10 Reasons To Have Business Liability Insurance

Posted by admin on Jan 19, 2011 in Blog, Business Insurance | 0 comments

As a person in charge of a business, have you ever asked yourself “why do I need liability insurance, it’s just another scam for insurance companies to rake in millions, right”? Whether you’re a business owner, president of the company, or a hotdog vendor on the street, Liability Insurance protects YOU. If an unforeseen mishap endangers your source of income and you are held accountable, where will you get the money when you are personally sued? Not only does it protect civil litigation against your business, but also your way of life. Lawyers will stop at nothing to get payment for their clients including the seizure of your home and all of your assets. Remember, lawyers will always take on clients that they know will win in a court of law, and if they find any neglectful deed on your part, they will win. Hindsight IS 20/20 and taking the necessary precautions now to ensure you are covered will stop the “if only” when and if that time comes. Aside from the everyday slip and fall, there are many scenarios in which you may need liability insurance. Here are some reasons you might want to change the way you think.

A product that you have recently released and sold to the public has made you thousands of dollars. Low and behold that same product has injured hundreds of people for life.

The car that you have advertised on your virtual lot is $2000.00 cheaper than what you sold it for. No big deal? You will just delete that AD and no one will be the wiser. Sorry, that’s where you could be wrong. With today’s computer savvy generation, don’t bet your business on it that the purchaser didn’t use print screen and saved that AD.

You have been in the corner store business for 20 years and have been successful at it, what could go wrong? Sell a pack of cigarettes to a minor and you could soon see how fast things go wrong after the parents contact a lawyer.

Someone breaks into your business and injures themselves. Even though they most likely deserved it, they can and will sue you for injuries sustained while committing a crime and they will win. How ironic…

You own a security company, you have rules clearly stated the steps for an employee to take when an alarm goes off. Your company is monitoring a family home suddenly the alarm goes off, not the first time for this home. The veteran employee contacts the homeowner on their cell while they are out to dinner. After a brief discussion with said homeowner, it’s decided that there is no need to call 911, “just hit the reset” assures the homeowner, the family is leaving for home and they are only 5 minutes away. Where will you get the money when the family’s lawyer contacts you in regards to the fact that your employee didn’t follow company protocol, after their beloved home is burned to the ground?

Your new employee comes to you with a complaint that one of her coworkers is hitting on her. You assure her that you will have a talk with the individual involved, and you do. But sure enough the following week she returns with the same complaint that he is still doing it. What do you do? Hmm you will just let it go; after all he is employee of the month, she is new and most likely will move on to another job. What will you do when the police show up to your business on sexual harassment allegations instead of her showing up for work?

Your makeup company is starting to get noticed, $500,000.00 in sales alone last year. Everything was great except that little blip the machines were having last year. Too bad you couldn’t see into the future, right? Now thousands of women are having a hard time seeing at all because they have permanent blindness in one of their eyes all thanks to that little blip.

The best bar in town is what your business is known to be. Is it because of the atmosphere? Perhaps, but if you don’t care about your customers and let them drive after having one too many, you can be held responsible for any damages if they crash. Be it property or loss of life. Not to mention the driver themselves coming after you civilly for allowing them to drive drunk in the first place

Your new doll line just came out in time for Christmas to the delight of children everywhere, the sales are adding up and the orders keep coming in. You covered yourself in the instruction manual, age limit, keep away from open flame, small parts are a chocking hazard, keep away from pets… not checked. Everyone knows to keep it away from pets’ right? Well normally that would be a given, but there are those out there that will use this to their advantage.

An employee comes to you telling you that the toilet seat in the women’s washroom needs replacing. You write it down on your to do list, it isn’t a priority you will get to it. Three days later you hear a scream coming from the women’s washroom. What do you do? Just as you’re about to barge in to offer some assistance, the women comes out screaming with her coat all askew. “Your toilet seat has a mind of its own. It tossed me to the floor, where I bashed my elbow and smacked my head on the garbage”. She storms through the store, her final, screaming words ringing in your ears. “YOU WILL BE HEARING FROM MY ATTORNEY”. As you watch in horror, there is toilet paper trailing with her every step… you don’t know whether to simply laugh or cry. At this point crying might help, but it won’t protect your store.

All of these are possible scenarios that could happen, and all have a ripple effect. What ever your business is, you might want to call an Insurance Broker and discuss purchasing a Liability policy that fits your needs. Nobody wants to spend any more money then necessary and certainly not to insurance companies that already have millions of dollars. But insurance companies have millions of dollars for a reason and that is to protect your investment, your future and your legacy. Besides it’s nice to know that in the event of some unforeseen mishap that your business and personal lives are covered from life’s upsets