If you are planning to open an auto body shop, you need to ensure you have the right type of insurance. While there are specific insurance plans for businesses, this is not a one-size-fits-all decision. You need to ensure everything from your physical assets to your customers’ vehicles is covered, and this may mean utilizing more than one insurance plan. There are at least four types of commercial insurance policies you need for your auto body shop.
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1. General Liability Insurance
This is also known as garage liability, and it protects your business from third-party claims of injuries or property damage during your daily operations. One example is damage to a customer’s vehicle while working on a repair, from scratches to a full collision. Another example is a customer slipping, falling, and getting hurt on a wet floor. Garage liability reduces financial stress by helping to cover property repair costs, medical expenses, and legal fees.
2. Workers’ Compensation Insurance
Workers’ compensation insurance is mandatory for many businesses and protects auto body shops from legal action if an employee is injured or becomes ill on the job. It covers medical bills, rehabilitation costs, and lost wages for employees who take time off. Additionally, it provides coverage for legal fees if an employee sues for workplace-related issues.
3. Commercial Property Insurance
Whether you own or lease your auto body shop, you need commercial property insurance to protect your physical assets. Commercial property insurance helps you to replace, repair, or rebuild your business property after a loss. This includes vandalism, theft, lightning, and electrical or plumbing issues. It also covers property loss after a fire, severe storm, or other natural disasters. With this insurance, you can reduce downtime and continue business operations as soon as possible.
4. Business Auto Insurance
There are two reasons to look into business auto insurance for your body shop. The first reason is to test-drive customers’ vehicles to ensure they are in good condition. Business auto insurance covers your employees, customers’ vehicles, and the company if there is an accident during the test drive. You also need business auto insurance to cover company-owned vehicles used for towing, deliveries, or other work-related tasks. You can take comfort in knowing all vehicles are covered in the event of an accident or collision during hours of operation.
Owning an auto body shop requires various types of insurance, but you want to start with these four insurance plans to protect your company both now and in the future. The key is to ensure your workplace, physical assets, customers’ vehicles, and company vehicles are covered in the event of an accident, a crime, or a natural disaster. You can even research add-ons to enhance your insurance plans, such as cyber liability insurance to protect your company and sensitive data against cyber attacks. When you start with these four types of commercial insurance, you can rest assured all your bases are covered.