Candle business insurance is coverage designed to meet the unique needs of candle makers and sellers. The risks faced by these kinds of operations is significantly greater than most other businesses. After all, they play with fire every day they’re in operation.
Candle business insurance is an important part of protecting your company from the risks it faces including property damage, injuries, and legal claims made against your company.
In this article, we’ll reveal the 5 best candle insurance companies and explain everything you should know to get the coverage you need.
- 5 best candle business insurance companies
- What does candle business insurance cover?
- What’s the most important insurance for candle businesses?
- What are other common insurance coverages for candle businesses?
- Will homeowners insurance cover a home-based candle business?
- How much does candle business insurance cost?
5 best candle business insurance companies
- Simply Business: Best for finding cheap candle business insurance
- CoverWallet: Best for candle businesses comparing several quotes online
- Progressive: Best for discounted candle business insurance
- Insureon: Best for craft candle businesses
- Next: Best for candle retail stores
Simply Business: Best for finding cheap candle business insurance
Simply Business is a digital brokerage firm specializing in serving small businesses. What sets them apart is that they partner with several reputable carriers that have solid financial strength ratings and tend to offer low-cost coverage. That makes it easy for you to find the cheapest general liability insurance quotes with them.
After submitting your information, Simply Business will provide several quotes from partners that they work with. Many of their carrier partners may not be well-known but offer great affordable quotes that you wouldn’t be able to access otherwise.
Getting and comparing several quotes online is fast and simple. Within 10 minutes you will find the cheapest one for you.
Simply Business also has a great customer satisfaction rating on trustpilot.
CoverWallet: Best for candle businesses comparing several quotes online
CoverWallet is a digital broker specializing in small businesses, including candle business. The company takes pride in making insurance for candle companies clear, simple, and affordable.
No matter the size or scope of your candle company, CoverWallet is committed to helping you find the right coverage at the right price for your operation. With CoverWallet, all you have to do is input information online about your candle company, and it will present you with quotes from top insurance providers. This allows you to compare costs and coverages and select the best insurance for your business all in a single place. It’s the simplest way for busy candle business operators to get coverage.
Progressive: Best for discounted candle business insurance
Progressive may seem like a less-than-serious company because of its ongoing series of commercials featuring Flo. You might feel concerned about entrusting your candle operation to the insurer.
The truth: It’s a reputable company that’s been in business since 1937. Progressive is known for its flexibility, great rates, and highly responsive service.
Progressive is famous for its discounts, which could help you save on your candle business insurance. You can earn discounts for things like:
- Purchasing multiple coverages
- Implementing safe work site practices
- Paying annually rather than in smaller increments
- Agreeing to autopay.
It’s easy to get a candle business insurance quote online from Progressive. It should take you less than five minutes.
Insureon: Best for craft candle businesses
Insureon is the top independent online small business insurance marketplace in the United States. The company makes it simple for craft candle businesses to get and compare quotes from top insurance providers. You can also buy coverage, manage your insurance, and make claims online. If you prefer, you can always work with a trained and licensed agent.
Insureon has been in business for more than a decade. It’s provided insurance to more than 350,000 small businesses, including many consultancies. It has written more than one million policies.
Next: Best for candle retail stores
Next is changing how small companies purchase business insurance.
Its operation is focused on delivering the ultimate online insurance experience. Because of this, you’re able to purchase a policy, file a claim, or get a certificate of insurance any place, any time, 365 days a year. Even though Next is an online insurer, you can get expert help over the phone when you need it. The firm is also known for being able to make most claims decisions within 48 hours.
Even though Next is a relatively new and innovative company, you can rest assured knowing it has an excellent rating from A.M. Best, an insurance company rating agency. All the company’s policies are backed by MunichRe, an established insurance company and reinsurer. More than 10,000 business owners have turned to Next for their insurance needs. The firm has earned a solid 4.7 customer rating.
It is easy to get an online quote with Next. Below is a quote sample for a candle store in Texas with 3 employees with $450,000 in annual revenue.
What does candle business insurance cover?
Here are a few examples of the kinds of situations the insurance may cover.
- A candle produced by your business causes a fire and the purchaser sues you for the cost to repair her home.
- Your candle making factory burns down because of a production related incident and you need to rebuild it.
- You are careful about the jars you make your candles in, but one explodes and injures someone. He takes you to court to recover his medical costs.
- An employee is burned by wax while making candles and requires medical care and is unable to return to work for an extended period of time. Medical expenses and lost wages must get paid.
- Someone looking at your candles in a shop burns his hand and makes a claim against you to cover his doctor bills related to the incident.
- A visitor to your candle shop trips on a display and breaks her leg and sues you for medical costs and damages.
In all these cases, if your candle business has the right insurance, it would cover costs related to injuries, lawsuits, property damage, lost income, and more.
Are candle businesses required to get insurance?
If you have employees, it’s likely your state will require you to get workers’ compensation coverage. If you own or rent business property, your bank or landlord will make you get business property insurance. If you drive for business, you probably need commercial vehicle insurance because your personal auto coverage doesn’t protect you when you’re driving for business. And if you participate in street or craft fairs, it’s likely their management companies will make you get general liability insurance.
An insurer or agent that specializes in working with candle businesses can advise you on the coverage you need.
What’s the most important insurance for candle businesses?
A key coverage for most candle makers and sellers is product liability insurance. It covers financial liabilities related to physical harm or damages caused by the candles and other related products you produce and sell. Product liability insurance covers legal and settlement costs, up to policy limits, related to damage caused by faulty products. Legal expenses will be covered even if your business is sued and your product is found to not be the cause of the harm.
Think about it: Could you afford to pay legal and settlement costs if you’re ever sued over a faulty candle? The answer for most business owners in your industry is NO. That’s why they typically purchase product liability insurance.
When you buy this coverage, carefully consider whether:
- The policy covers you for all the ways you sell candles whether it’s wholesale, at home, in a shop, at fairs, or online
- It’s easy to make a claim and the insurer has the financial resources to pay it
- That the policy limits are high enough to cover the damages you may face.
What are other common insurance coverages for candle making businesses?
Insurance coverages typically purchased by businesses like yours include:
Here’s an overview of each of these types of insurance and what they cover.
General liability insurance for candle businesses
General liability covers a wide range of candle producing and selling related accidents and fundamental business risks. You’ll have protection if someone other than an employee gets hurt at your work location, or you’re held responsible for damaging other people’s property, for instance when making a delivery or selling at a street fair.
General liability insurance can help you pay for:
- Medical expenses if a customer or other non-employee is ever injured while on your business property
- Property damage if you do harm to client or other property not owned by your company while doing business
- Legal fees and judgments if you’re ever sued for business related reasons.
Learn more at the best general liability insurance companies and the cheapest general liability insurance companies.
Commercial vehicle insurance for candle businesses
Most candle producing businesses get this coverage because the owners and employees drive company owned or personal vehicles for business reasons, for instance to pick up supplies or make deliveries. Most states require commercial auto insurance for business owned and driven vehicles to help pay for medical expenses and property damage related to vehicle accidents. Personal auto insurance usually won’t provide coverage if you get into an accident while driving for work related reasons.
Commercial auto insurance can help you pay for:
- Medical expenses if you or an employee injures someone in a vehicle accident while driving for business reasons
- Collision repairs for someone else’s vehicle if you or an employee is found to be at fault in an accident. With the right coverage, your car or truck repairs can be covered, as well.
- Rental reimbursement pays if you need to rent a vehicle while one covered by insurance is in the shop for accident related repairs.
Learn more at the best commercial auto insurance companies and the cheapest commercial auto insurance companies.
Workers’ compensation insurance for candle businesses
Candle making businesses with employees are required by law in most states to get this coverage.
Workers’ compensation insurance can help pay for employee medical care, lost wages, disability, and more after a workplace injury.
Workers’ comp coverage can help pay for:
- Medical expenses if an employee is injured or becomes ill because of work related reasons, for instance, a burn from hot wax
- Lost wages if an employee is unable to work due to an on-the-job injury or illness
- Job retraining if a worker is unable to return to their previous job because of an injury that happens at work.
Learn more at the best workers comp insurance companies and the cheapest workers comp insurance companies.
Commercial property insurance for candle businesses
If your candle business owns or rents a space, for example, a factory or store, it’s likely you will need this coverage. If you took out a loan to purchase it, your loan provider will require it, as will a landlord if you rent space. Commercial property insurance covers damage to your business location. It also pays if your candle producing equipment and inventory is stolen or damaged by something covered by your insurance when it’s stored at your business location. This is particularly important for candle businesses that also run shops.
Commercial property protection can help you pay for:
- Damaged or stolen equipment and inventory when they’re located on your business property
- Damage to your business location from fire or a covered weather event, such as an ice or wind storm
- Lost income if you’re ever unable to conduct business because of a reason covered by your insurance.
Learn more at the best commercial property insurance companies.
Will homeowners insurance cover a home-based candle business?
Candle businesses often start as home based operations. Does homeowners or renters insurance cover the risks faced by new businesses?
Probably not.
Home based business ventures usually require additional business coverage, because damage caused by your operation might be out of scope for what home insurance typically covers. Most homeowners insurance won’t cover business related damage, accidents, or losses.
How much does candle business insurance cost?
Insurance costs for candle businesses vary based on a number of factors. These include things like:
- Types and levels of coverage
- Where the business is located
- Number of locations
- Payroll and the kinds of tasks employees perform
- The number and types of vehicles used for work
- Business property value and equipment owned.
On average, a candle manufacturing business pays $150 a month for a general liability insurance policy. A candle retail store pays an average of $65 a month for a general liability insurance policy.
In the end, it’s important for you to get quotes from multiple providers so you can compare coverages and premium prices to find the right combination for you.