Commercial insurance agents can help you protect your business assets by ensuring that you are properly covered in the event of a loss. The primary difference between commercial insurance agents and brokers is that agents are representatives of a specific insurance company. Be sure to choose commercial insurance agents who are well-established, trustworthy and experienced.

Commercial insurance is not one size fits all. Commercial insurance agencies assists businesses in not only meeting state insurance requirements, but also in creating tailored policies that meet their unique insurance needs for business property, product/service liability, commercial vehicles and other entities. It is important to find a commercial insurance agent that you believe you can trust to provide professional advice about protecting your business assets. Consider the following tips to help you choose a commercial insurance agent:

1. Create an outline of everything you want to cover.

2. Discuss coverage and rate options with commercial insurance agencies.

3. Maintain adequate business liability and property coverage.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Consult with commercial insurance agents to protect your business

Prepare for a meeting with commercial insurance agencies by gathering all pertinent business information. Be ready to discuss your business operations, equipment, services and product offerings as well as company assets. This will help commercial insurance agents not only write a policy for you that complies with government regulations, but also suggest additional coverage options.

I recommend: State Farm Insurance is a top national insurance company that offers a range of business insurance options. Liberty Mutual Group, the sixth largest U.S. property and casualty insurance company, also offers commercial insurance.

Compare rates offered by commercial insurance agencies

While insurance coverage options will, for the most part, be the same, rates will vary between insurance companies. In addition to rates and coverage, it's important that you compare claims services provided by commercial insurance agencies. Be sure to carefully review and compare all insurance rate quotes as well as claims and customer service commitments to ensure you are not sacrificing quality service for low rates.

I recommend: Check out InsuranceFinder to locate local commercial insurance agencies. NetQuote is another company that offers free online quotes from commercial insurance agents by metro area.

Keep your commercial insurance agent updated

Even though it is the responsibility of a commercial insurance agent to stay abreast of changing insurance guidelines and regulations, he/she cannot maintain your policy if you do not provide regular updates on any changes in your business. Be sure to notify your commercial insurance agent of any new equipment purchases, change of product offerings, etc. These are just a few items that could potentially affect your insurance policy.

I recommend: Consider obtaining coverage and rate information from Progressive Commercial, a national auto insurance company. An Allstate Business Insurance agent can also advise you on commercial insurance policies.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  A commercial insurance broker is paid based on commission and therefore may charge a fee for insurance quote services. Be sure to compare the costs between commercial insurance agents and brokers before making a final choice.