Here We Grow – How Small Business Insurance Adapts to Meet You Where You’re At
Starting and growing a business is one of the most exciting and rewarding ventures you can take on. But between perfecting your offerings, managing your finances, and a whole lot more, it can also feel overwhelming. No matter where you are in your journey, protecting your business with insurance coverage will be one of the best ways to help reduce that stress and prepare for the milestones ahead of you.
And luckily, “insurance expert” isn’t one of the many hats you’ll need to wear.
To break down the often-intimidating world of small business insurance, we’ve asked award-winning* insurance provider BCAA to help you understand when you should consider obtaining it, why it’s so important, and how you can ensure your coverage is aligned with your growth.
When Do You Need Small Business Insurance?
We get it–nobody wants to think about all of the things that could go wrong, but having the right coverage will prevent your business from being negatively impacted.
When creating a business plan, consider reaching out to different insurance advisors to have initial conversations and obtain quotes. This will help you understand why your business may need insurance, what the expense will be, and which provider will be able to offer comprehensive coverage that meets your needs.
As the team at BCAA explains, “Having small business insurance from the start will help cover risks like liability, equipment breakdown, property damage, and professional mistakes. For example, if you’re opening a café, insurance is needed before the first customer walks in the door to ensure you’re protected in case they accidentally get injured. If you’re renovating your café, you’ll need small business insurance before you open in case you damage equipment or property during the process. We recommend that a small business insurance policy be effective as of the first date of operations or earlier.”
Getting Coverage that Meets Your Needs
Small business insurance is by no means a one-size-fits-all solution. By consulting with an insurance expert who understands your industry, you’ll be able to customize your coverage around your unique needs.
BCAA’s online tool for Small Business Insurance takes you through a series of questions that will assist you with getting a quote on a customized policy.
If you’d like to have a better understanding of what you should plan for, consulting with other entrepreneurs or finding a mentor who knows what it’s like to operate and grow a business in your industry can also be helpful.
Why Small Business Insurance is Important
In addition to mitigating risks that could pose significant challenges to your business, having insurance coverage in place will make you more appealing to potential investors, clients, and partners.
As BCAA explains, “An investor is typically looking for a reliable investment. A business that holds small business insurance is automatically much more attractive and stable as they have done their part in addressing the risk that their operations may face. Insurance coverage helps protect incidents that occur at any time during the coverage period, and this communicates that the likelihood of being sued without reliable recovery is low to potential investors.
Imagine that you’re looking for venture capital for your tech start-up. The start-up world is volatile, and businesses often face a lot of challenges when trying to establish themselves. However, showing potential investors that you have professional liability coverage indicates you’re prepared in case you face legal claims that might arise from unforeseen issues with a new technology.
Or, if you’re a store owner looking to expand your operations, you might consider getting business interruption coverage and loss of income coverage, which will give investors peace of mind knowing that if you must temporarily stop your operations due to a covered incident, you will still be able to recover your profit and cover your bills while the issue is being resolved.”
Like investors, some clients and partners may not want to work with a business that isn’t properly insured–and contracts that have insurer requirement sections are commonplace. Even when small business insurance is not a requirement, having it will communicate that you’re reliable, responsible, and trustworthy. That’s a win-win-win for potential investors, clients, and partners.
How Your Coverage Can Grow with You
Once you have small business insurance in place, BCAA recommends communicating any significant changes to your provider as soon as possible, as well as reviewing your policies regularly to ensure your coverage aligns with your growth. A few scenarios that would require a review of your policy include: opening or closing a location, hiring new employees, expanding your services, or experiencing a notable increase in revenue.
At minimum, your coverage should be reviewed annually ahead of your policy renewal–but informing your provider as proactively as possible will help ensure you’re always protected.
When significant growth occurs and changes are not communicated to the provider, it can result in a situation where a claim is denied.
In certain instances, your insurance provider may not be able to accommodate the change in coverage and a new provider may be required to meet your business’ evolving needs.
When considering if your coverage needs to be adjusted, ask yourself:
Have my operations changed?
Do I have new assets that will require additional coverage?
Will my clients require any additional coverage, such as cyber risk?
Get Started with BCAA
BCAA currently covers operations based in British Columbia within certain industries, but if it’s determined that their coverage is not best-suited to your business, their experts will put together a referral that will help you find an alternative solution.
As one of B.C.’s top insurance providers with award-winning service* and a local 24/7 emergency claims team, BCAA’s expert Small Business Advisors are available to help you get the coverage you need.
You can connect with them by calling 1-888-268-2222 or emailing smallbusiness@bcaa.com.
Use promo code “Forum” to get $50 off your policy. If you're a BCAA Member, you can also save up to 10% on your policy!
Looking for more information? Check out BCAA’s FAQ page and these helpful online resources.
*BCAA, in association with CAA, was chosen as the #1 Most Trusted Insurance Brand by British Columbia participants in the 2023 Gustavson Brand Trust Index.
The material in this article is provided for general informational purposes only and does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal or insurance advice.