A business owners policy (BOP) covers liability and property damages for businesses. If you own a store, apartment building, business office, or a similar type of business entity, you should obtain this type of insurance. It will protect you from having to pay out of pocket for everything from property damages to loss of business contents.

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Required Coverage

When you get a business owners policy, you will have to include certain types of coverage, depending on your business. In addition, each type of business has certain conditions to meet before qualifying for this insurance. For example, if you own an apartment building or business office, you can only have a limited number of stories and units. Similarly, restaurants cannot be too large in order to qualify for this coverage. You can talk to an insurance agent to find out if you can obtain a business owners policy if you are not sure.

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Business Personal Property Coverage

This component of a business owners policy covers any items inside your business buildings. This might include files, computers, furniture, supplies, and any other possessions you have inside the buildings and structures that are covered by your BOP. If you want to make sure these items are replaced if they are damaged or stolen, you should add business personal property coverage to your business owners policy.

This coverage can also extend to any temporary or offsite locations you are using to run your business. If you have a building under construction, this coverage may apply if any items are stolen from there, as well.

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Business Income And Expense Coverage

If you cannot use your business property for any period of time, you will likely miss out on income. That's why business income and expense coverage is important. This way, if your building is ever destroyed or even temporarily undergoing repairs, causing your business to close, your BOP will help make up for any income you are not making as a result. This coverage will allow you to be compensated for up to a year after you lose your building, in some cases.

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Additional Property Coverage

If you have any outdoor properties for your business, you need to add additional property coverage to your BOP. This ensures that you can afford repairs when your outdoor property - such as a fence or sign outside is damaged as a result of a fire, thunderstorm, or any other disaster.

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Valuable Papers, Documents And Receivables Coverage

Most businesses keep a lot of paperwork on file, along with accounts receivable. If this describes your business and you would be negatively affected if your files were to be stolen, lost, or destroyed, you need coverage for them. This part of your business owners policy even extends to electronic files that are on computers or tablets. If you could benefit from compensation after not being able to access your files, you should add this coverage to your BOP.