Understanding the Ins and Outs of Hotel Insurance

Understanding the Ins and Outs of Hotel Insurance

The hospitality sector is a large and lucrative one. As a hotel owner/operator, you are likely intimately familiar with the complexities of the business, understanding both the rewards of the field and the inherent risks.

Given the nature of the business, carrying reliable hotel insurance is paramount. As you work to find the right insurance policy, understanding a little more about what a program should cover — and how to weigh related factors, like hotel insurance cost — is essential.

What Should Hotel Insurance Cover?

The specifics of any hotel insurance program, and consequently hotel insurance cost, will be based on the unique attributes of a given hotel. How many beds does your establishment have? How many employees? Do you serve food? Questions like these will impact what a policy should cover.

In general, coverage may include some or all of the following:

  • General liability coverage
  • Innkeeper’s liability coverage
  • Liquor liability coverage (if alcohol is served on the premises)
  • Employee coverages, including workers compensation coverage

In general, the actual list of policies and coverages will likely be substantially longer, depending on size and scope of your given operation. For best results in finding a hotel insurance program that works for you, it is important to have a detailed conversation with an experienced insurance provider.


Commercial Truck Insurance

Myths to Know About Commercial Truck Insurance

As a trucker, you probably already know that a commercial truck insurance policy is necessary to operate. As you shop around, however, it is important that you can tell the myths from the facts.

Employees Are Always Covered

Some people mistakenly believe that employees are covered under their insurance policy. This can be devastating if an employee is an accident and you discover that he or she was not covered under your policy. To make sure that your commercial coverage includes employees, you need to make sure that there is a permissive use option. Otherwise, you have to name the other drivers of the rig.

Insurance Premiums Don’t Change

When you invest in a commercial truck insurance policy, you might think that your premiums are going to be set in stone. However, you do have control over your premiums. If you have a higher deductible, you can reduce your premiums. Also, certain company safety programs can lower your premiums. Some companies will even provide discounts on premiums if you have a dashcam or other accountability system installed.

When you’re shopping for insurance, there are a lot of details that you have to consider. First and foremost, you need to make sure that you are aware of all of the facts about coverage.


Insurance Agents

Finding Insurance for Insurance Agents

Professional liability coverage is a must-have in most of today’s trades and professions, especially for practitioners who work for themselves. Insurance brokers and independent agents alike need protection against the everyday errors and omissions that can happen due to unforeseen emergencies or even simple but unfortunately expensive mistakes. Sooner or later, everyone winds up in a situation where a customer makes a claim for damages, whether or not it’s justified. Robust E&O insurance for insurance agents doesn’t just cover those damages, it also helps pay for the costs of litigation where necessary.

Professionals Serving the Insurance Industry

There’s a reason why most insurance advice comes down to working with the experienced agents who really understand your industry, and when you work in the insurance industry, the advice still holds. Your most effective and well-written coverage quotes are going to come from people who have a lot of experience covering the people who sell insurance to others, no matter what kinds they sell. While the kinds of insurance offered vary, the kinds of liabilities faced by agents and brokers are broadly similar across the industry. That makes it easy for experienced players to quote accurate coverage for insurance industry clients. It’s easy to see why you benefit from working with someone whose expertise in this niche goes as deep as your own expertise in yours.


Do Insurance

Do Insurance Agents Need Insurance?

In the same way that a surgeon cannot operate on himself, those in the insurance industry must also find an insurance company to protect them from financial risks. One of the primary coverages is insurance agent E&O, also known as professional liability.

What Is Errors and Omissions Insurance?

An insurance agent is a trusted professional who helps people navigate the complicated world of insurance by advising they purchase policies to mitigate their financial risks. If clients claim an agent gave them bad advice, an errors and omissions policy covers the expenses associated with legal defense. It also  reimburses the client if the agent is found to be at fault.

Who Is Eligible?

The word agent is a general term that means anyone who acts on behalf of another person. Because most people lack the expertise needed to make good decisions about insurance policies, an insurance agent selects coverage for them. Other job titles eligible for insurance agent E&O include the following:

  • Managing general agent
  • Wholesaler
  • Surplus line broker
  • Program administrator

With so many policies at their fingertips, it may seem that insurance agents do not need insurance for themselves. An errors and omissions insurance policy, however, is not just required by law, but also is a smart way for agents to protect themselves.


General Liability Insurance

3 Questions About General Liability Insurance for Businesses

While general liability insurance for businesses is not required by law, purchasing it can be one of the wisest investments a company makes. It is often only after experiencing a financial loss that the true value of such a policy is fully recognized. Answering three basic questions can prove beneficial when considering general liability insurance.

1. What Is Covered?

General liability insurance for businesses provides protection against claims arising from the daily routine of doing business. Typically, this includes the following:

  • Personal injury
  • Damage to property
  • Advertising grievances
  • Product damage
  • Rental property damage 

2. Who Needs It?

Virtually every business, large or small, should consider a general liability policy. It can provide protection from lawsuits brought by customers, vendors and even the public. For brick and mortar businesses, it’s especially useful because it provides coverage against physical losses.

3. How Much Coverage Do You Need?

Equally important to having general liability coverage is having the right amount. Two primary factors to consider when identifying the needs of your business include the size of the establishment and its loss history.

Investing in the right general liability policy can go a long way in protecting the future of any commercial operation. Talk with an authorized insurance agent to determine the amount of protection required to meet your company’s myriad needs.


Insurance SEO Strategies

Tips for Insurance SEO Strategies

Search engine optimization techniques improve website traffic from search engines.

Insurance SEO is a necessity for a company to appear in relevant searches. It helps increase the ranking of a business’s webpages, putting its services in front of potential customers.

Content

Consistent, keyword-optimized content helps a website prosper. A company needs to write engaging copy that provides value to clients. For optimal success, pages must contain balanced, targeted keywords based on research.

Online Citations

Citations are any online reference of an agency’s name, address and phone number. The most effective methods to build these include Google My Business, Bing Places and Yelp. All instances of this type of essential information must be accurate and identical. Inconsistencies cause search engines to lower a site’s ranking.

Links

Another crucial element of insurance SEO is link-building. Backlinks are incoming hyperlinks to a company’s site from a different online location. These work as a method of authenticating a business to the search engine algorithm. Pages with many backlinks rank higher in search results.

Email Campaigns

Optimized emails can improve website engagement. These useful emails entice visitors to engage with a company’s content and resources. This value proposition leads to successful conversions.

Understanding how SEO works is vital to building new relationships with potential clients.


Marina

Getting the Right Coverage for Your Marina

When you’ve got a marina or yacht club to run, you have to think about the needs and risks associated with your business on both land and water. Your facilities and equipment are exposed to damages that are specific to maritime-based businesses and operations. Additionally, your employees, club members and other personnel expect you to have the right insurance policies in place that protect the various aspects of your marina or boat club.

Understanding my Insurance Needs

In addition to typical coverages for property and worker’s compensation, you should also have sailing club liability coverage. Such a policy should be customized to address typical marina or sailing club considerations:

  • Marina facilities and grounds
  • Hull and liability protection for watercraft fleet
  • Regatta liability protection
  • Sailing school education
  • Chartering
  • Club member property

Your specific business may also benefit from a policy that also addresses Jones Act Coverage for workers, Race Management Errors & Omissions, Directors & Officers Liability and other protections.

Working With the Right Insurer

While there are many insurance providers out there, it’s best to go with one that specializes in covering marinas and sailing clubs. You don’t want to work with a provider that’s willing to take your money but can’t offer guidance or products that truly keep your operations covered.


Cyber Liability

Cyber Liability Insurance is for everyone

Technology has revolutionized today’s world and businesses, both big and small, benefit greatly from incorporating new technology into their business plans. From online sales to remote employees, to networked systems, businesses can’t succeed in today’s digital landscape without advanced technology. While there are countless benefits, there are also risks associated with our tech-driven world. Hackers and cyber-attacks are all too common and it isn’t just big corporations that are at risk. Businesses of all sizes should be aware of cyber threats and work to protect themselves and their business interests. 

What is Cyber Liability Insurance?

Despite what many people assume, a general liability policy is not adequate to protect a company from potential losses due to cybercrime. Cyber liability is a type of insurance put into place to keep businesses safe from extensive damage due to a data breach. This type of policy is specific to cyber-related claims and can at as protection from financial loss if your system is hacked or you experience a cyber-attack. However, cyber liability insurance is not enough. Companies must still incorporate advanced security software and employees to monitor activity. 

Who Needs Cyber Liability Insurance?

If your business utilizes cyber technology at all you should work with an insurance agent to evaluate your cyber protection. Don’t assume your company is small enough to be safe. Cyber-attacks are becoming more common and hackers are getting more and savvier. Protect yourself, your customers and your company from cyber threats with comprehensive cyber insurance today.


Watercraft Renting

Insurance Designed For Watercraft Renting Businesses

Companies that include watercraft rental in the range of services they offer to the public face specific risks based on the kind of watercraft and kind of body of water involved. Jet ski rental liability for equipment used on the ocean is a different set of risks from a human-powered boat like a kayak on a still water inland body like a pond or lake, after all. When you’re looking for insurance that is built to work with the kind of rentals you do, it’s important to work with people who really know rentals, and who cover all kinds of companies on all the bodies of water Americans like to explore. That way, you can be sure to get the right coverage for each of your offerings.

Rental Businesses

When it comes to the risks faced by your business when clients take a vessel out on the water, it doesn’t matter if renting watercraft is your main operation, your only operation, or just an amenity you include to draw people to your main business. You have the same liabilities either way, and you need coverage that reflects the size and power of the vessels you make available, regardless of the rest of your business model. That might mean finding a specific provider for just the rental liability portion of your insurance, in addition to your comprehensive business insurer. It might also mean finding a new comprehensive policy with the rental coverage you need.


Accident Sliding on Ice

What Happens If You Have an Accident Sliding on Ice?

Driving in winter weather brings a unique set of challenges no matter how cautious you are. Road conditions can change quickly and cause you to lose control of your vehicle. One of the ways this can happen is by sliding on ice. This can be a helpless feeling especially if it causes an accident. You may have questions such as whose fault is it or is there “sliding insurance”?

First of all, the fault will definitely lie with you no matter how safe you were being. There is no special insurance for sliding on ice but you need to make sure your insurance policy has coverage for all the things that can happen.

Damage to Your Car

This is covered by the collision portion of a policy. It would cover you the same way whether you slid on ice or not.

Damage to Something Else

Property damage liability is typically required by states and covers damage to other cars and objects. Be careful though, as the bare minimum coverage you can select may not be enough for all accidents.

Injury to Yourself

Medical payments and PIP will alleviate some costs in this case. Again, coverage levels can vary based on your policy and other factors.

Injury to Others

Bodily injury liability will protect you up to the limits on your policy. This provides coverage whether you harm someone in another vehicle or a pedestrian.