Compare business contents insurance

Contents cover for a business pays to repair or replace the things you own and use to trade, if they’re damaged or stolen. That can mean desks and computers in an office, fittings and stock in a shop, or machinery in a workshop.

Quotezone lets you request quotes from several UK providers at once, whether you own your premises, rent them or work from home.

What does business contents insurance cover?

It covers the moveable things your business owns, rather than the building itself. Policies vary, but contents usually include:

• furniture, fixtures and fittings you paid for
• computers, phones, printers and other office equipment
• stock you hold to sell and raw materials you use (GOV.UK)
• machinery, tools and essential equipment kept at your premises (business.gov.uk)

Many insurers also let you add:

• accidental damage, such as a dropped laptop or a spilt drink
• cover for portable equipment you take off site
• money and important documents
• stock on the move, through goods in transit insurance
• business interruption, which pays for lost income if an insured event stops you trading (business.gov.uk)

Contents or buildings: which do you need?

Buildings cover is for the structure. business.gov.uk says you need it if you own your premises, or if your lease or mortgage requires it (business.gov.uk).

Tenants usually leave the structure to the landlord, but the lease is what settles it. Read its repair and insurance clauses carefully before you buy.

If you own the premises, commercial property insurance can combine buildings and contents. A commercial combined policy can go further and add liability and business interruption.

Which businesses need contents cover?

• offices and agencies with computers, desks and phones (office insurance)
• shops and market traders holding stock (shop insurance)
• workshops and small manufacturers with machinery and raw materials
• salons, studios and clinics with specialist equipment
• people who work from home with business kit (home business insurance)
• businesses in shared or co-working space, where you’re responsible for your own equipment

Working from home? A household policy may not cover business stock or computers (GOV.UK), so check before you rely on it.

How much contents cover do you need?

Add up what it would cost to replace everything at today’s prices. Include stock at cost price, plus equipment, furniture and any fit-out you paid for.

Be accurate. For business policies, the Insurance Act 2015 says you must give the insurer a fair presentation of the risk before the contract starts (legislation.gov.uk).

If a mistake led to a lower premium than the insurer would have charged, the Act lets it cut a claim by the same proportion (legislation.gov.uk). A deliberate or reckless breach can let an insurer refuse all claims.

Stock levels change through the year. If you hold more before Christmas or a busy season, ask insurers about a seasonal increase to your stock sum insured.

New for old or indemnity?

Check how each policy settles a claim. Some replace equipment with a new equivalent, while others pay its value at the time of the loss, which allows for wear and age.

The second basis usually costs less but may pay less for older kit. If you rely on expensive machines or computers, compare quotes on both bases.

Stock cover for retailers, sellers and wholesalers

If you sell goods, stock is often the most valuable thing you insure. business.gov.uk lists stock alongside machinery and tools in the equipment cover it describes (business.gov.uk).

Business stock insurance is usually part of a contents policy rather than a separate product. It can pay to replace stock lost to fire, flood or theft, up to the limit you choose.

When you compare quotes, check:

• the stock limit, set at the most you hold at your busiest time of year
• seasonal increases, which some policies add for set months such as the run-up to Christmas
• stock kept away from your premises, such as at a market, a storage unit or a fulfilment warehouse
• goods on the road, which may need goods in transit insurance
• chilled or frozen stock, in case a fridge or freezer breaks down

Is stock covered when it’s away from your premises?

Not automatically. Many policies cover stock only at the address on your schedule, so stock held at a third-party warehouse or online fulfilment centre may need adding by name.

Tell your insurer where each batch of stock is kept, and update them if that changes.

What affects the price?

• the total value of your contents and stock
• the type of business and what you sell
• your postcode and the security at your premises, such as locks and alarms
• whether you add accidental damage or cover away from the premises
• your claims history and the excess you choose

The price includes Insurance Premium Tax at HMRC’s standard rate, which is 12% (HMRC).

Example: a design studio

Take a small design studio that rents an office in a shared building. The landlord insures the structure, so the studio needs cover for its computers, furniture and a large-format printer.

Staff take laptops to client meetings, so the studio adds portable equipment cover. It also asks for business interruption, because a fire in the building could stop work for weeks.

Is business contents insurance a legal requirement?

No. business.gov.uk names only two covers as legal requirements: insurance for your staff, through employers’ liability, and insurance for vehicles you use in the business (business.gov.uk).

A lease, a landlord or a lender may still ask you to insure contents or fit-out, so check your agreements.

Keeping a record of your contents

A simple list makes claims quicker. Note each item of value, when you bought it and what it cost, and keep receipts or invoices.

• photograph equipment, fittings and stock areas once a year
• record serial numbers for computers, tools and machines
• keep stock records up to date, as they show what you held on the day of a loss
• store copies away from the premises, for example in the cloud

Review the list at each renewal. New equipment and higher stock levels may mean your sums insured need to rise. If you lease equipment, check whether the leasing company expects you to insure it.

How to compare quotes on Quotezone

Tell us about your business, where you trade and what your contents and stock are worth. Quotezone sends your details to UK providers, who can contact you with prices.

Look at the excess, any single-item limit and what is excluded, as well as the price. Get a business contents quote.

You might also need

If you store customer data or take payments online, look at cyber insurance. And if you deliver goods, goods in transit insurance covers stock on the road.