Business owner's policy
General liability, commercial property and business income in one package, built for small and mid-size businesses with a premises and low-hazard operations.
Business owner's policy- Home
- Business insurance
- Commercial property
Commercial property
Commercial property insurance
Coverage for the building you own or the space you lease, and the equipment, furniture, inventory and improvements inside it.
Who needs it
Who this is for
Anyone whose business would stop if the premises or its contents were damaged.
- Businesses that own their building
- Tenants responsible for improvements, fixtures and contents under a lease
- Studios and post houses with edit suites, servers and gear on site
- Retailers and distributors holding inventory
- Professional offices with furniture, computers and records
What it covers
Coverage parts, and what to watch on each
Summaries only. The policy wording governs, and every carrier's form is different.
| Coverage | What it does | What to watch |
|---|---|---|
| Building | The structure, permanently installed fixtures and attached equipment, if you own it. | Insure to full replacement cost. Coinsurance penalties apply when the limit is too low. |
| Business personal property | Furniture, equipment, inventory and supplies inside the premises. | Property that leaves the building, such as cameras on a shoot, usually needs inland marine. |
| Tenant improvements and betterments | Build-outs you paid for in leased space. | Your lease decides who insures what. Send it to us. |
| Business income and extra expense | Lost income and the added cost of operating elsewhere while covered damage is repaired. | Only for covered physical loss. Utility interruption and civil authority may need to be added. |
| Equipment breakdown | Mechanical or electrical failure of HVAC, servers and other systems, which standard forms exclude. | Often a modest add-on with real value for anyone running servers or editing suites. |
| Causes of loss | Named perils, or special form, which covers everything not excluded. | Flood and earthquake are excluded on both. They are separate policies. |
The hard part
What it does not cover
- Flood and earthquake
- Wear and tear, rust, gradual deterioration
- Property in transit or off premises beyond a small limit
- Vehicles licensed for road use
- Money and securities beyond a small limit
- Cyber events and data
The number that matters most is the limit. We start with a replacement-cost estimate, not the number the last policy used.
How to get it
From first call to bound coverage
- 01Inventory the propertyBuilding, contents, improvements, and anything that leaves the premises.
- 02Set replacement costRebuild cost for the building, replacement cost for contents.
- 03Choose the formSpecial form unless there is a reason not to. Add business income.
- 04Review annuallyNew equipment and new space change the limit.
Questions
Common questions
Replacement cost or actual cash value?
Replacement cost pays to replace with new. Actual cash value deducts depreciation, which on five-year-old equipment can be most of the value. We recommend replacement cost almost everywhere.
What is coinsurance?
A clause that requires you to insure to a percentage of full value, usually 80 to 100 percent. If your limit is lower, the claim is reduced proportionally, even for a small loss.
Does it cover my laptop at a client site?
Usually only up to a small off-premises limit. Equipment that travels belongs on an inland marine or equipment floater.
Is business income included?
Not automatically. It is one of the most useful coverages and one of the most often skipped. Ask for it with a realistic period of restoration.
I rent. Do I need property insurance?
If you own anything in the space, yes. Your landlord's policy covers the building, not your contents or the improvements you paid for.
Related
Often placed alongside
General liability
The foundation policy for any business with a premises, customers, contracts or a certificate request: third-party bodily injury, property damage, and personal and advertising injury.
General liabilityCyber insurance
Breach response, business interruption, extortion and third-party liability for businesses that hold client data, run on cloud systems or get paid online.
Cyber insuranceStart with the quote form, or a call.
The online application takes a few minutes for standard business lines. For production, media and professional liability, call or email and we will tell you what we need.