Skip to main content
  • Claims Center
  • Contact Us
  • Español
  • Brokers & Agents
Hiscox Insurance
Menu Toggle
  • Home
  • Small Business Insurance Small Business Insurance Toggle Menu
    Protect your business, plan for the unexpected, and help your business grow.
    • Top Coverages

      • General Liability Insurance

        The basic protection for claims against your business.

      • Errors and Omissions

        Protection against claims of negligence

      • Professional Liability

        Protection for specific risks in your field.

      • Business Owners Policy

        General Liability plus coverage for property.

      • Short-Term Liability Insurance

        Purchase coverage for a specific period of time.

      • Cyber Security Insurance

        Protection from cyber-related security risks.

      • Workers Compensation

        Protection from work-related illness or injury.

      • More Coverages

        Umbrella, Auto, Directors and Officers, and more

    • Coverage for 180+ Professions

      • Architects & Engineering
      • Beauty
      • Contractors
      • Consulting/Freelancing
      • IT/Technology
      • Landscapers
      • Marketing
      • View All Industries
    • Coverage for 49 States

      • View All States

    Retrieve Your Saved Quote

    Small Business Insurance Main Page

  • Why Hiscox Why Hiscox Toggle Menu
    With a single focus on Small Business Insurance, we provide fast, customized coverage just for you.
      • About Us
      • Customer Stories
      • Ratings & Reviews
      • Our Brand
      • Newsroom

    About Hiscox Main Page

  • Resources Resources Toggle Menu
    Insights and information to empower you and your business.
    • Blog
      • Start Your Business
      • Grow Your Business
      • Protect Your Business
      • Celebrate Courage
      • Business Insurance 101
      • Research & Insights
      • Partner Services
      • Insurance Glossary
      • Profit Calculator
      • Business Templates

    Resources Main Page

  • Policy Management Policy Management Toggle Menu
    We make it easy for policy-holders to make changes, access documents, and report claims.
    • Manage Your Policy Online

      • Hiscox Policy Management

        • Change Business Address
        • Get an ACORD Certificate
        • Get a Certificate of Insurance
        • Issue an ACORD for an Additional Insured
        • Request Policy Documents
        • And more

    • Claims

      • Claims Center
      • Report a Claim
      • Claims FAQs
      • Claims Customer Reviews
      • Cyber Vendor Services
      • Refer a friend

    If you purchased coverage from a broker and would like to update or change your policy, please contact your broker.

    Policy Management Main Page

  • Claims Center
  • Contact Us
  • Español
  • Brokers & Agents
  • About
  • Get a Quote Get a Quote
  • About
  • Get a Quote Get a Quote
  • Blog Home
    Start Your Business
    Grow Your Business
    Protect Your Business
    Celebrate Courage
    Search

    Small Business Insider

    Sign up to get the latest small business tips delivered right to your inbox.
    Close Close
    Protect Your Business
    Image of men's hands on desk with papers, pencil, and laptop

    4 Risks to protect your small business from

    Insurance 101 | Claims
    By: Hiscox Blog

    Share Image

    Embed Image

    Copy

    Share Article:

    It takes courage to be a small business owner. You’ve had your lightbulb moment, maybe secured some financing, and are getting your endeavor off the ground. Kudos. That’s already taken a lot of guts. Now is the time to make sure you’re protecting what you’ve built from risks you can anticipate and those you don’t see coming.

    Every small business faces risks associated with changing economic conditions, competition, or other market forces that are best guarded against with education, solid financial management, and contingency plans.

    Then there are some risks specific to running your small business that you can prepare for with risk management strategies, such as business insurance. This protection can help you take on the right risks that contribute to the growth of your company and give you the courage to take on all of your small business dreams.

    Pro Tip: Read Business Insurance 101 for more info on protecting your business.

    Here’s a look at four common risks that small businesses face that can be covered by insurance policies.

    1. If a customer sues, you don’t have to face it alone

    Suppose you’ve started a web design company, and you create a new website for a company. The day it’s launched, a bug in the design causes the site to crash, and it stays down for three days while you diagnose and correct the problem. The client could sue you for the income they lost because their site was down.

    Not your fault, but lawsuits can be costly regardless. Plus, sometimes, despite our best intentions, mistakes happen.

    This is where professional liability insurance comes in. Also known as errors and omissions coverage, this type of insurance protects you from claims of negligence during the course of conducting business.

    If your business provides a professional service or regularly gives advice to clients, you should consider a professional liability insurance policy.

    2. If an accident happens, you can keep your business on track

    If you’re an IT consultant, you may work with other companies’ expensive computer hardware that contains business-sensitive data. But, oops, you just spilled your iced coffee into a key computer component, causing extensive damage.

    If you have general liability insurance, you could be covered from incidents like this one. General liability insurance protects against a third party’s claims of property damage or bodily injury in case of an accident, as well as claims of personal injury such as libel.

    You should especially consider this type of insurance if you:

    • interact with clients face to face at their offices or yours, where someone could get hurt in an accident
    • have access to a customer’s property, which could get damaged by one of your employees
    • market your company with advertising, where you could face copyright infringement risk.

    3. If your own stuff gets damaged, you’ve got backup

    Sometimes general liability isn’t enough, like if you spilled that iced coffee on your own computer.

    The insurance world can be confusing at times, and many small business owners might not know that general liability only protects against third party claims, not claims involving your own business.

    That’s where a business owners policy (BOP) comes in. This type of insurance combines general liability coverage with property insurance that protects your furniture, equipment, and tools that you need to do your job. 

    4. If you get hacked, you can recover

    The information age in which we live has opened up many exciting business opportunities and made our lives more convenient. But the interconnected nature of commerce can also leave your business open to internet-based data theft.

    If you’re accepting credit cards or other digital payment types and storing confidential customer information, you need cyber security insurance as part of a comprehensive plan for preventing, detecting, and mitigating digital risks.

    A cyber insurance policy covers privacy, data, and network exposures and offers both immediate and longer-term support such as:

    • data breach response and data recovery
    • coverage for losses from business interruption

    While you might not be able to foresee every risk scenario, having the right type of business insurance can give you the peace of mind to focus on what’s really important to you – growing your business and helping your customers. Not having to worry about a worst-case-scenario causing you to have to close up shop can give you the courage to continue building on your success.

    Protect Your Business

    Protect the business you’ve worked so hard to build. Get a fast, free quote and your business could be covered today.

    Get a Quote
    Get a Quote
    Subscribe to our newsletter

    Related Articles

    4 Min Read
    Woman's hand on laptop keyboard. Cyber icons. Error message. Top cyber risks in 2021.

    The top 5 cyber risks for businesses in 2021

    Cyber | Insurance 101

    Cyber risks increased as a result of Covid-19 in 2020. Business owners still need to stay prepared against those threats plus new ones in 2021. Here are the top five cyber risks to watch for in 2021 and how you can protect your business. Read More

    3 Min Read
    Woman at work using hand sanitizer. OSHA COVID-19b guidelines.

    New OSHA guidelines on how businesses should handle COVID-19 in the workplace

    Claims | Management

    New OSHA guidelines on COVID-19 in the workplace are here. Here's everything you need to know if you're a business owner and have employees.  Read More

    4 Min Read
    how much does business insurance cost? Insurance icon.

    How much does small business insurance cost?

    Insurance 101 | Professional Liability

    Wondering how much business insurance costs? Here are some of the factors that go in to how much business insurance costs and some examples of what a hypothetical small business might pay for insurance.  Read More


    We’re here to help.
    We provide tailored insurance for the specific risks you face, so you can take the right risks to grow your business.
    Get a Quote
    Get a Quote
    Blog, Footer2021
    • What We Cover
      • Business Insurance
      • General Liability Insurance
      • Professional Liability Insurance
      • Errors and Omissions
      • Cyber Security Insurance
      • Workers Compensation
      • Other Coverage
    • Who We Cover
      • Small Business Owners
      • LLC
      • Side Hustle
      • Contractors
      • Home Businesses
      • 180+ Professions
    • For Our Customers
      • Refer a Friend Program
      • Covid-19 Response
      • Claims Center
    • For Business Owners
      • Save with our Partners
      • Hiscox Podcast for Business
    • About Hiscox
      • About Us
      • Careers
      • Contact Us
      • Hiscox Corporate
      • Investors
      • Foundation
      • Newsroom
      • We Stand Together
      • Affiliate Partner Program
    Blog, Footer, 2nd Row (new)
    • Accessibility
    • Site Map
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of Use
    • Legal Notices
    • Español

    Feefo Reviews: Hiscox rated 4.8/5 with 2,032 reviews between January 31, 2020 - January 21, 2021

    © 2021 Hiscox Inc. All rights reserved. Underwritten by Hiscox Insurance Company Inc., 104 South Michigan Avenue, Suite 600, Chicago, IL 60603. As of December 31, 2019, HICI had admitted assets of $778,266,779 and policyholders surplus of $215,333,986. Total liabilities were $562,932,793 (inclusive of $236,274,591 of loss reserves) and paid up capital stock was $4,242,000.

    icon-facebook
    icon-youtube
    icon-twitter
    icon-linkedin