As a grocery store owner, you face a number of risks each day. Protecting your store means getting the right grocery store insurance coverages to give you peace of mind.

To help you run your business, we would like to share a few coverages we designed specifically for grocery store owners. Below we outline risks you may face and how certain coverages can help you avoid a loss.

Grocery store insurance coverages

Risk: Product Recalls

Product recalls affect the smaller independent grocery stores and the larger national grocery chains alike since trusted brand names have recalled their products as have smaller lesser known local produce suppliers. Dealing with a recall can have a huge impact on the food manufacturer or wholesaler, but it can also be costly and time consuming for the grocery retailers involved.

Insurance Coverage: Product Recall Expense

This insurance coverage is specifically designed to protect grocery stores from the risks and expenses associated with product recalls. If a customer gets sick or injured from a recalled product, this coverage can cover the legal fees. Even if nobody is harmed, this coverage can cover the costs associated with the recall that can quickly add up to be quite expensive. These could include: public communication costs, withdrawing products from shelves, replacing products and the shipping or disposal costs that come directly from the product recall.

Risk: Contaminated food or building infestation

Food contamination can be a serious risk for grocery stores because the sources of contamination can be varied. For example, several years ago, a man in Michigan was charged for spraying food products with a concoction of hand sanitizer and mouse poison. While this situation is an extreme example, it demonstrates how easily contamination can happen due to foreign substances being introduced to food due to lack of care or proper food safety protocols.

Insurance Coverage: Food Contamination and Infestation

Food Contamination and Infestation coverage helps cover the costs associated with dealing with contamination damages from common infestations like insects, birds, rodents or other animals. There are also common risks associated with meat products and produce like e.coli and salmonella that can be covered with this insurance.

Risk: Food Spoilage

Keeping your produce and food products fresh is paramount for grocery store owners, so there are usually training programs in place to ensure that employees are following proper food handling protocols to safeguard against food spoiling. In most cases where food spoilage occurs, it is the result of events that are out of your control. Natural disasters, weather related incidents and power surges can result in problems and failures of equipment like refrigeration systems.

Insurance Coverage: Equipment Breakdown

Equipment breakdown coverage is great for grocery stores when important equipment like refrigerated storage rooms or air conditioning systems breakdown and result in food spoilage. This coverage can help pay for the cost of replacing the equipment, but also replace the loss of property or revenue. It also covers any other electrical equipment or production machinery that your grocery store may use.

Ensure you’re covered

These are just a few of the grocery store insurance coverages we recommend for protecting your operations from common risks. For more information on what coverages would be best for your insurance policy, visit our grocery store insurance page today!

This blog is provided for information only and is not a substitute for professional advice. We make no representations or warranties regarding the accuracy or completeness of the information and will not be responsible for any loss arising out of reliance on the information.