Business property insurance will pay to repair or rebuild your building (and the building’s contents) if it is ever seriously damaged or destroyed. If your building catches fire—or if an employee drives a truck through the wall—business property insurance will cut you a check so you can fix the building and replace any items you lost due to the damage.

A full business property insurance policy is actually two coverages that can be purchased separately. Let’s talk about each one individually.

Coverage for your building (property insurance)

This coverage insures exactly what you’d expect: the building where you run your business. If your building is ever damaged, this coverage will pay out to fix or replace it (as long as the damage wasn’t caused by a natural disaster, such as an earthquake or a flood, or by another excluded reason).

Note that this coverage only covers the building and any large machinery that’s permanently installed inside—it won’t cover damages to your furniture, computer equipment, or anything that would fall out if a giant gorilla turned your facility upside down and then shook it. (Hey, it happens in the movies.)

You should also know that this insurance coverage is targeted at businesses that own their building. If you rent your building, you can opt out of this coverage when you purchase your business owner’s policy.

Who should purchase coverage for their building?

If you own the facility your business operates in—and you can’t afford to replace it if disaster strikes—you should seriously consider purchasing coverage for your building.

Coverage for the items inside your building (business personal property insurance)

This insurance covers the items used by your business that are not permanently attached to your building—think things like furniture, small equipment, and computers. It will also cover the property of others that is in your care (so if your building burns down while you were renting a piece of equipment, business personal property coverage may pay out for a replacement).

However, it won’t cover any cash you store in the office (unless you purchase additional coverage) or any cars or trucks that are left in the building.

(Learn more about business personal property coverage.)

Who should purchase business personal property coverage?

Just about every small business. If you lost all your property tomorrow, could you afford to replace it out-of-pocket without financial hardship? If your answer is no, purchase insurance for your business’s personal property.

Get a quote for business property and business personal property from Huckleberry. It only takes 7 minutes. Everything’s online. Everything’s easy.