Restaurant Insurance

Great insurance for restaurants is as important to the future of your business as an irresistible menu and good customer reviews. But if your policy is outdated or inadequate, you could be risking everything. As your business changes, so too should your insurance. New equipment, new locations, new services — they can all impact your coverage. If a fire destroys your kitchen, or a customer slips and falls, will your insurance help keep your doors open?

We know that thinking about your restaurant insurance is probably on the back burner. So Nationwide makes it easy for you. We understand your risks and challenges, and will help create the policy you need so you can stay focused on the food with insurance for restaurants.

A recipe for the perfect restaurant insurance quote

Nationwide’s Premier Businessowners Policy (BOP) for restaurants includes essential insurance ingredients such as business property insurance and business general liability insurance. Additional coverage options can then be added to your policy to match your specific needs. From sushi to salad bars, we’ll help you get the coverage you want.

Options for customized insurance for restaurants

Because restaurants vary dramatically depending on size, location and style, your businessowner’s policy may be customized with affordable options, such as:

• Liquor Liability Coverage
• Food Contamination Coverage
• Equipment Breakdown Coverage
• Business Income Coverage
• Business Umbrella Insurance

Restaurant insurance choices

Chances are good you have questions about the insurance you need. Here are more details about restaurant coverage, and why Nationwide is such a smart choice for protecting your business.

Let’s face it, accidents in restaurants happen. Most commonly an employee might slip and fall, but that is why most restaurants require non-slip soles for waiters, waitresses, and the rest of the house. But what about the people who visit your restaurant in stiletto heels or worse, wheel-bottomed Heelys? 

Customer slip and fall accidents have been on the rise in many restaurants across the United States. Kurt Leisure, director of risk management for the Cheesecake Factory based in Calabasas, California, believes customer accidents should be more carefully watched by everyone working in the restaurant.

"I think it is important that restaurant companies empower their employees with the idea that a slip-or-fall hazard is everybody's problem, not just the servers' or managers'. But everybody in the front-of-the-house has a stake in it,”says Leisure. 

Some tips Leisure has put in place at the Cheesecake Factory restaurants could be useful in others as well.

• Keep collapsible wet floor signs hidden on the restaurant floor behind plants and other fixtures, so if a sudden spill occurs, the sign can be grabbed quickly making customers and other employees aware of the hazard.
• If there is a wet spot or spill and no sign near, have a manager or hostess stand over the spot until a busser is notified and can make the area safe.
• Make a system. Inform your staff any time there is a spill how to go about taking care of it and keeping the customers safe and your co-workers safe.

Employee slips and falls can easily be eliminated says Leisure. "The key is that you've got to have a slip-resistant shoe program, and it has to be rolled out correctly. It's the No. 1 defense against employee injury,” says Leisure as he has reduced the amount of slips and falls by 87% among the chain.” 

Cuts, burns, and scrapes are the most common California workers compensation claims reported since they generally cause missed work based on the injury. Perhaps surprisingly, the cause of such happenings are usually related to slipping and falling and trying to catch yourself on the way down. 

Making sure your employees are safe is important; keeping your customers safe should be a priority. Having the correct workers compensation plan in your business is important, but having general liability insurance in the case that a customer is injured should be a main concern as well.