Key Takeaways

  • General liability insurance protects against costly lawsuits from injuries on your premises or faulty repairs
  • Commercial property insurance covers repairs if equipment, tools or facilities are damaged
  • Commercial auto insurance protects businesses if vehicles owned for repairs are in accidents
  • Workers comp is legally required and covers medical costs and lost wages if employees get hurt on the job
  • Umbrella insurance provides liability coverage above standard policy limits
  • Professional liability insurance protects against negligence claims or errors in repair work
  • Cyber liability covers costs of data breaches like notification, credit monitoring and lawsuits

Introduction

As an automotive repair shop, it’s important to protect your business through proper insurance coverage. The top policies to consider include general liability, commercial property, commercial auto, workers compensation, and additional options like professional liability, umbrella, cyber and employment practices insurance.

General Liability Insurance

General liability insurance provides financial protection for automotive repair and maintenance businesses against costly lawsuits and claims. It covers legal fees and damages if the business is found responsible for injuries, property damage or other incidents that may occur on the premises or as a result of work done. Some key benefits of general liability insurance for these businesses include protecting from lawsuits if a customer is injured on the property, covering medical expenses, paying for further vehicle damage if a repair leads to additional issues, and protecting against pollution or contamination liability if hazardous materials are involved in repairs. Pricing typically averages around $3,000 annually for a small business in this industry.

Category List
Benefits
  • Protects your business from lawsuits if a customer slips and falls on your premises
  • Covers costs if a faulty repair leads to further vehicle damage
  • Pays for repairs if a customer’s vehicle is damaged while in your care
  • Covers medical expenses if a customer is injured on your property
  • Protects against lawsuits from employees for work-related injuries
  • Covers legal fees if you are involved in a lawsuit
Use Cases
  • Bodily injury or property damage claims from customers
  • Errors and omissions claims from improper repairs or maintenance
  • Injuries to employees or customers on business premises
  • Damage to customer vehicles being worked on
  • Pollution or contamination liability if hazardous materials are involved in repairs

Based on industry data and risk factors, the estimated average annual pricing for general liability insurance for businesses in the NAICS 811198 (All Other Automotive Repair and Maintenance) industry is around $2,000-$5,000. Pricing depends on factors like annual revenue, number of employees, claims history, safety practices. For an average small business in this industry with $500K annual revenue and 5 employees, the estimated annual pricing would be around $3,000.

Estimated Pricing: $3,000

Commercial Property Insurance

Commercial property insurance provides important coverage and protection for automotive repair businesses. It protects the property, equipment, income, and finances the business needs to operate from risks such as fire, theft, natural disasters, and more. It also protects the business financially to continue operating and rebuild after a covered loss. As an automotive repair business, your shop relies on specialized tools and equipment to serve customers. Commercial property insurance can help protect your livelihood if any of these high-value assets are damaged or destroyed. It also provides liability coverage in case someone is harmed on your premises. Estimated pricing is also provided, which can help automotive repair businesses understand what to budget for commercial property insurance.

Category List
Benefits
  • Protection against property damage or loss
  • Reimbursement for property damage or loss
  • Liability coverage in case someone is injured on your property
  • Coverage for equipment damaged or stolen during operations
  • Protects the value of your building and contents
  • Coverage for loss of business income if the property is unusable
  • Rebuild assistance after covered disasters or accidents
Use Cases
  • Protection from fire damage to the property and equipment
  • Coverage for water damage from pipes bursting or other plumbing issues
  • Reimbursement for equipment or tools stolen by thieves
  • Rebuild costs if the property is destroyed by natural disasters like hurricanes, tornadoes, floods or earthquakes
  • Liability coverage if a customer is injured on your property

Based on analyzing typical commercial property insurance pricing factors such as location, building size/value, protection class, and claims history, the estimated average annual premium for businesses in the All Other Automotive Repair and Maintenance industry with NAICS code 811198 would be around $1,500. This was calculated based on location in an urban area, buildings/properties valued at around $300,000, classified as protection class 5 or higher (meaning higher fire risk), and no major claims in the past 5 years.

Estimated Pricing: $1,500

Commercial Auto Insurance

Commercial auto insurance provides important liability and physical damage coverage for businesses in the automotive repair industry. It protects companies financially from losses resulting from vehicle-related accidents and injuries.
Additional coverages like medical payments and uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage offer extra protection for employees and others injured in accidents involving commercial vehicles. Comprehensive coverage options ensure operations can continue smoothly after a covered loss.

Category List
Benefits
  • Liability protection against injuries and property damage caused by company vehicles
  • Physical damage coverage to repair or replace vehicles involved in an accident
  • Medical payments coverage for injuries to others regardless of fault
  • Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage to pay for injuries to employees in an at-fault accident
  • Coverage for hired and non-owned vehicles used in operations
  • Rental reimbursement if a covered vehicle is unusable due to damage
  • Reduced rates for multi-vehicle policies and safe driver discounts
Use Cases
  • Liability coverage in case an employee gets into an accident while driving a company vehicle
  • Physical damage coverage to repair or replace company vehicles if they are damaged in an accident
  • Medical payments coverage to pay for injuries sustained by employees or others in an accident involving a company vehicle
  • Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage to compensate for losses if an at-fault driver lacks sufficient insurance

Based on industry data and risk factors, the estimated average annual pricing for commercial auto insurance for businesses in the All Other Automotive Repair and Maintenance industry with NAICS code 811198 is around $2,500-$5,000 per vehicle. Factors such as number of vehicles, driver qualifications, claims history affect pricing. Location and vehicle usage also affect rates.

Estimated Pricing: $2,500-$5,000

Workers Compensation Insurance

Workers compensation insurance is a critical benefit and protection for both employees and businesses in high-risk industries like automotive repair and maintenance. It helps safeguard the financial health of a company if an on-the-job injury occurs while also ensuring injured workers receive needed medical care and lost wages. Providing workers comp is also legally required in every state, helps attract quality job applicants, and provides peace of mind knowing employees will be supported if injured on the job.

Category List
Benefits
  • Protects your business from financial loss in the event an employee is injured on the job
  • Covers medical expenses and lost wages for injured employees
  • Required by law in all states
  • Reduces chances of legal disputes with injured employees
  • Attracts quality employees by providing protection in case of on-the-job injuries
  • Provides peace of mind in knowing employees are cared for if injured
Use Cases
  • Coverage for medical expenses if an employee gets injured on the job
  • Coverage for lost wages if an employee cannot work due to a job-related injury or illness
  • Liability protection if an employee sues the business for a job-related injury or illness
  • Coverage if an employee injures themselves while lifting a heavy vehicle component like an engine or transmission
  • Coverage if an employee cuts or wounds themselves while working with sheet metal or sharp metal edges
  • Coverage if repeated motions or postures from jobs like oil changes causes an employee to develop a musculoskeletal injury like carpal tunnel syndrome

Based on national averages, the estimated average pricing for workers compensation insurance for businesses in the All Other Automotive Repair and Maintenance industry (NAICS Code 811198) is approximately $2-3 per $100 of payroll. This pricing is derived from national datasets on insurance rates by industry that factor in variables like types of jobs, common injuries, litigation rates, loss histories etc. to determine risk and corresponding pricing.

Estimated Pricing: $2-3/100 of payroll

Business Owners Policy

A business owners policy (BOP) offers comprehensive insurance protection bundled into one policy for small business owners in the automotive repair and maintenance industry. It provides coverage for property, liability risks, business interruptions and other exposures businesses in this sector commonly face.

Category List
Benefits
  • Property coverage for buildings and business personal property
  • General liability coverage to protect against lawsuits from customers or others
  • Business income and extra expense coverage to replace lost income and cover additional costs if the business has to close temporarily after an incident
  • Medical payments coverage to pay for injuries to others on your property
  • Equipment breakdown coverage to repair or replace equipment damaged by mechanical or electrical failures
  • Data breach coverage to help pay costs associated with responding to a privacy breach
Use Cases
  • Property coverage to repair or replace equipment, tools, supplies and building/facility if damaged
  • General liability coverage to protect from bodily injury, property damage and other liability claims from customers
  • Business interruption coverage to continue paying operating expenses if the business has to temporarily close due to property damage
  • Commercial auto coverage if business owns vehicles used for business purposes like transporting equipment
  • Employment practices liability if the business has employees to cover claims like wrongful termination, discrimination, harassment

Based on typical insurance rates for businesses in the All Other Automotive Repair and Maintenance industry with NAICS code 811198, the estimated average annual pricing for a basic Business Owners Policy would be around $2,500. This price was derived by looking at common factors like number of employees, annual revenue, property values, and loss history for the industry. Given the work involves various automotive repair services, certain liability exposures are higher than other service-based businesses.

Estimated Pricing: $2,500

Umbrella Insurance

Umbrella insurance provides valuable protection for automotive repair businesses against costly liability claims. It covers losses above standard commercial policies and protects personal assets. Top benefits include protecting personal assets from lawsuits related to business operations, covering liability claims above primary limits, providing additional coverage as the business grows, and protecting multiple locations under one policy. Umbrella insurance is especially important for higher risk industries like automotive repair that involve work on vehicles. Key use cases for automotive repair businesses include covering liability claims above primary general liability limits, providing additional coverage for employees and owners, protecting assets from major financial losses due to lawsuits, and having extra coverage for defending lawsuits related to vehicle repairs and services.

Category List
Benefits
  • Protect your personal assets from lawsuits related to your business
  • Cover liability claims above your liability coverage limits
  • Provide additional liability coverage as your business grows
  • Covers claims not included in your standard liability policy
  • Covers defense costs for lawsuits in addition to damages
  • Protects multiple business locations and vehicles under one policy
  • Provides supplemental coverage for higher risk industries like automotive repair
  • Covers liability claims involving your products or completed work
Use Cases
  • To cover liability above the primary general liability policy limits.
  • To provide additional liability coverage for claims involving business owners and employees.
  • To protect business assets from large financial losses due to lawsuits.
  • To protect the business from lawsuits related to vehicle repairs and services that result in injuries or property damage claims.
  • To have additional coverage for defending lawsuits against the business in case of an accident during automotive work.

Based on typical pricing formulas that umbrella insurance pricing is usually based on underlying liability limits and revenue, for a business in the All Other Automotive Repair and Maintenance industry with NAICS code 811198 that has $1 million in underlying commercial general liability limits and $2 million in annual revenue, the estimated average umbrella insurance pricing would be around $1,500 annually.

Estimated Pricing: $1,500

Professional Liability Insurance

Professional liability insurance, also known as errors and omissions insurance, protects businesses in various industries from financial loss due to claims of faulty work, mistakes, or negligence. It is an important type of coverage for automotive repair shops and other contractors to have in order to shield themselves from lawsuits and liability claims that could threaten their business operations and finances.

Professional liability insurance provides key benefits for automotive repair shops such as protecting against claims of negligent work or errors and omissions, covering legal fees and damages if sued for faulty workmanship, and providing peace of mind in knowing costs of lawsuits will be covered. It can also help indemnify contractors for costs associated with replacing or repairing defective work, promote customer trust and confidence in the quality of work being done, and help attract new customers by demonstrating professionalism and responsibility.

Some common use cases where professional liability insurance provides protection include covering bodily injury or property damage claims from faulty work or products, covering lawsuits from customers if their vehicle is damaged during repair work, and covering claims if a customer’s personal item is damaged or lost while the vehicle is being repaired.

Category List
Benefits
  • Protects against claims of negligent work or errors and omissions
  • Covers legal fees and damages if sued for faulty workmanship
  • Provides peace of mind in knowing costs of lawsuits will be covered
  • Indemnifies contractors for costs associated with replacing or repairing defective work
  • Promotes customer trust and confidence in the quality of work being done
  • Can help attract new customers by demonstrating professionalism and responsibility
  • Protects livelihood and saves assets such as equipment, location, and vehicles from being seized to pay for losses
Use Cases
  • Covering bodily injury or property damage claims from faulty work or products
  • Covering lawsuits from customers if their vehicle is damaged during repair work
  • Covering claims if a customer’s personal item is damaged or lost while the vehicle is being repaired

Based on typical pricing formulas used by insurance providers and average risk profile of businesses in this industry, the estimated average annual premium for professional liability insurance would be around $2,500. Premium pricing is usually calculated based on factors like number of employees, annual revenue, risk exposure, claims history, and safety/risk management practices. For a small to medium sized automotive repair shop in this category, $2,500 would be a reasonable estimate.

Estimated Pricing: $2,500

Cyber Liability Insurance

Cyber liability insurance provides important protection for automotive repair shops and other businesses that store customers’ sensitive personal information. It can help cover the costs of data breaches, ransomware attacks, lawsuits, forensic investigations, system repairs and more. Some key benefits of cyber liability insurance for automotive repair shops include covering notification costs, lost income from downtime, credit monitoring, and legal defense if sued over a data breach. Common situations it protects against are malware infections, accidental data leaks, network hacks, and ransomware attacks. Pricing is estimated around $1,500 annually for a typical small automotive repair business with 10 employees, $500,000 in annual revenue and basic customer data holdings.

Category List
Benefits
  • Covers costs of a data breach including notification, credit monitoring, investigations, legal fees
  • Covers losses from cyber extortion threats like ransomware attacks
  • Covers lawsuits from customers whose private information was compromised in a data breach
  • Covers costs to repair or replace affected systems and recover/restore lost data and programs
  • Covers business interruption losses from downtime needed to respond to a cyber incident
  • Covers forensic investigation and remediation services by cybersecurity experts in the event of an incident
  • Provides access to legal advice and counsel regarding information security best practices and compliance
  • Pays for PR/reputational management support after an incident to minimize damage to the business
  • Covers forensic investigation and remediation services by cybersecurity experts in the event of an incident
Use Cases
  • Data breach or cyber attack resulting in loss of customers’ personal data like names, addresses, phone numbers, credit cards, etc.
  • Ransomware attack encrypting systems and demanding ransom to regain access
  • Malware infection like viruses or worms damaging systems
  • Accidental disclosure of customer data due to employee error
  • Network security failure exposing systems to unauthorized access
  • Losses from business interruption if systems are offline

Based on typical pricing models and factors such as annual revenue, number of employees and client data held, the estimated average annual premium for a cyber liability insurance policy would be around $1,500. This was calculated based on an typical business in this industry having 10 employees and $500,000 in annual revenue, and having basic customer data such as contact details, payment information but no extensive medical records.

Estimated Pricing: $1,500

Employment Practices Liability Insurance

Employment practices liability insurance (EPLI) provides important protection for automotive repair businesses. EPLI coverage helps defend against potential costly lawsuits from employees related to wrongful termination, discrimination, harassment and other employment law claims. This type of liability insurance is especially important in the customer service oriented automotive repair industry to protect a business’s reputation and brand.

Category List
Benefits
  • Protects against lawsuits from employees and former employees for wrongful termination, harassment, discrimination and other employment-related claims
  • Covers legal fees and any potential settlement or judgments which could otherwise cost businesses hundreds of thousands of dollars to defend themselves
  • Provides access to experienced employment law attorneys specializing in defending such claims
  • Offers counseling on employer prevention strategies to help reduce the risk of potential lawsuits
  • Includes liability coverage for claims alleging negligent hiring/supervision which is important for automotive repair shops
  • Protects the company’s reputation and brand which is critical in the customer service oriented auto repair industry
Use Cases
  • Wrongful termination
  • Discrimination
  • Harassment
  • Retaliation

Based on typical pricing models for EPLI and analyzing NAICS code 811198 industry profiles, the estimated average annual premium for a business in this industry would be approximately $2,000-$4,000. This pricing takes into account factors like number of employees, annual payroll, type of business, loss history, and risk level based on industry.

Estimated Pricing: $2,000-$4,000

Conclusion

Choosing the right business insurance policies is crucial for protecting an automotive repair shop’s operations, assets, reputation and finances. Carefully evaluating coverage needs and pricing options helps shops effectively manage risks and allows them to focus on serving customers with confidence.

Frequently Asked Questions

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