What's a BOP?

A Business Owners Policy, or “BOP”, combines liability and property coverage into one policy. It’s a common basic insurance coverage for small to medium-sized businesses with commercial buildings and personal property, such as restaurants, retailers, and contractors.

What's Covered in a BOP?

Liability — protection against any bodily injury or property damage that is caused to others because of your business operations, such as a customer injury and property damage or product-related claims. Your BOP covers medical or legal expenses resulting from an accident, like a slip or fall, that happens on your property, or in the course of conducting your business anywhere in the world.

‍Property — coverage for commercial buildings and movable property owned by and used for the business, aka “business personal property.” It can also pay for things like debris removal, and loss of income as part of a covered loss.

Business Interruption Coverage — if your business experiences a covered loss, like a fire, water damage, or another catastrophic event that requires your business to close for a period of time, the actual loss of income you experience would typically be covered during the period of restoration. Business Interruption Coverage also picks up any extra expenses incurred from setting up in a new location.

Exclusions You Should Be Aware Of

Certain things are not covered with a basic BOP package, and you may need policy add-ons to ensure you are covered. Here are some BOP add-ons to consider: 

Earthquakes coverage — if your office is in an earthquake-prone area

‍Employee dishonesty or crime coverage — to protect you from employee theft, computer fraud, embezzlement, wire transfer fraud, etc.

‍Data security coverage — protects your business if it falls victim to a cyber hack. Necessary coverage if you take personal customer data, like credit card info, on your website.