Insuring your home-based business
What you need to know if you work from home
Whether you’re running a part-time, seasonal or full-time business from your home, you’ll want to carefully consider your risks and insurance needs. Starting a business—even at home—can be a challenging venture, and having the right insurance can provide a financial safety net and peace of mind.
Your insurance choices should, in part, be based on the type of business you operate. For instance, if you’re a sole practitioner home-based accountant, you’ll have very different insurance needs than your neighbor who runs a childcare business. When considering insurance for your business, here are some questions to ask yourself:
- What type of business do I run? What are the potential risks faced by your type of business?
- What is the value of my business property? Do you have expensive equipment, such as cameras or commercial printers? Do you stock valuable business inventory, such as gemstones?
- Does my business have employees?
- Do customers or contractors visit my business at my home?
- Do I use my car or other vehicles in the course of my business operations?
- Does my business store customers’ financial and personal information on a computer or through a cloud computing service?
The answers to these questions will guide which types of insurance to purchase—and how much coverage you’ll need. For your home-based business, the main types of insurance to consider include the following:
Property and liability insurance
Depending on the nature of your home-based business, you’ll need[…]
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