Amherst Business Insurance
Find the right business insurance policy for you.
Written by
Ann Herro has been writing about insurance and employee benefits for over 15 years. She has covered topics as easy as insuring a car, and as difficult as transparency in healthcare costs.
Amherst, MA, provides an attractive destination for tourists and a recruiting center for entrepreneurs looking to hire talent from the University of Massachusetts, resulting in new businesses springing up every day. It’s a great place to have a business, with so many opportunities to live the dream. But there are a lot of things to have in place before you open your doors in Amherst, commercial insurance being one of them. An independent insurance agent can help you pick the right coverage for your business.
With a great commercial climate, Massachusetts is a great place for business:
- During previous years, there were 615,775 small businesses.
- They employed 1,404,234 people.
- But their total liability claims were $6,530,654 in losses.
To have a successful business means having the right business insurance. A strong relationship with your Independent Insurance Agent is a critical part of your Amherst business insurance. They can take the time to really get to know your business and identify the coverage you need – and obtain multiple quotes from many carriers to get you covered at a price your business can afford.
The core of good business insurance is coverage for general liability. This is protection for any damaging events on your property whether to customers, visitors or delivery personnel. It’s a critical part of your insurance because the liability you assume just by having your doors open every day is nearly unlimited. An injury on your premises can be extremely expensive, and if you are sued to cover the costs, you need to have someone defend you in court. That’s what general liability insurance covers for you. It’s a major concern for businesses large and small:
- A recent Travelers Business Risk summary found that 60 percent of all businesses said that medical cost inflation was their biggest concern.
- Over 30 percent responding that they were unprepared to handle this risk.
If you make a product of some kind or provide a personal service, you need to have product liability insurance in case your product or service causes injury. This covers any injury resulting from your product or service, for any reason. The Insurance Information Institute found that in recent years, 71 percent of product liability awards and 53 percent of medical malpractice awards were for more than $1 million. These are costs you cannot afford to handle on your own, so you need the right insurance for your business.
Business Interruption Insurance for Amherst Businesses
You can never be sure what might happen to cause your business to be unable to operate. A storm may leave you with damage or simply without power for a few days. Civil unrest such as student protests may leave you unable to come to the office. Business interruption insurance covers this loss, based on your income when you were up and operating before the interruption, for any reason beyond your control. Many times, this coverage is the difference between a business surviving a storm and having to close its doors. Having the right protection is essential to a business that your customers and employees can rely on.
Property Insurance for Amherst Businesses
Protecting your property is another critical concern for the right business insurance. Recently, there were 119 natural disasters across the U.S., but only 61 percent of the resulting damage was covered by insurance. That left the property owners responsible for over $9.7 billion in losses that they had to cover on their own. The right insurance for you is about much more the coverage at an affordable price, however. In order to get back up and operating after a storm or other event, you need a carrier that is quick and responsive. That’s why a strong relationship with an Amherst-based agent is critical to finding the best policy for your business.
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Workers' Compensation for Amherst Businesses
Massachusetts state law requires every business with employees to carry workers' compensation coverage, usually known as “workman’s comp.” This is a policy that pays out to an employee when the employee is injured on the job and cannot work for some time, regardless of whether that injury is from a one-time event or occurred over a period of time.
- Recently, workman’s comp paid out $1.27 for every $100 in wages.
- That is an average of $612 per employee.
Your business is assessed for this coverage based on the employees you have and the type of work they do. If you have a record of your employees' claims history, the cost is based on your own history. New businesses are charged based on schedules from similar businesses in the area.
Employee Coverages for Amherst Businesses
Massachusetts-based businesses paid $1,061,981 for employee health care coverage in recent years. The average single person health plan cost $6,379, and a family policy averaged $17,424 – both of which are very close to the national average. But this coverage is only part of the package of insurances that you may want to offer your employees. Your options include the following:
- Health plan insurance: This is required by law for companies with 50 or more employees, but many smaller businesses are opting to provide this coverage as a service for their loyal workers.
- Life insurance: In case something happens to your employee, you may want the employee covered by your business. You may also want to protect the family as well
- Disability insurance: Similar to life insurance, this pays out when an employee cannot work anymore for any reason.
A good business owner will at least give employees the option to buy in to a wide variety of insurance plans. It’s a good way to encourage loyalty for your best workers and to keep them happy.
Save on Business Insurance
Our independent agents shop around to find you the best coverage.
Cyber Crime Insurance for Amherst Businesses
For all the types of insurance that your business needs, there are always a few things that you may not even think of. For example, cyber crime and identity theft can leave you with nearly unlimited liability, as a criminal can incur a tremendous amount against your credit before you even know about it. Massachusetts had an average rate of reported identity thefts in recent years, with 5,116 reported incidents. That’s quite a lot to worry about, even at a low rate.
For all these needs and many more, your independent agent can help you find the coverage you need to protect the business you work so hard to build. Because they are located right here, in the heart of so much commerce, our agents have seen it all and know what you will need.
Talk to an agent today to be sure that you have the business insurance that will keep you going no matter what comes your way.