Military Surplus insurance – what kind and at what cost

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

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With the protection provided by insurance against accidents and all the other kinds of insurance we will tell you about, you can protect your business and yourself in case something unexpected happens.

Like any business owner, for your Military Surplus enterprise, you must consider how much financial risk you are taking on.

If your Military Surplus business runs without proper insurance, you are taking a tremendous chance not just of losing some money but of a total wipe-out.

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

Military Surplus Insurance

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

The question is, can you afford to NOT have insurance for your Military Surplus business?

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

Your Military Surplus business is not harbored by laws in the same way as states are, where edicts can place a “cap” on the maximum level of liability.

In some states, like New Jersey, 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 privilege of the jury to award whatever amount they deem appropriate, even sometimes giving a claimant more than they have sort.

When you are running your Military Surplus operations, you can’t escape responsibility for the results of your actions.

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

What does Military Surplus insurance protect you from?

For your Military Surplus business, the most important types of insurance are intended to cover the risks to your business from accidents, from unexpected events, and from mistakes.

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

In the next few paragraphs, we will outline the most important points any Military Surplus business owner should consider when negotiating the insurance needed.

The main types of insurance for your Military Surplus businesses are liability insurance, commercial insurance, asset insurance and workers compensation insurance.

Liability insurance

General liability insurance

Any Military Surplus business is dealing directly with members of the public, and that means you always have the danger that some accident can happen to them bodily or else something of theirs can be damaged.

In such a case, they can require compensation.

General liability insurance policy for your Military Surplus business insures you against claims coming from injury to customers or damage to their property.

It protects your Military Surplus business from the claims themselves and as well to any follow-on court costs and legal fees of the lawsuits.

In many cases, it can also help you to qualify for extra business from city and state organizations, where contracts demand proper liability insurance.

The usual level of general liability insurance for your Military Surplus business would be with a cap of $1 million for a single event 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 Military Surplus insurance operations.

Professional liability insurance for your Military Surplus business

In the event where a buyer alleges some negligence, errors, or omissions in how you conducted your Military Surplus business for them, you can quickly face a law suit.

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

Every small Military Surplus 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 Military Surplus insurance section below for average prices of professional liability insurance for your Military Surplus 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 what you delivered didn’t meet your description of function, or that your guidance was basically incorrect.

You need to understand the particular laws of product liability in your own state.

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

To cover yourself against any likely lawsuit, you need Product liability insurance for Military Surplus

Only you can know exactly how much insurance you should get.

Best advice is to talk to experienced insurance agents, brokers or company representatives for guidance.

Commercial insurance

Commercial vehicle insurance for your Military Surplus business

Beware! – almost all policies for private vehicle insurance do not cover any event like theft or accidental damage when the van is being used for business purposes.

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

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

In addition, in case of any accident, the car itself, the content and any legal bills, medical expenses, and property damage is covered if your truck is involved in a collision.

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

The necessary value of the insurance is worked-out for the depreciated value of the vehicle, and your intended level of cover of contents. 

Tools and Equipment insurance

Since your Military Surplus business needs specific and costly equipment, you know how much it can cost to replace it in case of any damage, loss, or theft.

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

Also, acts of nature like lightning strikes, hurricanes, earthquakes, and other highly damaging natural events can wipe-out your whole business in one stroke.

Unless you can afford to immediately replace such specialized gear quickly out of your own pocket, you must have full-level equipment insurance so that you can immediately buy whatever needed to keep your Military Surplus business running.

It is difficult to advise how much equipment insurance you need – it’s really dependent on how much you have invested in your Military Surplus business’ equipment.

Commercial Property insurance

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

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

Any 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 deliberate damages like theft and vandalism.

If your Military Surplus business works in areas of high risk, like Florida or Georgia, extra coverage may be needed for earthquakes and hurricanes or tornadoes.

In other states like Rhode Island, where unlimited cold snaps can cause damage to outer coverings of Military Surplus business premises, there is a need for more extra cover than in warmer climes.

Because the level of cover depends mainly 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 Military Surplus insurance section below to give some estimate of the average prices per million dollars of property insurance for your Military Surplus business.

Temporary insurance by month, week or day for your Military Surplus business

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

Using short-term insurance makes perfect sense. Business insurance by the month, day, or week – temporary insurance for Military Surplus – are special policies where you can cover a specific 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 adequate risk cover.

The key feature of short-term insurance is that you purchase 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 higher business activity, get the existing cover improved.

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

Business Owners Policy BOP for your Military Surplus business

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

A BOP integrates commercial property and public liability insurance by packaging 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 often the right choice for small and medium-sized Military Surplus businesses, such as yours.

There are two 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 determine whether you are eligible to take out BOP cover.

The normal business that is eligible for a BOP policy must have no more than one hundred employees, and not more than five million dollars in annual revenue.

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

Workers Compensation insurance for your Military Surplus business employees

In many states, it is mandatory to have workers compensation insurance when your Military Surplus business has one or more employees.

Workers compensation insurance covers the operation 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 laws in this regard can leave you as the employer having to pay penalties levied by the states.

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

In these states, you can’t take out your workers compensation obligations from private insurance companies.

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

However, you must see the relevant authorities in your state.

Average costs of these types of insurance

Although every Military Surplus insurance requirement is unique, there are enough examples of average quotes from insurance companies for us to give rough 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 Military Surplus businesses needs.

Types of insurance Price range
Commercial insurance $1101 – $2783
Public liability insurance $264 – $649
General liability insurance $608 – $965
Equipment insurance $437 – $1091
Commercial vehicle insurance $1674 – $2746
Product liability insurance $344 – $771

Cost of insurance for your Military Surplus operations depends on many different factors.

We have estimated these figures for small freelance Military Surplus businesses.

In larger states like Texas, premiums are generally about 20%-30% higher than national averages, while in smaller states like Oregon, they can be about 20%-30% less.

The location and size and type of your Military Surplus 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.

In addition 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 suburb.

FAQ

What is small business insurance for Military Surplus operations?

This is an umbrella term used to describe basic insurance policies designed to protect Military Surplus business owners from risks like bodily injury, property damage, claims of negligence.

Does my Military Surplus business have to have insurance?

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

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

What does a small Military Surplus business insurance policy cover?

Liability insurance provides insurance against lawsuits or claims filed by a client 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 best policies for Military Surplus insurance.

How much will Military Surplus business insurance cost?

On top of the size of the business, certain 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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