Summerville Business Insurance

Everything you need to know - and more

Written by Meg Stefanac
Written by Meg Stefanac

Financial blogger and business owner, Meg Stefanac, has more than 15 years experience working in the financial services industry and enjoys helping individuals make solid financial decisions. Meg has extensive experience writing about insurance and finances and is a key contributor to TrustedChoice.com.

Updated
Statesboro Georgia business insurance

There are more than 4,000 small businesses located in the Charleston suburb of Summerville, SC. These range from one-person freelancing operations to companies that employ hundreds of workers. Whatever your company’s size or industry, business insurance can help to shield it from facing large financial losses if disaster strikes.

Independent insurance agents can help you build a comprehensive business insurance plan that provides your company with full protection against all of its potential risks. Contact a local independent insurance agent for help finding suitable coverage at a competitive price.

Summerville Business Insurance Provides Liability Coverage

Liability insurance is an essential part of every business insurance policy. It can cover court costs, legal defense fees, and financial damages if your business is sued for a covered event. All business insurance policies include commercial general liability insurance (CGL), which is designed to cover some of the most common liability risks businesses face.

CGL has two main coverage components:

Many businesses need to purchase additional insurance products in order to be fully covered against all of their liability exposures. Some of the many other commercial liability products that are available to you include:

  • Employment practices liability insurance: This covers your business against accusations of perceived illegal employment practices such as discrimination, harassment and wrongful termination.
  • Cyber liability insurance: This covers businesses that use computers to store sensitive customer data like credit card and Social Security numbers and personal information in the event that hackers access this data and those affected sustain financial or personal damages.
  • Environmental liability insurance: This covers damage and clean-up costs if an accident causes toxic substances used or produced by your business to pollute the air, land or water.
  • Liquor liability insurance: This covers businesses that sell, serve, or otherwise furnish alcoholic beverages in the event that they are named in a liability lawsuit brought about because of injuries or property damage caused by an intoxicated patron.

Your local independent insurance agent can help you determine whether these or any other commercial liability products are a good fit for your Summerville business.

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Property Insurance for Businesses in Summerville, SC

Commercial property coverage is included in all business insurance policies. It is designed to cover your business-owned property against loss or damage caused by a number of hazards such as property crimes, fires, hurricanes, hail, and severe storms.

Standard property insurance does not cover all risks, however. You may therefore need to supplement your coverage with additional policies such as:

  • Flood insurance: Businesses located near Sawmill Branch and Hurricane Branch have the highest risk of sustaining flood damage, but flash flooding can occur anywhere, especially during hurricane season.
  • Inland marine insurance: This can cover your high-value portable business property when it is in transit or being stored at a job site.
  • Boiler & machinery insurance: This can cover the cost to repair or replace malfunctioning machinery that is necessary for the running of your business. It can also cover business losses that arise due to the malfunction.

A local independent insurance agent will be able to offer you trustworthy advice about which policies make sense for your particular business and how much coverage is sufficient. That way, you can be sure that all of your company’s assets are fully protected.

Business Interruption Insurance Protects Summerville Businesses

Fires and natural disasters like hurricanes can be damaging, not just to your business property, but also to your bottom line. If your business is forced to close down for an extended period so that repairs can be made, the loss of income can be financially devastating for many small businesses. Business interruption insurance was created to shield against this problem.

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

Business interruption insurance is designed to provide your company with a continuation of income during the times it experiences a forced extended closure due to a covered event. This insurance, which is usually limited to one year, enables you to continue to pay employee salaries and monthly expenses without enduring financial losses. Talk to an insurance agent in Summerville for help determining whether business interruption insurance is a good fit for your particular business.

Employers in Summerville Need Worker’s Compensation Insurance

Workers are sometimes injured on the job. Whether your employees suffer a physical injury or they contract an occupational illness caused by exposure to a toxic substance in the workplace, you, as their employer, are responsible for covering the cost of their medical treatment and lost income. Workers’ compensation insurance is designed to cover these expenses.

In South Carolina, all businesses with at least four employees are required by law to carry workers’ compensation insurance. There are a few exceptions.  If your company had less than $3,000 in overall payroll in the previous year, coverage is not mandatory. Also, it is not necessary to cover:

  • Sole proprietors, LLC members or partners
  • Agricultural and railroad/railway workers
  • Textile hall corporation employees
  • Certain commission-paid real estate agents

The cost for workers’ compensation insurance is based mainly on the chances that your workers will suffer significant injuries based on the types of job they do. It costs more to cover a roofer than to cover a computer programmer.

Employee Benefits for Businesses in Summerville

Studies by human resources professionals have repeatedly shown that providing perks such as paid vacation, sick time, health insurance and life insurance can help your business attract and retain a talented pool of employees.

However, finding the best insurance products to offer in your employee benefits package can be a challenge. This is particularly true when it comes to healthcare coverage, which can be expensive.

  • 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

There are many different life and health insurance policy types and options available to choose from. An independent agent can explain the pros and cons of each of your various options and can help you review costs from competing insurers. That way, you can make an informed decision about which are the best choices for your Summerville business.

Let an Independent Agent in Summerville Help You Find the Best Coverage

There are a number of different commercial insurance products you can choose from when you are shopping for business insurance. This can make building a suitable insurance policy package confusing, especially if you are unfamiliar with the finer details of your various coverage options. Independent insurance agents in Summerville can help.

These insurance professionals can help you identify your company’s exposures and can recommend the right insurance products to cover against them.  They can also help you get appropriate policies at competitive rates. Find an independent insurance agent in or near Summerville to start comparing customized business insurance quotes.

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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