Is Your Toronto Flower Shop Protected Against Lawsuits?
You’re surrounded by beauty, but owning a flower shop isn’t without risks. A customer could slip and fall in your flower shop and decide to sue you, or your computer system could be hacked and your client information stolen. Business liability insurance is a key part of your commercial insurance package as a Toronto florist.
Liability insurance helps financially protect your Toronto flower shop against lawsuits.
Western Financial Group, a 100% Canadian company, can help you navigate your business, car, home, and boat insurance during this period of economic uncertainty.
Wherever your small business is located in Toronto, the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), or elsewhere in Ontario, a Western Financial Group business insurance broker will get you commercial coverage that uniquely protects what you do.
Western is a trusted, national insurance brokerage that has partnered with Canada’s top insurance companies to provide commercial insurance. We’ll work with our insurance partners to find the best business coverage rates for your Toronto florist business.
We make the process easy by getting insurance quotes for you to choose from and giving you policy coverage options that suit your Toronto business’s specific needs.
What is Toronto florist insurance?
Florist insurance is a customized business policy that protects Toronto flower shop owners from the insurable risks that their businesses may face.
Customized flower insurance helps protect you as a Toronto florist against such incidents as customer injuries, damaged inventory, fire, and vandalism. It also financially protects florists against lawsuits.
How will Toronto florist insurance protect me?
You delivered wedding anniversary flowers and couple who received them said the flowers had bugs and they had an allergic reaction. Product liability insurance protects your Toronto florist business against claims of bodily injury due to your floral products. It can help cover legal, court costs, or legal settlements.
A customer comes into your Toronto flower shop and trips over a water-filled bucket of flowers that wasn’t put back in a refrigeration unit. You get sued for third-party bodily injury. Commercial general liability insurance may help cover these costs and your legal fees.
Your flower shop’s computer system was hacked and your clients’ financial information was stolen. Cyber liability insurance will help cover the containment costs related to a cyberattack on your Toronto flower business, repair costs to your system, and with the costs of potential lawsuits from clients whose information has been hacked.
Here are the liability insurance coverages that Toronto florists need
Product liability insurance
Toronto florists need product liability insurance for protection against defective products. Product liability insurance protects your business against legal liability for claims for bodily injury or property damage arising from your floral products.
Product liability insurance is designed to help protect your Toronto florist business by giving you insurance coverage to help cover legal, court costs or compensatory damages.
Commercial general liability (CGL) insurance
CGL insurance is also called “slip and fall” insurance because it protects you against day-to-day risks while working as a Toronto florist.
This type of insurance can protect you against claims of third-party bodily injury (customer/supplier) or property damage that occurs at your Toronto flower shop. For example, if an injured client sues you for damages, it helps cover your legal expenses, any financial settlement ordered by the court, and the injured person’s medical expenses.
Your CGL policy also can help protect you from libel, slander, and false advertising allegations.
It’s not uncommon that you would carry at least $1 million in CGL coverage or likely more, depending on the size of your Toronto florist business.
Cyber insurance
If you store online financial data for your Toronto floral shop or you take credit card payments, you must protect this information and can be held liable if you don’t.
If your computer system is hacked, cybercriminals can sell the information. Without cyber insurance, you will have to pay out for the cost of restoring your computer system on your own. You may also be liable for damages to third parties whose information has been stolen and you may have to pay for notification expenses to inform customers affected by a cyber breach.
What other types of insurance do Toronto florists need?
Commercial property insurance
Commercial property insurance protects your Toronto flower business and its contents, such as flower coolers, computers, furniture, and your inventory, from insured risks that can happen, such as fire, theft, flood, or vandalism.
If vandals smash an office window, commercial property damage could cover the costs of replacing the window and cover any damage or vandalism inside your Toronto flower shop.
Equipment breakdown insurance
Your Toronto flower shop likely has expensive electrical and mechanical equipment to keep your flowers fresh.
Equipment breakdown insurance provides coverage for property damage from the sudden and accidental breakdown of insured equipment not automatically covered by a standard commercial property policy. You’ll need to have a list of the equipment at your store and how much it’s worth.
Business interruption insurance
Business interruption insurance supports you when your Toronto flower shop can’t operate due to a covered loss. This type of insurance can be the difference between recovering from a loss and closing permanently.
There are many losses that can force your business to shut down. Some examples include:
- Damage to your equipment from fire or vandalism
- A major reduction in revenue due to a client/supplier facing losses of their own
- A disruption in your supply chain
Business interruption insurance can help with expenses such as:
- Payroll
- Rent
- Utilities
- Property taxes
- Alarm monitoring
- Relocation of your business
Commercial auto insurance
If you have a business car that you use for your Toronto flower shop business, it won’t be covered by your personal car insurance policy.
What do I do if I have an insurance claim as a Toronto-based florist?
- Contact your broker immediately after any business-related mishap. Waiting to file a claim can confuse insurers about the severity of the damages to your business.
- Know your policy so that when you contact your broker you are familiar with what will be covered or not.
- Document the damage. Take photos right away and write down what happened.
- Do not throw away damaged goods after taking photos. Keep the physical evidence so that your adjustor can see it.
- Do not invite lawsuits. Don’t say anything that could be used against you, especially if you aren’t sure what happened.
- Be honest about what your damaged property is worth. Damaged commercial property is generally valued according to its actual cash value or replacement value.
Western Insurance has licensed BUSINESS INSURANCE EXPERTS to get your Toronto flower store the right insurance package. Our experts are available now to help you navigate the business insurance journey to protect your business.
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5 FAQs
Why is commercial general liability essential for Toronto flower shop owners?
Flower shops can have wet floors from watering plants and that increases the risk of slip-and-fall incidents for customers and suppliers. Commercial general liability (CGL) insurance helps cover medical expenses, legal fees, and settlements if someone is injured on your premises.
Can Toronto florists be sued if flowers have bugs?
Florists could face legal risks if flowers sold to customers contain bugs, but whether they can be successfully sued depends on specific circumstances and the type of loss or harm.
Is it difficult to sue a Toronto florist?
The customer must generally demonstrate actual harm (physical, financial, or reputational) resulting from the florist’s flowers. Minor inconveniences usually do not warrant legal action and only substantial damages are likely to succeed in court.
Why is product liability insurance important for Toronto florists?
Product liability insurance is needed because it helps protect your Toronto flower shop business from legal and financial risks associated with the products you sell.
Why do Toronto flower shops need business insurance?
Business insurance for Toronto flower shops is needed because it protects the shop, its assets, and its owner from a variety of risks, including lawsuits, that could lead to substantial financial loss or even closure.