Understanding Your Commercial General Liability Insurance

Canada is home to many well-known businesses, but the vast majority of Canada’s businesses are small businesses and microenterprises. The liability risks faced by small businesses aren’t that much different than those of large businesses. Many times, it’s simply a matter of scale. Commercial General Liability Insurance (CGL) is the backbone for a small business insurance strategy, with other coverages added as needed to address a particular business’s risks.

Injuries to others can occur in even the most carefully-managed of businesses, which makes general liability insurance a must-have for businesses of all sizes, and even for home-based businesses.

Here are some risks you’ll commonly find covered by a CGL policy:

• Bodily Injury Liability: If a client or customer is injured on your property, bodily injury liability coverage can pay for medical expenses or other related expenses. A home insurance policy does not cover business-related liability, so home-based businesses should consider coverage as well.
• Property Damage Liability: Accidental damage to the property of others is usually covered by a CGL policy.
• Personal Injuries: While personal injury sounds similar to bodily injury, it actually refers to damage to one’s reputation. Libel and slander are typically covered as part of a CGL policy. In today’s online world, a few keystrokes can create risk.
• Advertising Injuries: Unintentional misrepresentation of a service and some types of advertising that cause a financial loss to individuals or to other businesses can be covered by your CGL policy.

Coverage types and exclusions can vary by insurer and coverage is subject to the coverage limits you’ve chosen as well as insurer guidelines, so be sure to discuss your specific needs with your broker to ensure your policy provides the protection your business requires.

Commercial general liability insurance is just one type of protection your business may need. Many businesses may also require commercial property insurance, commercial auto insurance, or equipment breakdown coverage. As an entrepreneur, you know every business is different. Just reach out to your broker to discuss the ways you can protect the business you’ve worked to build and how to save on your insurance costs.

How to Respond When an Employee Gets Hurt on the Job

It’s another day at the office until unexpectedly, one of your employees gets hurt on the job. Does your small business have procedures in place to respond quickly and protect both your employee and your company?

If not, here are three critical steps you should follow in the event an employee is injured at your worksite.

1. Seek Immediate Medical Attention for Your Employee: The best way you can help assess the level of injury and begin the appropriate care for your employee is to get them immediate medical attention. Once they are under a doctor’s care, follow up on their recovery process.

2. Investigate the Accident: To understand exactly what happened and to prevent future workplace accidents, it’s essential to investigate. Talk to the injured employee and any eyewitnesses. Get written statements about what happened from everyone involved as soon as possible after the incident. Also, take photos for your records, especially if wet floors or misplaced equipment contributed to the accident.

3. File a Claim: As a small business owner, it may be tempting to try to avoid filing a Workers’ Compensation claim by offering to pay your employee’s medical bill directly. But, this is a mistake. Minor injuries can easily grow into something more serious over time. To protect your business and your employee, it’s best to file a claim. If it’s your first time filing a claim, talk to your insurance broker. They can walk you through the process and answer any questions you have.

Finally, train your employees on workplace safety and the steps they should take should an injury occur while you are out of the office.

3 Ways to Prevent Workplace Violence at Your Business

From co-worker fist fights to tragic shootings, the threat of violence in the workplace has increasingly become a serious issue for Canadian business owners. According to Statistics Canada, nearly 1 in 5 violent incidents now take place at work. Often those incidents lead to costly lawsuits, loss of productivity, and an uncomfortable work environment where employees fear for their safety.

Fortunately, there are steps you can take as a business owner to prevent workplace violence and protect your employees as well as the reputation of your company.

Be Proactive About Fostering a Safe Workplace

As an employer, you are legally obligated to provide your employees with a safe and healthy work site. That means you should take proactive steps to make sure your place of business is safe. One way to do that is to perform background checks on employment candidates before you hire them. That one action can go a long way toward reducing the risk that you have someone showing up at work every day with a history of violent behavior.

It’s also important to be aware of threats outside of your employees. Clients, customers, and even the domestic partners of your employees all have the potential to threaten the safety of your worksite. By taking steps to limit their access to only essential areas of your business, you can protect the safety of your employees.

Put a Prevention Plan in Place
Hopefully, workplace violence will steer clear of your business, but you should have a plan of action that outlines what you and your employees will do if a violent situation occurs. Your plan should first define what your business considers workplace violence. It should also identify the procedures you will follow in certain violent situations (e.g. robbery, co-worker fight, shooting, bomb threat, etc.).

The procedures should spell out the responsibilities of management and employees before, during, and after the violent act. It should also make clear the disciplinary actions that will follow the incident. Finally, management and employees should all be informed about your workplace violence prevention plan and trained to respond in accordance with the plan.

Pay Attention to the Warning Signs
In many cases, workplace violence involving employees is the result of built-up tensions that escalate over time. By paying attention to the early signals of trouble, you can diffuse the situation before it leads to violence. Here are some things to look for:

- Bullying
- Consistent angry behavior from a customer or employee over several days
- Ongoing arguments between co-workers or an employee and a client
- Noticeable decline in an employee’s mood and performance
- Suspicious customer or employee activity (pacing the grounds, unusual agitation, sneaky behavior)
- Verbal threats

These are just a few of the warning signs that violence may break out in the workplace. The most important thing you can do is pay attention to disgruntled employees and customers. If you ignore their feelings and dismiss them as unimportant, you could escalate the problem into a violent situation.

Remember, as your trusted insurance advisor, we’re here to help you keep your employees and your business safe. We can walk you through a combination of insurance coverages that limit your exposure to financial loss in the event of a violent act at work. Give us a call today to discuss