Rock Hill Business Insurance
Everything you need to know - and more
There are about 5,000 businesses operating in the Charlotte suburb of Rock Hill, SC. Whether you own a two-person landscaping company, a large construction firm, or anything in between, having appropriate business insurance in place can help to protect the investment you have made in your business. That way hazards like hurricanes and theft will not damage your bottom line.
Local independent insurance agents make shopping for coverage easy. These agents are available to help you identify your company’s specific risks and find the right commercial insurance products to cover them. Find an independent insurance agent in Rock Hill to learn more and you can soon be comparing customized business insurance quotes.
What Kinds of Liability Coverage Can Your Rock Hill Business Insurance Provide?
If your business ends up on the wrong end of a liability lawsuit, having the right insurance coverage is essential for protecting your company’s finances. Business liability insurance is designed to absorb expenses like court costs, legal defense fees, and damages if your company is sued for a covered event. At a minimum, all business insurance policies include commercial general liability insurance or CGL. It is designed to cover third-party injuries, illnesses, and damage, whether they are caused by an accident on your business property (premises liability insurance) or by a defect in a product your company produces, sells, or promotes (product liability insurance).
Most businesses have liability risks that go well beyond what a basic CGL policy can cover. An independent insurance agent can help you identify your company’s other liability exposures and can recommend the right liability coverage products to protect against them. Examples of some of the many commercial liability insurance policies available to you include:
- Employment practices liability insurance: This covers businesses against lawsuits related to accusations of illegal employment practices such as discrimination, harassment and wrongful termination.
- Cyber liability insurance: This covers businesses that electronically store customer data in the event that hackers break into their computer systems and steal sensitive data like credit card numbers and personal information. It can also cover losses if cyber criminals install skimmers on credit card readers to steal credit card information. This insurance can pay for resultant damages and provide restitution to those who were affected.
- Pollution liability insurance: This is designed to cover businesses that use or produce toxic substances. It can pay for clean-up costs and damages if an accident or disaster leads to these substances polluting 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 Rock Hill business.
What Kinds of Property Does Rock Hill Business Insurance Cover?
All business insurance policies also provide commercial property insurance. This is designed to cover the cost of repairing or replacing your company’s property if it is damaged or destroyed by a covered event. This insurance can cover business assets, including merchandise, inventory, tools, machinery, computers, furniture, and more. Businesses in Rock Hill are most likely to experience property damage caused by fires, property crimes, and severe weather events like tornadoes, hurricanes, and hail. Fortunately, these hazards are covered by your commercial property insurance. Adding inland marine insurance can cover your portable business's assets when they are in transit or temporarily off-site.
One hazard that is not covered by your commercial property insurance, however, is flood damage. This is a very real risk in Rock Hill, particularly for businesses located near the Catawba River, Little Dutchman Creek and Manchester Creek. But when hurricanes and tropical storms bring prolonged, heavy rains to the area, flash flooding can occur anywhere. Fortunately, a local independent insurance agent can help you add a commercial flood insurance policy to your business insurance portfolio. NFIP-backed flood insurance policies provide an affordable way to protect your company from losses associated with rising waters.
Talk to a local insurance agent to learn more about covering your business property.
Why Purchase Business Interruption Insurance?
Damage to your business-owned property isn’t the only expensive risk your business faces during a catastrophic event. Major damage caused by disasters like fires and tornadoes can potentially cause your businesses to remain closed for several weeks while repairs are made. Tornado activity in the Rock Hill area is 21% greater than the national average. While twisters may be relatively rare in this city, when they occur, they can bring widespread, significant damage to area homes and businesses. This can force affected businesses into long-term temporary closures.
Disasters in South Carolina
- Number of federally declared disasters in SC since 1953: 38
- Most common reasons for declared disasters: Hurricanes
- Average number of tornadoes in SC per year: 27
Without an ongoing stream of revenue, many small businesses would find themselves facing bankruptcy. Business interruption insurance protects against this risk. It provides a continuation of income during the times that your company is forced to temporarily close because of damage caused by a covered event. When your company is covered by business interruption insurance, you can afford to continue to pay regular expenses like loan payments and employee salaries until your business can once again resume normal operations.
Do All Rock Hill Businesses Need Workers’ Compensation Insurance?
If you have at least four employees in South Carolina, you are required by law to carry workers’ compensation insurance. There are a few exceptions. It is not necessary to buy coverage for sole proprietors, corporate partners, LLC members, railroad workers, real estate agents, textile mill corporation employees, and agricultural workers.
Workers’ compensation insurance is designed to cover medical treatment, medications, lost wages, and other related expenses if your workers are hurt on the job or suffer an occupational illness due to exposure to toxic substances in the workplace. This insurance can also pay out survivor benefits to family members in the unfortunate event that a workplace injury is fatal.
Costs for workers’ compensation insurance are based primarily on the types of jobs your workers do. The more dangerous the job, the higher the cost for coverage. It costs much more to insure a roofer than to cover a salesperson at a mall kiosk.
An independent insurance agent can help you review policies and compare rates from a variety of reliable insurance companies that specialize in covering businesses likes yours.
What about Purchasing Insurance Benefits for Your Employees?
It’s a fact that healthcare coverage is expensive. However, subsidizing it for your employees can have money-saving benefits for your company. Studies by human resource professionals have shown that workers who have health insurance tend to use fewer sick days. Also, offering an attractive benefits package helps businesses recruit and retain the most qualified employees.
- Annual amount spent on healthcare coverage by SC businesses: $878,428,000
- Ranked 32nd for highest medical insurance costs in the US
- Average annual cost of health care in SC: $5,557/person or $15,780/family
If you are looking for health and life insurance products to include in your employee benefits package, you will find that there are many different policy types and options available to you. You may therefore find it beneficial to have the guidance and advice of an experienced insurance professional when you are deciding which policies are best to purchase.
Why Work with an Independent Insurance Agent in Rock Hill, SC?
Businesses vary in their coverage needs. The risks at a store in the Rock Hill Galleria are very different from those at a manufacturing plant. 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 their disposal, business owners can fully customize their company’s insurance coverage.
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 business insurance policies at the most competitive prices. Contact an insurance agent in Rock Hill to get started.
https://www.census.gov/quickfacts
https://www.fema.gov/disasters
http://www.naic.org/prod_serv/AUT-PB-14.pdf
https://www.nfib.com/content/legal-compliance/legal/workers-compensation-laws-state-by-state-comparison-57181
https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/benefits/pages/alter-benefits-attract-retain.aspx
https://www.business.org/hr/benefits/top-reasons-to-offer-employee-benefits
http://www.city-data.com