Print Shops Insurance – Cost and Coverage

Whenever you budget the expenses of your business, print shops insurance must be included in the list because you can’t always know exactly what can happen in the future.

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 unforeseen happens.

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

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

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

In this article, we are giving very general guidelines for startup 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 print shops business?

What this means, for any print shops 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 print shops business is not harbored by laws in the same way as states are, where legislation 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 a court 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 person more than they have sued for.

When you are running your print shops operations, you can’t deny responsibility for the outcomes of your actions.

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

What does print shops insurance protect you from?

For your print shops business, the most important kinds 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 print shops business owner should remember when negotiating the insurance needed.

The main categories of insurance for your print shops businesses are liability insurance, commercial insurance, asset insurance and workers compensation insurance.

Liability insurance

General liability insurance

Any print shops business is dealing directly with other people, and that means you generally have the danger that some accident can happen to them themselves or else something of theirs can be spoiled.

In such a case, they can require compensation.

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

It protects your print shops business from the claims themselves and also 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 print shops 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 print shops insurance operations.

Professional liability insurance for your print shops business

In the event where a buyer alleges some negligence, errors, or omissions in how you conducted your print shops business for them, you can quickly have to fight a monetary claim.

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

Most small print shops 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 print shops insurance section below for average prices of professional liability insurance for your print shops operations.

Product liability insurance

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

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

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

To cover yourself against any possible lawsuit, you need Product liability insurance for print shops

Only you can estimate exactly how much insurance you must have.

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

Commercial insurance

Commercial vehicle insurance for your print shops business

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

The right 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 insure the value of any vehicle in case of accident, malicious damage, fire, or theft.

In addition, in case of any accident, the van itself, the content and any legal bills, medical expenses, and property damage is guaranteed if your car is involved in an accident.

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

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

Tools and Equipment insurance

Since your print shops business needs specialized and expensive equipment, you know how much it can cost to replace it in case of any damage, loss, or theft.

The gear may be subject to malicious damage, deliberate fire, theft, other such unpredicted acts.

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

Unless you can afford to immediately replace such specific gear quickly out of your own pocket, you need full-level equipment insurance so that you can immediately buy everything needed to keep your print shops business running.

It is hard to advise how much equipment insurance you need – it’s basically dependent on how much you have invested in your print shops business’ equipment.

Commercial Property insurance

Any print shops business that owns or rents space in a building must have a commercial property insurance policy.

If you own the property, you certainly have a substantial capital investment, as well as a big liability if there’s a mortgage.

Your physical building location needs to carry insurance coverage for the value of the premises and contents against accidental occurrences like fire and storms, and against criminal damages like theft and vandalism.

If your print shops business operates in areas of high risk, like California or South Carolina, additional 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 print shops business premises, there is a need for more additional cover than in warmer climes.

Although the level of cover depends completely 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 print shops insurance section below to give some indication of the average prices per million dollars of property insurance for your print shops business.

Temporary insurance by month, week or day for your print shops business

Is your print shops business working part-time or casually, or is the level of business fluctuating?

Using short-term insurance makes excellent sense. Business insurance by the month, day, or week – temporary insurance for print shops – are special policies where you can cover a nominated 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 important feature of short-term insurance is that you pay for the cover for a defined period – a designated 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 raised.

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

Business Owners Policy BOP for your print shops business

You have the option 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 amalgamating 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 frequently the right choice for small and medium-sized print shops businesses, such as yours.

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

BOPs do not cover your professional liability or commercial vehicle risks.

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

The typical business that is eligible for a BOP policy must have less than one hundred employees, and not more than five million dollars in annual revenue.

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

Workers Compensation insurance for your print shops business employees

In most states, it is mandatory to have workers compensation insurance when your print shops 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 cover 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 can’t take out your workers compensation obligations from private insurance companies.

Workers compensation premiums are calculated 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 print shops insurance level is unique, there are enough examples of usual quotes from insurance companies for us to give approximate guidelines, including what are the cheapest rates offered.

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

The list below is of annual premiums we have gathered for the main types of insurance your print shops businesses needs.

Cost of insurance for your print shops operations depends on many different factors.

We have calculated these figures for small self-employed print shops businesses.

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

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

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

Also you can let the internet do the work for you by looking for insurance companies near where your business is located.

Another useful source of information is the local Better Business Bureau in your suburb.

FAQ

What is small business insurance for print shops operations?

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

Does my print shops business have to have insurance?

Some of the types of insurance are not mandatory for you to operate 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 print shops business insurance policy cover?

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

The exact 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 print shops insurance.

How much will print shops business insurance cost?

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

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

You can search for more information insurance for print shops, in the search box below, and follow the relevant links.

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