This depends on whether you own or rent your business premises. Obviously if you rent, the landlord should have all their properties well insured for every eventuality. Although buildings insurance is not actually required by law, most mortgage providers will insist that a policy of sorts is in place before they will offer a loan. Obviously the insurance will not pay out if damage is caused to a building through neglect or vandalism by the owner. It goes without saying that anything that is loose, broken, dangling dangerously, such as gutters or downpipes, will not be covered if they detach themselves completely and injure anyone or the rest of the building. Even if you own the building outright with no loan involved, it is still sensible to have buildings insurance in place to cover the cost of repairs or rebuilding should a disaster happen. Keeping the building in good useable repair of course iss essential. Insurance does not cover wear and tear through everyday regular useage. Acts of war or terrorism are generally not covered but the payment of an additonal premium is a good option for that cover if the premises are in a city or area known for difficulties.
Contents insurance cover is another matter entirely. When covering stock, you should insure against it’s cost price, not sales price. if you hold more stock leading up to Christmas or other significant event, then the insurance should be in place to cover that extra risk. Two types of contents insurance exist – replacement as new will replace an item that has been stolen or damaged beyond repair with a brand new like for like. Indemnity policies will take wear and tear into consideration and replace items at current value. For example if you bought something for work for £1900 in 2009 and in 2020 it is worth £900, they will pay out the lower figure if you need to make a claim.
