Choosing an Insurance Company for Your Small Business

Before you sign with an insurance company, shop around. You will find that companies differ significantly. Below are several factors that you will want to weigh when choosing an insurance company.

Price: The same amount of coverage can cost $15,000 or $50,000 depending which company you choose. Get quotes from three or four companies for the same type of policies.

Stability: Insurance companies are evaluated and rated by various rating services. Among the most common are: A.M. Best, Moody?s Investor Services, Standard & Poor?s Insurance Rating Services, and Weiss Research.

Service: You will want to deal with an insurance company that provides fast and sufficient answers to your questions; reviews and responds to claims in a fair and timely manner; and provides both accessibility and a degree of comfort.

You can get more information on an insurance company by contacting your state insurance department, the National Insurance Producer Registry or the Better Business Bureau. You want to find out if there are many complaints registered and the validity of such complaints.

Word of mouth is one good way of finding an insurance company with which other businesses have had positive experiences. Also, try running a Google Web search on the particular type of coverage you need.