Shop Insurance

If you run a retail shop, you’ll need shop insurance. This applies if you have a single premises or multiple locations. Wherever your business is located, you’ll need to protect your building, stock, employees and customers. 

There are all sorts of things that can go wrong and affect the day-to-day running of your business — anything from damaged stock to employee injury can have an impact on whether you can even open at all. That’s why it’s important to make sure your shop insurance covers you against these risks and more.

Depending on the type of shop you own, you might also want to consider the following:

• Legal cover - This can help with legal fees when involved in legal action against a third party. For example, a customer claims a toy you sold them was faulty, caused harm and takes you to court. 
• Glass cover - This might be included as part of any commercial buildings insurance policy, but it’s worth checking in case damage to shop’s front windows isn’t covered. It may also be worth looking into ‘shop front’ insurance to cover damage to signs or other shop front adornments. 
• Loss of licence cover - If you run a business that is licensed to sell alcohol, this insurance will help cover you for the loss of income or drop in the value of your business because of losing your license to sell alcohol on the premises. 

When sorting your shop insurance, it’s important to check for any policy exclusions so you can take out any extra cover if necessary. Look out for the following exclusions:

• Manual work away – Shops insurance provides cover on your specific premises, so if any of your income comes from work away from the premises – say you run a showroom for fitted wardrobes and installation is part of your business – you may need extra cover. 
• Break-ins and damage to property – Your insurer will specify the security measures you need to have in place as part of your property and may not pay out on claims made for theft that have been as a result of doors or windows being unlocked. You should check your insurance documentation carefully to make sure you comply with the security required for your property.
• Serving food - If you cook and serve food from your shop, your public liability insurance should cover you for any potential illness caused by your cooking. But you may need additional insurance to cover the extra risk posed by equipment like fryers. 

It’s difficult to determine your costs without speaking to a broker, this is because your business is unique and price depends on several factors, including: 

• Size - A bigger shop will usually mean bigger claims, which means higher premium prices. 
• Location – As with home insurance, the location of your shop can affect the price you pay for cover. Areas seen as a higher risk will come with higher premiums. 
• Having speciality stock – If you sell valuable or specialist items, these will cost more or be more difficult to replace. This will be reflected in the price of your premium. 
• Licensing – Having an alcohol licence means your shop has additional risks involved. Insurers will charge more to cover these risks.

Shop insurance is essential for UK small businesses and covers financial losses related to employee injury or illness and damage, loss or theft of your equipment and stock. If your business relies on staff or items of equipment to function, it’s key you’re properly insured. 

Whether you run a shop, a market stall or anything in-between get in touch with the team at Bionic to compare business insurance quotes and make sure your business is covered.