SOFTWARE BUSINESS INSURANCE
Software Business Insurance can be provided on our Spectrum Business Owner Policy (BOP) coverage form. The BOP policy language is designed to provide comprehensive insurance for owners of Software Businesses working in technology, IT, and electronic products industries including those with multiple locations. We know that our Software Business Insurance is likely to be an excellent policy choice for your needs. Software Businesses need coverage for the variety of property and liability exposures inherent in the mission critical applications that you develop, service, and sell.
Software Business Insurance needs are similar to the insurance needs and requirements of other commercial business understanding that your business often deals with intangibles and not products you can touch or handle. In your Software Business Insurance you also need to protect the interests of building owners when the building is not owned by you. We can write Software Business Insurance single locations and those with more than one location. By the way, this policy will not cover flood exposure but we can provide flood insurance through the National Flood Insurance Program.
Software Business Insurance under our Spectrum BOP policy is designed for most Software Businesses but some operations might require we use our CPP package program. The Business Owner Policy will typically include the following coverage and options when selected. Basic general liability is included automatically:
Software Business Insurance – Liability
- Bodily Injury and Property Damage, Premises Liability
- Limits available up to $2,000,000/$4,000,000
- Personal Injury and Advertising Liability Coverage
- Employment Practices Liability Insurance
- Fellow Employee Coverage
- Host Liquor Liability
- Non-owned Watercraft
- Hired and Non-Owned Auto Liability
- Products and Completed Operations Liability
- Employee Benefits Liability
- Ohio Stop Gap Liability Insurance
- Cyber Insurance – Data Breach, Cyber Extortion
- Electronic Data Liability Coverage
- Technology Professional Liability
- Manufacturing E&O and Product Recall Expense
Liability insurance protects against the tort of negligence in the Software Business Insurance policy. The tort of negligence is a breach of duty that is derived from common law principles that have evolved through decades and even centuries of recorded decisions about our relationships with one another including Software Business Insurance clients. A duty is an obligation we owe to someone else. In essence, we owe each other the duty to protect them from the consequences of our actions and when someone is hurt or suffers harm to either body, property, or reputation. In our culture we boil down our grievances to a monetary settlement in most cases. In the case of the liability coverage provided in our Software Business Insurance policy, we will pay for the benefit of a legal defense against the claims of injury or damage and we will also pay the amounts that become due to another because a finding of your negligence has occurred through legal proceedings or an agreement accomplished through the negotiations of your insurance carrier and the other people involved in the claim. This includes bodily injury and property damage as a result of events on the premises, through acts on and away from the work facilities, injuries caused by products, advertising injury, personal injuries other than bodily injury, hired and non-owned auto liability, and injury or damage caused due to computer intrusion and compromise when coverage is chosen.
Property for Software Businesses
- Buildings including multiple locations
- Business Personal Property used to service the property
- Building Limit Automatic Increase at the Time of Loss
- Valuable Papers and Records
- Accounts Receivable Coverage
- Computer Coverage and Cyber Crime
- Outdoor Signs—Attached and Detached
- Building Ordinance or Law Coverage
- Off-Premises Coverage for Business Personal Property
- Property in Transit when properly endorsed
- Earthquake Coverage (Some carriers)
- Loss of Rents, Business Income, including Extra Expense Coverage
- Coverage For Water Back-up
- Equipment Breakdown
Property insurance is required to be included when a Software Business policy is issued. We must include the business personal property, stock and fixtures along with liability coverage because the Software Business Insurance policy is a package policy that requires both liability and property coverage be included. The reason the BOP policy is cost effective is the large package credits that are built into the premium charges. The business owner policy provides a lot of coverage in a tidy package and it is flexible enough to handle several locations and variety of situations for building, business personal property, computer and cyber-crime needs, signs, coverage on or off premises, loss of business income, and break down of critical building mechanical systems that may alter your ability to operate. Larger Software Business entities may be equally served by our commercial package policy when property values exceed the thresholds built into our Software Business Insurance business owner policy package program. The BOP program is for the small to medium sized apartment operations.
Inland Marine and Special Property
(See IM Section for more Details)
Mobile equipment and property that leaves the building is best covered with an inland marine endorsement that is designed for equipment that may float to where you actually do your work, like for example, laptop computers that are taken to a local business or business event. Certain equipment that is mobile in nature and leaves the business premises will find the broad coverage of the inland marine policy endorsement is best method of insurance for this type of property.
Umbrella Liability
Software Business Insurance often includes an Umbrella liability policy as an additional limit of liability coverage because of the potential for large liability claims can occur. An Umbrella policy protects for damages that exceed primary policies and sometimes losses that were not covered in the primary policies but were not excluded by the language of the umbrella policy. Most carriers offering an umbrella policy to cover over underlying policies they also write. It is good to know what is and isn’t covered by the Umbrella so make sure to ask.
Crime and Fidelity
- Employee Theft
- Crime Inside
- Crime Outside
While you are busy operating and managing your business, your Software Business Insurance can be on guard for the loss of money through theft, robbery or burglary, or the dishonesty of an employee. Pharmacies have become targets for break-ins and robbery and having adequate crime coverage is vital. These are losses that can cripple a business and tailoring the needs for crime and fidelity coverage can be done within the Business Owner Policy for Software Business needs.
Business Auto
(See business Auto Section for Details)
If you maintain your own fleet of owned vehicles, we can usually easily solve the Software Business insurance problems inherent in your operations on a separate commercial auto policy that becomes a part of your coverage. If you rely on the vehicles owned by your employees for delivery or business errands, you will need employer’s non-ownership coverage. This non-ownership situation requires special attention but is coverage is not normally withheld as long as it is incidental. When you operate owned autos as a part of your Software Business, it is important to insure the vehicles (regardless of who owns them) with liability protection just like the premises and operations coverage. We cover non-owned auto liability with endorsements for small operations in most cases.
The business auto coverage is dealt with in general detail in the business auto section. Follow the link to this section for my information.
Software Business Insurance – What Influences Cost?
- Geographic location – rates are earned by areas
- Known hazards and risks of the area of the property
- Structure size and number of structures
- Adjacent Exposures
- Building Age, Condition, and Maintenance
- Electrical Equipment and its updates to code
- Variety of and types of products sold
- Coverage types selected from the choices available
- Amounts of Coverage chosen
- Percentage of Replacement Cost Insured
- What are the fire safety features
- Does the property have a sprinkler system
- entrances equipped for control of access
- Installed burglar and fire alarms in stores
- Past loss history on the locations
- Experience of the management
Professional Advice and Agency Service
Quality coverage begins with understanding your needs and the extent of your operation. Our claims and underwriter resources have over 30 years of experience in insuring and providing benefits to Software businesses. Moreover, I I have 37 years of experience working with business owners and have insured hundreds of millions of dollars of property through the years along for hundreds and thousands of businesses. Software Business Insurance is a specialty coverage product and while competitive, it wise to work with experienced companies and agents to get the best coverage and best rates. I have considerable experience working with small business owners and other retail businesses including businesses like yours. This agency represents quality carriers that have the ability to provide the coverage your business needs whether or not it is ultimately provided inside of our Business Owner Policy or our more flexible Commercial Package Policy (CPP) option. Call and ask for Terry McCarthy at (513) 779-7920, 9-5 Monday – Friday most days. We’re available to meet at most any time with an appointment in advance
