As a horticultural business owner, you face unique risks that can disrupt your operations.
That's why it's crucial to have insurance coverage that addresses those risks and other horticultural safety hazards. Not only can a customized insurance plan help you mitigate losses, but risk-relevant coverages can help you avoid business interruptions and paying for insurance options that aren’t relevant to your operations.
Top 6 risks facing horticultural businesses
Every horticultural business faces different exposures—but understanding where your risks lie is the first step to protecting your operation. That’s why we’ve identified six key risk areas commonly impacting horticultural businesses. Each area is paired with insurance coverages designed to help reduce potential losses.
1. Property damage
Commercial property insurance is designed to help protect you from losses caused by property damage. This coverage not only applies to your buildings and greenhouses, but also your equipment stored inside (e.g., boilers, generators, coolers, benching systems, irrigation equipment, heat retention curtain systems, and environmental control computers).
Your insurance provider can design a custom commercial property insurance plan for you based on your buildings, equipment, inventory, income, and other exposures.
2. Auto accidents
Auto accidents involving company vehicles or personal vehicles driven for business purposes are a major issue. Costs related to injuries, vehicle repairs, supply chain issues, and labor shortages continue to rise.
Commercial auto insurance can help cover losses related to accidents that happen when you or your employees use a vehicle for your business—whether owned, rented, or leased.
Much like your personal auto insurance, this coverage can help protect you from unexpected expenses, including:
Bodily injuries
Property damage
Collison/comprehensive repair
Uninsured/underinsured motorists
Medical payments
Commercial auto insurance is required in almost every state. Even in the states where it isn’t required, drivers can still be held liable for damages. Review these requirements with your insurance provider to make sure you’re staying compliant.
3. Customer injuries
Hoses left in walkways. Hanging baskets positioned at eye level. Slippery surfaces in areas where you water. All of these scenarios could lead to customer injuries.
Safeguard your business against losses due to customer injuries and potential lawsuits with general liability insurance.
If you’re looking for additional coverage in this area, an umbrella policy can help protect your business against catastrophic liability loss or a major judgment against you or your company.
4. Employee injuries
Slips and falls, strains, and exposure to hazardous chemicals are just some of the potential on-the-job risks your employees face. A proactive safety program at your workplace can help reduce those risks. But accidents still happen.
Workers’ compensation coverage can help cover medical expenses, lost wages, and rehabilitation costs when a worker is injured in the scope of their employment.
5. Cyberattacks
Ransomware, data breaches, and phishing scams can immobilize your network and make your personal data—and that of your customers and vendors—vulnerable.
While there are ways to help prevent a cyberattack, cyber liability insurance helps cover losses if such an event does occur, including:
Damaged equipment
Revenue lost during downtime
Possible regulatory fines
Cost of customer notifications
Cost to recover compromised data
Ransomware compensation
6. Errors and omissions
Good-faith work can sometimes lead to unintended, unwanted consequences. For example, a landscaping project your company develops leads to flooding in your customer's basement.
Professional liability insurance—also known as errors and omissions insurance—is important in times like these. It helps protect you from losses related to claims of negligence, errors, or mistakes related to your work.
How a risk-relevant insurance approach can help protect your horticultural business
When developing your insurance plan, conduct a comprehensive risk assessment of your business. Identify potential threats and evaluate their likelihood and impact.
Once you have coverage in place that corresponds to those risks, regularly review and update your coverage as your business evolves and risks change.
By adopting an insurance approach geared toward horticulture risks, you can significantly enhance the long-term sustainability of your business.
Why choose us for horticultural insurance?
We’ve exclusively served the horticultural and floral industries for more than 135 years. That includes garden centers, plant nurseries, greenhouse growers, florists, and landscapers.
We have the experience and knowledge to assess the risks businesses like yours face, and offer custom insurance solutions tailored to your operations.
If you'd like to review your business policy with a qualified insurance agent, contact us. We’re here to help you and your business.
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