Butchers Insurance

A butchers shop contains many hazards to both workers and the general public so having the right insurance is critical to running your business.

Employers liability, public liability and product liability insurance are all important for protecting the future of your business. smei has been providing specialist commercial insurance policies to the meat and food trading industry since we were established in 2002. Unlike some brokers who may not fully understand your business or have entered and quickly exited the market, we have consistently listened to our policyholders to ensure that needs are met to the best of our ability.

Today, we handle 35,000 policies providing stability for our clients. We provide reassurance that you are in safe hands by offering quotes from a selection of UK based insurers, offering products which have been designed to meet the needs of your industry.

We’re passionate about championing the high street and helping butchers like Beech's Butchers in Barrowford, Lancashire (pictured above). If you find your requirements are more unique and fall outside the usual areas that insurers typically offer cover for, then we can often still provide a quotation. These include:

• Premises with flat roofs.
• Risks with high sums insured.
• Start-up businesses.
• Proposals that have had large claims (including fire or flood).

Please note we are unable to offer quotations to businesses located in Northern Ireland.

Why Insurance is Important for Butchers

When working within the food retail industry with potentially hazardous equipment and machinery, it’s critical to ensure you are properly covered.

Risks can arise in many forms, relating to staff members, stock, and the equipment that you use. You may even face risk from fire, flood or theft from within the premises itself.

These risks mean that it is important to have the right level of cover to protect your livelihood, as well as the customers that visit your shop.

The types of cover that you can arrange include:

• Public liability – this can protect you against your liability for injury to customers or even food poisoning.
• Employers liability – this can cover you for your liability for staff injuries in the workplace.
• Business interruption cover – this can provide financial protection for the business in the event of an insured risk. Settlement types can include loss of gross profit and loss of gross revenue. The length of time that the business interruption may cover will vary depending on your individual circumstances and requirements.

These are just some of the covers that are available to you. It is always advisable to speak to a broker who can guide you towards the right level of cover that is appropriate for you and your business.

 About the Butchery Industry

Despite the introduction of meat counters within supermarkets and large stores, local butchers continue to sell their meat products to customers throughout the UK.

For many, visiting the high street butcher, it’s an opportunity to purchase locally sourced, high quality meats. You can ask questions and gain advice on the different cuts of meat available, and even ask your butcher to prepare the meat for a specific recipe you have in mind .

Running a butchers shop involves specialist knowledge of not only the meat itself and from where it is sourced, but also the machinery that is used within the butchers. It can often take many years to master the art of butchery, as well as passing that knowledge onto the staff that work with you. Often, that knowledge and skill has been passed down within a family from generation to generation of independent butchers.

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^{*We randomly surveyed 54 new business policyholders (12.5%) with insurance start dates between 12 April 2019 and 1 August 2019. 93% made a financial saving by moving to smei, with an average saving of 15.96%. This data excludes commercial and residential insurance for landlords.}

^{** Optional cover may differ dependent upon insurer.}

^{*** Data compared from 610 policies sold in 2019.}