Understanding Business Interruption Insurance Coverage

“Here today, gone tomorrow.”  An old familiar phrase, but never a welcome one when it pertains to a business.  But should the worst happen, an option to keep your business on its feet is readily available.

Business interruption insurance helps businesses protect against monetary losses due to periods of suspended operations when a covered event, such as a fire, occurs and causes physical property damage.  The coverage allows businesses to pay fixed expenses, including costs incurred while operating at an offsite location, while the property is closed for repairs and restoration.  Policies also reimburse owners for lost revenue that would have otherwise been earned if the business remained open. 

Business interruption coverages are typically bundled within a businessowner’s policy (BOP), a commercial package that includes business property and liability coverages or a standalone Commercial Property policy.  Most insurers offer this coverage feature for accounts that they are willing to insure. 

According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), about 25% of businesses fail to reopen after a disaster strikes, making business interruption coverage even more critical for the long-term survival of an enterprise.  While commercial property insurance pays for actual physical damages or losses, a business interruption policy covers lost net income due to the closure of the business while repairs are underway, as well as offering coverage for rent or lease payments, relocation costs, employee wages, taxes, and loan payments.  Exclusions from coverage include losses unrelated to property damage, such as lost revenues due to viral outbreaks or pandemics.

Business interruption policies may contain a clause for civil authority coverage, as well, meaning that if a state, local, or federal government entity prohibits access to the business premises, thereby forcing the business to temporarily close, this clause in the business interruption insurance may cover lost income. 

Should a calamity strike, you certainly want to be able to say about your business, “Here today, still here tomorrow.”  Business interruption coverage holds the key.  Contact the professionals at Evergreen Insurance to learn more and determine the right plan for your business.

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Copyright 2023 Evergreen Insurance

Evergreen Insurance provides these updates for information only, and does not provide legal advice.  To make decisions regarding insurance matters, please consult directly with a licensed insurance professional or firm.

Handling Negative Online Reviews

As a small business, a few bad reviews online can greatly affect your business. These reviews can undermine your business’ reputation and cost you money. It’s necessary in today’s world to know how to respond to these complaints and avoid losing business. Click on the image to download or print the tip sheet.

Which Consumer-Driven Health Plan is Right for Your Business?

Consumer-driven health plans like health savings accounts (HSAs), flexible spending accounts (FSAs), and health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs), can help soften the blow of continually rising health care costs, but it’s important to understand what each option requires and provides. Here are brief descriptions of the similarities and differences concerning HSAs, FSAs and HRAs:

HSAs

Due to their tax-favored status, HSAs require individuals to meet these qualifications:

  • Be covered by a high deductible health plan (HDHP)
  • Not have any other health coverage (with some exceptions)
  • Not be claimed as a dependent on another person’s tax return
  • Not be covered by Medicare

The employer and employee can contribute to the HSA in the same year, subject to annual limits. Employers may allow employees to make pre-tax salary reduction contributions to fund their HSAs. Individuals may roll over unspent funds in the HSA from year to year.  Since the HSA is a tax-exempt account owned by the employee, he or she may keep the account upon termination of employment or retirement.

FSAs

Health FSAs provide a means for employees to reduce their income tax liability through salary reduction. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) limits employee’s pre-tax contributions to their health FSAs to $3,050 (adjusted for inflation for future plan years). Since only employees can participate in a health FSA, self-employed individuals can establish health FSAs for their employees, but cannot set up their own accounts.  Also a “use-it-or-lose-it” provision, meaning that employees must use every dollar in the account by the end of each year, which can lead to overfunding the account and then spending unnecessarily at the end of the year to avoid forfeiting the money. Some options for protecting those unused funds exist, but it is best to check with a qualified benefits expert first.

HRAs

HRAs allow employees to use employer contributions to pay for (or reimburse) eligible medical care expenses. HRAs can only be funded with employer money, and unused HRA balances may accumulate from year to year. There is no specified cap on the amount an employer is allowed to contribute to an HRA. Also, an HRA is not subject to the uniform coverage rule that applies to health FSAs. Like health FSAs, only employees can participate in an HRA, which means that self-employed individuals cannot participate in an HRA on a tax-favored basis. 

Introducing consumerism into your health plan requires an evaluation of the benefits and disadvantages of HSAs, FSAs and HRAs. No single solution is right for every employer. If your organization is considering implementing a consumer-driven health plan, the Benefits team at Evergreen Insurance can help determine the best plan for you.

Copyright 2023 Evergreen Insurance

Evergreen Insurance provides these updates for information only, and does not provide legal advice.  To make decisions regarding insurance matters, please consult directly with a licensed insurance professional or firm.

Seven Insurance Policies for Small Businesses

Happy National Small Business Day! Evergreen Insurance is here to support and help protect your small business from the risks and liabilities you may face. Choosing the right business insurance for your company can be overwhelming. Click on the image to download or print the sheet for details on different types of insurance.

Occupational Accident Coverage

Truck drivers face long hours and inclement weather when on the job. If your business employs independently contracted drivers, it’s smart to provide occupational accident coverage to help protect them and your company in the event of injury and accidents. Click on the image to download or print the sheet for more information.

Insurers Are Partners in Mitigating Cyber Risk

Cybersecurity risks continue to expand nearly unabated. While it can feel like trying to hold back a tidal wave with a bath towel sometimes, effective tools do exist and can be easily accessed.

What must always be remembered is that a commitment to resilience and pre-emptive mitigation remains imperative. Insurers are well-positioned to serve not only as financial first responders but as partners in managing these evolving hazards, along with their business associates and partners.

According to the Insurance Information Institute, “The first line of defense is creating a robust cybersecurity system, training employees on how to identify a potential attack, encrypting company data, and enabling antivirus protection. With only half of businesses reporting a consistent encryption strategy, and the cost of data breaches continuing to rise, organizations must do more to protect themselves and their customers.”.

Some commonly seen cyber liability risks include:

  • Liability—You may be liable for costs incurred by customers and other third parties as a result of a cyber attack or other IT-related incident.
  • System recovery—Repairing or replacing computer systems or lost data can result in significant costs.
  • Notification expenses—In several states, if your business stores customer data, you’re required to notify customers if a data breach has occurred or is even just suspected.
  • Regulatory fines—Several federal and state regulations require businesses and organizations to protect consumer data.
  • Class action lawsuits—Large-scale data breaches have led to class action lawsuits filed on behalf of customers whose data and privacy were compromised.

To extend cyber liability insurance coverage requires the purchase a stand-alone cyber liability policy, customized for your business to cover several types of risk, including:

  • Loss or corruption of data.
  • Business interruption.
  • Multiple types of liability.
  • Identity theft.
  • Cyber extortion.
  • Reputation recovery.

Contact the professionals at Evergreen for more information and guidance on obtaining the proper level of cyber liability insurance coverage for your situation.

Copyright 2023 Evergreen Insurance

Evergreen Insurance provides these updates for information only, and does not provide legal advice. To make decisions regarding insurance matters, please consult directly with a licensed insurance professional or firm.

Is Business Insurance Tax Deductible?

As a business owner, navigating the tax code for your business is difficult. Businesses are able to deduct ordinary and necessary business expenses, which include many forms of insurance. What types of business insurance are tax deductible? Click on the image to download or print the information sheet to learn more.