Small Business Insurance In Portland, OR

Protect your Portland, OR small business with the right cover from the best small business insurance companies in Oregon! We are here to guide you in deciding on the proper levels of insurance at the best available cost.

Even before you start a business in Portland, OR, your planned business practices should take into account protection against unforeseen risks.

There have been too many instances in Oregon where an unexpected event caught even the most properly run small enterprise by surprise and ended up costing the owners far too much. 

Small Business Insurance In Portland

Do I need business insurance in Portland, OR?

The proper question is not can you afford the cost of insurance in Portland, OR but “can you afford NOT to have insurance in Portland, OR?” .

The experience of thousands of other small businesses in Oregon that have taken the risk and suffered the consequences should be enough to answer this in favor of being safe rather than sorry.

How to find the right small business insurance in Portland, OR

There is a wealth of information and help that you should take advantage of when you first begin the process.

Small business insurance in Portland, OR is becoming increasingly specialized, so it’s best to gather information and assistance from every source before you make your decisions.

Before you sign-off on any policy, it’s good practice to check that all of them are issued by companies that comply with the regulations in Oregon – here is a link to the guide issued by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.

  • A good starting point is to search on the internet, because experts in this field in Portland, OR are now raising their profiles and offering a wide range of services. Comparative shopping on their websites will quickly bring you the basic information that you will need in order to make the right decisions. One good way to find them is to use google maps, with the relevant search phrase insurance agent in Portland, OR
  • Finding the right insurance agent or broker in Portland, OR takes you one easy step closer to the decisions. It’s important to understand the difference between independent agents/brokers and company agents. A broker or agent may represent more than one insurance company, whereas agents represent insurance companies located in Portland, OR and are only providing policies from that company.
    One quick way to find a listing of the agents, brokers and insurance companies nearby in Portland, OR is to use the power of the Yellow Pages.
  • Take some time to ask around in your social network and amongst neighboring Oregon businesses for referrals. 
  • Talk directly to the insurance company’s agent if you have any questions, so that there is a clear understanding of what you need and what they can provide.
  • What types of insurance does every small business in Oregon need?

    Any business that is provisioning goods and services to the public in Oregon has several main kinds of risks, and should have the right insurance for full cover against loss. The two categories are:

    • Liability
    • Loss of or damage to tangible assets
    • Losses due to improper business operations

    Why is liability insurance essential in Portland, OR

    Any and all businesses operating in Oregon have accepted the state’s laws concerning liability.

    These laws determine your responsibility towards the general public in case some accidental injury or damage occurs to anyone in the course of your business operation, as well as proper execution of your business operations in delivering the services and products you are providing

    These two liabilities are usually called Public Liability and Professional Liability, but may also be termed General Liability and Malpractice.

    In the rest of the article, we will use the names most familiar to businesses in Oregon, which are General Liability Insurance and Errors & Omissions Insurance.

    General Liability Insurance

    All businesses in Portland, OR should have this fundamental protection.

    The coverage provided by the policy will protect your business from claims from a third party that you caused accidental bodily injury or property damage.

    With the right cover, you can also protect yourself from claims of personal damages coming from libel or slander.

    The important difference between this kind of insurance and E&O insurance is that it covers only for accidental injury to a third-party or loss sustained by a third party that is not the result of your business activity.

    Some examples of situations where general liability cover may be needed:

    • If you visit an external place of work, or if your place of business is open to the public, any accident that results in physical damage or bodily injury to any party, customer or not, could lead to a claim against you.
    • If you accidentally damage any property or equipment belonging to a third party, you could be liable for repairs or replacement.
    • If you speak about or write about another business, then any error could result in a libel or slander claim.

    What does General Liability Insurance in Portland, OR cover?

    The claims that are covered by general liability insurance policies include:

    • Related medical bills in case of injury. There may also be claims for ongoing pain and suffering following from an injury, as well as loss of income for missed workdays
    • Costs for replacing or fixing property damaged or destroyed
    • Any damages awarded or agreed to in a settlement
    • Legal costs associated with the defence against any claims. The provision of legal cover is regardless of fault. Your own defense costs, and any costs awarded by a court, up to your policy limit, is fully covered.

    What does Errors and Omissions (E&O) Insurance in Portland, OR cover?

    Like all other businesses in Portland, OR the general laws concerning liability in conduct of a business in Oregon are clear.

    All businesses have what is termed the “duty of care”, which basically means that you conduct your business properly, delivering services and goods according to accepted standards.

    While you may be confident in the quality of your work, like any business, you can be sued for negligence when a client’s expectations are not fully met.

    If a client claims you’ve made a mistake, offered poor advice or been negligent, this cover is especially important when you are offering an opinion or advice, since it is difficult to prove its validity in any court case.

    Even if you are eventually exonerated in a judgement, the legal costs, and reputational damage, could end up costing you more than the claim itself.

    The greatest benefit of E&O insurance is that your legal defence is taken up by the insurance company from day one, so that you are guaranteed the best levels of legal advice and actions all the way through.

    Asset Insurance in Portland, OR

    Whatever a small business in Portland, OR has invested in tangible assets needs to be protected against accidental damage, theft, general hazards and all the other unexpected but possible events that could occur on any given day.

    The list of such risks is very long, but the records of many businesses in Oregon are proof that even the best run enterprises, large and small, can be ruined by unforeseen developments that are out of their own control.

    The main categories of tangible assets that need to be protected are:

    • Property and buildings owned or rented
    • Equipment owned or rented
    • Inventory
    • Vehicles owned or leased

    A short list of the type of events that can damage or destroy such assets are:

    • Fire
    • Storms
    • Hurricanes & tornadoes
    • Theft
    • Vandalism

    These vulnerabilities need to be covered by specific insurance policies, which we outline below.

    Commercial Property Insurance in Portland, OR

    If you have capital invested in land or buildings in Portland, OR, like when you own the premises, or have a big liability if there’s a mortgage, and even if your business occupies premises it rents, you should, and may be required to, carry Commercial Property insurance against damages from any source including an unforeseen hazard, like a fire, water damage from floods or storms, and all such natural occurrences.

    As well, man-made risks such as arson and vandalism must be covered.

    Most commercial insurance policies also cover the contents of the building, like computers, furniture and general equipment, but specific equipment cover is necessary for any specialized equipment.

    What is covered by a Business Owners Policy (BOP) in Portland, OR

    Many insurance companies based in Oregon are offering a single policy (BOP) that covers both General Liability and Commercial insurance in a one-size-fits-all package, which makes it cheaper and easier to negotiate.

    It is also possible to bundle into the BOP other business covers, such as :

    • Data loss or theft
    • Employee theft or misappropriation
    • Business Interruption

    Equipment Insurance for Small Business

    When you work in Portland, OR with specialized and costly equipment that is the heart of your business, and it is very expensive to replace it in case of any damage, loss, or theft, then equipment insurance in Portland, OR is a way to keep the business running.

    Especially if you run a mobile business where the equipment has to be moved around Oregon extensively and sometimes stored in insecure and unsafe environments, the equipment may be subject to malicious damage, deliberate fire, theft, other such deliberate acts, or acts of nature like lightning strikes, hurricanes, earthquakes, and other highly damaging natural events.

    Commercial Vehicle Insurance in Oregon

    The proper way to protect a commercial vehicle in Oregon is to make sure that it is insured for both its own value, and for valuable contents. For this, you will need a commercial vehicle insurance package.

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

    Also, in case of any accident, the vehicle itself, the content and any legal bills, medical expenses, and property damage is guaranteed if it is involved in a collision.

    The insured value of the insurance should be calculated as the depreciated value of the vehicle, plus an estimate of average level contents.

    It is also important to declare the names of all potential drivers. Premiums from insurers in Oregon are usually 25-30% higher than for private vehicle cover.

    Special cases for businesses in Oregon

    There are two special cases that fall outside the normal type of business insurance policies. These are for businesses run out of private homes, and businesses that use private vehicles.

    In both cases, regular private insurance is invalid for a business in Oregon,

    It may be necessary, depending on the insurance company’s own policies, for you to either declare the commercial usage, in which case a special clause may be added to the policy, and probably some additional premium paid, or else a separate full commercial property or commercial vehicle insurance policy must be negotiated.

    Intangible Assets Insurance in Oregon

    As well as the insurance of “hard” assets that we described above, a small business is also subject to other risks that may come from losses of intangibles.

    In the main, these relate to financial losses coming from:

    • Fraud or theft by employees
    • Loss of income due to some interruption in operation, for example if a building burns to the ground, taking with it equipment, stock or customer records
    • Internet security and privacy breaches

    If your business is especially vulnerable to these risks, you should talk to an agent or broker to secure the right level of cover.

    The first place to look is in relation to a BOP, which can be expanded to include these covers.

    Is short-term insurance a good alternative for small businesses?

    If your business in Portland, OR doesn’t operate all through the year, then short-term insurance may be a good option.

    The main feature is that you buy only the cover for a specific and defined period – a nominated day, week, or a month.

    Any range of specified days – for example for 30 days beginning on the specified date.

    This has been a good option for those in Oregon working on a part-time or seasonal basis, like in the months when business activity in Portland, OR is at its peak, but there isn’t enough continuous business activity to justify full insurance cover for a whole year.

    Temporary insurance coverage can provide you with all the insurance that regular annual policies cover.

    This is another case where having the best broker or agent can get you the right cover for the lowest cost.

    How much does business insurance cost for an average small business in Oregon

    The list below is a rough estimate of average annual premiums for the main types of insurance small businesses will have to pay in Portland, OR and could change at any time.

    Insurance type Price range
    General Liability insurance $355 – $1260
    Commercial vehicle insurance $1755 – $2905
    E&O insurance $600 – $1245
    Commercial Property insurance $1135 – $2055

    Final thoughts

    You can search for more relevant information about small business insurance in Portland, OR in the following search box.

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