Commercial Insurance for Florida Business Owners

Most Florida small businesses need general liability, and many also need commercial auto for work vehicles and workers’ comp once they have employees. Your business may also depend on subcontractors, tools, property, job sites and contracts. Each one raises a different insurance question. We help you sort them out, compare options from the companies we work with, and see how the policies fit together.

Call, text or send a request any time. We review it and get back to you quickly. The insurance company makes the final call on price and approval after it reviews your business.

Start with the business

A contractor with two pickups, a crew and expensive tools needs something different from a cleaning company whose workers drive their own cars, or a courier hauling customer packages. So we start with what you do, who does the work, which vehicles you use, what you carry and what your customers’ contracts ask for.

We can set up separate policies or a package, whichever fits. A package is not always cheaper or better. We find the risks first, then look at the options.

Example with made-up round numbers: Say you run a small plumbing company with 2 vans, 5 employees and a contract that asks for $1,000,000 in liability. That usually means commercial auto for the vans, general liability for the jobs, workers’ comp for the crew, and tools coverage for what rides in the vans. If the contract asks for more than $1,000,000, an umbrella policy can add the extra limit on top.

Commercial coverage we can help review

Here are the main coverages, what each one is for, and what they have cost in real quotes our agency has run for Florida businesses (annual prices from our price guide). Your real price depends on your type of work, payroll or sales, vehicles and drivers, limits and claims history.

Commercial auto insurance

Commercial auto covers vehicles used for business: pickups, cargo vans, box trucks, service trucks, trailers and small fleets. Drivers, how far you travel, where the vehicles are parked, their weight and your past claims all shape the options. Whole policies have run $1,000 to $45,000 a year. See the commercial vehicles we insure and the commercial auto coverages available to Florida businesses.

General liability insurance

General liability is for claims that your work hurt someone or damaged their property, plus some claims like libel in your advertising. Watch your limits, completed operations (work that causes a problem after you finish), additional insured requests from customers, and whether your business is classified correctly. It has run $300 to $6,500 a year. Read more on our general liability insurance page.

Workers’ compensation insurance

Workers’ comp pays medical bills and lost wages set by Florida law when an employee is hurt on the job. In Florida, most businesses need it once they have 4 or more employees, and construction businesses need it with 1 or more (Florida Statutes s. 440.02). Payroll, job duties and class codes drive the price, which has run $800 to $7,500 a year. Read more on our workers’ compensation insurance page.

Commercial property and business owners policies

Property coverage is for your building, improvements you made to a rented space, furniture, equipment and stock. Some smaller businesses qualify for a business owner’s policy (BOP), which bundles property and liability in one policy. Commercial property has run $700 to $11,000 a year, and business owner’s policies $400 to $16,000. Commercial property and business owner’s policies in Florida usually carry a separate hurricane deductible that is not reflected in these prices.

Tools and equipment or inland marine

Commercial auto physical damage covers the vehicle, not the tools inside it. Tools and equipment coverage (often called inland marine) is the usual answer for gear that moves between your shop, truck and job sites. Have a list ready with what each item is worth, its make, model and serial number, and photos if you can.

Hired and non-owned auto

If employees rent cars or drive their own cars for errands, appointments or deliveries, your business can be sued after a crash. Hired and non-owned auto is the coverage for that business liability. The employee’s own policy still matters. See our guide to hired and non-owned auto insurance.

Motor truck cargo

If you haul other people’s goods, you may need motor truck cargo coverage. What you haul, how much a load is worth, how far you go, refrigeration and who loads the truck all matter. Learn how commercial auto and motor truck cargo differ.

Commercial umbrella or excess liability

An umbrella adds extra liability limit on top of your auto, general liability and employer’s liability policies. It helps when a contract asks for higher limits or when one bad crash could exceed your base policy. It has run $400 to $3,000 a year.

Who is this review built for?

We work most with Florida contractors and service businesses that rely on vehicles, crews, tools, job sites or vendor contracts, such as:

• Plumbers
• HVAC contractors
• Electricians
• Landscapers and lawn-care companies
• Cleaning and janitorial companies
• Pest-control businesses
• Fence and gutter installers
• General contractors
• Painters
• Pool-service businesses
• Delivery and courier companies
• Other Florida service and professional businesses

Some higher-risk work has fewer insurance companies willing to quote it. If you do passenger transportation, transport children or vulnerable people, roofing, framing, tree work or crane work, tell us at the start.

New ventures and difficult-to-place businesses

A new business, a business with no prior insurance, or one that was canceled, nonrenewed or had claims can still get a review. We will ask why the earlier problem happened, what you do now, when you need coverage to start, and what you have fixed. We look at every option we have, and the insurer decides whether to offer coverage.