’ll want to ensure you’re covered for the rebuild cost of the property – not the current market value.
• Fixtures and fittings – did you know that under most contents insurance policies that your fixtures and fittings aren’t included? So, if you have a shop full of shelves or an office full of desks – both of which would be costly to replace - ensure that you have fixtures and fittings as part of your insurance protection. This could save you from hefty bills in the event of a fire, flood or other disaster which could ruin your fixtures and fittings. These can sometimes be covered under the building sums insured part of your policy, so double check.
• Business machinery – lots of businesses require machinery to get the job done these days. What would happen to yours if anything happened to it machinery? Could it cope? Business machinery cover assists you with the cost of repair or replacement of machinery, meaning you can reduce the downtime of your business and get it back to work in no-time.
• Business interruption – if your business was forced to close for a period of time, the effects could be catastrophic. With mounting bills and no sign of any income, it can be a business-threatening situation. Thankfully, business interruption cover can be there for you at the worst of times. This policy will continue to provide you with an income whilst your business’ doors are closed. A great policy for great peace of mind.
• Goods in Transit – do you have delivery drivers of your own, move your own goods around or deliver them to clients? If so, standard vehicle insurance won’t be enough to protect them and their contents whilst on the road. For that, you’ll need goods in transit cover. Goods in transit does what it says on the tin: it protects the contents of a vehicle whilst they are out for delivery or are being moved. From your business’ products to the driver’s personal effects, goods in transit cover has you covered whilst on the road.
• Directors’ and officers’ insurance (D&O) – as the heads of the business, senior figures can often be personally liable for a business’s actions and face hefty financial losses should legal action go against them. Directors’ and officers’ insurance – or D&O insurance as its also know - protects your senior members from potential financial losses, meaning they can focus on doing their jobs.