Is Your Calgary Building Supply Store Protected Against Lawsuits?
Your Calgary building supply store risks legal claims related to its products or third-party injury and property damage. What happens if you get sued. Are you financially protected against a lawsuit?
Business liability insurance helps protect your Calgary building supply store if you get sued by a customer or supplier or have a court-awarded judgment against your business. Legal costs can be financially devastating to your business without liability insurance or enough liability insurance.
Western Financial Group, a 100% Canadian company, can help you navigate your business, car, and home insurance during this period of economic uncertainty.
Western Financial Group will get you commercial coverage that uniquely protects what you do.
Western is a trusted, national insurance brokerage that has partnered with Canada’s top insurance companies to provide commercial insurance. We’ll work with our insurance partners to find the best business coverage rates for your Calgary building supply business.
We make the process easy by getting insurance quotes for you to choose from and giving you policy coverage options that suit your Calgary business’s specific needs.
What is building supplier insurance?
Building supplier insurance is insurance for Calgary stores that sell building materials to protect them from lawsuits as well as fires, vandalism, defective products, theft, and severe weather.
Who needs building supplier insurance?
Calgary businesses that need building supplier insurance include:
- Lumber
- Plumbing supply
- Electrical supply
- Hardware
- Brick
- Concrete and masonry
- Roofing materials
- Window
How much does Calgary building supplier insurance cost?
There isn’t a set price for commercial insurance to cover a Calgary building supply business. The cost and amount of coverage your building supply store would depend on:
- Services you offer
- Your location
- Annual revenues
- Number of employees
- Years of experience
- Claims history
Here’s an example of how Calgary building supplier insurance can protect you:
A customer says the lumber that you sold was wet and had insect damage. The customer has decided to sue your Calgary building supply store. Product liability insurance can help cover your legal bills in the case of a lawsuit.
Liability insurance is the key to your commercial insurance for your Calgary building supply store.
What business liability coverages do you need?
Commercial general liability (CGL) insurance
As a supplier of building materials, it’s not impossible that a customer or supplier could be injured at your Calgary store or their property damaged. You could be sued as a result.
If you were sued, CGL insurance would help cover the legal costs to defend the claim against your Calgary building supply company in court, as well as costs to cover damages to compensate third parties whether you win or lose your case.
What does CGL insurance help cover?
- Injury to a third party who is not your employee
- Damage to someone’s property
- Damage to rented property
- Medical bills if someone is injured
- Legal costs and settlement costs of liability lawsuits filed against you
- Liability lawsuits related to slander and libel
How can Calgary business owners save on their insurance with Western?
Western Financial Group helps business owners save on their insurance with the following:
- Bundle and save: They’re generally available when you bundle liability, commercial auto, and property insurance.
- Multiple quotes to suit your needs: Western is a national insurance broker that partners with Canada’s leading insurers. We’ll get you multiple business insurance quotes to suit your needs and to help you save money.
- Cost: Depends on factors such as services provided, location and size, deductibles, revenue, and any past claims
Product liability insurance
Your Calgary building supply products could be defective and you could be held liable.
Product liability insurance helps protect you against liability claims and lawsuits arising from the products you sell and distribute.
This type of insurance also protects your building supply store from damages from design, manufacturing, or marketing defects, such as incorrect labelling and safety warnings.
Cyber insurance
If you store online financial data for your Calgary building supply business or you take credit card or debit payments, you must protect this information and can be held liable if you don’t.
If your computer system is hacked, cybercriminals can sell the information. Without cyber insurance, you will have to pay out of your pocket for the cost of restoring your computer system. You may also be liable for damages to third parties whose information has been stolen and you may have to pay for notification expenses to inform customers who were affected by a cyber breach.
What other insurance is needed for Calgary building supply stores?
Equipment breakdown insurance
Your Calgary building supply business may have expensive mechanical equipment. Equipment breakdown insurance provides coverage for property damage from the sudden and accidental breakdown of insured equipment not automatically covered by a standard commercial property policy.
Commercial property insurance
Whether you rent or own your location for your Calgary building supply store, commercial property insurance can provide financial coverage in the case of a fire that destroys or damages your business property and its contents.
Commercial property insurance also protects your place of business or office and its contents from damage or loss related to severe weather, theft, and vandalism.
You should consider adding sewer backup or overland flood coverages, which standard commercial insurance policies typically don’t include.
At Western Financial Group, we help Canadian business owners understand what their commercial insurance covers and offer expert advice to make sure you’re protected for unexpected events.
Business interruption insurance
Business interruption insurance supports you when your Calgary building supply store can’t operate due to a covered loss. This type of insurance can be the difference between recovering from a loss and closing permanently.
There are many losses that can force your business to shut down. Here are some examples:
- Damage to your equipment from fire or vandalism
- A major reduction in revenue due to a client/supplier facing losses of their own
- A disruption in your supply chain
Business interruption insurance can help with these expenses:
- Payroll
- Rent
- Utilities
- Property taxes
- Alarm monitoring
- Relocation of your business
Tools and equipment insurance
You need tools and equipment at your Calgary building supply store. This type of insurance may pay to replace or repair your lost, stolen, or damaged equipment and tools that you regularly use for your business.
Anything valued at less than $1,500 is considered a tool and anything above that amount is considered equipment.
Commercial auto insurance
If you have a business car that you use for your Calgary building supply business, it won’t be covered by your personal car insurance policy.
Final thoughts
Insurance for Calgary building supply stores protects your stock and protects you financially if you are faced with a legal claim. Business liability insurance is a key part of your commercial insurance for your building supply store.
Let Western Financial Group help you protect your small business with commercial insurance
5 FAQs about business insurance
How can I save on my Calgary business insurance?
Bundling is one of the most effective ways to save on Calgary business insurance. Some insurance companies offer bundled packages that can include Commercial General Liability (CGL), Tools & Equipment coverage, Builder’s Risk or Course of Construction coverage, Commercial auto insurance, and Property insurance. Additional savings may come from: Choosing higher deductibles, implementing safety or risk management programs, maintaining a claims-free history, and taking advantage of multi-policy and loyalty discounts.
Why should I hire a broker for building material supplier insurance?
An insurance broker can do the insurance shopping for you to help you save on your Calgary business insurance by providing you with several quotes at different prices. An insurance brokerage partners with numerous insurance companies to provide different policy options that you can choose to cover your Calgary business at the right value for you.
Can I skip business insurance to save money?
Yes, you can but it isn’t recommended. Before you skip getting business insurance to save money, you’ll need to ask yourself if your Calgary business can afford to cover the costs associated with a lawsuit; lost or damaged equipment, inventory or supplies; or a loss of income if for some reason, you are unable to operate your business as usual. Can you afford that?
Do I need a certificate of insurance?
Your commercial landlord or a client may require a certificate of insurance from you as a Calgary business owner. A certificate of insurance outlines the coverage and policy limits provided under your insurance policy on the date the certificate is issued. It is issued free by your insurance provided. The certificate of insurance gives your clients/landlord peace of mind knowing that your policy meets their requirements.
Why shouldn’t I use my personal car for my Calgary business?
Any vehicle(s) used for business must be insured for business purposes, even if you use it for personal reasons. Commercial auto insurance. If you have a business car that you use for your Calgary business, it won’t be covered by your personal car insurance policy. You’ll need commercial auto insurance.