BUSINESS INSURANCE
Business Personal Property (BPP)
What Business Personal Property (BPP) Means for Your Business
Business Personal Property (BPP) almost sounds like an oxymoron, but it is actually the term for business property that the business owns.
Most business owners rent or lease the space they operate out of, which often makes the most financial sense. It typically costs far less to modify a small space you don’t own than to buy an entire building and pay a mortgage.
But what about your business property or the fixtures permanently attached to your space? If something happens, who would be responsible? These are questions you should consider before signing that lease.
Keep reading for all you need to know about Business Personal Property and insurance.
What is Business Personal Property?
Business property can range from office supplies, furniture, and computers to copyrights and trademarks. Take a look around any office, retail store, or coffee shop. Anything decorative on the walls items used by the employees, or even the items being sold, fall into the category of business personal property. If anything were to happen to the business, such as a fire or theft, coverage for these items would fall under the business personal property coverage.
Business owners who do not own their building but still want to ensure their property is covered in a loss, would typically purchase a business personal property policy.
What Does a Business Personal Property Policy Cover?
As mentioned above, a BPP policy will cover your business personal property in the event of covered loss. It may also provide compensation for any loss of business income that you incur as a result. For example, assume you own a bakery and a pipe bursts in your space. A Business Personal Property insurance policy will cover the supplies that are damaged, as well as any income you may have lost for having to close the bakery for repairs.
What Is Not Covered By A Business Personal Property Policy?
A Business Personal Property policy is perfect for the business owner that does not own the space out of which they operate. This is because a BPP doesn’t cover the structure itself, it just covers the business personal property. In this way, it acts almost like a renters policy for a business!
There is also no general liability or professional liability offered with these policies. You would need to purchase separate policies to cover these exposures. And if you have any cars or vans that you use in conjunction with a business, you may also need a commercial auto policy as a BPP will not cover any autos.
Improvements and Betterments
Improvements and betterments are defined as fixtures, alterations, installations or additions made to the interior of a space that become a part of the structure. A good example of this might be if a retail store installs clothing racks or shelving within a space. Once they are installed, they become a part of the building itself and cannot be taken when the tenant leaves.
However, most tenants install them at their own expense and have a financial interest. If there is a fire, for example, and the racks and shelving are damaged, should the tenant or the building owner be compensated? This is where the improvements and betterments coverage comes into play.
Since there are two parties that have financial interest in the damaged items, both the tenant and the building owner can insure the improvements and betterments to get compensated for a loss. This type of coverage can be purchased as an endorsement to the Business Personal Property policy or can be purchased as a stand alone policy.
How Can I Learn More?
With all nuances that come with business insurance, why not just leave it to the experts? Let The Craven Agency help determine what you need for your business.
Contact The Craven Agency today! Serving Shreveport, Bossier City, Minden, Ruston, Monroe and the surrounding communities in Louisiana and the Ark-La-Tex regions.
- Business Interruption Insurance
- Business Interruption & Extra Expense Insurance
- Business Owner's Policy (BOP)
- Business Personal Property (BPP)
- Commercial Crime Insurance
- Cyber Insurance
- Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI)
- Home Based Business Insurance
- Professional & General Liability Insurance
- Surety Bonds
- Worker's Compensation
QUESTIONS?
We'd love to talk through any of your business or personal needs and build the right insurance policy for you.
