When looking for commercial property insurance you may wish to consider:

• protection for the interior and exterior of the shop against threats such as fire and flood. Your shop may be out of business for many weeks while repairs and a clean up are made due to either of these events, for example. If you add up the lost revenue it might be thousands of pounds. You also have to factor in how much it costs for repairs and replacements of shop fittings and fixtures;

• hopefully your shop sees many customers walking through the doors each and every day. While this is great for business the downside is that with each individual there is the risk of accident or injury. Any customer that suffers an accident on or around your premises may wish to take you to court. Legal costs may add up to a large sum of money that you may struggle to find. In some cases it may mean the end of your business if you have to sell to meet legal costs;

• accidental damage to your stock, fittings and fixtures may occur. In some cases over the year you may stand to lose a great deal of money this way. Shop insurance may provide compensation for losses and with some business insurance providers this may include any loss as the result of vandalism.

As you may see from the above, shop insurance may be a lifeline if the worse happens. An insurance policy may provide protection against many events, and these may vary among commercial shop insurance providers. Therefore it may pay to check out the small print and compare shop insurance policies online before you purchase.

Just a moment’s thought, however, will prompt the rather depressing realisation that there is a lot to insure. Not only is there all the stock, equipment and fittings in the shop, there is a whole range of potential liabilities against which customers, members of the public and employees could claim. In the event of the worst happening and your needing to make a claim, you are also likely to want some reassurance that there is no financial loss through the interruption in running the business itself.

Fortunately, many insurers offer a comprehensive shop insurance package, ensuring that most, if not all, of your insurance requirements can be kept together under the one policy. Policies differ, of course, so it could prove worthwhile seeking the advice of an independent insurance adviser to identify the right package for your own business at the most competitive rate.

Although the required cover will naturally depend on the type of shop you are running, its size, its location and whether you employ people other than immediate members of the family, as a general rule, most shop insurance packages will include the following headings:

Public liability – to cover you against claims from customers or members of the public who suffer loss or damage to their property or personal injury whilst shopping with you if you are at fault;

Product liability – to indemnify you against claims that goods your shop has provided have caused the customer some loss or damage;

Contents insurance – to insure your stock and equipment – and of course cash – against accidental damage, theft, fire and other risks;

Employers’ liability – cover that is essential if you employ staff and necessary to cover against injury to staff while working in your shop or for illnesses they might have contracted as a result of working there;

Business interruption – to ensure that you are covered for any financial losses following the shop’s closure in order to deal with accidents and emergencies.

Buildings insurance – in addition, many varieties of shop insurance will also cover the building fabric of the shop premises themselves. Clearly, this is especially important if you own the premises, but even if they are rented from a landlord it is important to establish that sufficient cover is in place. It is also worth noting that even in the case of a tenanted shop, the tenant often remains responsible for the shop-front itself.