What Is Commercial Umbrella Insurance in Lancaster SC?
Commercial umbrella insurance in Lancaster SC gives you extra coverage to help pay for costs that exceed certain liability policy limits. Without umbrella coverage, you’d have to pay out of pocket for liability claims that cost more than your coverage limits. This can include:
- Legal costs
- Medical bills
- Damage to other people’s property
- Judgments and settlements
How Does Commercial Umbrella Insurance Work?
An umbrella policy extends the limits of some of your primary liability insurance policies, such as general liability insurance and commercial auto insurance.
Commercial umbrella insurance can extend the liability coverage of policies you may have with other insurance companies. Why it’s important to have umbrella coverage? Here’s an example. Let’s say one of your employees gets into a car accident with your dump truck while making a delivery. The property damage and bodily injury costs exceed your business’ commercial auto liability limits. If you don’t have a commercial umbrella policy, you’d have to pay the amount that exceeds your policy limit, putting your business at financial risk.
What Does an Umbrella Policy Cover?
A commercial umbrella policy can help cover claims of:
- Bodily injury, whether it’s an injured customer or employee
- Property damage your business causes to someone else’s belongings
- Libel
- Reputational Damage
- Vehicular Accidents
- Product Liability
Be aware that an umbrella insurance provides additional coverage on top of your general liability policy. So, if you don’t have general liability insurance, you won’t be able to get commercial umbrella insurance.
Commercial Umbrella Limits
Insurance companies write umbrella policies with aggregate limits. These limits can range from $1 million to $15 million. This means your insurance company will only cover claims up to that amount. The amount of umbrella insurance to buy is ultimately a business decision, as it is not possible to have total foresight into all possible risks that a business may face. However, to properly estimate the amount of umbrella insurance to buy, you should consider the risk exposures that are common to your industry.
What Is Not Covered By Commercial Umbrella Insurance?
Commercial umbrella insurance doesn’t cover every kind of claim. For example, umbrella insurance will not cover any property insurance claims, like a fire, whether you have commercial property insurance or not. The same goes for errors & omissions (E&O) insurance. Umbrella insurance will not cover any claims related to this type of policy.
Who Should Purchase Commercial Umbrella Insurance?
Especially today, the more your business interacts with clients and customers in person, the higher your liability risk. Your risks can be even greater if your employees use heavy machinery or dangerous equipment.
If you think the cost of a claim could exceed your liability limits, buying an umbrella insurance policy is a good idea. This coverage can help if your business:
- Frequently interacts with customers
- Works on someone else’s property
- Allows the public to visit during open hours
How Much Does a Policy Cost?
Your umbrella insurance cost can depend on your:
- Amount of underlying coverage
- Type of business
- Business’ size
Some industries face more risks than others, which can increase insurance costs. For example, a construction business’ umbrella coverage can cost more than a retail business.
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