Freeport Business Insurance

New York State’s second-biggest village, Freeport, is home to nearly 5,000 businesses. From small commercial ventures run out of people’s homes to the many businesses that line Sunrise Highway, each plays an important role in the health of the local economy. Business insurance protects these companies in times of trouble.

Independent agents make shopping for business insurance easy. A local agent can help you identify your company’s specific exposures and can find the best and most affordable insurance products to cover against them. 

Find an insurance agent in Freeport to get more information and to start comparing customized business insurance quotes.

What Kinds of Liability Coverage Can Your Freeport, NY, Business Insurance Provide?

If your business ends up on the wrong end of a liability lawsuit, having the right insurance coverage is crucial for your company’s finances to be protected. This is true even in the courts ultimately rule in your company’s favor.

Business liability insurance products are designed to cover expenses like court costs, legal defense fees, and financial damages if your company is sued for a covered event.

All business insurance policies include, at a minimum, commercial general liability insurance (CGL). This insurance is designed to cover some of the most common liability risks faced by businesses. Its main coverage components are:

• Premises liability insurance: This covers third-party injuries, illnesses, and damage that occurs on your business property.
• Product liability insurance: This covers third-party injuries illnesses and property damage caused by a defect or design flaw in a product your company produces, sells, or promotes.

Commercial general liability insurance can also cover against additional risks including, but not limited to, accusations of copyright infringement, false advertising, deceptive pricing, libel, slander, and invasion of privacy.

Many companies have liability risks that go well beyond what CGL policy can cover. An independent insurance agent can help you identify your business’s other liability exposures and can recommend the right liability coverage products to protect against them. 

Examples of some of the commercial liability insurance products your insurance agent may recommend include:

• Employment practices liability insurance: This covers against accusations of perceived illegal employment practices such as discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and wrongful termination.
• Cyber liability insurance: This covers businesses that electronically store customer information if their company computer networks are hacked and this data is stolen by cybercriminals. This insurance can pay for the resultant damage and can provide restitution in the form of compensation and credit monitoring services for individuals who were affected by the data breach.
• Liquor liability insurance: In New York, it is illegal to serve alcohol to a visibly intoxicated person. This insurance protects businesses that serve alcohol in the event that an intoxicated patron causes injuries or property damage to others while under the influence. This is important since New York’s dram shop laws allow the injured party to sue the business that provided the drinks.
• Environmental liability insurance: This covers businesses that use, sell, or produce toxic substances. It can pay for cleanup costs and damage if an accident or disaster leads to these substances polluting the environment, including the land, air, or water.

Talk to your insurance agent to learn more about these and other liability products that may be a good fit for your Freeport business.

What Kinds of Property Does Freeport Business Insurance Cover?

Commercial property insurance is a standard part of every business insurance policy. It is designed to cover the cost of repairing or replacing your company-owned property if it is damaged or destroyed by a covered event.

Businesses in Freeport are most likely to experience property damage caused by severe weather events like hurricanes, severe storms, hail, heavy snows, and freezing temperatures, which can cause water pipes to burst. Fortunately, all of these hazards are covered by commercial property insurance.

Depending on the nature of your business, an independent insurance agent may recommend supplementing your commercial property insurance coverage with additional policies such as:

• Commercial flood insurance: This is necessary because commercial property insurance specifically excludes flood damage from its coverage. In Freeport, many businesses are at risk for flooding, especially when hurricanes and tropical storms bring heavy prolonged rains and cause storm surges in the Bay.
• Inland marine insurance: This is important for companies that have expensive portable property. It can cover this property while it is being transported and while it is being stored away from your place of business, such as at a job site or in a warehouse.
• Bailees insurance: This is important for businesses that perform maintenance, alteration, or repair services on expensive property owned by their customers. It can cover these items whenever they are in your company’s custody, care, or control.

A local independent agent can help you be certain that all of your business assets are appropriately covered and that your coverage limits are high enough to enable you to rebuild, repair, or replace without experiencing a large financial loss.

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Why Purchase Business Interruption Insurance?

Tornado activity in the Freeport area is 54% smaller than the national average, but this does not mean that the risk does not exist. For instance, in 1998, an F2 twister touched down just 4.9 miles from the Freeport village center and caused about $1 million in damages to area homes and businesses.

Damage to your business-owned property isn’t the only expensive risk your business faces during a catastrophic event like a tornado or a structure fire. Major damage has the potential to force your businesses to remain closed for several weeks while repairs are made.

Disasters in New York

• Number of federally declared disasters in NY since 1953: 101
• Most common reasons for declared disasters: Severe storms, floods, and heavy snows
• Average number of tornadoes in NY per year: 9.6

A long-term forced closure can be devastating for most small businesses. Would your company be able to handle the financial ramifications if you were unable to generate revenue for an extended time?

Business interruption insurance protects against this risk by providing a continuation of income during the times that your company is forced to temporarily shut down because of excessive damage caused by a covered event.

When your company is covered by business interruption insurance, you can afford to continue paying regular expenses like loan payments, bills, and employee salaries until your business can once again resume normal operations.

A local independent insurance agent can help you determine whether this optional coverage is a good fit for your Freeport business.

Do All Freeport Businesses Need Workers’ Compensation Insurance?

If you have employees in New York, you are required by law to carry workers’ compensation insurance. Exceptions are made only for sole proprietors and partners, though you may cover these workers if you want to.

Workers’ compensation insurance is designed to cover medical treatments, disability pay, and other related expenses if your workers are hurt on the job or if they suffer an occupational illness due to exposure to toxic substances at the workplace.

Costs for workers’ compensation insurance are based primarily on the types of jobs your workers do and how much they are paid. The more dangerous the job, the higher the cost for coverage will be. Therefore, it would cost much more to insure a long-haul truck driver than it would to cover an accountant in a tax office.

A local independent insurance agent can help you compare rates from a few competing providers who specialize in covering businesses like yours. That way, you can be sure that you are not overpaying for this mandatory coverage.

What about Purchasing Insurance Benefits for Your Employees?

Healthcare coverage in the United States is expensive. However, subsidizing this coverage for your employees can have money-saving benefits for your company.

Studies by human resource experts have repeatedly shown that workers who have access to healthcare coverage tend to use up fewer sick days. Also, offering an attractive employee benefits package helps businesses recruit and retain some of the most qualified employees.

If you are looking for health insurance and life insurance products for your employees, you will find that there are many different policy types and options available to choose from.

You may therefore find it beneficial to have the guidance and advice of an experienced insurance professional. A local independent insurance agent can explain the pros and cons of each of your various options and can help you find appropriate coverage at a competitive price.

Why Work with an Independent Insurance Agent in Freeport, NY?

Risks and exposures can vary greatly from one company to the next. That is why there is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all business insurance plan. With a wide variety of products and options at your disposal, you can fully customize the insurance policy package you put together for your business.

Independent insurance agents can help you choose the right policies and options to meet your company’s specific coverage needs. Because they do not work for a particular insurance company, these agents can shop around to find the best coverage at the most competitive prices.

Set up an obligation-free consultation with an insurance agent in Freeport to learn more.