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Need for liability insurance


scifichik

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I know I was walking on pins and needles for a while because I could not come up with the $300 per year to have insurance. Then I asked my agent about making monthly payments and found out it was an option and I did not hesitate one second and said "sign me up"!!!

Wow...that is an amazing price and payments to boot! Insurance is pretty expensive in my neck of the woods! :tongue2:

My peace of mind is only $26 per month.

Mind you it started out to be around $400 for the year but I did a little tweaking on the policy. There were things that were not needed like terrorist insurance (this was only $4 per year though). I really believe the terrorists do not care about my little rural town and if the world does end the insurance will not help not matter how much coverage I have :D.

It also had coverage for my inventory at craft shows in case of damage while at the show but it had a $500 deductible and I never even have more than $500 worth of product at any given craft show so it would do me no good. So they took that off of there too.

There was something else on there too that we decided I really did not need but I cannot remember right now. Guess that is how important it was.

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Insuarance is the main reason I don't sell soaps or other b&b. i doubt I will sell enough to make up the amount I am selling. Makes me sad as I would like to sell here and there my batches of soap. I won't risk selling w/out insurance.

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BTW, general business liability insurance does not cover loss from theft, fire, windstorm, flood, hail, meteors, etc. unless that type of coverage is specifically stated. People who pour candles in their home or a shop need separate contents coverage 'cause homeowners will not do much, if anything, for ya in that case.

I know that Ohio Casualty insurance is exactly this way. You are buying only general business liability and it will cover you only if/when someone decides to sue you. Should anything happen to your home or its contents during production or otherwise then NO, it is not covered. Same goes if someone breaks into your home. I specifically asked.

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Well, according to State Farm I am uninsurable! lol. I've had insurance for 6 years, so I found it pretty funny. I told him I am, and have been insured for 6 years and he goes "Oh, well...stick with them then?"

yeah, thanks guy. That was the plan. Just was hoping I could save some money. boo.

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I am a soapmaster and the first thing I did was get liability insurance! My insurance not only covers personal injury, but also covers all my equipment in my home - computers and printers used for printing labels, invoices, measuring cups, mixers and raw product in the event of theft, fire, flooding or other disaster as well as my finished products/equipment should they be stolen/damaged by weather at craft fairs. For under $300/year, I have peace of mind knowing I won't have to pay for an attorney in the event.....The name of my company is RLI located in Peoria Illinois eventhough I am in Kansas! My Certificate of Insurance was the difference between me selling or not at several craft fairs and also to retail stores!

Edited by toodlesfromtotoland
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Luminous- I don't think it's you particularly. I have State Farm for car and renters, but when I asked about it for B&B and candles they told me they don't cover that kind of thing. Frustrating cause I'd rather deal with a company I know, but whacha gonna do! :D

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Just a note on your house insurance also. Make sure that you contact your home owners insurance company and let them know you are making candles in your home. That also includes gel wax, wax, fragrance, and dyes... My customer Marty burnt his house down with a presto pot. Because he did not tell them he had a business in his home. The insurance company did not want to pay him. They came to an agreement, because he did his business in the garage, but only 70%pay off. So they could only build half a house again.. Yikes:undecided

Edited by van_yulay
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Luminous- I don't think it's you particularly. I have State Farm for car and renters, but when I asked about it for B&B and candles they told me they don't cover that kind of thing.
Because he did not tell them he had a business in his home. The insurance company did not want to pay him.

If I had not already had my own personal lesson in the school of hard knocks, anyone down here in hurricane country who suffered losses in the last 5 years or so can tell HORROR stories about insurance companies finding any excuse to weasel out of or reduce paying claims. Make sure everything is crystal clear & in black & white in the policy. The company doesn't pay on an agent's interpretation or word to you. ;)

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If you are only pouring at home, but not conducting sales (either by website or in person), does that still constitute a business in your home for which your homeowner's agent needs to be aware of? If/when I do this for something beyond my own amusement, I would do the craft mall and other outlets.

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If you are only pouring at home, but not conducting sales (either by website or in person), does that still constitute a business in your home for which your homeowner's agent needs to be aware of? If/when I do this for something beyond my own amusement, I would do the craft mall and other outlets.

Answering my own question (in case anyone else had the same question), with information provided to me by my homeowner's agent:

Even if you create your product at your home, so long as customers do not physically enter the premises and you do not conduct actual sales transactions there, it does not constitute a commercial/business venture for which separate coverage is needed. If money exchanged hands and a customer left your address with product obtained as part of a sales or bartered transaction, then separate coverage is required. Internet sales, according to him, do not apply.

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Can anyone explain what the liability insurance through IBN covers? I've got a 70 page policy sample and completely do not understand what I am reading. (Started a sep topic, in case this doesn't belong here.)

Also answering this question with information I got from the broker's office (Stratus) that writes this policy: this policy is a combination of general liability and product liability coverage.

(Yes, I've made phone calls and done homework today to become better informed on the subject. :) )

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If you are only pouring at home, but not conducting sales (either by website or in person), does that still constitute a business in your home for which your homeowner's agent needs to be aware of?
If you are not selling, it cannot be considered a business. It is a hobby. The coverage and allowances for what kind of hobbies your policy covers are spelled out in your policy. For example, if you breed german shepherd dogs and pit bulls as a hobby in your home, your homeowners insurance will DEFINITELY want to know about this!! ;) If coverages of hobby stuff is not spelled out in your policy you should ASK the underwriting department of your insurance company if candle making specifically is allowed as a hobby. This is important because it can make the difference between whether your policy pays a claim if damage is caused by an excluded hobby!
information provided to me by my homeowner's agent:

Even if you create your product at your home, so long as customers do not physically enter the premises and you do not conduct actual sales transactions there, it does not constitute a commercial/business venture for which separate coverage is needed.

HORSESH*T!!!

As referenced by two real life examples previously given, your agent's statements are misleading and potentially inaccurate - in my case, my products WERE created in my home, but my sales were conducted at my booth in town and customers did NOT come to my home. Homeowners insurance would NOT PAY for more than $1500 for destroyed contents used in my business. Period. It was right in the policy in black and white - I just didn't READ it! People with expensive laptops they use for their jobs need to read their policies because many of them are NOT covered or have a limit on the coverage because they are used for business purposes, even if you do not OWN the business!

READ YOUR ACTUAL POLICY or have an attorney read it for you to clarify grey areas. You may need to contact the underwriting department of your insurance company and get a ruling from them IN WRITING on your questions.

Remember: the agent's word will mean NOTHING if things are not spelled out in black & white in the policy or in a letter from the underwriting department of the insurance company. The underwriters of your insurer are the ones who ultimately decide whether something is or is not covered that isn't spelled out or is a grey area. ;)

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Does anyone actually know of someone thats had their butt sued off because of a candle that they made that caused damage to someone or their property? I read lots of stories about candlemakers burning their OWN house down e.g. presto pots catching fire, but havn't read any examples of people getting sued.

P.S. What caused your house fire?:(

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Luminous- I don't think it's you particularly. I have State Farm for car and renters, but when I asked about it for B&B and candles they told me they don't cover that kind of thing. Frustrating cause I'd rather deal with a company I know, but whacha gonna do! :D

They do where I live; that's who I have my homeowners, car and business insurance through.

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P.S. What caused your house fire?

A Zenith television set in my bedroom, which caused a LOT of house fires (same model) but which the insurance company refused to subrogate because it would have cost too much to: 1) investigate thoroughly, and 2) go after the manufacturer and PROVE that model of their TVs were at fault. And if you DID try to sue Zenith directly, the homeowners insurance would not pay, pending the outcome of the lawsuit. So more people after and before me lost their homes to that same damned television just because no one could AFFORD to sue Zenith directly and could not get their insurance companies to do it! Very screwed up world out there... Might be different these days with more ability to complain and raise hell about faulty products, but in 1993, the internet wasn't what it is now... ;) I opted to bitch & moan mightily and take the payoff for my home and contents. I could have fought, but would probably still be awaiting a check... :rolleyes2

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  • 3 years later...
Ditto what ChrisR said. We live in a litigious society. Who cares what the other crafter's at the mall do? It's your responsibility to protect yourself. Unfortunately, my insurance company only covers me for my soap/bath and body stuff and tarts. They don't want to have anything to do with anything that catches fire. :cheesy2: So, while I make candles, I don't sell them.

Faerywren...can you pm me please? :)

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