What Insurance Do Toronto Caterers Need?
You need all the right ingredients to make sure your Toronto catering business is running smoothly and safely. Insurance for caterers will protect your catering business should there be an accident or mishap resulting in a lawsuit.
Do you own a Toronto catering service for large corporate events, business meetings, cultural, or social events? Do you run a catering business from your home? Catering insurance protects you financially from risks you can face when you serve food and drink at events.
What is catering insurance?
Catering insurance is a package of insurance coverages for Toronto caterers that protects them financially from specific risks in their business, some of which can result in lawsuits.
Who needs catering insurance?
Corporate event caterers, cultural and social event caterers, wedding caterers, mobile caterers and concession caterers.
How much does Toronto caterers’ insurance cost?
There isn’t a set price to insure a Toronto caterer.
The following factors are usually considered when determining the cost of your Toronto catering insurance: Location(s), services provided, number of employees, years of experience, annual revenue, and any past claims.
Here’s how Toronto caterer insurance protects you
An attendee at a Toronto corporate event that you catered says a dish he was served gave him severe food poisoning and has sued you. Product liability insurance can help pay for medical expenses and for legal support.
Cyber thieves hacked into your client list and stole their credit card information. Cyber liability insurance can help you recover financially from a cyber-attack.
Fire destroys the premises of your catering business and you can’t operate until the repairs are finished. Business interruption insurance covers the estimated income lost, as well as rent and other expenses while your catering business is closed.
What kinds of insurance do Toronto caterers need?
Product liability insurance
Product liability insurance protects your Toronto catering business against claims of property damage or bodily injury caused by the food or drinks you serve.
This type of insurance would help cover their medical costs and your legal defense fees. Be advised that product liability insurance may not cover claims related to alcohol that you serve at an event. If you serve alcohol, you may need liquor liability insurance also.
Commercial General Liability (CGL) Insurance
This type of insurance helps protect your Toronto catering business if you’re found legally liable for bodily injuries or property damage to an attendee at an event or supplier at your catering business.
CGL can help pay legal and medical costs if at a catered event slips on some spilled water on the floor and is injured.
Without commercial liability insurance, you would be responsible for paying any liability costs out of your own pocket.
Your CGL policy also can help protect you from libel, slander, copyright infringement, and false advertising allegations.
How much CGL insurance do I need?
It’s not uncommon that your Toronto catering business would carry at least $2 million in CGL coverage, and more depending on the size of your business.
The size of your catering business, number of employees, and claims history will be factors in how much liability insurance you need.
Equipment breakdown insurance: Your Toronto catering business has electrical and mechanical equipment to keep your products either frozen or refrigerated.
This type of insurance provides coverage for property damage from the sudden and accidental breakdown of insured equipment not automatically covered by a standard commercial property policy.
Business interruption insurance
This type of insurance supports you when your Toronto catering business can’t operate due to a covered loss.
There are a number of losses that can force your coffee shop to shut down. Some examples are:
- 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 these expenses:
- Payroll
- Rent
- Utilities
- Property taxes
- Alarm monitoring
- Relocation of your business
Commercial property insurance
If your Toronto catering business has a commercial kitchen, commercial property insurance would be recommended because there is always the risk of fire, flood, vandalism and theft.
Event liability insurance
If your catering company’s services include organizing social or corporate events at rented venues, event liability insurance is necessary to cover third-party bodily injury or third-party property damage claims that may arise at that event.
Liquor liability insurance
Adding liquor liability insurance to your policy offers protection from potential lawsuits. It will cover third-party bodily injury and property damage claims caused by an intoxicated attendee or guest. Insurance will also cover legal fees if a case goes to court.
Commercial auto insurance
If you have a business car, van, or truck that you use for your catering business, it won’t be covered by your personal car insurance policy. You will need commercial coverage as part of your insurance package. If you have 5 vehicles or more for your Toronto catering business, you will need fleet insurance.
What do I do if I have a claim against my Toronto catering company?
- 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.
Here’s an insurance checklist:
- Do you have the best Toronto business insurance rate that suits your work?
- Do you have the right amount for your deductible and regularly review it to make sure it’s the right amount for you?
- Are you or your employees using personal vehicles for work?
Western Financial Group has licensed BUSINESS INSURANCE EXPERTS to get you the right insurance coverage as a Toronto caterer. Our experts are available now to help you navigate the business insurance journey to protect your Toronto business.
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