If your laundry experiences a major fire, all kinds of questions run through your head. Not the least of which is what does my insurance cover?
I have heard people say they thought they had the coverage, but somewhere hidden in the fine print of the policy, the insurance carrier managed to get the one thing they needed “omitted.” Although policies are boring to read, there really isn’t any fine print that is designed to catch you off guard.
My suggestion is to make sure you understand what is covered at the time you purchase the policy. Be sure that you are insured for the things that are the most important for getting your business back up and running. Basic coverages include:
- Building: Covered up to replacement value
- Equipment/Machines: Covered up to replacement value
- Adequate loss of income/business interruption coverage
You are responsible for accurately stating your laundry’s values and for requesting adequate coverage limits. If you understate your values to get a lower premium, the insurance company is not going to make up the difference in the event of a claim. Insurance companies will never pay more than the limits on the policy, which you request at the time of application.
Under-insuring can also result in a co-insurance penalty at the time of a loss, if your policy has a co-insurance clause. Again, this is not fine print. It is very clearly written in the policy.
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