Middletown, OH Business Insurance

Middletown, OH, is home to more than 3,500 companies. From the AK Steel factory to the many shops and restaurants that line Roosevelt Boulevard, every business in this city plays an important role in providing employment and contributing to the local economy. Business insurance helps these companies stay profitable in times of trouble.

Choosing the right business insurance products can be complicated, but you do not need to do it on your own. Independent agents in Middletown can help by identifying your company’s specific exposures and recommending the best and most affordable insurance policies to cover against each of them. Contact an insurance agent near you to learn more.

Why Do Middletown, Ohio, Businesses Need Liability Insurance?

Liability insurance is arguably one of the most important parts of every business insurance policy package. It is designed to cover court costs, legal defense fees, financial damages, and other expenses if your business is sued for a covered event.

You will need to be sure that you have the right kinds of insurance to cover against each of the specific liability risks faced by your Middletown business. A local independent agent can help you determine which policies your companies need and which it can do without.

Some of the many commercial liability products that you may want to consider adding to your business insurance policy package include:

• Premises liability insurance: This covers third-party injuries, illnesses, and property damage that occurs due to accidents on your business property for which your company can be deemed responsible.
• Product liability insurance: This covers third-party injuries, illnesses, and property damage that is caused by defects or design flaws in products your business produces, sells, or promotes.
• Cyber liability insurance: This covers financial losses and obligations if criminals install skimmers on your credit card readers or hack into your computer system and steal sensitive client information such as financial details, social security numbers, or personal data. It can cover restitution and credit monitoring services for affected customers.
• Employment practices liability insurance (EPLI): This covers costs related to accusations of illegal employment practices such as harassment, discrimination, retaliation, breach of contract, and wrongful termination.
• Commercial vehicle liability insurance: This covers your company’s increased liability risks if an employee causes a collision while driving a company vehicle. This insurance is required for any company-owned vehicles such as cars, trucks, vans, and buses.
• Liquor liability insurance: This covers companies that serve alcoholic beverages. It is necessary because if an intoxicated patron causes injuries or property damage to another, Ohio’s dram shop laws enable the injured party to sue the company that provided the alcohol.

You can learn more about these and many other commercial liability coverage options by consulting an independent insurance agent in Middletown.

What Insurance Products Cover Your Business Property?

All business insurance policies include commercial property insurance. This coverage is designed to pay for lost or damaged business property such as merchandise, inventory, furniture, outdoor signs, computers, tools, and supplies.

Businesses in Middletown, OH, are most likely to experience property loss or damage due to hazards such as accidental structure fires, property crimes, and severe weather events like storms, hail, tornadoes, blizzards, and freezing temperatures. Fortunately, commercial property insurance covers against all of these risks.

Sometimes, additional property insurance products are also necessary. When reviewing your company’s coverage needs, an independent insurance agent may recommend supplementing your commercial property insurance with other policies such as:

• Commercial flood insurance: This is important because commercial property insurance does not cover against flood damage. Middletown businesses located near waterways like Clear Creek, Shaker Creek, and Dicks Creek are most at risk. But when prolonged heavy rains fall in the area, flash flooding can happen just about anywhere.
• Inland marine insurance: This is important if your business owns expensive portable property. It can cover this property whenever it is in transit or is being stored away from your place of business, such as at a job site or in a warehouse.
• Bailees insurance: This is important if your business provides repair, maintenance, or alteration services on expensive items owned by your customers. It is designed to cover your clients’ property whenever it is in your company’s care, custody, or control.

A local independent insurance agent can help you be sure 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 as necessary.

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Why Is Business Interruption Insurance a Good Idea in Middletown, OH?

Tornado activity in the Middletown area is 66% greater than the national average.

One of the worst to strike in the area was an F5 twister that touched down just 19 miles from the Middletown city center. This tornado caused several injuries and deaths and was responsible for more than $50 million in damage to area homes and businesses.

Disasters in Ohio

• Number of federally declared disasters in OH since 1953: 59
• Most common reasons for declared disasters: Severe storms, floods, and tornadoes
• Average number of tornadoes in OH per year: 19.2

Disasters of this magnitude can be devastating to businesses. Although your commercial property insurance can cover the cost to replace lost or damaged assets, it could take several weeks before your business can reopen. Most small companies cannot withstand a long-term loss of income like this.

Business interruption insurance provides a solution to this problem by providing your company with a continuation of income until it is able to resume normal operations. This coverage is only applicable if your company is facing a forced closure due to a covered event.

Business interruption insurance enables your company's regular monthly expenses such as utility payments, loan installments, and employee salaries without sustaining a large financial loss, even though it is temporarily unable to generate revenue.

Talk to an independent insurance agent for help determining whether this optional insurance is a good fit for your Middletown business.

Do Businesses in Middletown Need Workers' Compensation Insurance?

If you own a business in Middletown, you are expected to provide a safe and healthy workplace for your employees. Unfortunately, even when all reasonable precautions are taken, workers sometimes suffer injuries or occupational illnesses.

Workers' compensation insurance is designed to cover the cost of medical treatment, follow-up care, disability pay, and other expenses related to workplace injuries. In cases of fatalities, this insurance can also provide long-term benefits to surviving family members.

With a few exceptions, if you have at least one employee in this state, you are required by law to have workers’ compensation insurance. Ohio is what is known as a monopolistic state. This means that all policies must be purchased through the state-administered fund.

Because of this, a local insurance agent can help you purchase a workers’ compensation policy, but cannot shop around to find it at a competitive rate.

What about Insurance Products for Employee Benefits Packages?

Are you thinking about offering employee benefits packages to your workers?

• Approximate annual amount spent on healthcare coverage by OH businesses: $2 billion
• Average annual cost of health care in OH: $5,886/person or $15,955/family

Although health insurance can be rather expensive, offering subsidized coverage to your employees may have cost-saving benefits for your company.

According to studies done by human resources managers, businesses that have competitive employee benefits packages find it easier to attract and retain the most qualified employees. Also, many small businesses can benefit from tax incentives for purchasing employee health insurance products.

There are many different health insurance and life insurance products available for you to choose from. This can make it difficult to determine which policies are the best choices to include in your employee benefits package.

An independent insurance agent in Middletown can explain the pros and cons of each of your options and can provide you with customized quotes from competing insurance providers. That way, you can make an informed decision.

Why Work with an Independent Insurance Agent in Middletown, OH?

Every company has specific risks and exposures. That is why insurance companies enable business owners to fully customize their business insurance coverage.

Independent agents make shopping for coverage easy and stress-free by providing guidance and by shopping around to help you find the best and most affordable policies to cover your Middletown business. Set up an obligation-free consultation with an insurance agent near you to learn more.