7 Best Small Business Insurance Companies 2020

The best small business insurance companies offer core policies like general liability, plus a broad range of additional coverages that many small businesses need. Additionally, the top companies can offer affordable premiums and have excellent financial ratings that show policyholders can trust them to pay claims.

Our picks for the best insurance for small businesses are:

• The Hartford: Overall best small business insurance company
• Hiscox: Best for microbusinesses and independent contractors
• Nationwide: Best for controlling costs with risk management assistance
• CNA: Best for professional liability insurance
• Progressive Commercial: Best for commercial auto insurance
• Liberty Mutual: Best for commercial property insurance
• Embroker: Best for tech startups with venture capital funding

Which Insurance Carrier Is Right for You?

The Hartford: Overall Best Small Business Insurance Company

The Hartford is our top pick because of its ability to offer small business insurance policies and industry-specific packages with more coverage inclusions than its competitors. Its team of small commercial lines specialists earns high ratings from customers for servicing and claims support.

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Coverage for Small Businesses

For small business owners, The Hartford offers broad protection through Spectrum, its version of a BOP that puts general liability and commercial property into a single, convenient package. Spectrum adds key coverages that many other insurers charge extra for, including protection of business income lost through off-premises operations. From there, business owners can purchase several endorsements to customize their BOPs like coverage for a data breach, debris removal, and valuable records.

Other small business insurance policies The Hartford offers include:

• Workers’ compensation
• Commercial auto
• Professional liability
• Cyber insurance

Costs

Like most insurance providers, The Hartford only provides specific pricing information after customers apply for a quote. However, the company recently updated its BOP endorsements to offer four levels of coverage options: Stretch, Stretch Plus, Super Stretch, and Premier Stretch. The lowest level, Stretch, covers the most common risks small business owners face and usually costs about $100 to add to a BOP.

The Hartford is one of the few insurance carriers that have plenty of online reviews. Look at a few examples in The Hartford review.

Hiscox: Best for Microbusinesses

Hiscox specializes in insurance for businesses with five or fewer employees, offering several coverage types for a diverse set of industries and more than 180 professions. It particularly stands out for businesses run out of the home by offering up to 5% discounts on BOPs and general liability insurance for these businesses.

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Coverage for Small Businesses

Hiscox specializes in liability coverage. It offers general liability and professional liability policies to nine industries and more than 180 professions. The company also has a BOP that can be customized through endorsements for hired and nonowned autos, employee crime, and electronic data loss. Additionally, Hiscox sells:

• Cyber insurance
• Management liability insurance
• Media liability insurance
• Commercial property insurance

Except for commercial property insurance, most of the policies on that list are purchased in specific industries or by businesses with certain operations. Hiscox does sell more fundamental insurance, like workers’ compensation and commercial auto, but it doesn’t write those policies. Instead, it partners with online insurance broker CyberPolicy to get clients these policies.

Costs

Hiscox charges a minimum premium of $350 per year for its general liability insurance. Bundling that with property coverage into a BOP raises the annual minimum premium to $500. Its professional liability starts at $270 per year.

Hiscox also offers:

• Discounts of up to 5% for at-home businesses
• Discounts of up to 5% for buying multiple policies
• Monthly payment plans for no extra charge
• A 14-day full money-back guarantee.

Hiscox also offers an array of features to make policy management easier, such as certificate of insurance requests and policy information updates. Read more about these in our Hiscox review.

Nationwide: Best for Risk Management Plans

Nationwide specializes in property and casualty insurance, plus it has a wide range of employee benefits, including retirement planning and group insurance. However, where Nationwide shines is in its safety resources, including assistance with business continuity plans, return-to-work programs for injured employees, and fleet safety seminars.

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Coverage for Small Businesses

Nationwide offers the fundamental policies small business owners need, namely general liability, workers’ compensation, professional liability, and commercial auto. It’s BOP is unique in that it includes equipment breakdown coverage automatically—a protection most carriers charge extra for.

Business owners can get other coverages as standalone policies or add-ons to existing policies. These include:

• Commercial crime
• Business income
• Inland marine
• Builders’ risk

Most insurers cut off eligibility for BOPs when a business has more than $1 million in revenue. Nationwide, however, provides BOPs for businesses with slightly higher revenue, up to $5 million per year.

Costs

Nationwide doesn’t provide cost information for small company insurance on its website. However, it does claim to have flexible payment options. Small business owners also can get discounts on many services that help improve safety, including:

• Criminal background checks
• Drug testing
• Online security
• Portable alarm system
• Fleet safety
• Kitchen fire suppression devices
• First aid supplies
• Employee training

While these services do not lower the cost of business insurance, they may help you avoid claims, which can help keep premiums down.

If customer service is part of your decision, then Nationwide may be the carrier for you. It’s ranked on top of J.D. Power’s Small Commercial Insurance survey in 2018 and 2019. Learn more in our Nationwide review.

CNA: Best for Professional Liability Insurance

As one of the largest property and casualty insurers in the United States, CNA offers small business owners a broad range of policies and is a top provider of professional liability insurance. Business owners who are exposed to negligence claims should look at its BOP, called CNA Connect. It combines general liability and property coverage with a unique endorsement for professional liability.

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Coverage for Small Businesses

CNA focuses solely on commercial insurance and is the market leader for professional liability insurance, also called errors and omissions (E&O). The company makes a professional liability endorsement available on its BOP for 16 professions like dental lab workers, computer programmers, and photographers.

Additionally, CNA lists 12 policies for small businesses, including less common coverages like:

• Fidelity and commercial crime
• Employment practices liability insurance (EPLI)
• Ocean marine
• Management liability

Few insurers can offer these coverages to small business owners, but CNA can. Its BOP automatically includes EPLI limits of $10,000.

Costs

CNA does not share premium information or discount opportunities on its website. However, CNA Connect, its BOP, does allow policyholders to drop unnecessary coverages or increase deductibles to reduce overall costs.

CNA is also a strong choice for cyber insurance. Get details on this and other coverages in our CNA review.

Progressive Commercial: Best for Commercial Auto

While Progressive Commercial offers a few primary small commercial policies, its greatest strength is commercial auto. Whether you’re insuring business autos, trucks, limos, buses, or trailers, Progressive Commercial has coverage to suit your needs. Plus, the company has the widest range of commercial auto endorsements for customizing your policy.

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Coverage for Small Businesses

Progressive Commercial is the leading provider of auto insurance products, covering everything from cars to semis, but it also offers additional policies through the Progressive Advantage Business Program. Third-party insurers write these policies that include most of the basic business insurance policies like BOPs and professional liability insurance.

Costs

Annual average premiums through Progressive Commercial include:

• Commercial auto: $2,208
• Commercial truck: $9,540 to $11,172 depending on the type of truck and how it is used
• Professional liability: $552
• Workers’ compensation: $1,020

Progressive Commercial offers nine discounts for qualified customers, including:

• Maintaining insurance
• Having a commercial driver’s license
• Being in business for more than three years
• Bundling auto insurance with general liability or BOP
• Paying through electronic fund transfer
• Paying your entire bill upfront
• Insuring your personal vehicles with Progressive
• Using the company’s electronic logging device―for-hire truckers only
• Enrolling in Snapshot ProView^SM for fleet management tools

Progressive Commercial also adjusts your rates by the season, which can provide huge savings for seasonal businesses like contractors. Find out what other professions should consider this carrier in our Progressive Commercial review.

Liberty Mutual: Best for Commercial Property Insurance

Liberty Mutual has more than 100 years of experience working with businesses of all types and sizes. It puts this extensive experience and its strong financial standing to use in developing commercial property policies with impressive coverage limits. For example, its BOP offers up to $25,000 in coverage for electronic data, employee tools, and employee dishonesty.

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Coverage for Small Businesses

Liberty Mutual has the basic coverage types small business owners need, including a BOP that caps eligibility at $8.5 million in revenue and 1,000 employees and includes equipment breakdown coverage. More complex, midsized businesses can choose a commercial package policy with more options, allowing them to tailor their coverage better.

Liberty Mutual also has two unique program options:

• Specialty program: Insurance designed for hard-to-cover risks, including scrap metal dealers, adult residential care facilities, and sports and fitness entities
• Group program: Coverage for similar businesses that band together to receive better plans and pricing (only offered in the Northwest)

Costs

The cost of coverage with Liberty Mutual varies depending on several factors. However, most businesses can expect to pay premiums between $200 and $3,000 annually. Combining multiple coverage types in a BOP reduces costs compared to buying separate policies.

The only way to get cost information from Liberty Mutual is to work with an agent to get a quote. However, you can learn what customers had to say about their premiums in our Liberty Mutual review.

Embroker: Best for Startups

Embroker started as an online broker but has developed a couple of proprietary products to address the insurance needs of startups. Working with both top-rated carriers and internal development gives Embroker the edge with fast applications. Tech companies may be able to gain instant access to management liability insurance that normally takes weeks to place with other carriers.

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Coverage for Small Businesses

Embroker has a full line of commercial insurance products but finds its niche in startups, especially those in highly regulated industries such as technology and cannabis. Tech companies, in particular, can get Embrokers’ proprietary management liability coverage, and venture capital-backed businesses can take part in its digital Startup Program that packages essential management liability coverages like:

• Directors and officers (D&O) insurance
• Employment practices liability insurance
• Fiduciary liability insurance

Unlike many commercial insurance brokers, Embroker also offers key person insurance, health and employee benefits, and contractor controlled insurance programs (CCIPs).

Costs

Because it’s a broker, Embroker may charge additional fees for the services it provides. However, the company also offers a risk review that helps business owners identify places where they can save on premiums. Startups backed by venture capital firms also can earn a premium credit of up to 25% by joining Embroker’s Venture Program. Learn more about the company’s unique services in our Embroker review.

How We Evaluated the Best Insurance for Small Businesses

Our evaluation started with the two things most small business owners are in short supply of— time and money. Can the company get you all the coverage you need quickly and for a reasonable cost? However, we also wanted to consider value, so we also looked for other features like great customer service or online claims reporting.

One important consideration when shopping for small business insurance is the carrier’s financial strength. This is how you know that the company can cover your claim if you ever have to file one. The carriers on our list all have ratings of A (Excellent) or better from A.M. Best, a credit rating agency focused on the insurance industry.

Bottom Line

In our search for the best small commercial insurance companies, we looked for key qualities, including nationwide availability, customizable coverage, competitive pricing, and favorable reviews. When choosing a provider for your small business, be sure that it knows your industry to offer the best protection against your primary risks.

The Hartford makes finding an affordable and comprehensive policy easy. Its team of experts provides customized coverage options to meet your needs. Complete a short online questionnaire and receive a quote in minutes.

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