Buy Delicatessen Insurance

Delicatessen insurance is a type of insurance specifically designed for delicatessen businesses, such as delis, sandwich shops, and other food retailers that specialize in prepared foods. This type of insurance typically covers risks such as property damage, liability for food-borne illnesses, and loss of income due to business interruption.

It may also include coverage for equipment breakdown, employee dishonesty, and damage to products in transit. The specific coverage options and limits may vary depending on the insurance provider and the individual needs of the business.

The average price of a standard $1,000,000/$2,000,000 General Liability Insurance policy for small delis ranges from $37 to $59 per month based on location, seating capacity, food or alcohol served, payroll, sales and experience.

Delis, like any other business, need insurance for a variety of reasons. First and foremost, insurance protects the delicatessen and its owners from financial losses due to unexpected events. This could include things like property damage caused by a natural disaster, theft, or vandalism.

Delicatessen insurance can also provide coverage for personal injury or accidents that occur on the premises, such as a customer slipping and falling.

In addition to protecting the delicatessen itself, insurance can also protect the owners and employees from legal liability. If a customer gets sick from food served at the delicatessen, they could potentially sue the business for damages. Insurance can help cover the costs associated with defending against such a lawsuit and any potential settlement or judgment.

Insurance can also provide peace of mind for the deli owners and employees. Knowing that their business and livelihood are protected can give them the confidence to focus on running their business and serving their customers.

Overall, insurance is an important investment for delicatessens to protect against financial losses and legal liability. It helps ensure the long-term viability and success of the business.

Let's take a look at some of the most important types of delicatessen insurance. In this type of business, there are three that are the most important. Let's look at each of them in detail:

General Liability Insurance

Commercial general liability is a type of business insurance that covers you any time that you are liable for something that happens to customers. For example, if you have people coming in and out of your delicatessen right after mopping the floor, there is at least some chance of slipping and falling.

There are also sharp knives, broken glass and plates, heavy equipment like salad bar tables that customers interact with regularly and lots of other hazards inside of your shop. You want to protect yourself and your business is much as possible, and that's exactly where a general liability insurance policy comes in.

Business Owner's Policy

You may also want to go with a business owners policy. This is the second of the three important delicatessen insurance policies. A business owner's policy actually bundles the general liability insurance that we discussed earlier with property insurance. Property insurance is important for any business that has actual premises where customers come.

Included in a business owners policy is coverage would cover all your business property inside your your deli, like your booths, tables, chairs, and your kitchen equipment. It can also include coverage for your inventory, including food and beverages.

For a delicatessen, property insurance is very important. If something happens to your building, such as a natural disaster, fire or flood, your business is going to stop earning money because you are not going to be able to serve customers. But property insurance protects you against this and allows you to rebuild quickly seeking get back to earning money.

The BOP bundles property and business income insurance with the general liability insurance discussed earlier to give a comprehensive delicatessen insurance package.

Workers Compensation Insurance

If you have employees, then you are going to need Workers compensation. Worker's comp is required by law in most states. It is a type of insurance that provides medical benefits to employees that are injured on the job. In the case of a deli, employees are even more susceptible to injuries than customers.

Employees must walk on wet floors, handle potentially dangerous items like hot grills and refrigeration units with sharp corners, extremely sharp knives or other heavy cooking equipment, or they may simply be injured because of carrying heavy trays or stacking boxes on delivery day. An example is an employee could suffer a lower back injury if they are not properly trained in lifting techniques and pull their back unloading heavy boxes of frozen foods.

Workers compensation provides them with money for medical bills if they are injured on the job as well as money to replace lost income during the time that they are recovering from their work injury.

There are some additional business insurance types that you want to be aware of when it comes to owning a delicatessen. Whenever you have a food or drink business where you have to store items on site that may spoil, you might want to consider spoilage insurance. If a freezer unit goes out or some other incident happens that causes lots of inventory to spoil, it can be useful to have spoilage insurance to keep your business going.

You may also want to consider employer practices liability in case someone brings a discrimination suit or other employer practices suit, you may want to protect yourself against damage from utilities like water lines or sewage, or you may simply want to add on an umbrella coverage policy that gives you more protection above and beyond than the other types of liability insurance that you already have.

There are also more complex risks for certain type of ethnic delis to consider like Jewish Delis keeping up costly kosher standards - such as keeping kosher by using biblical precepts to ritually slaughter animals, not serving pork or shellfish, and carefully keeping a 2 sets of kitchenware to prepare dairy and meat dishes separately.

Another example is Halal standards. According to Islamic guidelines, halal food is safe and not harmfully prepared; it does not contain non-halal and najs (unclean) ingredients; and it is processed and manufactured using equipment that is not contaminated with things that are najs.

Premises liability exposure is moderate due to public access. If there is seating, customers will move around the delicatessen with beverages and food items, generating spills that can result in slips and falls. Spills should be cleaned up promptly. Temperatures of hot beverages must be limited to reduce injuries due to scalding. Lists of ingredients should be posted to prevent allergic reactions. Customers may become ill from ingesting contaminated food or beverages.

Cleanliness standards must be monitored. Floor covering must be in good condition with no frayed or worn spots on carpet and no cracks or holes in flooring. Steps and uneven floor surfaces should be prominently marked. Sufficient exits must exist and be well marked, with backup lighting systems in case of power failure. Parking lots and sidewalks need to be in good repair, with snow and ice removed, and generally level and free of exposure to slip and falls. Outdoor security and lighting must be consistent with the area.

Products liability exposure results from food poisoning, contamination and allergic reactions from food and beverages carried off premises for consumption. Monitoring the quality of food received, posting lists of ingredients, and maintaining proper storage temperature can reduce this exposure. There should be controls in place to prevent contamination from chemicals such as insecticides and pesticides used for pest control. The stock should be regularly rotated so older, but not out of date, stock is sold first, and out of date stock is removed and discarded.

Workers compensation exposures come from lifting that can cause back injury, hernias, sprains, or strains, slips, and falls, burns, cuts, puncture wounds, foreign objects in the eye, and interactions with customers. Food handling can result in passing bacteria or viruses, resulting in illness. Employees should be provided with safety equipment, trained on proper handling techniques, and have conveying devices available to assist with heavy lifting.

Repetitive stress injuries such as carpal tunnel syndrome plague meat workers, as do cuts and potential injury from saws, grinders, and other meat processing equipment. Guards and/or protection devices should be in place. Anhydrous ammonia refrigerants are poisonous when leaked into confined spaces such as coolers. Controls must be in place to maintain, check, and prevent such injury.

Cleaning workers can develop respiratory ailments or contact dermatitis from working with chemicals. In any retail business, hold-ups are possible, so employees should be trained to respond in a prescribed manner. The employees tend to be minimum wage and turnover may be high. Company incentives to encourage long-term employment are positive signs of management control.

Property exposure is from electrical wiring, cooking equipment, refrigeration units, and heating and air conditioning equipment. All wiring should be current, up to code, and well maintained. The refrigeration units can put tremendous strain on any electrical system. Ammonia used in refrigeration units can explode. A system designed to detect leaks should be in place. Cooking may be limited to ovens.

All grills and deep fat fryers must have automatic fire extinguishing protection, hoods, and filters. There should be fuel shut-offs and adequate hand-held fire extinguishers. The kitchen must be kept clean and grease free to prevent the spread of fire. Filters should be changed regularly. Spoilage exposure is very high. Power outages of even moderate duration can render fresh and frozen goods to be condemned as unfit for consumption or sale. Alarms and warning devices should be in place to alert the operation to loss of power.

Backup power, such as a generator, should be available. Business income with extended time period coverage should be purchased. While clientele tends to be fairly loyal, they may switch after a major loss due to the lag time between the re-opening and the return to full operations.

Equipment breakdown exposures can be high as operations are dependent on refrigeration and cooking equipment which can break down or malfunction. A lengthy breakdown could result in a severe loss, both direct and under time element.

Crime exposures are from employee dishonesty and money and securities. Criminal background checks should be conducted on any employee handling money. Money should be regularly stripped from the cash drawer and moved to a safe away from the door. Irregular drops should be made to the bank during the day to prevent substantial accumulations of cash. Closing time is the most vulnerable time so security procedures should be in place to prevent holdups. There must be a separation of duties between employees handling deposits and disbursements and reconciling bank statements.

Inland marine exposures include accounts receivables if customers are billed, computers for tracking inventories, and valuable papers and records for employee and supplier records.

Business auto exposure may be limited to hired or non-owned liability exposures from employees using their vehicles to run errands. If delivery services are provided, only company vehicles should be used. Drivers must have appropriate licenses and acceptable MVRs. Vehicles should be properly maintained, and records retained.

Delicatessens, like any other business, can face lawsuits for a variety of reasons. Here are some examples of common reasons delicatessens may be sued:

• Foodborne Illness: A customer becomes ill after consuming food from the delicatessen due to contamination, leading to a lawsuit. A delicatessen can purchase a general liability insurance policy that covers bodily injury claims. This policy would cover the legal costs of defending against the lawsuit, as well as any settlements or judgments up to the policy limits.
• Slip and Fall Accidents: A customer slips and falls in the delicatessen, leading to injuries and a lawsuit. A deli can purchase a general liability insurance policy that covers premises liability claims. This policy would cover the legal costs of defending against the lawsuit, as well as any settlements or judgments up to the policy limits.
• Product Liability: A product sold by the delicatessen causes harm to a customer, leading to a lawsuit. A deli can purchase a product liability insurance policy that covers claims arising from the products they sell. This policy would cover the legal costs of defending against the lawsuit, as well as any settlements or judgments up to the policy limits.
• Employee Injuries: An employee is injured while working at the deli and files a workers' compensation claim or lawsuit against the business. A delicatessen can purchase a workers' compensation insurance policy that covers employee injuries. This policy would cover the costs of medical treatment and lost wages for the injured employee, as well as any legal costs associated with defending against a workers' compensation claim.
• Discrimination or Harassment: A customer or employee alleges discrimination or harassment against the delicatessen, leading to a lawsuit. A deli can purchase an employment practices liability insurance policy that covers claims of discrimination or harassment. This policy would cover the legal costs of defending against the lawsuit, as well as any settlements or judgments up to the policy limits.

In summary, insurance can provide valuable protection for delicatessens facing lawsuits. By having the right insurance policies in place, delicatessens can focus on running their business while their insurance helps cover the costs of defending against legal claims.