Whether it be design, accounting, consulting, or real estate, you’re a pro who knows what it takes to maintain a successful business — including having the right coverage in place. Because knowing what insurance coverage your small business office needs can mean the difference between recovering from an unexpected loss and getting back to work, or potentially going out of business.

Business Office Insurance Coverage Options

Here are a few tips to help you select the right coverage your business offices:

• General Liability. Note that this only protects you from liability related to the operation of your business office and does not protect you from claims of loss due to any professional advice or service your business renders. For example, a client comes by your office and slips on an icy sidewalk — this is typically covered by the General Liability coverage. However, let’s say you designed an addition onto a homeowner's house, and the second story of the addition collapsed. This instance is not covered by the General Liability coverage; you would need Professional Liability coverage for that (see below).
• Professional Liability. Also known as Errors & Omissions (E&O), this is the coverage you need to protect you against claims for rendering defective professional service or advice. This coverage can be optionally attached to a Business Owner's Policy (BOP) for certain common small businesses, but in many cases, you'll need a stand-alone policy to cover Professional Liability since there are so many different types of professional service businesses out there.
• Business Personal Property. Choose a limit high enough to cover all your personal business property like computers, printers, and other office equipment.
• Important Business Documentation. This includes coverage for accounts receivable, electronic data, and valuable papers to help repair, replace, or restore your electronic and printed business records. Many professional services companies greatly depend on their files — from an architect's plans to an accountant's books. That's why we've highlighted this coverage for business offices — to bring special attention to choosing the right limit of coverage.
• Building Coverage. If you own your building, you'll have a few coverages to select from depending on your exact situation. The important thing to note in picking your building coverage is that you want to carry enough coverage to rebuild/replace your office building, which is not necessarily the same thing as its current market value.