Exposures and Risks in the Trucking Industry
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Exposures and Risks in the Trucking Industry

Exposures and Risks in the Trucking Industry

Trucking businesses provide a very valuable service. Virtually anything items that require transportation on land, require them. Even with the high demand for these types of businesses and the profits to be made from running one, it can be unnerving to realize how damaging a claim can be. In today’s trucking world, having coverage is not simply an added precaution: it’s a necessity.

Costly Mishaps

While the best-case scenario involves a truck and its contents getting safely and uneventfully to its location, the truth is that many challenges await each trip. While many factors might be out of a driver’s control, such as traffic, weather, natural disasters and crime, many others can be attributed to human error alone such as the following:

A driver that is inexperienced or inadequately trained
Mental or physical unpreparedness due to fatigue, stress or an overwhelming workload
Lack of attention to detail and oversight on the job or in planning
Misunderstanding contract terms

When you combine these with all the possible exposures that can occur in storage, transportation and delivery, it becomes even more apparent why protections such as insurance are necessary. Before you or your next driver load up and take on the open road, it’s important to remember how adequate training and insurance should be non-negotiable in today’s trucking industry.

Secure Your Business With Strong Liability Coverage
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Secure Your Business With Strong Liability Coverage

When running a business, it is crucial to protect every component from the risks of every day and the litigation of unhappy third-parties. One of these business aspects is your management. It is not uncommon these days for a lawsuit to the board of directors, executives and the company itself. This is why it vital to invest in the right kinds of management liability. Working with a management liability insurance specialist can get you the types of coverage you need to build a strong defense.

What Exactly is Management Liability?

Management liability is the title for the types of insurance that protect those at higher levels of the company. This usually includes directors, managers and officers. This coverage helps you handle the financial burden involved with lawsuits made against these members of management and there are few individual kinds.

Directors and Officers Liability

D&O handles the litigation claiming directors and officers made a negligent decision or acted in a wrongful way. This can include decisions that resulted in the financial loss of a third-party.

Employment Practices Liability

This type of liability protects companies from lawsuits brought forth by employees. Litigation can include alleged sexual harassment, discrimination, wrongful termination, failure to employ and emotional distress.

If you want to learn more about this important coverage, consult a management liability insurance specialist today to get started.

How To Get the Most out of Hiring Individual Contractors
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How To Get the Most out of Hiring Individual Contractors

How To Get the Most out of Hiring Individual Contractors

Using the services of individual contractors is a popular way for many businesses to get specific jobs done without providing many of the entitlements awarded to traditional full-time employees. These types of workers contribute to the overall mission of an organization though they often have irregular hours and limited contract terms. However, because of many legal and ethical issues, it may be important to ensure that individual contractors and other types of employees have coverage such as occupational accident insurance.

Benefits

Supplementing your employees with individual contractors can be beneficial in many ways. While there are admittedly some cons to hiring these workers, for example, not having ownership of intellectual property, many believe the benefits more than make up for it. Some of the advantages of going this route include the following:

Flexibility in staffing

Reduced wages compared to paying full-time, hourly employees

Less office space required

No obligation to provide employer benefits

 

Providing Protections

Although it may not necessarily be required, putting protections in place such as occupational accident insurance may be necessary in order to avoid potentially costly litigation. Even though these workers are not traditional employees, accident, injury or death while on the job resulting from work performed for your business or on your property can be devastating. Luckily this type of coverage is often significantly more affordable, making it an even more practical safeguard.

Insurance For The Farmers Market

Food insurance Farmers markets are well known for their fresh and local produce that vendors feel good for selling and buyers feel even better about purchasing. Unfortunately, not everything that comes out of a farmers market is for the best. Food allergies and foodborne illnesses have made it so that farmers and vendors have to protect themselves as well as their business. One of the best ways to do that is to have food insurance. If you’re thinking about being a vendor at your first farmers market, be aware that you may be required to have product liability insurance not only to protect yourself, but to protect the location and the rest of the farmers market as well.

Small Potatoes

 Many farmers feel that they’re already small enough that they can’t afford food insurance. While it may cost them money to pay for insurancemonth-to-month, it’s better than suddenly having their business completely wiped out by a single lawsuit. Getting enough farmers to participate in a farmers market can be challenging enough, but requiring each of them to have liability insurance only adds to the complication.

Accidents Happen

 If you’re new to farming and plan on selling what you grow, there’s a chance that you can use the wrong kind of compost or accidentally sell fruits and vegetables that are contaminated. It can cost as much as $5,000 to $6,000 a day to remain in critical care after suffering from a foodborne illness. Imagine how much of a lawsuit that could be.

Before you start looking for food markets to participate in, make sure that you first look for a good food insurance liability plan.

The Importance Of Obtaining Staffing Agency Insurance

Staffing agencies are unique in their insurance needs, and because of the dynamic nature of their industry it has been problematic to obtain insurance in the past.  In fact, not more than 50 years ago it was downright impossible to have an insurance carrier grant a policy to a staffing agency.  The staffing agencies had no specific policies available to them largely because insurance companies didn’t understand their industry, and could not write policies to provide them with the coverage they needed.  Today, however, both the staffing agency and the insurance industries understand with more clarity what needs are to be addressed, making employment agency insurance policies more widely available.

Employment agency insuranceWhat A Staffing Agency Policy Might Cover

 As with a standard homeowners’ policy, a staffing agency policy can offer standard insurance specific to the staffing industry, but additional endorsements can be purchased to increase the insurance coverage that a company may want to have.  The following examples are common types of employment agency insurance policies that can protect staffing companies:

 

  • Abusive Acts Liability
  • Crime
  • Cyber Liability
  • Direct Hire
  • Directors & Officers
  • Employee Benefits Liability
  • Fiduciary Liability
  • General Liability
  • Hired and Non-Owned Auto Liability
  • Office Package
  • Owned Auto Liability
  • Professional Liability
  • Property and Inland Marine
  • Stop Gap Liability
  • Umbrella Liability
  • Worker’s Compensation

Insurance Companies and Staffing Agencies Working Together

 The only way industry specific insurance could become available to staffing agencies was through educating insurance companies about staffing agencies, and educating staffing agencies about insurance needs.  Fortunately today there is coverage available for employment agencies that are in need of customized policies.

Protect Your Company From Cyber Crime

The prevalence of cyber crime is on the rise, with about one in three companies reporting that they have been victims of this type of fraud. A 2011 report by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) indicated that about 34 percent of businesses have experienced fraud as a result of cyber crime, accounting for billions of dollars in losses overall, and catching up with the other most common business crimes of accounting fraud and corruption.

If you don’t think your small business stores the kind of data cyber thieves may want to steal, think again. Because of its prevalence, many businesses are turning to solutions like cyber crime insurance in Orlando to protect their information. Here are some tips to keep your business safe.

Cyber crime insurance in Orlando Educate Employees

One of the most common ways people breach a company’s system is through employee negligence—leaving a laptop with confidential consumer information in a taxicab or café, having easy-to-crack passwords, and more. Have regular trainings with employees to increase their awareness and ability to thwart cyber crime.

Update Software

Keeping your security software updated is another great way to protect your business. If you don’t have a dedicated IT department, considering hiring a professional firm to install and maintain a security system with anti-virus, anti-phishing, anti-spyware, and anti-malware protection.

Talk to an Insurance Agent

Getting good cyber crime insurance in Orlando can be a great step toward protecting your business from the threat of liability and exposure in case your company is a victim. There are a wide variety of plans available to fit the needs of many different businesses, and a good insurance agent can walk you through all the options to choose the one that works for your company.

How To Get The California Campground Coverage That’s Right For You

If you are an owner of an outdoor recreation facility, then you know there are some risks you’ll have that just don’t affect other businesses. When looking for campground insurance in California, knowing what to look for will help you ensure the coverage you get is right for your needs.

Campground InsuranceOutdoor Recreation Specific Coverage

To begin with, you will want to look at insurance providers who offer policies that deal specifically with outdoor recreation. Some companies may offer standardized types of coverage, while others may have more of a cafeteria-style approach that allows you to pick and choose what works for you. Just make sure the policy you choose covers the following areas.

  • Activities: If your campground has designated areas for, say, riding motocross bikes, then you’ll want to have a policy that covers this. The same goes for horseback riding, hiking, water sports, etc.
  • Weather: Is the area around your campground prone to fires in the summer or mudslides in spring? Get campground insurance in California that addresses specific weather concerns so you don’t have to pay out of pocket should a natural disaster devastate your business.
  • Specialized facilities or equipment: Renting out paddle boats to lake patrons is a great way to attract guests, but the facilities and equipment necessary to do so may be targeted by vandalism or theft, or it may be subject to certain kinds of damage, so get coverage that takes this into account.

Getting the Coverage You Need

After you make sure your policy covers your more unique risks, round out the policy with some basic business coverage such as general liability or workers compensation. You insurance agent can help you decide what’s right for you, so get in contact today to get the policy that best addresses your needs.

What Is Outdoor Recreation Insurance?

If you run a business that deals in outdoor recreation of any kind, it is important that you have the proper insurance for your business. Aside from management liability, workers compensation, and other types of insurance, you should also have an outdoor recreation insurance policy. The right policy will provide risk management for unforeseen circumstances such as stage collapses, tour bus crashes, skiing injuries, animal issues, and more.

Outdoor Recreation InsuranceWhich Businesses Can Benefit?

When it comes to outdoor recreation insurance, there is a wide variety of business that could benefit from the right policy. An insurance agent will be able to help you figure out what your needs are in relation to risk management for your business. Some of those include

  • Campgrounds, including adventures camps and family camps.
  • Outdoor concert venues.
  • Motocross.
  • Boating, swimming, and other water businesses.
  • Cycling and hiking tours.
  • Ski resorts.
  • Fairs, whether it is traveling or permanent.
  • Equine races, tracks, and other shows.

And there are so many more. Speaking to an insurance agent could be the best way to learn more about this type of insurance and how it can benefit you in your business. Whether you run the best sail boat business around, or if you offer the best in snow skiing, having the right insurance is one of the most important steps in risk management.

A Guide To Finding Great Educational Insurance

You never know what life is going to bring your way. That is why it is essential to carry a quality insurance plan for your educational establishment that will offer protection in case of an accident, injury, death, storm, or any other unforeseen event that may come your way. With so many companies offering insurance coverage, how do you know which one will provide your facility with the best? By asking some simple questions beforehand, you can determine which company will be best for your educational establishment.
Which options are available?Educational Insurance
A good educational insurance plan will offer several options, including educator liability insurance, property coverage, accidental death and dismemberment, general liability, abuse and molestation coverage, and umbrella insurance. The more options offered to you, the better.
What is risk assessment?
Risk assessment is important in evaluating your current insurance plan to ensure that is it providing your school with adequate coverage. A specialized team will perform surveys, appraisals, and claims analyses for your school. They will also ensure your facilities legal compliance and review your employee training within the facility. Instead of waiting for the worst to happen, make sure that you are protected against what lies ahead.
Make sure that you have the right insurance for your school. Whether you need public school insurance in Indiana or insurance coverage for a university or private institution, you can find exceptional coverage at an affordable price.

What Is An Emergency Fund? And Why Should I Have One?

Emergency FundMany people have an emergency fund just in case of well an emergency. Now the reasons that many people have an emergency fund are because they are just planning for any uncertainties in the future.
You see while you can never really know when something is going to take place. You can actual still in a way prepare for it. This is really what an emergency fund is. You will have put together a solid plan that can help you out in a time when you and your family are hit tough by a financial hardship.
The idea behind a person having an emergency fund is to cover the major expenditures such as your mortgage or rent and other essential bills. Think of it as some kind of safety net that you have there just in case something terrible does happen.
You are probably wondering just how much exactly you should have in your emergency fund. Well truth be told there is no real right or wrong answer, but you do want to have enough in there to help you out for say at least a month if things do get real tough. Some people even will hide enough away to cover them for over a year. I know this may seem a little excessive and is probably out of the question for most families out there, but some people do actually put away that much.
One other thing that is really important when planning an emergency fund is where you are going to store the money. Remember you are not trying to make money on interest here. The idea is that you can get to the money as soon as you need it. So you do not want to put it into some complicated bank account that is going to take a while to get the money out of.
Nope you want to make sure that you are putting your money in a place where you can have instant access. I am not saying that you need to start storing wads of cash around your house, but aging this is not unheard of. Just use a regular old bank account that lets you add or take as much as you want when you want.
We can never know when a accident is going to happen, but by having an emergency fund we can at least prepare for the financial fall out.

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