Laundromat Insurance Ontario

Laundromat Insurance 

Laundromats provide a valuable service to many people. While it is true that many people have a washing machine and dryer in their home or within the building they live in, sometimes these machines break down, leaving a laundromat as the best remaining option to clean their clothes. However, running a laundry service is not without risk. Any business owner can have the items they use damaged for reasons outside their control or be the target of a lawsuit. In such cases, a laundromat insurance policy can help protect owners of these fine establishments from these financial losses and allow them to keep their businesses open and running. 

What Is Laundromat Insurance? 

Laundromat insurance is a form of business insurance that protects laundromats from many of the financial perils involved with their business. A fire in a neighbouring building may spread to yours, causing severe damage to the location. Maybe a customer suffers injuries from a slip-and-fall and holds you responsible, exposing you to a significant liability charge. It’s also possible that many of your washers and/or driers break down simultaneously. These perils and more can cost a laundromat owner lots of money. However, with laundromat insurance, you will have these situations covered. This will give you peace of mind, knowing that even if a traumatic event does happen, you will be financially protected. 

Who Needs Laundromat Insurance? 

Anyone who owns a laundromat could benefit from laundromat insurance. A laundromat faces many perils you don’t even think of until they happen. Laundromats can be open to risks involved in having customers on their property, owning heavy machinery, having a physical location, cyber-attacks, and more. Even one incident is enough to put your entire business in danger. Laundromat insurance is an excellent line of defence for stopping an accident from derailing your business. 

Is Laundromat Insurance Mandatory? 

Although laundromat insurance is not legally mandatory, its protection for any laundromat business is too valuable to turn down. The idea of a customer accidentally damaging some of your equipment, cybercriminals targeting your business, all sound like improbable events, but it only takes one incident for a laundromat to get into hot water.  

What Does Laundromat Insurance Cover? 

Laundromat insurance covers sudden losses to which your laundromat business is exposed. These can include damage to your building, equipment, and more. There are also many liability risks from accidents, such as slip-and-fall incidents and errors made by you or your employees that your customers could hold you responsible for. Since each laundromat is unique, they will each face unique risks. As a result, each will require different coverage.  

Commercial General Liability Insurance 

Commercial general liability insurance provides financial protection when you are held financially liable for an incident where a third party was harmed, usually via bodily injury or property damage. A slip and fall incident are one of the most common scenarios where this can protect you. If water from one of the washing machines gathers in a puddle, this could be a slip hazard for everyone nearby and someone could get seriously hurt. If this happens on your property, you can face severe financial consequences. Commercial general liability insurance will cover legal costs and any money owed if this or a similar situation occurs. 

Commercial Property Insurance 

Commercial property insurance protects you from financial fallout if physical damage occurs to your laundromat. This includes scenarios such as fire, damage caused by inclement weather, vandalism, water damage, and other damage done by third parties. Given how expensive the building almost certainly is, how quickly damage can snowball, and the sheer number of perils that can impact a physical location, commercial property insurance is very valuable. 

What Additional Coverages Can Be Added To Laundromat Insurance? 

Based on the risks of your specific laundromat insurance policy, you might need additional coverages such as errors and omissions insurance, commercial cyber insurance, washer and dryer insurance, and commercial umbrella insurance. Here are some examples of additional types of protection you may want on your laundromat insurance policy. 

Errors & Omissions Insurance 

Errors and omissions insurance, also known as professional liability insurance, protects you when a customer claims that an error made by you or one of your employees caused physical harm or damage to something they own. Let’s say a customer wants to wash a game-worn sports jersey with several signatures and extreme collector value. The customer asks which type of laundry soap would avoid smudging the signatures, and you or your employee gives them incorrect information, ruining their valuable collector’s item. In this case, errors and omissions insurance would cover your loss, including legal expenses. 

Equipment Breakdown Insurance 

Equipment breakdown insurance will cover the costs associated with your washers or dryers breaking down suddenly for reasons beyond your control. This could include situations such as an unexplained mechanical breakdown or a problem with the power system causing an overload. Please note that this only covers sudden losses and cannot cover you when the machinery experiences natural wear and tear or breaks due to poor maintenance. 

Business Interruption Insurance 

Business interruption insurance protects you when your business is forced to shut down due to circumstances beyond your control. This can include situations where your property is too damaged to continue using or otherwise inaccessible to the public, such as a natural disaster or government shutdowns of entire areas. Business interruption insurance can cover lost projected income if such an event happens or cover the costs of setting up a temporary location, such as needing to pay rent for such a set-up. 

Commercial Auto And Fleet Insurance 

Commercial auto and fleet insurance is car insurance for your company vehicle. It should be noted that this type of coverage is mandated by law if you have a company vehicle. It covers damage to the vehicle itself and any liability issues arising from potential driving scenarios. Please note that a personal car insurance policy won’t cover you if you use a personal vehicle for commercial purposes. If the company is being used for purposes directly tied to your business, you must have a commercial vehicle insurance policy. 

Commercial Cyber Insurance 

Commercial cyber insurance protects you in situations where cybercriminals target your business. It is an understandable mistake to think this scenario sounds farfetched, but it is much more likely in our increasingly digitalized world than many think. Any business is vulnerable to cyber-attacks, especially small ones that don’t have nearly as robust an IT department or super cybersecurity team. Being the victim of such an attack could mean personal financial information, such as bank and credit card information. This could lead to your data being compromised while you face the financial consequences of your customers holding you accountable for their information being compromised. Commercial cyber insurance will cover all costs of safely recovering your and your client’s information and getting your system back up if it crashes during the attack. 

Commercial Umbrella Or Excess Liability Coverage 

Commercial umbrella or excess liability coverage protects you when your existing liability limits cannot cover a particular situation’s costs. If, for example, your general commercial liability coverage successfully kicks in on a claim, but the amount that you owe in court costs and legal fees exceeds your policy limit, commercial umbrella coverage will step in and pay what is left, ensuring that even a hefty fee doesn’t damage your business’ bottom line. 

Does Laundromat Insurance Also Cover Dry Cleaners? 

No, these types of coverage are different. Business insurance works very similarly across industries. Many of the above types of insurance, such as commercial general liability coverage, errors and omissions insurance, and commercial property insurance, will also protect a dry-cleaning business, but you must specify that they are for a dry cleaners, not a laundromat. Some coverages carry similar protection under either, such as equipment breakdown insurance. In this case, a dry cleaner’s equipment breakdown insurance coverage will cover dry cleaning machines instead of the standard washers and dryers associated with laundromats. If you would like to know more about how business insurance works, it is recommended that you speak with your Morison Insurance broker. 

How Much Does Laundromat Insurance Cost? 

There is no set cost to laundromat insurance. This is due to the many factors that could impact a quote. It should also be noted that if the same laundromat owner gets different quotes from two companies, they will almost certainly differ because each insurance provider weighs each peril and exposure differently. To get an accurate laundromat insurance quote, it would be best to speak to your Morison Insurance broker. 

What Factors Influence The Cost Of Laundromat Insurance? 

Many factors impact the cost of laundromat insurance. The vast majority of them are based on the level of risk your specific laundromat is exposed to. It is important to note that each company will weigh these factors differently, which is why it is important to compare quotes through an insurance broker. Many of the factors that will impact the cost of your laundromat insurance quote include the following: 

• The physical size of the laundromat. 
• The number and quality of machines in the laundromat. 
• The claims history of the insured. 
• The location of the laundromat. 
• The details of the company’s vehicle(s), if they have any. 
• The level of protection desired. 
• The number of safety precautions taken by the laundromat’s owner and employees. 

Please note that these are not the only factors that could impact the cost of laundromat insurance. If you want to know more, please contact your Morison Insurance broker. 

How Can I Lower My Laundromat Insurance? 

You can lower your laundromat insurance quote in a handful of ways. They include the following: 

• Increase your deductible. 
• Increase the level of workplace safety you engage in to lower the risk of injury to your employees and customers. 
• Do not make claims on small losses so that your claims history remains clean. 

Please note that these are just a few ways that you would be able to lower your laundromat insurance quote. 

Where Can I Get A Laundromat Insurance Quote? 

You can get a laundromat insurance quote from Morison Insurance. Morison Insurance is a family-run insurance brokerage that treats our clients like an extension of that family. We have provided the people of Ontario with excellent insurance service for over 100 years. Call us at 1-800-463-8074 to get a laundromat insurance quote or any other quote you desire. You’ll be glad you did.