Author
Business Insurance Contributor
David Okafor is a contributor to Best Insurance Guide covering business insurance, including general liability, professional liability and workers' compensation. His guides are reviewed against policy forms and state insurance department guidance to help small-business owners understand their exposures. *Editorial note: contributor profiles reflect current editorial roles. License numbers and verifiable professional credentials are published here as contributors provide them. Our guides are educational and do not constitute personalized financial advice — always confirm details with a licensed agent or your state insurance department before buying.*
A landscaper works on somebody else's land with equipment that throws objects and chemicals that drift. General liability alone does not answer either of those.
Florida sets workers compensation thresholds that differ by industry, and its property market is unlike anywhere else. Both change how a small business should buy.
Illinois requires workers compensation from the first employee and has a privacy statute that has produced enormous claims against ordinary businesses using fingerprint clocks.
Workers compensation from the first employee, with criminal penalties for going without. Everything else is driven by contracts and landlords rather than by law.
New ventures pay more because there is no loss history to price against. What each coverage costs at the start, what triggers the next one, and what falls away with time.
The policy that matters most changes completely with the trade. What consultants, caterers and landscapers actually need, and where umbrella cover fits.
Personal motorcycle policies exclude paid delivery. What a courier endorsement covers, where platform cover stops, and worked examples of a denied claim.
General liability isn't enough. The core policies, the gaps small businesses forget, worked examples of what a claim costs uninsured, and typical price ranges.
