Small business owners in Texas may be relieved to discover that Texas does not mandate very many types of insurance, except commercial auto, if you use your car to conduct business, and that’s about it. But just because Texas doesn’t require small business insurance doesn’t mean you don’t leave yourself vulnerable to being sued if you don’t have any.
- The 7 best small business insurance companies in Texas
- What insurance coverage do I need for my small business in Texas?
- What business insurance is required in Texas?
- How much does business insurance cost in Texas?
- How to find cheap business insurance in Texas?
- Top 10 industries for small businesses in Texas and the business insurance coverage they need
The 7 best small business insurance companies in Texas
Hundreds of companies offer insurance coverages to small businesses in Texas. Here are our recommendations of the top 7 providers:
- CoverWallet: Best for comparing several online quotes
- Hiscox: Best for professional liability insurance
- NEXT: Best for general liability insurance
- Progressive: Best for commercial auto insurance
- Pie: Best for workers comp insurance
- Chubb: Best for Business Owners Policy (BOP)
- Simply Business: Best brokerage firm to work with to find low-cost coverage from top-tier carriers
CoverWallet: Best for comparing several online quotes
The great thing about CoverWallet is that you can do everything online: compare quotes, buy a policy, pay your bill, and manage your policy, including file a claim, all on the website. This makes shopping for and managing business insurance quick and easy.
CoverWallet has a wide range of policies: everything from general liability to more niche insurance types like garage liability and pollution liability insurance. So you can compare quotes of several coverages that your small busineess might need in one place, conveniently. The platform is user-friendly and easy to navigate.
The only disadvantage of CoverWallet is that they will only offer you quotes from companies they have partnered with—not every insurance company is represented. However, they do partner with a long list of reputable business insurance companies, including Chubb, AmTrust, CNA, Hiscox, Liberty Mutual, Progressive Commercial, Employers, and Markel. And they continue to add more partners to their list.
Hiscox: Best for professional liability insurance
Professional liability insurance from Hiscox covers you anywhere in the world—if you make an error while doing someone’s taxes over lunch in France, you’ll be covered (as long as you file the claim in the U.S. or Canada). Policy limits range from $250,000 to $2 million.
Hiscox is the pioneer in offering small business insurance online. They provides professional liability coverage for almost any industry, so regardless of the industry in which you work, you can be sure to be able to get a quote.
In addition to professional liability, Hiscox also sells other small business policies such as general liability, workers comp, BOP, or commercial auto insurance, among the others.They give you 5% off if you buy more than one policy, and they offer many other types of insurance.
They don’t cover Alaska, and not every policy is available in every state.
>>MORE: The Best Professional Liability Insurance Companies
NEXT: Best for general liability insurance
NEXT is a 100% digital carrier. They are new, founded in 2016, specializing in providing general liability insurance online for contractors. Working with NEXT is fast and easy. You can do everything completely online.
Pros:
- Manage your policies online
- Easy online application process
- Writes their own coverage
Cons:
- Limited specialty insurance types
- Limited customer service support during the buying process
>>MORE: The Best General Liability Insurance Companies and The Cheapest General Liability Insurance Companies
Progressive: Best for commercial auto insurance
Commercial auto insurance is one of the only business insurance policies offered directly from Progressive—the rest are contracted through third-party insurers. Their commercial auto insurance covers a wide range of vehicles: everything from cars to tractor-trailers to dump trucks. They also have 24/7 customer service and you can earn discounts for things like paying in full, enrolling in Smart Haul (an app that lets Progressive access your driving data) or Snapshot ProView, which gives you access to free fleet management tools.
Progressive is the market leader in commercial auto insurance. They account for 12.5% market share in 2020. It is super easy to get a commercial auto insurance quote from Progressive. However, it might not be the cheapest quote.
>>MORE: The Best Commercial Auto Insurance Companies and How to Find Cheap Commercial Auto Insurance
Pie: Best for workers comp insurance
Pie claims you can save up to 30% on your workers compensation insurance by buying it through them. You can get a quote in about three minutes so you can see for yourself. They use an algorithm to set rates. After you get a quote, you can pay online and get covered right away.
Pie insurance covers 36 states, plus the District of Columbia, and Texas is one of them (more on the way, in case you relocate).
>>MORE: The Best Workers Comp Insurance Companies and The Cheapest Workers Comp Insurance Companies
Chubb: Best for Business Owners Policy (BOP)
Business Owners Policies are available in all 50 states with Chubb (other policies vary from state to state). A business owner’s policy includes general liability insurance and commercial property insurance, which is an excellent policy for most small business owners.
If you want, you can add data breach insurance and/or equipment breakdown insurance to your BOP, making it possible to be protected by just one policy.
>>MORE: The Best Business Owners Policy (BOP) Insurance Companies
Simply Business: Best brokerage firm to work with to find low-cost coverage from top-tier carriers
Simply Business is a broker specializing in small business insurance. They work with many carriers with a focus to help you find low-cost coverage that your business may need, including general liability insurance. They vet the carriers that they work with carefully to ensure that all of them have excelleny financial ratings.
Pros:
- Easy to get and compare several quotes online
- Able to get quotes from A-rated carriers which you may not be aware of
- Knowledgeable agents that are available to help you along the process
Cons:
- Quotes online are available for general liability and professional liability only
- Have to file a claim directly with the carriers
What insurance coverage do I need for my small business in Texas?
What sort of insurance you need depends on a number of things, like:
- Industry
- Location
- Level of risk
- Amount of revenue
You might need the following types of insurance:
- General liability: protects you against third-party injuries and third-party property damage.
- Commercial property: covers your building or physical space.
- Workers’ compensation: protects your employees from illness or injury suffered on the job.
- Commercial auto: any vehicle you use for business must be covered by a commercial policy.
- Professional liability: protects you if a customer accuses you of making a mistake or missing something in the performance of your job.
- Inland Marine: although it sounds like the insurance an aquarium would need, inland marine insurance covers your business property while it’s en route to somewhere (commercial property only covers it while it’s at your business location). Learn more at the best inland marine insurance companies.
- Cyber liability: Cyber insurance protects you if there’s a data breach or hackers access customer information. Learn more at the best cyber insurance companies and the best data breach insurance companies.
What business insurance is required in Texas?
Except for commercial auto insurance, all business insurance in Texas is optional. Of course, that doesn’t mean that you don’t need it.
General liability insurance for small businesses in Texas
If you only get one type of insurance, it should probably be general liability insurance. See our article here: The Top 6 Providers of General Liability Insurance in Texas
BOP insurance in Texas
A business owners’ policy combines general liability insurance with commercial property insurance. Some of them even throw in business interruption insurance or cyber insurance.
You can read more about it here: The Five Best Business Owners Policy (BOP) Companies
Professional liability insurance for small businesses in Texas
Everyone makes mistakes. Professional liability insurance protects you if you make a mistake or leave something out while you’re providing a service for a client. Read more here: Top 6 Providers of Professional Liability Insurance in Texas
Workers compensation insurance in Texas
Everyone knows Texas is unique. It’s the only state in the union where workers’ compensation insurance is not required by law. Still, a good employer will want to protect their employees, not to mention avoid being sued by them. Read more here: 4 Best Workers Compensation Insurance Companies in Texas
Commercial auto insurance for small businesses in Texas
The only type of insurance required by Texas law. Texas requires a minimum of 30/60/25, or $30,000 in bodily injury liability per person, $60,000 per accident, and $25,000 in property damage. You can find out more here: 5 Best Commercial Auto Insurance Companies in Texas
How much does business insurance cost in Texas?
On average, small businesses pay $175 a month or $2,100 a year for their business insurance coverages in Texas. What you pay for business insurance depends on things like:
- Coverage type
- Industry
- Coverage limits
- Claims history
- Revenue
- How much risk your industry has
- Experience in your field
- How your business is structured (sole proprietor, LLC, corporation, etc)
The good news is that Texas has the second-largest economy of all 50 states, so your chances of having a successful business are bigger in Texas.
How to find cheap business insurance in Texas?
The most important thing you can do to save money on business insurance is to compare several quotes. Get quotes from at least three different companies. You wouldn’t buy the first car you see when you’re shopping for a new car, would you? Shop around.
Bundle policies: depending on where you buy your business insurance, you can save 5% to 10% by bundling policies. Even if you only buy one type of business insurance, if you buy your business insurance from the same company that holds your homeowners’ insurance, you should get a discount.
Provide a safe workspace: You can limit both your insurance costs and your chances of being sued by making sure that safety standards are followed. Post them where everyone can see them, and make sure your workspace is tidy and there’s no clutter.
Top 10 industries for small businesses in Texas and the business insurance coverage they need
– Top 10 industries for small businesses in Texas & business insurance coverage they would need:
| Top 10 industries for small businesses in Texas | Business examples | Business insurance coverages these small businesses would need |
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | Hewlett Packard Accounting firms | -Cyber insurance -Professional liability insurance -Commercial property insurance |
| Healthcare and social assistance | Memorial Hermann Health Care Services Senior Care Centers | -General liability -Professional liability -Employment practices liability insurance -Cyber liability |
| Construction | Southwest Construction Services A-1 Construction Services | -General liability –Builders’ risk -Professional liability -Pollution liability -Commercial auto -Inland marine -Contractor license -Workers’ compensation -Cyber |
| Retail Trade | Grocery stores, clothing stores, etc. | -General liability -Business owners policy -Workers compensation |
| Accommodation & food services | Hotels, motels Marriott International | -General liability -Business interruption -Liquor liability -Property insurance -Food contamination insurance |
| Wholesale Trade | Wholesale trade can be anything, from grocery to industrial equipment to household goods to mining | -General liability -Commercial auto -Professional liability |
| Administrative, Support, and Waste Management | Administration and support services are office management, security services, etc. Waste management is waste collection and treatment | -Professional liability -EPA insurance -Pollution liability -Garage Keepers |
| Real estate and rental or leasing | Realtors, Property management, Air BnB | -Professional liability insurance -Cyber insurance -Employment Practices Liability insurance |
| Finance and insurance | Retirement services, investment bankers, insurance agents | -General liability-Professional liability -Cyber liability –Umbrella |
Last Thoughts
Texas doesn’t require small businesses to have any type of insurance except commercial auto, and that’s only if you use a vehicle for work-related tasks. But you shouldn’t just leave your businesses future up to chance, because not having insurance could bankrupt you in the event of a lawsuit. Shop around and find the best price and good luck in your business venture.
