As we start to prepare for the holidays, that means grocery shopping, Christmas shopping, time with family at the movies, eating out, and playing laser tag. But for those businesses, that means an influx of people crossing their doors. For the business owner, this is one of the times to confirm that your general liability and business property policy coverage is active, as it may be subject to more exposure to possible claims.

In my first article, I described general liability, which is “a standard insurance policy issued to business organizations to protect them against liability claims for bodily injury (BI) and property damage (PD) arising out of premises, operations, products, and completed operations; and advertising and personal injury (PI) liability” according to the IRMI Glossary. To break it down more simply, the claims from bodily injury could be slips, trips, or falls in their business location, or theft of contents in a busy store. The holidays are a time for a lot of businesses to also have an increase in revenue generated, so if there were damage to the location and loss of stock, there could be a loss of income claim too.

No business owner wants to encounter any of the situations outlined above, so some homework is needed. Reviewing your policies with your agent to make sure you have enough coverage would be the best way to avoid potential losses. A few items to specifically review:

• Ensure your policy is in force for your primary location and any other secondary locations, on both general liability and property
• Confirming if your current business personal property policy allows for an increase in stock coverage during peak times, or if you should increase your coverage limits
• Have you done any renovations or repairs to any building owned, perhaps resulting from a hurricane claim? If so, does your building coverage include the new renovations completed as betterments and improvements?
• Does your property policy include theft? Many businesses, during peak times, are also open to more in store theft, by both employees and shoppers. I would check to make sure you have theft of contents included, as well as a crime policy. According to IRMI.com, a Crime Policy can also offer “employee dishonesty coverage; forgery or alteration coverage; computer fraud coverage; funds transfer fraud coverage; kidnap, ransom, or extortion coverage; money and securities coverage; and money orders and counterfeit money coverage.” Beyond just holidays, a crime policy could be a good addition to your risk management procedures if you don’t have one already!

During the holidays and other peak times, as you can see, business owners have some homework. However, if a smart business owner can ensure his or her policy coverage is up to date during these peak times, then they reduce exposure to potential claims. No one wants to deal with a claim, only wrapping gifts and trimming their tree! Let’s help each other celebrate what the holidays are all about; family, friends, and the opportunity to spend time together. Happy Holidays everyone!

Alexandra Lysik is a licensed Property and Casualty Insurance Agent in North Carolina and South Carolina. Her independent insurance agency, Cavik Insurance, helps people save money and receive free insurance reviews to make sure they have the right coverage for auto, home, condo, umbrella, boat and all lines of commercial insurance. For more information visit www.cavikinsurance.com.