Restaurant Business Insurance Quotes

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Business Insurance for a Restaurant*

Restaurants need business insurance, including public liability insurance, as restaurants engage with members of the public, and supply food that can spoil, so there are frequent legal claims made against restaurant owners.

Public liability insurance may protect restaurant owners against damages from claims if customers hurt themselves in their restaurant or from claims of food poisoning against them.

Restaurant owners also face risks in relation to the commercial premises they operate from, theft or spoilage of food or alcohol, equipment breakdown, transit, and commercial motor.

Fortunately, suitable business insurance for restaurants may provide protection against financial hardships that could arise from accidents, property damage, or legal claims caused by your restaurant business activities.

Restaurants’ business insurance, including product and public liability insurance, may cover property damage, injuries to third parties that are caused by your restaurant business activities.

By ‘packaging’ their business insurance into a ‘business pack’ restaurants can potentially cover many of the risks their business faces in the one policy.

Many Business Owners are UNSURE if they are COVERED PROPERLY.
We help them find affordable and SUITABLE INSURANCE so they can run their business with CONFIDENCE.*

What Insurance Do I Need as a Restaurant Owner?*

Some of the major types of business insurance covers available to restaurants in Australia are explained below and include:

  • Business Insurance Pack
  • Public Liability Insurance
  • Commercial Motor insurance
  • Plant and Equipment Insurance
  • Cyber Insurance

Business insurance pack for restaurants*

Restaurant owners may be able to combine multiple covers in a single business insurance pack policy.

By ‘packaging’ their business insurance into a ‘business pack’ restaurant owners can potentially cover many of the risks their business faces in the one policy.

For example, if a restaurant has a commercial premises, a business insurance pack may provide cover for buildings and contents if they are accidentally damaged by a defined event, such as fire, storm, impact damage, accidental damage, vandalism, or malicious damage.

Other typical inclusions for restaurants with a business insurance pack are Public Liability Insurance and Product Liability Insurance.

Optional inclusions for restaurants with a business insurance pack are General Property, Contents, Machinery Breakdown, Plant and Stock, Theft, Glass, Money, Business Interruption and Marine Cover.

For example, food or wine spoilage may be covered in the event of machinery breakdown, and loss of profits may be covered under business interruption if caused by a defined event.

Coverage under a business insurance pack for restaurants varies depending on the cover options restaurants select.

Multiple restaurant locations may be able to be covered on the one business insurance pack policy.

Loss or Damage to food or alcohol stock for restaurants

A major storm, power outage or even small fire could leave your restaurant with costly damaged or worthless stock of food and alcohol.

Help reduce the loss or damage to food and alcohol stock by taking the stock cover option as part of your combined business insurance pack.

Smart Business Insurance pro tip: What is the most amount of food and alcohol you stock at any one time? Cover this amount. It’s often at peak times business that major accidents occur.

Contact a Smart Business Insurance broker for more information.

Commercial motor insurance for self-employed restaurant owners*

Commercial motor insurance should be considered for restaurants that drive their vehicle to pick up and deliver stock and take-away meals. Light trucks, vans and Utes may be covered.

Plant & Equipment Insurance for restaurants *

Plant & Equipment Insurance may provide cover for owners of restaurants that operate equipment such as fridges, freezers, coffee machines, dishwashers, ovens, food processors , griddles and toasters.

Cover may provide restaurants with protection for theft, damage, consequential loss, liability, and machinery breakdown.

Cyber Insurance for restaurants *

Your restaurant credit card processing system is a target for hackers as is your online store if you have one.

If you are hacked and incur a data breach you may incur significant tech bills, be open to be sued by frustrated customers, and may be subject to thousands of dollars in government fines.

Help reduce the impact of damages from data hacking with cyber insurance – and keep your restaurant going.

Why do restaurants need product and public liability insurance?*

Public Liability Insurance coverage is essential for all restaurants.

In Australia, public liability insurance also typically includes product liability insurance.

People and property on site may be hurt or damaged due to accidents involving your restaurant business activities.

Protections offered to self-employed restaurants by public liability insurance in Australia generally include:

  • Injury to other persons due to your restaurant activities –Where a restaurant’s business activity causes harm to a third-party person. For example, a client is injured when they trip and fall in your restaurant, or a waiter accidentally spills coffee on a client and they are badly burnt.
  • Damage to others property due to your restaurant activities – Where a restaurant’s business activity causes damages to a third- party’s property. For example, a waiter accidentally spills coffee on a clients laptop and it is damaged, or a kitchen hand accidently causes damage to a supplier’s van when unloading.
  • Harm to other persons or other persons property due to your restaurant business’s products – Where a restaurant business’s products and goods supplied causes harm to a third party -person or a third- party’s property. For example, the lasagna your restaurant has sold is spoiled and causes a client to fall badly ill.

Public liability insurance coverage may protect restaurant owners from claims that arise when others allege they are negligent.

A restaurant’s public liability policy may provide a defence against the ensuing lawsuit when needed and may pay the damages sought by the injured party.

Public Liability Insurance may provide restaurant with protection for slip-and-trip accidents, serious illness caused by food or alcohol sold to clients.

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What are the costs of Restaurant Business Insurance?*

How much does business insurance, including public and products liability insurance, cost for restaurants?*

Key factors in determining how much business insurance, including public and products liability insurance will cost a restaurant include:

  • where your business premises are located
  • the value of the property insured
  • the level of security and fire protection
  • age of premises and equipment
  • the size and turnover of your restaurant
  • number of staff
  • the optional covers selected
  • your claims history
  • the level of cover selected ( for example, $5 million , $10 million or $20 million liability)

Our helpful business insurance brokers may be able to help you find suitable and affordable business insurance for your restaurant on 1300 542 573 

What type of restaurants may be covered with business insurance ?*

  • Casual dining
  • Specialty restaurants  ( eg. Various type of national cuisines )
  • Bistros
  • Fine dining
  • Cafes
  • Coffee shops
  • Diners
  • Licensed and unlicensed
  • With deep frying ( subject to underwriting criteria being met )
  • Dine on or take-away
  • Trattorias
  • Steakhouses
  • Taverns
  • Gastropubs
  • Sushi houses
  • Pizza and pasta restaurants

Why should restaurant owners use an insurance broker in Australia?*

If you are a restaurant owner deciding on whether to use an insurance broker for your business insurance, it is important to consider that brokers act in the interests of the restaurant owner.

Direct insurers and agents act for the insurer. This can be important; especially if you need to claim.

Brokers can help restaurant owners by sourcing competitive quotes on policy inception, negotiate with the insurance companies to prevent or limit increases on renewal, remarket your policy to other suitable insurance companies where appropriate, talk to underwriters about policy wordings, industry classifications and terms, talk to insurance assessors during the claims process and repairers where necessary.

How do I get a restaurant insurance quote?*

Simply TALK to a SMART Business Insurance broker on 1300 542 573 or contact us online for suitable and affordable business insurance quotes for your restaurant.

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