If you're planning to renew your company's business insurance or buy a new policy, it's easy to get overwhelmed. Commercial business insurance can be daunting, and the industry jargon can make it more complicated than it should be. Because making sure your business is properly insured against risk, it's your responsibility to understand these terms, although your agent or insurance company will help. Here are some terms you may run across when you're buying business insurance in Miami, FL or anywhere else.
Advertising Injury: This is damage that arises from oral or written advertisements that libel or slander another business or entity's products, services or goods.
Aggregate Limit: This is the maximum amount of coverage for a general business liability insurance policy or property damage policy. It may be figured per occurrence or for the entire policy term.
Agreed Amount Endorsement: This is an agreement by your insurance company that there will be no coinsurance penalty at the time of a claim.
Alternative Dispute Resolution: This means that rather using the court system to settle disputes, parties must use methods such as mediation and arbitration.
Annual Aggregate: The maximum amount your commercial business insurance policy will pay out during a one-year period.
Bodily Injury: This is any disease, physical injury or sickness sustained by someone, including death. You will see this term on a general business liability insurance policy that covers you if someone is hurt on your property.
Business Owners Policy (BOP): This is an insurance policy that combines business general liability insurance, property insurance and business interruption coverage.
Catastrophe: This describes an act of nature causing severe damage, including tornadoes, earthquakes and floods.
Commercial General Liability Insurance (CGL): This is business general liability insurance that covers liability such as product liability, or liability exposure from your premises, operations or contractors.
Deductible: This is the portion of your claim that you must pay for. Larger deductibles will result in lower insurance premiums.
Named Peril: A specific event or occurrence covered by your insurance policy.
Negligence: The failure to use reasonable care.
No-Fault: This is an insurance procedure in which the policyholder's insurance pays for injuries regardless of who caused the accident.
Personal and Advertising Injury: This is an injury that results from false arrest or detention, oral or written publications, or the use of someone else's ideas.
Product Liability: This is a decision of who may sue whom for any damages or injuries that occur as a result of a defective product.
Replacement Cost: This is the cost or replacement of damaged property without deducting depreciation, or the decrease in insurable value due to wear-and-tear.
Total Loss: This is a loss so great that there is no value remaining and the property is completely destroyed. It can also mean a loss so large it requires the maximum payout of your commercial business insurance policy.
