Now that you know a little bit more about the basics of vendor insurance let’s take a few minutes to examine the various types of vendors that should purchase vendor liability insurance coverage. This list is by no means conclusive, but we’ve done our best to mention some of the most common vendors that come to us for insurance coverage.
Vendor Event Insurance
Event vending can be a bit tricky as you’ll often be setting up and selling your products in different locations every time. Traditional insurance policies may only apply within your home city’s limits. This presents a bit of a problem for traveling vendors.
If you’re a traveling vendor, then you may find that your best bet is to purchase on-demand vendor insurance, as we discussed earlier. These policies can provide immediate short-term coverage for your business in any city, which means that you don’t have to go through the hassle of calling your insurance agent and telling them you’re going out of town for the week. That being said, some insurance companies have particular policies designed for mobile or traveling vendors.
Liability Insurance for Food Vendors
As a food vendor, you’re basically a restaurant on wheels. That being said, the risk is still relatively low compared to a full-blown restaurant, meaning that insurance costs are still relatively cheap and affordable.
Liability insurance for food vendors provides coverage for chefs and their mobile kitchens. A general liability policy will protect you and your business from injury or property damage claims. Some of the most common claims that food vendors face include:
Food poisoning claims.
Property damage claims (e.g., hitting a mailbox with your food truck or accidentally killing the grass where you set up your mobile kitchen).
Personal injury claims (e.g., if the customer’s food was too hot or if they tripped over your power cords).
Hopefully, you won’t have to deal with any of these types of claims. However, something is bound to happen one day, and when it does, it helps to be prepared. The best way to be prepared is to maintain an affordable food vendor insurance policy.
Below, we’ve listed some of the most common types of food vendors that should purchase liability coverage.
Mobile Food Truck Insurance
One of the biggest issues with food trucks is the relatively low visibility that drivers have. It’s not uncommon for food trucks to back up into other cars, damage personal property, or even accidentally hit somebody. A simple food truck liability insurance policy and a commercial auto policy for your food truck will protect you against almost any claim that comes your way.
Insurance for Mobile Food Trailers
Mobile food trailers are basically just food trucks that need to be towed by another truck. Since they don’t have an engine of their own, they are typically covered by your commercial auto insurance policy. This means that you should have a commercial auto insurance policy on whatever truck you use to tow your mobile food trailer. Additionally, you should also maintain a public or general liability insurance policy to protect against other injury or property damage claims.
Food Vendor Insurance for Festivals
If you’re a food vendor working a festival, then you’ll definitely want to have a comprehensive general liability insurance policy. Festivals are usually packed full of people, and there’s often alcohol involved, which means that the risk of your customers hurting themselves in or around your food truck or vending station is increased.
If you’re traveling for the festival you’re vending at, then we suggest contacting your existing insurer to inform them of your travel plans or purchasing separate on-demand liability coverage for the duration of the event.
Hot Dog Cart Insurance
Compared to most other food vendors, hot dog carts represent the lowest risk. However, as we mentioned above, there’s always the possibility of your cart giving way and hurting somebody. Another common scenario is that you could lose control of your cart, and it could crash into somebody’s nice car or personal property. This makes it imperative to maintain a simple hot dog cart liability insurance policy.
Flea Market Vendor Insurance
As a flea market vendor, you’ll likely be setting up a cart, small retail space, or table at a weekly flea market. Some flea markets are open daily, while others are only open on the weekends. Either way, though, you’ll want to have a basic liability insurance policy to cover you in the event that somebody gets hurt in or around your stand. Flea market vendor insurance can also protect you from customers claiming that you sold them defective or malfunctioning items.
Farmers Market Insurance for Vendors
If you sell fruits, veggies, or other goods at your local farmers market, then you’ll need to maintain a farmers market public liability or general liability insurance policy. In addition to protecting your business against customer claims, most farmer’s markets require all vendors to show proof of insurance before they’re given a vending space.
Liability Insurance for Farmers Market Vendors
Although vending at a farmers market is very low-risk, there’s still the possibility of you accidentally selling rotten fruit or veggies to a customer or a customer tripping and falling in or around your setup area. As many of your products come from a farm, there’s also a chance that there could be a spider hiding in your wares that could bite a customer and cause serious injury. Liability insurance for farmer’s market vendors will protect against any random occurrences that could come up.
Read more about Farmers Market Insurance
Craft Vendor Insurance
Most artisan craft vendors set up at flea markets, farmer’s markets, or events. As such, craft vendor insurance is a liability insurance policy designed to cover similar instances or mishaps that could happen around your vending location. It will also protect you from customer injury claims resulting from the misuse of your items.
Read more about crafters insurance
