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When you have a physical location for your business, you know that you could become the target of vandals. While you might make every effort to avoid this kind of problem, vandals can be quite creative and determined.
The problem with graffiti and some broken windows is that you won’t be able to open your store for business again until things are back to normal. It can be very discouraging to customers to walk up to a business that has been defaced, even if the broken windows are boarded over, and the graffiti is actively being painted over.
So, what do you do to recover from vandalism and get your business back on track?
What is Vandalism Insurance?
This is a coverage that protects your business if vandals should decide to stop by and cause damage to your property. This is a different kind of coverage than your standard property damage coverage.
This policy will help you to replace and repair broken windows, damaged shelving, broken furniture, and more. You can also claim the costs of repainting to cover up graffiti, and you can get help with damaged signage as well.
As an example, if you operate a bakery and your business is broken into overnight,you might suffer losses of your inventory, broken windows, and spray-painted tags on the façade of your business. This is a lot to grapple with on your own. Thankfully, if you have the right insurance, you can file a claim and get help right away with the damage that was done to your bakery.
What is Covered in Your Policy?
These are the things that will be covered in most vandalism policies:
· Graffiti and spray-paint removal
· Broken windows
· Damage to signs and exterior fixtures
· Interior damages from forced entry
What is not covered:
· Stolen items
· Wear and tear
· Employee-caused vandalism
· Natural disaster damage
Who Needs Vandalism Insurance?
So, who really needs this coverage? If you have a brick-and-mortar business location, you need to have this coverage, even if you are not operating in an area where this kind of thing is an issue. You should always consider that vandals could tag your business just because they felt like making a mess. You don’t need to have personal issues with someone to be attacked by vandals on a mission.
If you have a home-based business, you might not need to have this policy. Likewise, if you operate a business within a fully enclosed mall space or shopping center, you are probably all right to save the money as well.
What Will This Policy Cost?
Thankfully, if you need vandalism insurance, it’s not going to break the bank. Your policy will probably cost about $500 a year. At most, you should expect about $1,200 a year in premiums. The higher the risk in the area where you do business, the higher the cost of your policy.
If you have a security system, an enclosed parking lot with a security gate, or security guards on the property, your premiums will usually be lower. You can also make sure that you adjust your business hours to help keep vandals off your property.
What Will Happen if You Don’t Have Vandalism Coverage?
If you don’t have vandalism coverage and your business location is hit by vandals, you need to know that only a portion of the damage will likely be covered. You might get a partial payment for the damages that need to be repaired after paying your deductible for a claim, but you should not expect to have the full amount of the cost of recovering from this kind of damage covered by your basic business insurance policy.
The cost of broken windows, repainting, and fixing broken signs can total well into the thousands. You need to balance paying for these kinds of repairs out of pocket against the fairly minimal cost of a vandalism protection policy to decide if you want to have this kind of policy in place for your business.
Since vandalism insurance is so affordable, it is often wise to have this coverage if you are operating in a place where there is even a small chance of getting hit by vandals. Even $5,000 in damages can set your business back for years into the future, and you probably don’t have the time or energy to repair your business location all alone.
Things to Remember
Vandalism coverage will help you repair broken windows, exterior paint and surface damage, and damage to signs. It will not cover theft, employee-caused vandalism, or natural disaster damage. Your annual cost will be anywhere from $300 to $1,500 for this policy. If you do not have this kind of coverage, you will need to pay partially out of pocket for the potential thousands of dollars of damage to your business location.
At USA Business Insurance, we can help you determine if you need vandalism coverage for your company. We have experience with helping businesses of all shapes and sizes to protect their investment for the long haul. Don’t leave anything up to chance. Contact us today to work with our team to get the insurance that your business needs to thrive.
