What Does Pet Shop Insurance Cover?

Arranging your pet shop insurance is easy when you work with Brisco. We can help you build a shop insurance policy that is tailored to your requirements. We work with the UK’s leading insurance providers and have helped thousands of UK business owners find the perfect coverage for their needs.

Finding the right balance of coverage can be challenging when looking for pet shop insurance because no two pet shops will need the same protection. Insurance for pet shops can also look very different to what is required by a neighbouring business that sells completely different products.

By building your insurance policy with Brisco, you can feel confident that you are getting the most cost-effective coverage for great peace of mind. The last thing you want to be worried about is if your pet shop insurance will cover your losses should the worst happen. But with our help, you can get the protection you need, leaving you to focus your attention on fulfilling your customer’s needs.

What does pet shop insurance cover?

One of the main risks of running any shop where the public enters your premises to buy goods or services is the risk of your customers having an accident. Should a customer trip over one of your displays or a product that has fallen onto the floor, you could face a costly compensation claim.

Protecting your business from liability is the most essential coverage to take out. Public liability insurance is seen as a ‘must-have’ element of an insurance policy, alongside other important factors such as buildings, contents and stock insurance. Here is a breakdown of the core insurance elements that you should consider including in your policy:

• Public Liability: To cover the costs of compensation claims for customer injuries or personal property damage.
• Products Liability: Coverage for compensation claims made against the products you sell in your pet shop. Should a product be faulty and cause harm or illness to a customer, or damage to their property, they are entitled to make a compensation claim.
• Employer’s liability: If you employ staff in your pet shop, this is a legal requirement. Employer’s liability insurance protects your staff if they suffer an injury or illness while working for your business.
• Stock insurance: Without any stock to sell, your pet shop wouldn’t make any profit. Stock insurance coverage is also seen as must-have protection for shop owners because replacing stock lost to a devastating fire, flood or theft can often be too costly to pay for out of their own pockets.
• Contents insurance: From your essential furniture and shelving to your shop appliances, should they get damaged in a fire, contents insurance will help cover replacement and repair costs.
• Buildings insurance: If you own the property you operate from, then buildings insurance will cover the costs of repairs and refurbishments from fire, flood or storm damage or if your building is damaged from vandalism or a break-in. It is usually combined with contents insurance unless you don’t own the property and want to take out this coverage separately.

Do you need specialist pet shop insurance?

Pet shop insurance quotes should be made up of elements that are relative to the type of business you run. Your pet shop insurance policy will look very different to that of a neighbouring business that sells completely different things. You will need more specialist insurance than is offered in a ready-made retail shop insurance package.

For example, a lot of your business capital will be tied up in the products you sell. From cute cat collars to tropical aquarium kits, your pet shop will have a lot to offer pet-loving customers. Your shop can look like a tempting wonderland. It attracts people to browse your shelves, even if they only come in to buy a tub of fish food.

More customers browsing your shop can lead to a higher risk of slips, trips and falls, which could lead to an expensive compensation claim. People tend to linger for longer in shops with plenty of exciting things to look at, so a shop that sells everything from aquariums to squeaky zebra chew toys is a very appealing environment to explore.

Because of the high number of products you sell and the length of time your customers spend in your shop, you should prioritise both public and product liability insurance. The more products you sell, the higher the chances of accidentally stocking faulty goods.

How do you compare pet shop insurance quotes?

The easiest and most efficient way to compare pet shop insurance quotes is to use our ‘Compare Quotes’ tool on our website. You can quickly compare top quotes from leading UK insurance providers to find the best coverage to meet your needs.

Remember that our dedicated team of experienced insurance brokers at Brisco are here to help if you need any advice or guidance about choosing the right type and level of coverage for your pet shop.

As mentioned before, the essential insurance elements for a pet shop business would be public and product liability, employer’s liability and stock insurance. However, it would help if you also considered buildings and contents insurance, depending on whether or not you own the building you operate your per shop from.

When searching for stock insurance quotes, ensure you base your coverage on the cost price of your stock rather than the retail value, as this is the amount your insurer will pay on your claim.

Other pet shop insurance to consider

There are insurance elements that will be valuable to add to your pet shop’s insurance policy, such as business equipment and business interruption insurance. Losing essential business equipment such as computers, laptops, printers, tablets and networking equipment can be just as devastating as losing your stock to a serious fire.

If a serious event happens where you need to close your pet shop down for several weeks or months, business interruption insurance will help keep all your bills paid until you can start trading again. It will cover lost income and essential business expenses; for example, you can keep paying your staff until they can return to work.

Conclusion

While owning a pet shop business can seem like a dream opportunity, there are many risks and responsibilities that come with it. Although no business owner wants to consider the consequences of dealing with a severe event such as a fire, flood or burglary, knowing they have the best possible pet shop insurance protection can be very reassuring.

There is no denying that pet shops need proper business insurance, so if you own a pet shop and want the proper insurance you need to protect your livelihood, then it is always better to be safe than sorry. Taking out public and product liability insurance is a sensible move for any retail shop owner. Still, it is especially critical for pet shop owners that attract a higher level of browsing customers and sell multiple products.

If you need help finding the best insurance coverage for your pet shop, do not hesitate to contact us; we can offer plenty of free advice and guidance. We can help build the best pet shop insurance to meet your needs.

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