Business Insurance

What Type of Commercial Insurance Coverage Do I Need in Texas

Posted on November 15, 2024November 13, 2024 by agentinsure

Whenever you plan on operating a business within any given state, assessing any legal insurance requirements is vital to ensure you’re compliant with the state’s laws. Operating without the proper insurance could land you in legal trouble. Say, for example, that you’re opening up a business in Texas. Does Texas require you to have any specific type of insurance to operate there? Let’s take a closer look at your commercial insurance requirements in Texas and how the team here at InsureUS in Cypress, TX can help you secure the right commercial insurance.

What Type of Commercial Insurance Coverage Do I Need in Texas?

As it turns out, the average business isn’t required to have commercial insurance. There are some caveats, however, with those operating motor vehicles needing commercial auto insurance. But while commercial insurance isn’t necessary to operate in Texas, it’s highly recommended that you have it. For example, certain types of commercial insurance, like general liability insurance, will protect you if a customer is injured on your property. This type of basic insurance policy, alongside other insurance policies such as workers’ compensation coverage and even cyber insurance, will allow you to operate your business without worrying about paying out of pocket for lawsuits and other damages.

Find Your Ideal Commercial Insurance Policies With InsureUS

Commercial insurance is comprehensive, and finding the right policies at the correct prices can be difficult. We at InsureUS in Cypress, TX, make it easier to find the policies you need so that you can get faster coverage and pursue your business endeavors. Compare commercial insurance quotes with us today, or reach out to us if you have any questions.

Should I adjust my commercial insurance when I acquire new assets?

Posted on March 15, 2024March 13, 2024 by agentinsure

Why It’s Important to Update Your Commercial Insurance as Your Business Grows

The purpose of commercial insurance is to shield your business from unpredicted events. Therefore, it must be amended as your business evolves. If your company introduces new products or services, expands, or relocates, it may accumulate different assets that need protection. For comprehensive assurance that your commercial insurance plan has you covered, contact our InsureUS team, proudly serving the Cypress, TX region.

Modifying or Procuring Business Assets

Typically, businesses opt for commercial insurance at the inception of their operations, and their initial commercial property insurance reflects the original asset set. However, businesses don’t stagnate; they progress, accumulating additional assets to manufacture products or service customers. This often results in increased inventory, more personnel requiring office equipment or work vehicles, and occasionally, relocation or branching out into new premises. In all these situations, there’s a shift in the asset value and mix, indicating the need to update commercial insurance.

As a business owner, you ought to review your commercial insurance requirements with your agent at least annually and whenever there’s a significant change in the value of your assets. With up-to-date accounting records, this review should be straightforward, as your accounting system should reflect the current status of your business’s fixed assets, inventory, work-in-progress, and facilities.

Keep Your Commercial Insurance Updated with InsureUS

Keeping your commercial insurance up-to-date offers peace of mind, knowing that their assets are secured and they are financially equipped to return to their previous status should they encounter an unfortunate incident affecting their business assets.

At InsureUS, our team is committed to serving the Cypress, TX business community by helping create and update an insurance plan that protects your business. To discuss your commercial insurance options, call us today at 281-640-8888.

Commercial insurance FAQs

Posted on July 24, 2023July 24, 2023 by agentinsure

Many businesses risk being completely overwhelmed by the risks they face. Different companies face different types and levels of risk, but they must be protected from as many of the obvious risks as possible. At InsureUS in Cypress, TX, our team of experienced independent agents can help identify your particular business’s specific needs and make commercial insurance suggestions.

Does my business need workers’ compensation insurance?

Texas does not require private companies to carry workers’ compensation insurance. Just because you don’t have to carry it doesn’t mean it is a good idea not to have it.

What protection will commercial liability insurance provide?

Commercial liability insurance will protect your business from the ramifications of a lawsuit. It can cover legal expenses and judgment. This can result from being sued by a client, a vendor, or a disgruntled employee.

Does my business need commercial property insurance even if my building is rented?

Yes, it does. Commercial property insurance covers not only the physical building but also all the things you use to do business. Depending on your type of business, it can be machinery, office equipment, raw materials, inventory, display units, or electronics.

Does my home-based business need commercial insurance?

If you want to be protected against the many risks that every business faces, you need commercial insurance. Your home insurance will provide only the most essential coverage for your business property. Your home liability insurance will not protect you from liability if customers or clients visit your home. If you use your vehicle for business, you need commercial auto insurance.

Contact InsureUS in Cypress, TX to discuss your business and the types of commercial insurance that can benefit your business the most. Stop at our office, call us, or reach out through our website.

Why you Must Annually Renew your Commercial Insurance

Posted on July 26, 2022July 26, 2022 by agentinsure

For your business to grow, you must update your insurance annually. A company that continues to operate without an updated insurance plan is unstable. Many changes could occur to business, and we at InsureUS, serving Cypress, TX, could help you renew your commercial insurance.

Insurance Coverage is Inadequate

The first reason is that renewing your insurance yearly is vital because you might not have enough coverage to protect your business. An annual review helps examine all areas of your business that need to be covered. If you add a particular item to your product line, you have to update that in your insurance plan. Updating this will allow claims related to this new product to be covered in your plan.

Change of Business Location or Expansion

When you move your business to a different location or expand, you also need to update your commercial insurance. You will need to reflect these changes in your insurance plan. Even if you made some changes or upgrades in your business property or building, you also need to add that to your insurance. This is especially important if you invested a lot of money into these changes.

Change in Employee Staffing

If you have employees, you’ll need to update your business insurance to reflect any changes in staffing. If any workers have been terminated or hired, you will have to follow up with your insurance advisor to make these changes. Although Texas is the only state in America that doesn’t require worker’s compensation for certain businesses, it might be a good idea to include this to cover an injured employee’s lost wages.

Renewing your commercial insurance helps protect your business and its assets. If you live in Cypress, TX, contact InsureUS today to help you do this.

How to repay an Economic Injury Disaster Loan

Posted on December 30, 2020December 5, 2020 by Victor Varma

Wondering how and when to pay back an Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL)? You’re not alone.
Administered by the federal government’s Small Business Administration, EIDLs were part of a relief package Congress passed to help small businesses and the self-employed experiencing temporary losses in revenue due to COVID-19. The EIDL is different from the Paycheck Protection Program, or PPP.
The loan is a 30-year loan at a 3.75 percent interest rate (2.75 percent for nonprofits), with payments deferred for a year (though interest still accrues). Many businesses also received an EIDL grant of up to $10,000, which was forgivable.
Although the SBA hasn’t sent statements or payment stubs yet, you can still start paying the loan off, and there’s no prepayment penalty if you decide to pay in full.
You can find your balance and current payoff status by registering with the SBA’s Capital Access Financial System (CAFS) at https://caweb.sba.gov/cls. You’ll need your SBA loan number, found in your closing documents.
Start by clicking “Not enrolled” under the SBA Account Login heading in the left-hand column on the home page and then choose “Borrower” for user type. Most of the form is self-explanatory, though here’s one hint: When entering your phone number, the country code for the United States is “1.”
After successfully registering, log back in and find your loan by clicking “Borrower Search” on the blue bar at the top of the page. The loan information page will show your loan number and status, the principal balance, and the payoff balance, among other info. It also shows you when your next installment is due and for how much, and how much interest the loan has accrued.
This page also includes a link to pay.gov, where you’ll make payments. This is a much simpler form than at CAFS–you’ll need your SBA loan number again, along with bank account information.

The office after COVID-19 will look and feel different

Posted on December 18, 2020November 11, 2020 by Victor Varma

Our experiences inside grocery and retail stores and restaurants have changed dramatically over the past few months, with many changes likely permanent–plexiglass dividers at checkout and contactless purchases, for example.
But what about the office? What will it look like after the quarantines ease and more workers return to the office after months of remote work?
Touchless technology and air purification systems will likely be the norm, along with separate entrances and exits. A number of design and architectural websites suggest that buttons and handles will be replaced by innovations like foot-activated call buttons for elevators and methods of entering and exiting office restrooms that don’t include handles.
Desks will be spaced farther apart and may feature sneeze guards, and offices may install more motion sensors to turn on lights and faucets. Going even further, companies might rotate staff schedules.
According to Forbes, a hub-and-spoke office model may become more common–a company’s headquarters serves as the “hub,” while the “spokes” are used for smaller teams and are in a variety of geographic locations. The hub is no longer the base where everyone shows up each day.
Other ideas include the elimination of a single office refrigerator in favor of smaller fridges by department, and grab-and-go meals in cafeterias for the foreseeable future instead of self-service hot bars. Self-cleaning surfaces are likely to become the norm as well.

How bad has 2020 been for insurance? Look at the numbers

Posted on November 27, 2020October 16, 2020 by Victor Varma

If you live in Oregon, Washington or California, you may no longer be able to get insurance to cover damage from wildfires. Insurance losses from recent wildfires are adding up to be some of the largest on record.
Insurers are moving to raise rates and refuse policy renewals in regions with high fire risk, according to Moody’s Investor Service.
As of late July, losses from wildfires in the western U.S. were estimated to be $8 billion, the third highest on record. However, no one knows how high the total will go, according to Moody’s.
That number is just more pain piled on insurance losses as flash floods, tornados and hail caused another $20 billion in insured losses from natural disasters in 2020.
But that isn’t the full total for storm-related costs. The $20 billion number was calculated before hurricanes.
Analysts project that Hurricane Laura caused $9 billion in insured losses; Isaias caused about $4 billion in insured damage and Hanna caused about $250 million.

Small business: Check the demolition limits for riots on your insurance policies

Posted on November 20, 2020October 16, 2020 by Victor Varma

Small business owners are finding their insurance policies have limits on the payouts for demolition of buildings torched in riots.
A report by the Minneapolis Star Tribune showed that most insurance payouts for demolition cover about $25,000 to $50,000 in costs. Meanwhile, contractors in the area have submitted bids ranging from $200,000 to $300,000 for the work.
Small business owners should check their policies for limits on demolition. Depending on the policy, insurance could pay from $25,000 up to $250,000.
Total damages for riots could exceed $2 billion, according to a Bloomberg News insurance analyst. In Minnesota alone, insurers expect gross losses of $254.6 million. In Minnesota, 1,612 claims have been received, but insurers expect that number to rise to at least 1,714.
According to the Star Tribune, it often costs more to demolish buildings than the property is actually worth.
After Minnesota’s riots, cities have hired demolition crews to take down structures that were dangerous, presenting the property owners with bills totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars to haul away debris.
With most major insurers suffering losses in the millions now and with more riots expected, commercial property insurance premiums are rising, sometimes doubling. In other areas, carriers won’t write policies at all.

Understanding opportunity costs

Posted on October 2, 2020September 12, 2020 by Victor Varma

In the thousands of little decisions we make every day, the costs are probably minimal. The difference in cost between taking a bologna sandwich or a turkey sandwich to work for lunch is trivial.
But the difference between a bologna sandwich for lunch and a lunch at a pricey restaurant starts to get our attention.
This is what economists call an opportunity cost.
The bologna sandwich costs a little more than a buck. The lunch at Swells Restaurant costs $40. That choice – the opportunity cost — is $39.
We could even think of the opportunity cost as much higher.
If we buy a $40 lunch every day during a 260-day work year, we would spend $10,400. If we brought a $1 sandwich to work, we would spend about $260. The opportunity cost is $10,140.
You could say that we had the opportunity to do something else with that $10,140 but instead, we bought lunch at Swells.
For some, buying lunch at Swells would be a low opportunity cost if they were negotiating million-dollar contracts at lunch.
For others, this would be a wildly inappropriate way to spend their money. That $10K could be the difference between an emergency savings account or an investment in an IRA for retirement. But one thing is for sure: The money can’t be in two places at once.
Opportunity costs can be dramatic when you look at big ticket items like cars and mortgages, or in savings and investment.
Suppose we did take that bologna sandwich to work every day for a year and banked the $39 per day. We’ll round up our savings to $10,000 for this example.
Now we have a choice. We can keep our $10K in a regular savings account at an interest rate of .01 percent. We won’t make any money, but we have the advantage of having the money handy for emergencies. On the other hand, we could invest the money in an IRA and expect a return of 5 percent or 10,500. Over 30 years, that would accumulate a balance of close to $50,000.
So, we could say that lunch every day for a year at Swells cost $40,000.

Are you uninsured or under-insured?

Posted on September 18, 2020August 5, 2020 by Victor Varma

Life comes at you fast. In your youth at the peak of your health, in middle age, at the height of responsibility, what if an accident or illness took you off the family map? We all know it can happen and few think it will.
As a matter of fact, about 40 percent of people have no life insurance at all. Of the people with life insurance, about half are underinsured.
But the cold fact remains: What happens to your family if you die? Will they be able to afford the house? How will their lifestyle change? Who will support the family? How will they support the family?
Life insurance answers many of those questions — and it answers them affordably.
The least expensive form of life insurance — term insurance — is very inexpensive. A healthy 30-year-old can get $250,000 of insurance for about $15 per month. The earlier you buy term insurance, the less expensive it is and many policies don’t even require a health check.
Many people have life coverage at work, but this should be reviewed because it may not be enough. Primary breadwinners should have coverage equal to six to 10 times their annual incomes. Term policies usually cover only your working life.
Whole life is another kind of life insurance. Unlike term policies, it covers you for life, as long as you make payments. It also has the benefit of building cash value. Although most experts say it shouldn’t be considered an investment, if you get a big policy at a young enough age, and keep it until retirement, you could have a nice nest egg to tap into at retirement. Whole life policies can also be cashed in by your Power of Attorney for some part of the face value if you enter a nursing home, for example. It could be considered a small inheritance. Whole life policies usually require a medical exam and are unlikely to cover smokers.
Many websites compare costs of life insurance options.