Insurance for Small Business Owners in Mississippi

Commercial Auto Insurance.

Many small businesses in Mississippi own vehicles. If that is true for your small business, know that Mississippi has minimum liability requirements. These include $25,000 in bodily injury per person, $50,000 in bodily injury per accident, and $25,000 in property damage liability. The penalty for failing to maintain auto insurance is $1,000 and a one-year suspension.

Workers’ Compensation Insurance.

Small business employers in Mississippi with five or more employees are required to obtain workers’ compensation coverage. Some exemptions to the workers’ comp law include domestic and farm workers, non-profit organizations, and certain maritime or transportation employees. While employees of subcontractors are given special protection, other independent contractors are excluded. Fines may apply if you fail to obtain workers’ comp in Mississippi.

Small Business Owner’s Insurance.

You can bundle property damage insurance and general liability into one convenient and comprehensive Business Owner’s Policy (BOP) to lower your Mississippi small business costs. This type of policy typically covers losses and damages related to a customer’s medical expenses for onsite third-party accidents like a slip and fall and business property and advertising damage claims.

General Liability Insurance.

A general liability (GL) policy can be obtained as separate coverage if your small business in Mississippi doesn’t need BOP’s property coverage. If your Mississippi business leases a space, the property contract likely requires General Liability Insurance. GL helps ease the financial burden of customer injury and typically covers third-party property damage like fire, libel and slander lawsuits, and other risks. 

Professional Liability Insurance.

If your Mississippi small business work includes providing expertise as a service, like financial advice, architecture, design, and technical services, you should consider errors and omissions (E&O) Professional Liability insurance. E&O covers most work mistakes and errors, missed deadlines, incomplete work, and negligence lawsuits.

Cyber Liability Insurance.

An ongoing threat to Mississippi small businesses is cybercrime. Cyber Liability coverage is recommended for most small businesses in Mississippi to help manage the fallout from a cyberattack, including help paying for customer notification and fraud monitoring costs and associated legal fees. Cyber insurance helps businesses recover from data breaches and other common cyberattacks.