Can you insure my home business?
One of the great benefits of living in a free country is the ability to start your own business. Based on the last census almost 10% of Americans work from home. Half of those are self-employed. That amounts to almost 7 million Americans.
If you have a home based business, or if you are considered a self-employed independent contractor rather than an employee, there are some issues to address regarding your home insurance. Most insurance policies will only cover business property at 50% of it’s value unless the business is specifically covered on your policy. It may only cost a few dollars a year to add your business so it makes sense to make your agent aware of this if they don’t ask you first.
In addition to coverage for your home office contents, you can also add coverage for any inventory you may have.
Some insurance companies treat home based businesses more favorably than others so it pays to look for the right company. The biggest exposure a home based business has is the liability created by foot traffic. If you see customers at your home, this may be an issue that your insurance company doesn’t want to cover.
Remember, a home insurance policy is mainly designed and priced to cover personal exposures and items related to residential dwellings. They are not primarily intended to cover commercial exposures. So, if your home based business is more complicated than most, you should look for a separate commercial policy rather than trying to add this to your home insurance.
Your agent can help you discern the best way to do all this – ask them.
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