Owners of successful flower shop businesses are responsible for much more than just overseeing the production of visually-pleasing floral arrangements. Flower shop owners face several of the same hazards as many other business owners on a daily basis, from natural disasters to theft and beyond. Fortunately a South Carolina independent insurance agent can get your flower shop equipped with the right protection. But first, here’s a breakdown of flower shop insurance.

What Is Flower Shop Insurance?

Similar to all other areas of the country, flower shop insurance in South Carolina is essentially a special type of business insurance customized to protect owners of flower shops. The agreement between the insurance company and the flower shop states that the insurer will cover financial losses that befall the business. Of course, only specific perils stated in the policy will be covered by the insurance company. Policies come with a list of specified non-covered perils as well.

How to Insure a Flower Shop in South Carolina

The thing about flower shop coverage is that one policy won’t work for every type of flower shop, or each specific business’s owner. With the help of your South Carolina independent insurance agent, you’ll work together to assemble a package of different coverages to protect yourself and your business against risks unique to you. Flower shop insurance is designed to keep your business afloat following a huge disaster, such as property destruction or lawsuits.

Your South Carolina agent will help identify the right types of coverage for you as they learn more about your specific flower shop and its operations. Since flower shop insurance is so customizable, you’ll be able to work together to build a policy that fits not only your business’s needs, but also the needs of your bank account.

What Does Flower Shop Insurance Cover in South Carolina?

Flower shop insurance is set up to protect business owners against potential threats. This includes flower shops in South Carolina. Your policy will include the basics of business insurance coverage with several specific coverages tailored to your unique business added on. The more risks involved in your business, the more coverage you’ll need. But here are a handful of commonly selected coverages in flower shop insurance packages to start off.

Your flower shop insurance package can be assembled from a combination of the following coverages available in South Carolina:

• General liability: This coverage protects you against property damage or injury claims made by a third party. 
• Workers’ compensation: If your employees become ill, get injured, or die from a work-related incident, this aspect of the insurance will cover the financial ramifications. Coverage is mandatory in South Carolina. 
• Property Insurance: Covers loss of or damage to your physical property, including your storefront and often the inventory inside it. Protected mishaps include fires, storms, and more.
• Commercial/business auto: Provides protection for any company vehicles against things like theft, vandalism, and damage from natural disasters. If your flower shop makes home deliveries, for example, you need this coverage.
• Business income: A part of property insurance, this aspect covers any financial losses suffered while a business is closed due to fire damage or other disasters.
• Signs coverage: A flower shop’s signage may be expensive to either install or replace. Since signs live outside of the shop’s building, they’re constantly vulnerable to the elements of nature, and thieves/vandals. This coverage provides reimbursement in the event you need to repair/replace your flower shop’s signage due to a covered peril.
• Cyber liability: In the event your business’s computer system is compromised, sensitive or personal data may be stolen and even sold to third parties. This can include things like credit card numbers or personal employee records. Aside from having to pay to clean up your network’s security, your flower shop could also face a lawsuit. Coverage protects against financial and legal ramifications following a cyberattack.
• Spoilage coverage: This coverage is crucial for flower shop owners because if your shop loses power due to a covered peril (e.g., lightning, etc.), your entire inventory of flowers may spoil while refrigeration units are down. Coverage takes care of replacement fees for wilted flowers in the event of a covered outage.
• Boiler & machinery coverage: Also known as “equipment breakdown,” this coverage protects against “electrical injury” such as power surges or shorts that affect AC units and surge boxes.
• Glass breakage coverage: Covers the glass windowpane of your business’s storefront from things like vandalism and car crashes.
• Hired and non-owned auto liability: If your employees drive to perform company operations but you don’t have company vehicles, or if you hire outside help to perform deliveries, you might need this coverage.

Your flower shop insurance package will be assembled by selecting the coverages that work for your unique business from a big list of available options. Coverage applies to everything from lost business revenue to potential legal/court fees and beyond.

What Does Flower Shop Insurance Not Cover in South Carolina?

Though flower shop insurance covers a lot of components for their business owners, it doesn’t cover just anything. The following are examples of commonly excluded perils under flower shop insurance policies in South Carolina:

• Employee dishonesty
• Breakdown of appliances such as steam boilers
• General wear and tear of equipment, etc.
• Routine maintenance fees
• Earthquake damage
• Nuclear reaction and war
• Power failure (unless it causes damage to computer systems)
• Robbery
• Pollution
• Temperature/humidity changes
• Inexplicably lost inventory
• Flood damage*

*In a coastal state like South Carolina that’s prone to flooding, you’ll most likely want to purchase additional flood coverage for your flower shop, or you may even be required to have it by your mortgage lender. Your South Carolina independent insurance agent can give you more information about finding coverage.

What Are the Benefits of Flower Shop Insurance in South Carolina?

Flower shop insurance provides protection to South Carolina business owners in a number of ways. Beyond your physical assets and building, many components of your flower shop stand to be destroyed or otherwise harmed by common threats.

There are four major benefits to having flower shop insurance:

• Protection against legal trouble: A costly and damaging event like a fire could send a business into the red without the proper coverage. If the business was unable to pay off their loans, vendors, or employees, they could face serious legal consequences. Flower shop insurance helps prevent these ugly matters from surfacing.
• Protection against a damaged reputation: Huge incidents affecting businesses of all kinds often end up in the media. When it comes to customers’ personal property getting lost, damaged or destroyed, word about their upset could spread quickly and even turn from gossip into media coverage. Having the right flower shop insurance can help prevent your business’s reputation from going up in flames.
• Protection against spoilage: Just one incident can result in an entire batch of flowers wilting right before a huge order is needed for an important event. Especially important for flower shop owners, spoilage protection can help the business recover from lost goods and inventory.
• Protection against bankruptcy: Imagine a severe storm or other terrible incident like an airplane crash that literally wipes out your flower shop’s entire storefront. Without the right insurance, the business owner could easily be forced into bankruptcy. Flower shop insurance helps businesses stay open, stay afloat, or rebuild following massive destruction.

Your South Carolina independent insurance agent can help you review your flower shop insurance policy to answer any remaining questions about your coverage. They’ll also be able to help you figure out whether you’ve got enough coverage, or if you should purchase more.

How Much Does Flower Shop Insurance Cost in South Carolina?

Really, it depends on a number of factors. Flower shop owners might only pay somewhere around $425 annually if they run a relatively small shop, while owners of huge flower shops with tons of business might pay closer to $850 or even more per year. Flower shops located in South Carolina, however, might pay quite a bit more for coverage than business owners further inland, due to the state’s increased risk of weather-related perils like hurricanes.

Of course, it’s hard to offer an average figure, since each flower shop is unique. But really, it all depends on a number of factors, like:

• The type of flower shop: This involves more than just whether the flower shop specializes in tiger lilies or petunias. The kind of equipment your flower shop uses and the specific services offered will affect its risk-level to insure. Obviously, more danger means more money for flower shop insurance.
• The location of the flower shop: Larger cities tend to have higher costs for insurance, but it goes beyond that. Depending on where you are specifically in South Carolina, your location may be more prone to various weather-related risks. Flower shops located right along Myrtle Beach, for example, may have premiums up to 20% higher due to risk of hurricane damage.
• The number of employees: The more you've got, the more workers' comp you’ll need. Simple as that.
• How much business you generate: Premiums are calculated based on business projections for the upcoming year. If your workload doubles, most likely your premium will too.

Your agent can work with you to find a policy that fits within your flower shop’s budget. Have your financial restrictions in mind before you start shopping for coverage to help speed the process along.

Why Work with a South Carolina Independent Insurance Agent?

In order to get the protection you need and deserve, you’ll want to work with a trusted expert. And who could be better for the job than a local agent who shares your area code? Independent insurance agents act as your own personal insurance shoppers, offering you tons more options than one-policy companies. With just one call, they’ll hook you up with multiple quotes.

South Carolina independent insurance agents are armed with knowledge on what coverage is needed in your area, and they’ll get you set up with just enough of it — not too little, not too much. They’ll handle all the heavy lifting, so you can rest assured you’ll be set up with the right coverage at the right price.

They’re not just there at the beginning either. If disaster strikes, your South Carolina agent will be there to help walk you through the claims process and make sure you’re getting the benefits you're entitled to. Now that’s thinking ahead.