A Business Owners Policy is a commercial insurance package designed for eligible small and midsize businesses. It typically combines general liability insurance, commercial property coverage, and business interruption insurance.
Combining these coverages can simplify policy management and may cost less than purchasing similar protections separately. Eligibility and available coverage depend on the business, industry, location, revenue, property, and insurance provider.
BOP policies are not identical. Review the actual policy documents before selecting coverage.
General liability coverage may help with eligible claims alleging third-party bodily injury, property damage, personal injury, or advertising injury.
It may also help pay qualifying legal defense costs, settlements, or judgments, subject to policy terms and limits.
Commercial property coverage may help repair or replace eligible business property damaged by a covered cause of loss.
Covered property may include a building, furniture, equipment, inventory, supplies, and exterior signs.
Business interruption coverage may help replace qualifying lost income when operations are suspended because of covered physical property damage.
It may also address eligible continuing expenses and temporary operating-location costs.
Coverage may extend to eligible equipment, furniture, inventory, supplies, and other property used in the business.
Limits should reflect the amount and value of property at the insured location.
A BOP may include limited medical-payments coverage for certain injuries to other people arising from business premises or operations.
Coverage applies according to the policy’s terms, exclusions, and limits.
General liability coverage may address eligible claims involving libel, slander, wrongful use of advertising ideas, or other specified personal and advertising injuries.
Review policy definitions and exclusions carefully.
Equipment breakdown coverage may help with eligible repair or replacement costs following certain mechanical, electrical, or pressure-system failures.
It can be important for businesses that depend on refrigeration, computers, production equipment, or building systems.
Standard property coverage may provide limited protection for electronic data and cyber incidents.
Businesses that store customer information or rely on digital systems should ask about applicable cyber and data-related coverage.
Commercial crime coverage may help address specified losses involving employee dishonesty, theft, forgery, computer fraud, or money and securities.
Covered events and limits vary substantially by policy.
A business may need liability protection when employees use rented or personally owned vehicles for business purposes.
Company-owned vehicles generally require separate commercial auto insurance.
A BOP generally does not replace protection for claims arising from professional errors, omissions, or negligent services.
Service-based businesses can explore Professional Liability and E&O Insurance.
Employment-related claims are generally not covered by standard general liability insurance.
Explore Employment Practices Liability Insurance for eligible discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and wrongful-termination claims.
A standard Business Owners Policy generally does not automatically include every commercial risk. Separate coverage may be needed for:
Available endorsements and exclusions vary by insurer. Review the actual policy before choosing coverage.
A BOP may be suitable for eligible small and midsize businesses with risk characteristics accepted by the insurance provider.
Eligibility considerations may include:
Businesses with higher-risk or specialized operations may require a customized commercial insurance program.
A BOP can simplify coverage by combining property, liability, and business interruption protection in one policy.
Purchasing separate policies may provide greater flexibility for businesses with complex operations, larger property values, specialized exposures, or risks outside standard BOP eligibility.
A BOP does not eliminate the need to review each coverage separately. Limits, deductibles, exclusions, and endorsements still determine how the policy responds.
Factors that may affect BOP eligibility, coverage, and pricing include:
Each insurance provider evaluates business risk differently.
Business Owners Policies can differ in important ways. Compare:
The lowest premium may not provide the protection your business needs.
A Business Owners Policy, or BOP, is a commercial insurance package for eligible businesses. It typically combines general liability, commercial property, and business interruption coverage in one policy.
A BOP typically includes protection for eligible business property, third-party liability claims, and qualifying lost income following covered physical property damage. Exact coverage depends on the policy’s limits, deductibles, endorsements, conditions, and exclusions.
No. Eligibility depends on factors such as the type and size of the business, revenue, payroll, location, property values, customer activity, claims history, and insurance-provider requirements. Higher-risk or specialized businesses may need separate policies or a customized commercial package.
A standard BOP generally does not include workers’ compensation. Businesses with employees may need a separate Workers’ Compensation Insurance policy, depending on applicable state requirements and business circumstances.
A standard BOP generally does not insure company-owned vehicles. Businesses that own or use vehicles for work should explore Commercial Auto Insurance. Limited hired and non-owned auto liability coverage may be available for certain situations.
Generally, a BOP does not replace insurance for claims involving professional errors, omissions, negligence, or failure to provide services as expected. Service-based businesses may need separate Professional Liability and E&O Insurance.
Business interruption coverage, also called business income coverage, may help replace qualifying lost income and cover certain continuing expenses when operations are suspended because of covered physical property damage. Waiting periods, restoration periods, limits, and exclusions apply.
A BOP may cost less than purchasing comparable property and liability coverage separately, but pricing depends on the business and insurer. Compare the complete coverage, limits, deductibles, exclusions, endorsements, and price before deciding.
You may need to provide details about the business’s operations, industry, ownership, locations, revenue, payroll, building, equipment, inventory, customer activity, claims history, existing insurance, and requested coverage limits.
Compare liability and property limits, property valuation, covered causes of loss, business-income provisions, deductibles, endorsements, exclusions, insurer requirements, available service, and price. Begin on the Compare Quotes page.
