What are the requirements for small business insurance in North Carolina?
Employers in every line of work must comply with state-mandated insurance regulations. In North Carolina, state law requires businesses with three or more employees to purchase workers’ compensation coverage. This applies to part-time staff, family members, and every other type of employee. If your business uses cars or trucks for commercial purposes, you’ll need commercial automobile insurance to protect your vehicle. Leases for commercial space may include a clause for liability coverage including general liability insurance or commercial property insurance. Other types of coverage depend on your industry. For example, professional liability insurance, also called errors and omissions insurance, helps protect lawyers, doctors, and other experts who provide professional advice.
Insureon's licensed agents in North Carolina help small business owners start and grow their business. By filling out our free, 15-minute application, you’ll receive a range of quotes from top-rated U.S. carriers. Our small business experts will help you find appropriate, cost-effective insurance that fits your company's unique needs.
Coverage for your industry
Your industry is a major determinant of which policies will benefit your small business. We’ll match you with an expert who understands the nuances of your profession. To help determine which policies are a good match for your industry, fill out our online business insurance application. Or, select your industry from the list below.
We offer small business insurance for:
North Carolina small business insurance policies
In North Carolina, the policies most often bought by small businesses include:
General liability insurance
Protect your small business from lawsuits related to customer injury and customer property damage with general liability insurance. Proof of this type of insurance is often required when signing a lease for commercial space or a client contract. General liability insurance helps cover expenses when:
- An IT worker in your company accidentally drops a client’s hard drive and it breaks.
- A customer burns himself on the food warmers used by your catering business.
- An automated door in your lobby closes on a customer's foot and breaks a bone.
Property insurance
Damage to your equipment, inventory, and building can result in substantial financial loss to your business without the protection provided by commercial property insurance. This insurance can help cover the cost of repairs and also replacement of stolen items. Commercial property insurance helps with costs that result when:
- A thief breaks into your phone repair store and steals customers’ smartphones.
- Your air conditioner breaks and a heat wave destroys the contents of your restaurant’s pantry.
- A fire breaks out at a publishing company, destroying inventory.
Workers’ compensation insurance
In North Carolina, all businesses with three or more employees must provide workers’ compensation insurance, in accordance with state law. Workers’ compensation coverage helps cover the costs of medical fees and lost wages resulting from on-the-job injuries or occupational illness. Workers’ comp provides coverage in the following situations:
- A worker at a printing press suffers an allergic reaction caused by the chemicals in the ink.
- A lack of proper fencing at a construction site leads to worker injury.
- A doctor catches a patient’s respiratory illness and needs time off work.
Professional liability insurance (errors and omissions insurance)
Professional liability insurance can help pay legal costs related to expert advice or services that you provide to your clients. It can help provide coverage when:
- You break the terms of a client's contract.
- Your error results in a client's revenue loss.
- You miss a deadline, negatively impacting a client’s business.
Cyber liability insurance
In North Carolina, the Identity Theft Protection Act stipulates that businesses must notify customers and clients when a security breach occurs involving their private information, such as Social Security card numbers or credit card numbers. Additionally, the security breach must be reported to the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division and the three major consumer reporting agencies.
Cyber liability insurance can help pay for:
- Data breach notification costs.
- Forensic investigation into the cause of the breach.
- Credit monitoring for parties affected by the breach.
- Legal expenses if you’re sued for not preventing the breach.
Business owner’s policy (BOP)
If your small business is eligible, you can save money by purchasing a business owner’s policy, which bundles general liability and commercial property insurance at a lower rate than if they were purchased separately. Your business may be eligible if:
- You work in a low-risk industry.
- You have fewer than 100 employees.
Commercial auto insurance
Any vehicles owned by your business must be covered by commercial auto insurance. This coverage can assist with:
- Repairs to the other driver’s car in an accident.
- The other driver’s medical expenses due to injury.
- Legal expenses if you’re sued over an accident.
- Repairs to your vehicle if it’s damaged by theft, weather events, or vandalism.
North Carolina business insurance licensure information
In North Carolina, insurance agents, agencies, and brokers are licensed by the North Carolina Department of Insurance. Insureon is licensed in North Carolina as BIN Insurance Holdings, LLC (NPN 15752926) for property and casualty insurance and for surplus lines. You can verify our licensure with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners on its Licensee Look-up page by selecting “Business Entity” in the first dropdown and then entering our North Carolina state license, 1000087158, into the "License Number” field.