Stratford has a wealth of vacation rental properties, from guest houses and hotels to self-catering apartments and inns, offering thousands of visitors and tourists a warm and pleasant stay in the town every year.
If you’re one of those vacation rental owners, you may focus more on marketing and beautifying your property to make it more attractive to guests. That said, there’s one crucial step you need to implement to ensure the longevity of your rental property—insurance.
In this article, you’ll learn the basics of commercial insurance for vacation rental properties and how to choose the right commercial insurance provider in Stratford to protect your business.
What Is Commercial Insurance?
Commercial insurance is designed to financially protect any business from common liabilities and unexpected losses, including bodily injury claims, commercial property damages, and cyberattacks.
Since there are numerous types of businesses with different situations and needs, commercial insurance may come in various sizes and coverages.
Regarding a vacation rental business, owners should look for commercial insurance that protects their commercial properties from lawsuits and building risks such as water damage. Depending on the type of rental property you have and your location, you may need to look for the following:
- Commercial property insurance
- Commercial general liability
- Business income insurance
- Worker’s compensation insurance
- Flood and earthquake insurance
Tips To Choose The Right Commercial Insurance Provider
Choosing the right commercial insurance provider can be confusing. This section shares valuable tips for finding the best one.
- Insurance Agent Vs. Broker
When looking for commercial insurance for your vacation rental property, you’ll often meet two professionals—an agent or a broker. Both experts may specialize in vacation rental insurance and can help you get the right policies for a reasonable price. They’re also required to be licensed and comply with local regulations.
However, they have fundamental differences.
Insurance brokers work on behalf of the customers. They work closely with you to find the types of vacation rental coverage you need, including terms and prices. Based on your needs, brokers will give you a list of recommendations to choose from.
Meanwhile, insurance agents work on behalf of an insurance company. They guide you in choosing the right insurance products offered by their company. Insurance agents work on a commission basis and only get paid once you buy a policy.
- Check The Company’s Financial Strength
You’ll spend years paying for the insurance. And the last thing you want is not getting the protection you’ve been paying when you needed it most.
As such, you want to choose a commercial insurance provider that’s financially sound—not only today but also in the years to come—to ensure that you and your vacation rental property are always protected.
To help determine an insurance provider’s financial strength, you can start looking at how independent rating companies have rated each provider. These agencies assess insurance providers using standards they’ve developed, helping consumers make well-informed decisions.
- Take A Look At The Reputation
A commercial insurance company that’s been in business for a long time is more dependable.
You can check an insurance company’s website for such information. Check how long they’ve been providing commercial insurance to business owners in Stratford and the milestones they’ve reached in years. It’d help if you also looked for client reviews to give better insights into their services and qualifications.
You can check their websites for testimonials, but it’s best to look for third-party review sites to search for unbiased and genuine client reviews. You can also ask the insurance company to provide you with client references. Make sure to call these referrals and ask about their overall experience with the company.
- Test Their Customer Service
Having excellent customer service is critical for an insurance company. Claims, deductibles, and policy conditions can get complicated fast. Thus, you want to choose a reputable commercial insurance provider devoted to explaining your policy’s ins and outs and helping you whenever you need it.
Check if the provider has several designated customer care services—from phone lines to chat support. Test how fast it is to get a hold of a customer care representative. You’ll need this if you’re filing a claim or have an urgent question.
The best commercial insurance provider in Stratford should also offer 24/7 customer services. Reaching a representative to have your questions answered or process a claim is more important than ever.
Takeaway
The right commercial insurance can help protect your vacation rental property against costly risks. However, choosing a commercial insurance provider to work with can make a difference between minimizing risks and suffering from huge losses.
So, follow the above tips to help you make well-informed decisions and find the right provider to protect your business against unwanted costs and liabilities.
