Restaurant Insurance
Restaurant Insurance details
Running a restaurant takes more than serving great food and providing excellent service. Restaurant owners face a unique combination of risks involving customers, employees, property, equipment, food, vehicles, alcohol service, and day-to-day business operations.
Whether you own a neighborhood restaurant, upscale dining establishment, busy café, food truck, or catering company, having the right restaurant insurance can help protect your business when something unexpected happens.
As an independent insurance agency, we can help restaurant owners evaluate their risks, compare coverage options from multiple insurance companies, and build a policy designed around the way their business actually operates.
What Does Restaurant Insurance Cover?
Restaurant insurance is typically made up of several different types of business insurance coverage. Depending on your restaurant and operations, your insurance program may include:
Commercial Property Insurance
Commercial property insurance can help protect your building, furniture, kitchen equipment, appliances, inventory, signage, computers, and other business property from covered losses such as fire, theft, vandalism, and certain weather-related events.
General Liability Insurance
Restaurants regularly interact with customers, vendors, and delivery personnel. General liability insurance can provide protection against claims involving bodily injury or property damage, including common restaurant exposures such as customer slip-and-fall accidents.
Liquor Liability Insurance
If your restaurant, bar, tavern, or catering business serves alcohol, liquor liability insurance may be an important part of your insurance program. This coverage can help protect your business against certain claims arising from the sale or service of alcoholic beverages.
Workers' Compensation Insurance
Restaurants can be challenging work environments. Employees may be exposed to hot surfaces, sharp objects, slippery floors, lifting injuries, and other workplace hazards. Workers' compensation insurance can provide benefits for employees who suffer qualifying work-related injuries or illnesses.
Business Owners Policy (BOP)
Many restaurants may qualify for a Business Owners Policy, commonly called a BOP. A BOP typically combines commercial property and general liability insurance into a single policy and may provide additional coverage options.
Business Interruption Insurance
What happens if a covered fire or other insured loss forces your restaurant to temporarily close? Business interruption coverage may help replace lost business income and cover certain continuing expenses while your restaurant recovers from a covered loss.
Commercial Auto Insurance
Restaurants that own vehicles for catering, food delivery, supply pickup, or other business purposes may need commercial auto insurance. Personal auto insurance may not provide appropriate protection for vehicles being used for business operations.
Equipment Breakdown Coverage
Restaurants depend heavily on refrigeration, freezers, ovens, HVAC systems, cooking equipment, and other machinery. Equipment breakdown coverage can provide valuable protection when certain essential equipment suffers a covered mechanical or electrical breakdown.
Food Spoilage Coverage
A refrigeration failure or power interruption can quickly result in thousands of dollars in spoiled food. Depending on the policy, spoilage coverage may help protect your restaurant against qualifying losses involving perishable inventory.
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Restaurant Insurance Designed Around Your Business
There is no single insurance policy that is appropriate for every restaurant. Factors such as your location, annual sales, number of employees, alcohol sales, delivery services, cooking methods, building characteristics, and equipment can all affect the coverage you need.
Working with an independent insurance agent gives you the opportunity to explore coverage from multiple insurance companies rather than relying on a single carrier.
We can help you review your restaurant's exposures, identify potential coverage gaps, and find competitive restaurant insurance options designed to protect the business you've worked hard to build.
What Types of Food Businesses Can Be Insured?
Restaurant insurance isn't limited to traditional sit-down restaurants. Coverage may be available for many types of food-service businesses, including:
- Family and neighborhood restaurants
- Fine dining restaurants
- Fast-food restaurants
- Food trucks
- Delis and sandwich shops
- Coffee shops and cafés
- Bakeries
- Pizza restaurants
- Catering companies
- Taverns, bars, and pubs
- Breweries and taprooms
- Ice cream and dessert shops
- Takeout restaurants
- Food delivery businesses
- Mobile food vendors
- Other food-service businesses
Every food business operates differently. A food truck has different insurance exposures than a fine dining restaurant, while a restaurant serving alcohol may have risks that a small café does not.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does restaurant insurance cost?
The cost of restaurant insurance varies considerably based on the type of restaurant, annual revenue, payroll, location, building characteristics, cooking equipment, alcohol sales, claims history, coverage limits, and other factors. An independent agent can compare options from multiple insurance companies to help you find appropriate coverage at a competitive price.
What insurance does a restaurant typically need?
Many restaurants carry general liability, commercial property, workers' compensation, and business interruption insurance. Restaurants may also need liquor liability, commercial auto, equipment breakdown, spoilage, cyber liability, employment practices liability, or other specialized coverage depending on their operations.
Does restaurant insurance cover food spoilage?
It can. Food spoilage coverage may be available to protect refrigerated or frozen inventory following certain covered events, such as an equipment breakdown or power interruption. Coverage varies by policy, so it is important to review the specific causes of loss, limits, and exclusions.
Do restaurants that serve alcohol need liquor liability insurance?
Restaurants that sell or serve alcoholic beverages should strongly consider liquor liability coverage, and it may be required in certain situations. General liability insurance does not necessarily provide adequate protection for alcohol-related liability claims.
Does restaurant insurance cover customer slip-and-fall accidents?
General liability insurance can typically provide coverage for qualifying bodily injury claims involving customers, including many slip-and-fall incidents. Coverage depends on the circumstances of the claim and the terms of the policy.