Insurance Coverages for Restaurants and Cafes

How Much Does Restaurant Insurance Cost?

Whether you are considering starting up a new restaurant or you are a seasoned owner, you are probably curious about the cost of insurance for restaurants. The cost per year to insure a restaurant depends on a number of different factors. Some of these include:

How many employees your restaurant has
Where your restaurant is located
The types of coverage and limits you select

While many places online can give you a general estimate, it’s a smart choice to start the quoting process with an experienced agent who can listen to the specifics of your business. As an independent insurance agency, we work with many different insurance carriers and can help find coverage options for your restaurant or café. You can see a list of the carriers we work with here.

Choosing Insurance Coverages for Your Restaurant or Cafe

If you are wondering what types of insurance coverage your restaurant should consider, the answer can vary as there is no one-size-fits-all answer. Every restaurant is a little different. Pizzerias, diners, bars, franchised chains, etc., each come with unique challenges. Often, restaurants face several risk factors, such as working with large numbers of people, dangerous kitchens, food spoilage, alcohol, and other additional considerations. That being said, there are some common coverages that fit a variety of different restaurant models and which you may want to consider. These include, among others:

General Liability

You likely strive to make your restaurant a safe and welcoming atmosphere. But with so many people coming in and out of your doors every day, the potential for a guest to injure themselves (such as an accidental burn from a hot dish or a slip on a freshly mopped floor) is ever-present.

General liability insurance can help protect your organization from third-party personal injury and property damage claims allegedly caused by the negligence of your company and/or employees. This coverage also sometimes provides coverage for libel and copyright infringement.

Commercial Property

Commercial property insurance can help provide coverage for your restaurant’s physical assets (such as the building, equipment, tables and booths, etc.) from certain perils like fire, wind, hail, theft, and vandalism.

Workers’ Compensation for Restaurants

If your restaurant has employees, Workers’ Compensation may be a state requirement. It can help cover medical bills for employees who are injured or become ill because of work related events. It can also help cover a portion of their lost wages.

Business Owners Policy

A Business Owner’s Policy (BOP) is a policy that combines both general liability and property insurance. While general liability applies to personal injury and property damage claims made by a customer or other third-party, general liability doesn’t provide coverage for your property. Having a Business Owner’s Policy can help protect your potential property losses.

Liquor Liability

If your establishment serves alcohol, then having liquor liability insurance may be a good idea. Liquor liability coverage can help provide your business with coverage for claims of bodily injury or property damage for which it may become liable as a result of serving alcohol to an intoxicated customer. This type of policy may cover settlements, legal costs, and medical expenses.

Food Spoilage Coverage

This coverage can protect against financial losses caused by incidents beyond your control, like equipment failures, that result in food inventory spoilage.

What Is Business Interruption Insurance?

If the street where your restaurant or café is located floods, you could be closed for weeks. Everyday closed could mean lost profits, while expenses like rent and taxes stack up.

Business interruption insurance can help to replace a portion of a business’s income in the event a covered peril occurs and causes a business to pause operations or temporarily relocate. It is important to note that business interruption insurance works with your commercial property insurance. For example, in the event that a fire, natural disaster, or theft, causes physical damage to your business’s property, your commercial property insurance may cover the costs of repair. If your company has to temporarily close or relocate while those repairs are being performed, business interruption insurance may cover a portion of your company’s lost income during some of that temporary period of closure or relocation.

Health Insurance for Restaurant Employees

Whether your restaurant has never offered employee benefits or you are looking for a more comprehensive plan, we can work with our carriers to offer you plan options. If you are looking to offer vision and dental benefits for your employees, we would be happy to discuss options with you. We have partnerships with the nation’s leading carriers as well as regional insurers to offer a variety of plans. We’ve helped thousands of businesses throughout the Northeast provide benefits for their employees, and would be happy to work with your business.

How Do I Get an Insurance Quote for My Restaurant?

If you are looking to get an insurance quote, you can start the process one of two ways. You can fill out our online form, and our team will reach out to you. You can also call one of our many local offices to start the quoting process.

Once you start the process, an experienced member of our team will reach out to you to gather more details about your restaurant.

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This article is for general informational purposes only and is not to be relied upon or used for any particular purpose. Cross Insurance shall not be held responsible in any way for, and specifically disclaims any liability arising out of or in any way connected to, reliance on or use of any of the information contained in this article. The information contained or referenced in this article is not intended to constitute and should not be considered legal, insurance, accounting or other professional advice, nor shall it serve as a substitute for the recipient obtaining such advice. The views expressed in this article are that of its author and do not necessarily represent the views of Cross Financial Corp. and its subsidiaries and affiliates (“Cross Insurance”) or Cross Insurance’s management or shareholders.