If you own a bakery and seek to protect your business, your first instinct may be to purchase a commercial general liability insurance policy. These shields companies against claims resulting from bodily injury and property damage, among other things. However, there is a more specific type of protection you can acquire: bakery insurance. Here is a close look at what this form of insurance covers and why it is essential.
The Basics Of Bakery Insurance
Before explaining the usefulness of bakery insurance, it is important to understand this type of policy’s fundamental elements.
How Does It Protect?
There are three notable ways in which a bakery insurance policy can protect your business. Here is an analysis of each of these forms of protection.
Shields Against Risks & Liability
The primary way that a bakery insurance policy protects a business is by shielding it against potential risks and liabilities. These include risks your employees may face, such as slip-and-fall accidents and other incidents that result in injuries, as well as liabilities associated with the products you sell. Examples of product liabilities include food contamination and spoilage, given the fact that many baked goods such as bread, muffins and donuts are perishable.
Offers Protection To Property
Bakeries are similar to other types of businesses in one major way: they own several forms of property. The term “property” encompasses both the physical building where the bakery is located and all the contents and equipment it contains. Your structure can sustain damage due to events such as hailstorms, fires, floods, and vandalism. Equipment and machinery such as ovens can also become damaged or destroyed in a kitchen fire. If your bakery is home-based, be sure to ask the agent in charge of handling your homeowners’ insurance policy to determine your level of coverage.
Secures Your Investment
A bakery represents a significant investment; thus, it’s important to adequately protect it. Most bakery insurance policies include loss of income coverage, which pays you if your shop is forced to temporarily close due to a storm, a fire, or a health crisis. Loss of income coverage can help you pay monthly bills such as a mortgage, payroll, and utilities.
Certain types of bakery-specific equipment — such as ovens and freezers — are also significant investments that need to be protected. A bakery insurance policy that includes equipment breakdown coverage will protect you if any of these items malfunctions and leads to a slowdown in production or sales.
Why Should I Acquire It?
There are two main reasons you should consider purchasing bakery insurance: it protects your business from risk and gives your employees peace of mind.
Protect Your Business From Risk
Regardless of size, bakeries and manufacturers of baked goods are vulnerable to many of the same risks other organizations are. Your building can sustain damage due to inclement weather events and vandalism. At the same time, your products can also become spoiled or contaminated, potentially leading to employees or customers suffering foodborne illnesses such as E. coli.
Grant Your Employees Peace Of Mind
Some bakery insurance policies also include employee dishonesty coverage. This pays for any losses that result from dishonest workers who steal money or other property from your business. This, coupled with premises liability claims that arise from workplace injuries, can ultimately reassure your employees that they are working in a safe and honest environment.
Bakery insurance policies also sometimes include cyber liability coverage, commercial auto insurance, and inland marine insurance, which covers damage to tools and equipment that move from one place to another outside your primary business location.
Contact Our Bakery Insurance Agents
Reach out to the experienced agents at Southern States Insurance in Alpharetta, Georgia for more information on bakery insurance and how it can help your business. Since our founding in 1992, we have grown to become one of the largest, privately-held independent insurance agencies in the Southeastern United States. We work with nearly every major carrier and are dedicated to helping our clients find high-value insurance solutions customized to meet their unique needs.
If you own a bakery or other similar business, you will benefit significantly from acquiring bakery insurance. This type of policy is designed to protect both your employees and your property from a wide range of risks and liabilities. The average cost of a policy often depends on multiple factors, including the number of employees your bakery hires, whether you own or rent your space, your sales volume, and the number of vehicles your business owns. We do not cover home-based bakeries.
Call Southern States Insurance today at (888) 971-6304 or contact us online to request a quote.