Office and Surgery Insurance

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What is Office & Surgery Insurance?

About the only thing that doctors, dentists, internet and other small service companies have in common is the fact that they all operate out of small facilities. Business Office Insurance is a flexible package of integral coverages that allow these professionals to apply their training and expertise to clients instead of worrying about the ins and outs of insurance.

Small office insurance is actually a trifecta of covers. This includes Buildings Insurance for the actual physical building (if owned by the business), Contents, which includes all the computers, office equipment, special items like dental chairs, etc., and Tenants’ improvements, which is especially applicable for medical surgeries, where special features may have been redesigned within the building to accommodate services.

Who Needs Office & Surgery Insurance?

As the name of the cover indicates, Office and Surgery Insurance is for any small business. This can include small traders, partnerships, or any limited company that has few employees (actually on-premises). Most insurance companies offer the same basic covers, shopping around should help you find the best deal as well as the company that provides the cover that suits your particular needs more appropriately.

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What are the Benefits of this Insurance Cover?

Going into business requires certain legal responsibilities, one of which includes Employer’s Liability coverage - since more than likely you are going to have at least one employee. And even if your particular company is not specifically designed to serve the general public, Public Liability coverage means that you are protected should anyone (not in your employ) suffer any kind of injury in your office - or even on the pavement out front.

Given the wide variety of business categories covered by this insurance, additional policies can be obtained to cover such essentials as inventory, technical equipment breakdown such as computers, and technical components, your library - medical, legal, or specific to your field of expertise - even overdue customer payments and what most insurers characterise fairly gently as employee dishonesty, but usually involves outright theft.

Small businesses often put a heavy burden on the boss, the individual owner or proprietor. Thus coverage for personal accidents, cover during travel to conferences or to meet with clients, and the latest unfortunate element: terrorism is also included.

One little known aspect that has spawned a new kind of consultant is known as Revenue Protection. Insurers have jumped into the game, especially in the case of small business owners who can often be the most vulnerable. One telling statistic expresses this clearly - enticing a new client or customer to take advantage of your service usually costs ten times more than retaining your current clients. Thus, having an ongoing strategy in place that buffers against competitive threats or unanticipated events that can endanger cash flow for several months, is a vital part of any business plan - and crucial for small businesses.

Beyond the possibility of external commercial forces negatively affecting your business, there is also cover available for natural or other disasters. For example, it is estimated that the American economy dropped by 25 percent after the terrorist attack on the World Trade Centre. The uncertain climate, emotional and commercial, of the months following 9/11 drove a significant number of small businesses to fail.

Which Office & Surgery Insurance to Choose?

Given the variety of covers and their potential impact on your small business, it is vital that you carefully measure the various tenders offered by different insurers. Too much coverage, say in the area of Indemnity, might wind up costing you a bit more, but having too little coverage could ruin you financially for years. Also, it doesn’t hurt to chart out the various aspects of your future coverage.

One area where insurers almost always differ has to do with the spectrum of optional coverage. What may look like the best price for basic coverage may prove more expensive if you wind up going back to add options to meet your business’s requirements. A lower price for coverage might involve higher excesses, which means that each time you have to make a claim, you lose money you thought you had saved.

Being able to tailor your coverage as you develop your business is another plus. Knowing that your potential insurer has flexible options instead of iron clad policies is an important plus that may wind up being more important than price. And above all, check and double check any exclusions. The only thing worse than high excesses is the realisation that you’re not covered at all because of a paragraph of fine print.