Business Contents Insurance

Whether you run a restaurant or an office, business contents insurance is essential to protect from risks relating to items and equipment your business relies on. One in five companies suffer a major disruption every year in the UK.¹ Without adequate protection, most of these will be forced to close down.

All business premises contain items of value, ranging from electrical equipment to furniture, fixtures, fittings and food. You need to ensure you are protected so that if these items are damaged or stolen, your business can recoup the cost to try to recover and continue.

What is Contents Insurance for Businesses?

Put simply, business contents insurance protects your business’s possessions and equipment. The details will vary depending on the industry in which you work but broadly, it will cover damage or loss resulting from theft, fire or flood. In addition to assets such as machinery, carpets or computers.

How Much Does Business Contents Insurance Cost?

The cost of your policy will depend on the value of the items being covered. You will need to provide the details of these when obtaining quotes. You can include furniture, manufacturing equipment and tools, electrical equipment and anything stored within your business premises. It's important that the items' current value are listed, not the purchase price – if you have particularly high-value items, you can take out individual policies against them.

What if I Have Unoccupied Premises?

The Covid pandemic has meant many business premises have been closed while employees have worked from home. The rules have varied across different parts of the UK, so if your headquarters have closed, you will need to check cover with your insurer – even though the closures will be temporary, there is little flexibility, and unoccupancy rules have been applied.

Does Home Contents Insurance Cover me?

As working from home is the norm for many of us now, you will need to look closely at your business contents insurance. Your home insurance policy will not cover business items. If laptops, computers and the like are owned by your business but used at home, you will need to obtain separate insurance to protect them.

What About Remote Working?

If you travel for work, you should provide cover for any portable equipment to not be limited to your business premises. 'All Risks' cover means items that are regularly taken out of the office, such as laptops or camera equipment, are covered for damage and theft, regardless of the location.

Should I Have Cover if Using Co-working Premises?

There are now over 6,000 shared office spaces in the UK. A co-working facility offers flexible, affordable office space, usually in a modern environment and city centre location. While it also may relieve you of buildings insurance's need, you should still consider business contents insurance, especially as there will be lots of people coming and going. Securing your equipment is of course essential – and protection is also recommended.
Business contents insurance is not mandatory by law, but recent events have shown us all that we never truly know what is just around the corner. If you have invested in business possessions, it makes sense to protect them for any eventuality – so that if something does happen, you are in a better position to bounce back.

_{Sources 
^{1 biba.org.uk/small-business/business-insurance 
2 instantoffices.com/uk-market-summary-2019}}