Laboratory Testing insurance – cost and types of policies

Whenever you budget the expenses of your business, Laboratory Testing insurance must be high on the list because you can’t always know exactly what could happen in the future.

With the protection provided by liability insurance and all the other types of insurance we will tell you about, you can protect your business and yourself in case something unwanted happens.

Like any business owner, for your Laboratory Testing enterprise, you must consider how much financial danger you are taking on.

If your Laboratory Testing business runs without proper insurance, you are taking a giant chance not just of losing some money but of a complete wipe-out.

This is because the laws in every state are very strict in enforcing liability on the owners of businesses for the upshots of their actions. 

In this article, we are giving very general guidelines for growing businesses to outline what the main kinds of insurance that you need are, and where possible, a rough guide to how much you can expect to pay.

The question is, can you afford to NOT have insurance for your Laboratory Testing business?

What this means, for any Laboratory Testing business owner, is that if some customer claims that your actions caused them some physical or economic damage, a court can award damages far beyond the total size of your business.

Your Laboratory Testing business is not protected by laws in the same way as states are, where laws can place a “cap” on the maximum level of liability.

In some states, like Montana, there are specific monetary levels that limit the amount an adjudicator can award in any case against the state.

In a court case, it’s purely the right of the jury to award whatever amount they deem appropriate, even sometimes giving a plaintiff more than they have sort.

When you are running your Laboratory Testing operations, you can’t avoid responsibility for the results of your actions.

Even more importantly, unless you have spent up-front the money necessary to have your business running as a corporation, all of that liability belongs to you as a person.

What does Laboratory Testing insurance protect you from?

For your Laboratory Testing business, the most important sorts of insurance are designed to cover the risks to your business from accidents, from unexpected events, and from mistakes.

As well there are some official kinds of insurance that various states require.

In the next few paragraphs, we will explain the most important points any Laboratory Testing business owner should consider when negotiating the insurance needed.

The main headings of insurance for your Laboratory Testing businesses are liability insurance, commercial insurance, asset insurance and workers compensation insurance.

Liability insurance

General liability insurance

Any Laboratory Testing business is dealing directly with other people, and that means you always have the danger that some accident can happen to them personally or else something of theirs can be spoiled.

In such a case, they can demand compensation.

General liability insurance policy for your Laboratory Testing business protects you against claims coming from injury to visitors or damage to their property.

It protects your Laboratory Testing business from the claims themselves and also to any resulting court costs and legal fees of the lawsuits.

In many cases, it will even help you to qualify for extra business from city and state organizations, where contracts insist on proper liability insurance.

The normal level of general liability insurance for your Laboratory Testing business would be with a boundary of $1 million for a single claim and a total of $2 million for the whole year.

See the table in the costing section below for average prices of general liability insurance for your Laboratory Testing insurance operations.

Professional liability insurance for your Laboratory Testing business

In the event where a buyer alleges some negligence, errors, or omissions in how you conducted your Laboratory Testing business for them, you can quickly face a court case.

Even if the matter against you is decided in your favor, the cost of defense can be large, and the impact on your reputation can be damaging.

Every small Laboratory Testing business should have enough professional liability insurance to cover a single claim of $25,000, with annual cover of $50,000.

See the table in the cost of Laboratory Testing insurance section below for average prices of professional liability insurance for your Laboratory Testing operations.

Product liability insurance

Whatever goods you sell or advice you give about the goods, you are running a risk that customers may claim that the results didn’t meet your description of function, or that your recommendation was basically incorrect.

You need to know the explicit laws of product liability in your own state.

For example, in California, all businesses in the supply chain can be held responsible for results caused by products claimed to be defective.

To cover yourself against any possible lawsuit, you need Product liability insurance for Laboratory Testing

Only you can estimate exactly how much insurance you need.

Best advice is to consult with experienced insurance agents, brokers or company representatives for help.

Commercial insurance

Commercial vehicle insurance for your Laboratory Testing business

Be careful! – most policies for private vehicle insurance do not cover any event like theft or accidental damage when the vehicle is being used for business purposes.

The proper way to make sure that your vehicle is insured for both its own value, and the valuable contents, is by taking out a designated commercial vehicle insurance package.

Commercial van policies cover the value of any vehicle in case of accident, malicious damage, fire, or theft.

As well, in case of any accident, the truck itself, the content and any legal bills, medical expenses, and property damage is covered if your car is involved in an accident.

Most states, other than Virginia and New Hampshire, require this type of insurance.

The required value of the insurance is calculated on the depreciated value of the vehicle, and your declared level of cover of contents. 

Tools and Equipment insurance

Since your Laboratory Testing business needs unique and costly equipment, you can appreciate how much it can cost to replace it in case of any damage, loss, or theft.

The tools may be subject to malicious damage, deliberate fire, theft, other such unforeseen acts.

As well, acts of nature like lightning strikes, hurricanes, earthquakes, and other highly damaging natural events can destroy your whole business in one stroke.

Unless you can afford to immediately replace such specific gear quickly out of your own pocket, you must have full-level equipment insurance so that you can immediately buy any equipment needed to keep your Laboratory Testing business running.

It is hard to advise how much equipment insurance you need – it’s really dependent on how much you have invested in your Laboratory Testing business’ equipment.

Commercial Property insurance

Any Laboratory Testing business that owns or rents space in a building needs a commercial property insurance policy.

If you own the building, you probably have a substantial capital investment, in addition to a big liability if there’s a mortgage.

Every physical building location needs to carry insurance coverage for the value of the premises and contents against unexpected occurrences like fire and storms, and against man-made damages like theft and vandalism.

If your Laboratory Testing business works in areas of high risk, like Texas or North Carolina, supplementary coverage may be needed for earthquakes and hurricanes or tornadoes.

In other states like Rhode Island, where intense cold snaps can cause damage to outer coverings of Laboratory Testing business premises, there is a need for more supplementary cover than in warmer climes.

Whereas the level of cover depends entirely on the value of the property, it’s not possible to say what cover your need, but we have been able in the table in the cost of Laboratory Testing insurance section below to give some idea of the average prices per million dollars of property insurance for your Laboratory Testing business.

Temporary insurance by month, week or day for your Laboratory Testing business

Is your Laboratory Testing business working part-time or casually, or is the level of business variable?

Using short-term insurance makes excellent sense. Business insurance by the month, day, or week – temporary insurance for Laboratory Testing – are special policies where you can cover a designated period when you want to be covered.

By only paying for that period of cover, you will save by having lower premiums but still having the same risk cover.

The key feature of short-term insurance is that you pay for the cover for a defined period – a nominated date, or a week or month starting on a specific date, for example for 30 days beginning on the specified date.

When you are expecting periods of larger business activity, get the existing cover raised.

Talk to your insurance agent, broker or the company’s representatives to see what options you have.

Business Owners Policy BOP for your Laboratory Testing business

You have the choice to combine most of the important kinds of small business insurance in one policy that is known as the business owner’s policy – BOP.

A BOP combines commercial property and public liability insurance by incorporating these coverages into one insurance policy, which can save you money.

BOP insurance will shield you if any claims of injury or property damage are made.

It is mostly the right choice for small and medium-sized Laboratory Testing businesses, such as yours.

There are some limits that will dictate whether BOP is suitable for your own business.

BOPs will not cover your professional liability or commercial vehicle policies.

Also, the size of your business will rule whether you are allowed to take out BOP cover.

The typical business that is eligible for a BOP policy must have fewer than one hundred employees, and under five million dollars in annual sales.

In addition, you must separately take out the necessary worker’s compensation, health and disability insurance as determined for your state.

Workers Compensation insurance for your Laboratory Testing business employees

In almost all states, it is mandatory to have workers compensation insurance when your Laboratory Testing business has one or more employees.

Workers compensation insurance covers the business against any costs that arise if a worker experiences an injury or becomes sick as a result of work.

The benefits provide for medical expenses, death benefits, lost wages, and vocational rehabilitation.

Failure to meet a state’s regulations in this regard can leave you as the employer required to pay penalties levied by the states.

Some states, such as North Dakota, Ohio, Washington, West Virginia, and Wyoming only allow coverage from the government-run monopoly state funds.

In these states, you may not obtain your workers compensation obligations from private insurance corporations.

Workers compensation premiums are worked out based on the employee’s pay, and usually come out at around $1.00 per $100 per month.

However, you must refer to the relevant authorities in your state.

Average costs of these types of insurance

Although every Laboratory Testing insurance requirement is unique, there are enough examples of usual quotes from insurance companies for us to give appropriate guidelines, including what are the cheapest rates offered.

Of course, you should always check with an agent what’s relevant for your business.

The list below is of annual premiums we have collected for the main types of insurance your Laboratory Testing businesses needs.

Cost of insurance for your Laboratory Testing operations depends on many different factors.

We have calculated these figures for small independent Laboratory Testing businesses.

In larger states like New York, premiums are generally about 20%-30% higher than national averages, but in smaller states like Oregon, they usually are about 20%-30% less.

The location and size and type of your Laboratory Testing business can have a big effect on the cost of different policies.

You should talk to professional insurance agents and brokers, or insurance company representatives.

As well you can let the internet do the work for you by searching for insurance companies near where your business is located.

Another good source of information is the local Better Business Bureau in your town.

FAQ

What is small business insurance for Laboratory Testing operations?

This is a wide term used to describe basic insurance policies designed to protect Laboratory Testing business owners from risks like bodily injury, property damage, claims of negligence.

Does my Laboratory Testing business have to have insurance?

Some of the types of insurance are not mandatory for you to open your business, but they can protect you from risks in your business operations.

Some other forms are required by state law, such as workers compensation and vehicle insurance.

What does a small Laboratory Testing business insurance policy cover?

Liability insurance provides coverage against lawsuits or claims filed by a customer for bodily injury, property damage, or negligence.

The specific cover will vary based on your own operations.

See the table in the costing section above for average prices of the most common policies for Laboratory Testing insurance.

How much will Laboratory Testing business insurance cost?

In addition to the size of the business, some other factors, such as location and claims history, are used to determine your policy’s cost.

You should consult with professional insurance agents and brokers, or insurance company representatives.

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