What Does Coffee Shop Insurance Cover?

Starting your own coffee shop can be your dream if you have an affinity for good coffee. There is no doubt that the love of coffee has been bringing people together for many generations, so as a coffee shop owner, it can be a joy to be part of people’s everyday lives.

However, you will need to protect your livelihood from the many common risks faced in this industry, such as burns and spills causing injuries and accidents to your staff and customers. This is why insurance for coffee shop businesses includes elements such as public liability and employer’s liability to help you worry less about coping with the consequences of any unfortunate events.

Coffee shop insurance can give you peace of mind that you are covered against risks such as accidents, injuries, theft, and devastating fires and floods. As with any food-related business, you should ensure your insurance policy covers issues such as compensation claims for food poisoning and harm caused by allergic reactions.

What does coffee shop insurance cover?

Like most business insurance policies, the coverage you take out should protect you against the most common risks encountered in a coffee shop or an environment that sells hot food and drinks directly to customers but also protects your most precious assets.

How would your coffee shop function without your expensive coffee machines, shop furniture, fixtures and fittings and raw materials needed to make your range of drinks? Your coffee shop insurance quote should also include contents cover and repairs or replacement costs for your essential tools and equipment required to operate your shop.

With the help of our team at Brisco Business Insurance, you can compare quotes from the leading UK insurance providers and tailor your policy to include the elements you need, such as coffee shop liability insurance, employer’s liability insurance, and more.

For the best protection, your policy should include the following elements:

• Public liability insurance for coffee shops: This will cover you should a staff member accidentally injure a customer or damage their personal property while in your shop. A customer may claim compensation should they get scalded by hot coffee, or their clothes, shoes or handbag get damaged by spilt hot drinks or food, for example.
• Employers’ liability insurance: This insurance coverage is a legal requirement if you employ staff to work in your coffee shop. It will help cover your costs should an employee be involved in an accident or fall ill from work. If you employ staff, even seasonal or temporary staff and volunteers, you need this coverage, and HMRC can fine you for every day your business goes without it.
• Contents insurance: This will cover the costs of repairs and refurbishments to the fixtures and fittings in your coffee shop following a fire, flood or damage caused by vandalism or burglary. Consider taking out extra cover for your most expensive assets, such as your coffee machines, which can be very expensive to replace out of your own pocket.
• Stock insurance: Your coffee shop relies on the raw ingredients that make up your coffee and drinks range. Should your stock be lost to a fire or flood, your stock insurance will cover the cost of replacing your inventory so you can get back up and running ASAP once you reopen your shop.
• Business interruption insurance: Should your coffee shop experience a major event such as a fire, your shop may be out of action for many weeks while repairs and refurbishments take place. While your shop cannot bring in an income, this coverage will help you pay your bills until you start trading again.
• Building insurance: If you own the building you run your coffee shop from, you will need building insurance to protect you against anything happening to your business premises. This will cover the costs of repairs and rebuilds to the structure of the building, such as walls, floors, staircases and the roof.

Do you need specialist coffee shop insurance?

Because of the nature of a coffee shop business, you need to build your coffee shop insurance policy around its needs, which can be very different to those of a retail clothing shop, for example.

Coffee shops are the hub of the local community. They are great places to meet with friends, socialise, study, work online, and take a break from a busy day. Because your customers can linger for a long time on your premises, your business faces more risks than a shop where people walk in, buy what they want and immediately leave.

A busy coffee shop can have people seated at every table and bench, plus queuing out of the door to get their coffee fix. This means there is a heightened risk of staff and customers tripping or slipping over while carrying hot drinks with which they can scald themselves or other customers.

This is why after employer’s liability insurance, your coffee shop should invest in good quality public liability insurance to help protect your livelihood from compensation claims for injury or personal property damage.

You may say that you need to take out specialist coffee shop insurance, where your policy is built around the needs of your business, rather than a ready-made policy created for a retail shop. For example, you will face a completely different set of risks than a retail shop selling clothes.

Brisco Business Insurance is a specialist business insurance broker that has helped thousands of UK businesses of all sizes find the most comprehensive and cost-effective business insurance that meets their individual needs.

How do you compare coffee shop insurance quotes?

When using Brisco Business Insurance, it has never been easier to compare coffee shop insurance quotes. We have a free ‘Compare Quotes’ function on our website where you can quickly compare quotes from the UK’s leading insurance providers with a few easy clicks.

We always advise our customers to be cautious when comparing quotes and never base their choice on price alone. The cheapest quotes may be tempting, but the policy may not provide the comprehensive coverage that your coffee shop needs.

After narrowing down your search, it is important to give yourself enough time to read through the quotes to ensure your needs will be met. When faced with a few quotes, it can be overwhelming to choose the right one for your coffee shop. This is why it makes sense to contact us if you need help making your decision.

Conclusion

When faced with so many options, choosing between coffee shop insurance quotes can be challenging. Our team at Brisco can advise you which quote offers the most cost effective and comprehensive coverage you need. We can help you build the perfect policy to meet your needs.

Coffee shops will never go out of style, but you must ensure your business is here to stay and will keep supplying your loyal customers with the coffee they love by choosing the right coffee shop insurance.

Maria Hickey

For more than 20 years, Maria has worked in the insurance sector and has extensive underwriting and customer service expertise. Maria is an experienced Senior Underwriter with a particular specialism for shop, office and surgery related insurance.

All articles by Maria Hickey