When you get into a business, you hope that you never get sued. Getting sued may haunt your dreams when you close your eyes after a long day at work, but if you protect yourself, you have less of a chance of people successfully suing you. There are legal things that you can do to make sure that you are protected. Starting a new business is hard. You need to work and have insurance for safeguarding your business and help it grow into a thriving company, and in this article, we are going to share 5 of them with you.
1. Ensure Operation as the Correct Business Entity
Even if you have liability insurance coverage, you make put this coverage in jeopardy if you are not listed correctly. Different insurance covers different companies, and if you don’t have the right insurance, this causes problems. Large corporations are going to need more coverage than a company with one employee, and there are different levels of protection.
Make sure that you know what business entity you are and ensure that you are listed properly with your insurance. You don’t want to go to use it and find out that you are not covered.
2. Maintain Proper Personal Injury Insurance
If anyone is injured on your property by the fault of an employee, or an improperly maintain a piece of equipment that company owns, the company is responsible for taking care of medical expenses and possibly more fees. Check with your insurance provider ensure that you are covered for personal injury claims.
Ask specifically for insurance that covers accidents happening inside, near or because of the company’s actions. Make sure you are dealing with an agent that you can trust so that you can ask for recommendations and know that they have your best interests at heart.
3. Private Property Damage Protection
Private property damage means any private property that is damaged because an employee or anything belonging to the business. If you or anyone in your company was found to be negligent when the damage occurred, your company would be liable for it. Make sure that you have enough coverage according to the price of personal property that you are regularly around so that you are sure that you will be able to pay for any property damage that might happen.
4. Retain an Attorney with Business Law Knowledge
Every company should have an attorney on retainer in the case that any legal needs arise. It doesn’t matter how big or how small your business is, you need to make sure that you have an attorney that will be there to help you through legal issues that you cannot handle.
Whether you are getting your business set up, expanding, moving, or any other action, you need to speak with your attorney to consult about your legal rights.
5. Work with a PEO Service
If you aren’t already working with a PEO service in Texas, you should look into partnering with one right away. PEO companies work specifically to help you run your human resources efficiently and effectively. There are many different options to look into as you are considering using a PEO.
You may already have an in-house HR department and want to keep these employees on full-time. If that is the case, you could simply want help with what you already have structured to get processes and procedures in place so you are able to get the results that you want for your employees.
Another reason people party with PEOs even if they want to take care of all of their HR needs except for a few is because of the benefits. Most PEOs are able to get deals like Fortune 500 companies. This means you are able to offer your employees attractive employee benefits. If you want to attract top talent, you will need to have top of the line benefits, and this is a great way for smaller companies to be able to get them.
You may also want your HR fully managed by the PEO. Having a fully managed HR department outsourced is another option and means that you do not have to deal with the any of the day-to-day tasks unless you want to. You can work out a plan with the PEO company of your choice so that you can focus on areas where you perform well.
When you are choosing a PEO, it is ideal if you can work with a company that has partnered with companies in your industry as well as companies that are around the size of your so they understand the needs of your company and can help you through your growth.
Conclusion
Making sure that you are legally safeguarded is important. You can’t leave yourself exposed and hope for the best. While the cost of insurance may seem like an added burden when you may already be bootstrapping your business, a lawsuit resulting in the requirement of a large payment will be a true burden that could break your company.
Put together a checklist to make sure that you do all of the important actions for your business and don’t stop until you’ve finished. Leaving your business open to attacks and without the proper coverage or representation is like asking for trouble.
Having a new business is like having a new baby. The business is only beginning to get its footing, and you have to protect it so it can grow into a strong adult business that will buy you dividends as you grow the business and increase the profitability of it.
Starting a new business is hard. You need to work and have insurance for safeguarding your business and help it grow into a thriving company.
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