A shoe repair shop is a special service shop that repairs shoes and boots along with other services like shining, polishing, and dyeing them. As a shoe repair shop owner, you or your employees may also provide your services for other items like briefcases, handbags, purses, and other small leather goods. This can be a lucrative and rewarding profession with the right experience and training, but one small unexpected event could cause extreme financial turmoil. Risks such as damage to your client’s property, employee injury, or accidents in your shop are possible which should be protected by business insurance. Shoe repair shop insurance is important as it will cover most unexpected events that can occur.
Types of Shoe Repair Shop Insurance
A variety of shoe repair shop insurance policies are available to provide ample coverage for your business. Whether you want to supplement business policies you already have or are trying to find out how many policies there are, these will provide you with helpful information:
Shoe Repair Shop General Liability Insurance
General liability insurance is the most basic of business insurance policies and something every shop repair shop should have. It includes premises liability, products liability, and completed operations. Premises liability is designed to cover damages or loss caused while a client is on your premises, and includes bodily injury. Completed operations is for errors or mistakes that lead to damage of a client’s property after you provide repair services. Products liability protects against any products you sell to your clients. For example, if a client comes in to have their shoes polished and you sell them a product to use on their own leather goods, damage caused by that product become your responsibility. With general liability insurance, those damages are then covered.
Shoe Repair Shop Commercial Auto Insurance
While shoes are being repaired in your shop, you are responsible for keeping them safe and protected from further damage. If there is a fire overnight, and you come in the next morning and you find that many, if not all of, your client’s shoes or other leather goods are damaged or destroyed, you are now responsible for those damages. This can add up to thousands of dollars in damages and legal costs. If you have business property insurance, you won’t need to pay these costs out-of-pocket according to your policy details.
Shoe Repair Shop Workers’ Compensation
Employees working for your shoe repair shop are at risk of injuring themselves from tools they use, especially heavy equipment for polishing, sewing machines, knives, and scissors. Work-related injuries can cost your company a lot of money if you don’t have worker’s compensation insurance. Worker’s comp will pay for medical costs, treatments, and lost income for employees who suffer an injury or illness on-the-job.
Shoe Repair Shop Business Auto Insurance
If you have a vehicle that is used for business purposes, it should be properly insured. Instead of having traditional personal auto insurance, you can get a business auto insurance policy used specifically for company vehicles. While you may not make deliveries, you can still use a vehicle for business errands such as nightly bank deposits or picking up repair or polishing supplies for your shoe repair shop. Any accidents, theft, or vandalism that occurs with this vehicle are then covered by the business auto insurance policy.
Shoe Repair Shop Crime Insurance
As a shoe repair shop, you have a high risk for crimes such as theft, vandalism, or shoplifting. Any of these occurrences can severely damage your business, assets, and reputation. Protect your business from these and other crimes by obtaining a business crime insurance policy.
Shoe Repair Shop Employee Dishonesty Insurance
Unfortunately, employee dishonesty acts are a type of crime you will have to contend with. Aside from crime insurance, you can also get a separate policy to protect against these types of acts. Employee dishonesty insurance will offer coverage against theft, embezzlement, or other crimes committed by your employees.
These shoe repair shop insurance policies can be what stands between you and financial ruin. Many risks are unavoidable but even though you can’t prevent them, with business insurance policies, you will be able to protect your business and assets.
