Hello Insurance. Goodbye Risk.

Business insurance is a necessary overhead expense for many businesses, but there are ways to keep this expense in check. If you run a business that needs insurance, here are some strategies to help you save on the business insurance policies that you need.

Avoid Over-Insuring Your Business

While you generally should purchase robust insurance policies for your business, there is a point at which additional insurance is unnecessary and superfluous. Paying for unnecessary coverage only increases your insurance costs, and reducing your coverage to a more appropriate level in this situation will help you save on excess premiums.

Exactly what is a reasonable level of insurance for your business depends on your business's risk exposure and financial position. An insurance agent can help you settle on an appropriate amount of coverage to purchase so that you avoid over-insuring without exposing your business to undue risk.

Package Your Business's Insurance Policies Together

Much like individuals can save by bundling their personal insurance policies together, businesses can also save by bundling policies. 

Bundled business insurance policies are referred to as package policies, and there are a couple of different types. Business owners' policies provide basic protections for small businesses, while commercial package policies offer more comprehensive and flexible protection. An insurance agent can help you select whichever type of package policy is right for your business.

Write Off Your Business's Insurance Premiums

Business insurance premiums qualify as legitimate business expenses, and they can be written off as such when filing your business's taxes. Moreover, you can write off business insurance premiums regardless of whether you file taxes as a sole proprietorship, limited liability corporation, limited liability partnership, C-corporation or other type of entity.

Writing off your business's insurance premiums won't actually reduce the cost of insurance, but you'll recoup some of the cost when you file taxes. You'll generally get back the same percentage of the premiums as what your business's tax rate is. For example, you'll get back $240 if your business pays $1,000 for insurance and has a 24 percent tax rate.

Develop Safety Precautions

Some business insurance policies might come with a discount if you have safety precautions in place. If these reduce the risk of an injury, you might qualify for a discount on workers' compensation or liability coverage as a result. Your insurance agent can help you check what safety precautions your particular policy provides discounts for.

To learn more, contact a business insurance company.