Business Insurance

Marcus Reed bought an $812-a-year ghost workers comp policy to win a $42,000 commercial job. He fell off a ladder, filed a claim, and learned the policy excluded him as the owner. Ghost policies satisfy the certificate of insurance, not the owner.

David Liu's firm wired $245,000 to a fraudster posing as the CEO. Their $1 million cyber liability policy paid nothing. Social engineering fraud sits in a coverage gap most owners do not see until the wire is gone.

Marcus Brown's repair shop had a burst pipe that destroyed a customer's BMW. His garage liability paid nothing. Garagekeepers liability is the policy that covers customer vehicles in your care.

Mei Zhao watched a $14,800 inventory loss and a $7,400 compressor repair fall outside her commercial property policy. Equipment breakdown coverage would have paid both.

Marcus Holloway watched fire destroy a $480,000 residential addition mid-build. His CGL paid nothing toward the rebuild. Builder's risk would have.

Wei filed a $200,000 fire claim on his restaurant building. The check came back for $147,000. The shortfall was the coinsurance penalty buried on page nine.

Most small business owners buy a BOP and assume they're covered. They're not - and the claims that actually destroy small businesses fall into the exact gaps a BOP leaves open.

When a longtime bookkeeper drains $47,000 from your business account, your BOP isn't going to write that check. Here's the policy that does.

Marcus finished the bathroom renovation and moved on to the next job. Eight months later, a $38,000 water damage claim landed in his lap - and his GL policy didn't cover it. Here's the coverage gap that follows contractors long after they leave a job site.

Marcus had 11 employees, a landscaping business, and zero insurance coverage when his former assistant manager filed a discrimination claim. Most small business owners don't know their general liability policy explicitly excludes every employment lawsuit they're likely to face.