Why you should insure yourself as an entrepreneur against accidents

You are an entrepreneur, no matter how well the company is doing, there are always dangers lurking. And these dangers can have consequences for you as an entrepreneur, but also for the company. Think, for example, of personal injury caused by a pile-up collision (in Dutch: kettingbotsing).

Which insurance policies exist for entrepreneurs?

Financial dangers for you and for the organization can be removed by various types of insurance. But there are different types of insurance. You can insure yourself against fire and burglary, but you can also insure your income. This insurance is especially important for you as an entrepreneur yourself. Especially if you have no staff, without income you can get into major financial problems.

Income insurance in the event of incapacity for work

As an independent entrepreneur, you are completely dependent on the income you earn with your business. But if you become incapacitated for work, for example due to whiplash symptoms (in Dutch: whiplash symptomen) as a result of a rear-end collision, your income is often lost. This is especially the case with entrepreneurs with few or no staff where the entrepreneur participates in the organization.

If you become incapacitated for work due to a collision or because of illness, your income will be largely or perhaps even completely lost. This will be different if your staff takes over the work, but you will incur additional costs because you can no longer cooperate. For example, you may need to appoint a manager. The wage costs involved in this will be charged to your turnover and therefore the profit. You will then still have less or even no income if the costs exceed the turnover!

Fortunately, there are insurance policies that can supplement your income. There are several types of income insurance. Some income insurance policies pay out 1 amount and others pay out a fixed amount every month. In addition, you can choose how high the one-off or annual payment should be. In this way you can determine for yourself the amount for which you wish to insure yourself in the event of incapacity for work.

Damage due to an occupational accident

As an entrepreneur, you obviously ensure that you and your staff can work safely. You ensure that machines are in order, supervise the work of your employees and give instructions on how to perform the work.

Despite the safety measures that you apply within your company, it can still happen that employees are injured while performing the work for your organization. As an entrepreneur and employer, you can then be held liable for the personal injury that your employees incur as a result.

If you, as an entrepreneur, are liable for the personal injury suffered by someone as a result of an industrial accident, you will have to deal with a personal injury claim submitted by a personal injury lawyer. These will demand that you compensate the full damage of your employee. This concerns all costs incurred by your employee, but also, for example, loss of income.

Fortunately, there are insurance policies that protect you against liability because of an industrial accident of an employee of your organization. There may, however, be a deductible. It’s good to watch this!

Are you insured against liability of your employees? Then the liability insurer will handle the personal injury claim. The settlement of claims and communication with the personal injury lawyer is then taken over by the personal injury insurer.

If you are not insured against damage caused by an accident of your staff, you must pay for the damage yourself. The compensation paid is at the expense of the financial situation of your company and can even lead to bankruptcy. Personal injury compensation can be substantial. It is therefore wise to take out liability insurance for companies.