Business Insurance

Business insurance can be divided into two broad types. There is the aforementioned liability insurance that covers the business against claims against it by other parties, and there is insurance cover that protects a business from the consequences of some sort of loss or damage incurred. The former pays out to a third party via the business, the latter to the business itself as compensation.

The most straightforward type of business insurance cover is insurance against loss of income or loss of assets. This would cover eventualities such as a fire that destroys equipment, or a breakdown of equipment that prevents operation of the business, resulting in a loss of money that would otherwise have been earned. This would come into effect in addition to cover for assets that are damaged or destroyed, as a fire might also cause a business to shut down for a while, causing further loss.

Another common form of business insurance is professional liability insurance, which is a form of cover usually taken out by professionals such as doctors, accountants, lawyers and the like. This covers the professional against being sued for liability as a result of some accidental event that caused losses to a client.

Business liability insurance covers a really wide range of contingencies. Below is a broad overview of a few of these areas. It would include physical harm suffered by employees or visitors to the business premises, as well as risks that employees would face in the execution of their jobs - for example building site accidents in the case of construction workers. Intellectual property liability would cover a media company against accidental infringement of copyright, for instance, while cyber liability cover would protect against the damage that a virus may do to clients' information that a company is storing in digital form. Contractual liability cover would protect a business from an event that has been accidentally omitted from a contract, resulting in liability.

You can clearly see that this is a very broad area, and if you're a business owner you would do well to consult a recommended insurance expert on your needs.

South African Companies That Offer Business Insurance