Tailored Insurance Solutions for the Hospitality Industry: The Importance of a Knowledgeable Broker

This blog is sponsored by Gallagher.

Most of you likely think insurance is as dry as a well-done steak and not underappreciated dry - like a great Riesling.

For many restaurant owners, an insurance program appears to be an expensive pile of paper, requiring a flurry of activity completing applications every year, with quotes taking seemingly forever to come back. The perception is that coverage is usually black and white, the broker doesn’t add a lot of value and the insurance market is “out to get you”. However, the market is actually quite nuanced and more like shades of grey, and it is critical your broker understands your business and is qualified to tell your story to their insurance market partners in an effective way to “color in” those shaded areas, cover you properly and, ideally, save you some money in the process.

An example as it relates to most licensed restaurants is in those lovely applications you fill out every year, specifically the question that drives most of your liability premium: liquor vs food receipts. Historically, operations with liquor sales excess of 25% of their revenue have faced much larger liability premiums than those with lower relative liquor sales. We have demonstrated to our insurance market partners that not all liquor receipts are created equal. A $300 bill for 4 people with 1 nice bottle of wine representing 50% of the bill should not be deemed as risky as a $300 bill for 4 people with 6 jugs of beer or 12 margaritas as 50% of the bill. No longer should higher liquor receipts simply mean higher risk and, therefore, higher premium.

There are many factors that need to be considered when marketing your insurance program, and this example is intended to illustrate that your best strategy to ensure proper coverage and your most effective premium spend is to deal with a broker who can tell your story and has the market support to do so.

And for you pub and taqueria owners, there are effective stories we are able to tell on your behalf, as well.

As a local presence in the Alberta hospitality industry backed by Gallagher’s global reach and sponsorship of the Alberta Hospitality Association, I’d love the opportunity to review your coverage, find the areas to highlight and tell your story.

David Murray

Account Executive & Specialty Risk Broker
Gallagher
403.850.4031
david_murray@ajg.com