Okemos Business Insurance

With so many people getting out of the city and into the countryside, Okemos and Meridian Township is a great place to start a business. It takes a lot of things to open a business today, including great vision and solid financial backing. You also need business insurance to protect you from losses, even in the booming business climate of Michigan. And booming it is. Michigan is home to 856,682 small businesses that employ 1.8 million people. The need for reliable insurance in Okemos, MI was underscored by the total claims of $12.8 million paid out in recent years for insurance claims.

The best place to start for your Okemos commercial insurance needs is to form a relationship with your Independent Insurance Agent. What your agent will do is get to know your business and put experience to work finding all the kinds of insurance you need so that you don’t have to worry about unforeseen events and can concentrate on what you do best. Because our agents live here in Okemos, they know which companies are best for you and they will find multiple quotes from all of them to give you the best insurance for your business at the most affordable price.

The heart of your business insurance is coverage for general liability. That is your protection against costs for any injuries on your property from customers, visitors, and delivery people. 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 because of potential medical costs, which are nearly unlimited. The cost of an injury is no small matter. In a recent Travelers Business Risk survey found that 60 percent of all business said medical cost inflation is their biggest concern, and over 30 percent said that they were unprepared to handle this risk. Every business has to have the right coverage to protect it from this liability.

If you make a product of some kind or provide a personal service, you also need to have product liability insurance. This covers any injury resulting from your service or product for any reason, just like general liability. The Insurance Information Institute found that recently, 71 percent of product liability awards and 53 percent of medical malpractice awards were for more than $1 million. Protection against these liabilities is the most important insurance your business needs for events beyond your control.

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Business Interruption Insurance for Okemos Businesses

Business interruption insurance covers any loss that comes from not being able to open your doors in the morning for any reason beyond your control. It’s based on your income when you were up and operating before the interruption. It compensates you for lost income for incidents such as these:

• Fire
• Water pipe breaks
• Natural disaster
• Any other reason your business is interrupted that is not your fault

In short, business interruption insurance is what keeps you going when the unforeseen happens and you can’t operate. This is often the difference between a business that can survive a catastrophe and one that cannot.

Property Insurance for Okemos Businesses

After covering your loss from not being open when something happens, the next thing is to get your business back up and operating. There were 119 natural disasters across the U.S. in recent years, but only 61 percent of the damage from these disasters was covered by insurance. That left the property owners responsible for over $9.7 billion in losses above their coverage. Property Insurance is about much more than storm coverage, however. This insurance puts your premises back together after any unforeseen event whether you own or rent it. Events that are covered are the same as for business interruption insurance. It’s very important for any business to have coverage in order to bounce back after a devastating loss.

Save on Business Insurance

Our independent agents shop around to find you the best coverage.

Request a quote

Workers' Compensation for Okemos Businesses

Every business with employees has to carry workers' compensation coverage under Michigan state law. Generally known as “workman’s comp,” this is a policy that pays an employee for on-the-job injuries and inability to work for some time, regardless of whether that injury is from a one-time event or from repetitive injury. Across the U.S., workman’s comp paid out $1.27 for every $100 in wages in recent years, an average of $612 per employee.

The type of employees and the work they do determine your rate, based on claims from similar businesses. There are often things you can do to keep your cost low, however, such as having ergonomic equipment and training employees. Getting to know these simple things that can make a difference is part of the reason an Independent Agent can make a big difference for your business.

Employee Coverages for Okemos Businesses

In recent years, business in Michigan paid $1.1 billion for employee health care. The average single person health plan cost employers $5,321, and a family policy was $15,242. This is very close to the national average. The most common employee-based insurance plans that businesses offer 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 to cover the employee as well as protect the family.
• Disability insurance: This is similar to life insurance. This pays out when an employee cannot work anymore for any reason.

Your employees depend on you as much as you depend on them. It may be a good practice for you to take care of them and offer them the insurance they need to protect their families – and keep the loyal employees your business needs.

Cyber Crime Insurance for Okemos Businesses

When considering your business insurance needs, there are probably a few things that you may not even think of. Cyber crime and identity theft, for example, can leave you with nearly unlimited liability if a criminal steals your credit before you even know about it. How serious is this? There were 10,338 reported identity thefts recently in Michigan, the sixth highest in the nation. Not all were found out in time to prevent serious losses. If your identity is stolen, the liability is limited only by your available credit – your good name. This is only one example of the kinds of business insurance you may not think about on your own.

Your Independent Agent is your best resource to find the coverage you need to protect the business you have worked so hard to build. Because they are located right here in Okemos, they are uniquely positioned to get to know you and the best coverage options for your business. 

Talk to them today to be sure that you have the business insurance that will keep you going no matter what comes your way.