One best practice for all small businesses is liability insurance.
It protects you from a variety of legal claims including bodily and personal injury as well as property damage that can occur during daily business operations. A single incident can unravel all of your hard work building your business.
There are different types of business liability insurance for every risk that your business might encounter: general, product, professional, commercial and home-based business insurance.
Does your business use expensive machinery and/or cars? What is involved in your day-to-day operations? The type of business that you own largely dictates which type of insurance and how much you will need. For example, a florist might not need as much coverage as an ATV-rental company. No one knows your business like you do, so take the time to consider all perceived risks and be sure to flag them in the discussion with your insurance agent on an annual basis.
According to SBA blogger Mariama Bramble, since most of the information out there about liability insurance comes directly from insurance providers, it is important to do extensive and objective research first.
Here are several additional resources that can help you choose the appropriate insurance for your small business and investigate complaints: www.insureuonline.org/, National Association of Insurance Commissioners (www.naic.org/) and http://tinyurl.com/pnwy5fc.
Make sure that you shop around. Reach out for referrals and connect with other small business owners regarding their experiences with a licensed insurance agent/provider.
If your Arizona-based small business also hires employees, you are responsible for unemployment tax (insurance that aids unemployed individuals who are looking for jobs; see https://www.azdes.gov/) and workers’ compensation tax (insurance for employees who are injured at or suffer work-related illnesses; see http://www.ica.state.az.us/).
For more information: http://tinyurl.com/pnwy5fc
