Food Cart Business Worker's Compensation Insurance
Almost every American state requires businesses to get worker's compensation insurance to take care of staff. Employees who sustain an injury whilst working in your food cart business will experience burns, lacerations, or incur a work-related disease.
The law provides that you need to cover employees who got injured or sick due to work. This is where workers' compensation insurance comes in. It covers the following:
Medical treatment/procedure - Your employee will need surgeries, therapies, and other medical treatment/procedures after sustaining lacerations, burns, cuts, or illnesses. The job of workers' compensation insurance is to cover the expenses for these
Hospitalization - Medical professionals might request your employee to stay in the hospital after sustaining a work-related injury or disease. In connection, workers' compensation insurance covers this situation by taking care of hospital bills until your employee is discharged
Medication - Workers compensation insurance provides the money your food cart businesses’ employee can use to buy the medicines needed to fully recover from a work-related injury or disease
Rehabilitation - Your employee will need rehab if he or she sustains an injury or disease that impairs specific bodily functions. This is also covered by workers' compensation insurance. Specifically, the policy will cover therapist fees, rehabilitation equipment, and other related expenses
Lost income compensation - Workers' compensation insurance will cover lost wages if an employee of your food cart business can’t work due to a work-related injury or disease. Coverage for lost wages is a weekly allowance equal to two-thirds or 67% of the average weekly wage. For example, if your employee makes $1,467 per week, compensation for lost income will be $982.89
Death benefits - If your food cart business’s employee dies due to a work-related injury or disease, workers' compensation insurance will cover funeral expenses and give dependents an allowance equal to two-thirds or 67% of the average weekly wage
Workers' compensation insurance covers full-time, part-time, and foreign employees. Volunteers and interns aren’t covered.
Is Not Getting Workers Comp Insurance for Your Food Cart Business Punishable?
Workers' compensation insurance is required except in Texas. Failure to purchase the coverage is punishable by law. Expect to face stiff fines or get imprisoned for months or years. It all depends on which jurisdiction your food cart business is located. That said, here are some examples:
Failure to get workers' compensation insurance in Utah will result in the following fines or penalties
A cease and desist order against your food cart business, prohibiting business operations in any location within the jurisdiction of the state
Loss of exclusive remedy - a legal protection granted by the state to businesses where employees can’t sue employers who have workers' compensation insurance for work-related injuries or diseases
A minimum penalty of $10,000
In California, food cart businesses that don’t get workers comp insurance commit misdemeanor punishable by a $10,000 fine, one year imprisonment in the county jail, or both
Food cart businesses in Florida that fail to get workers comp insurance are prohibited from conducting business operations until coverage is purchased and all fines are duly paid. Fines will amount to twice what employers would’ve paid for workers' compensation insurance premiums, annually or monthly, depending on which applies
In Colorado, food cart businesses that fail to get workers' compensation insurance will be fined $500 multiplied by the days coverage isn’t purchased. So if your business didn’t get workers comp for 7 days, you’ll face a $3,500 fine
Food Cart Business Commercial Property Insurance
Commercial property insurance is a must when owning multiple food carts and running a highly profitable business. With this insurance policy, you can cover the following:
Building damage - If fire, theft, vandalism, and other covered perils caused damage to your food cart business’s warehouse or office, commercial property insurance will provide the money you can use to get damaged structure fixed
Building destruction - Commercial property insurance will cover reconstruction expenses if your food cart business’s office or warehouse is destroyed by fire or extreme weather
Note that commercial property insurance comes with additional inclusions. These inclusions are:
Stocks and contents coverage - Stocks and contents coverage will recoup losses if food ingredients, office furniture, business documents, and other valuable items become lost or damaged due to fire, theft, vandalism, and other covered perils
Business equipment and tools coverage - Business equipment and tools coverage will recoup losses if the cooking equipment and other objects used to prepare food become lost or damaged due to fire, theft, vandalism, and other covered perils
Food Cart Food Spoilage Coverage
Imagine a situation where pest infestation or equipment defects cause food or raw ingredients to become spoiled and unusable. Your food cart business will surely lose a lot of money when this happens. This is why it’s smart to get food spoilage coverage. If the food or ingredients spoil due to power interruption, equipment defect, pest infestation, employee negligence, etc., food spoilage coverage will recoup losses up to the limits stated on its terms.
Commercial Auto Insurance for Food Cart Businesses
Commercial auto insurance is a vital coverage for your food cart business. This policy will safeguard your vehicle. Besides, it will also protect the food preparation equipment inside the automobile. Commercial auto insurance covers:
Bodily injury liability coverage - Takes care of your responsibility to pay third parties after causing injuries
Property damage liability coverage - Takes care of your responsibility to pay third parties upon damaging their personal belongings
Personal injury coverage - Takes care of your own injuries caused by an accident
Food Cart Business Interruption Insurance
Risks can cause your food cart business’s operations to stop temporarily. This is why it's smart to get business interruption insurance. While business is closed and income isn’t generated, business interruption insurance will cover employee wages, loans, mortgages, and taxes. Business interruption insurance provides coverage for 30 days. However, you can extend the duration to 360 days through an endorsement.
Employment Practices Liability Insurance for Food Cart Business
Your food cart business’s employee will sue for wrongful termination, sexual harassment, discrimination, missed employment benefits, and other offenses considered violations of employee rights. In such a situation, employment practices liability insurance will cover attorney fees, compensatory payments, administrative costs, and other legal expenses for you.
Food Cart Business Employer’s Liability Insurance
When you don’t have workers' compensation insurance, employees can’t sue for negligence after experiencing a work-related injury or disease. Employer’s liability insurance will help with this. In practice, this insurance will cover attorney fees, administrative costs, settlements, and other legal expenses for you.
Hot Dog Cart Insurance
A specialized hot dog cart insurance or hot dog stand insurance is usually sold as a liability-only insurance product - meaning that it only includes general liability insurance and other related policies protecting the policyholder from costly client claims. Consider getting this instead of generalized food cart insurance or mobile food vendor insurance if you're a hot dog vendor.
Coffee Cart Insurance
Food carts selling coffee beverages can opt to get a specialized coffee cart insurance offering general liability insurance with a $2 million limit, product liability insurance with a $2 million limit, inland marine insurance with a $10,000 limit, and cyber liability insurance with a $100,000 limit.
Ice Cream Truck Insurance
Mobile ice cream shops and other related businesses will do better with ice cream truck insurance. Typically, policies included in this insurance product are commercial auto liability insurance, general liability insurance, physical damage coverage, and uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage.
Food Concession Trailer Insurance
is best suited for those running food concession trailers and concession stands. Policies included are general liability, products and completed operations, products liability, commercial auto, and commercial property insurance.
