News | World Insurance Associates, LLC

Top Three Things to Know About Restaurant Assault & Battery Coverage

Written by Jeff Kroeger | Nov 17, 2014

Your dining establishment may already be insured, but if you haven’t already added restaurant assault and battery coverage to your current package, it’s important to strongly consider doing so. All restaurants have distinctions between them, but there are always a few similarities. For example, whenever people gather in groups, you can never be sure how they’ll behave. That’s precisely why this type of insurance should never be overlooked.

Protect Your Restaurant - Alcohol Increases Risk

A liquor license can greatly increase your restaurant’s potential to make a profit, especially if you simultaneously host live entertainment while serving it. That encourages people to linger, and therefore, purchase more drinks. However, when people aren’t careful to monitor how much they consume, alcohol can cause them to make snap judgments that might involve violent acts. Restaurant assault and battery coverage can protect your business in the event a patron gets wrapped up in a spontaneous fight on the premises and tries to sue you afterwards.

Restaurant Assault & Battery Coverage Can Extend to Employees

Some insurers refuse to cover employees because they know workers might feel tempted to enjoy a beverage while at work and become liabilities. Even if they keep cups concealed behind the bar and only take occasional sips from them, those acts could still contribute to a risky situation.

Get training for your staff and ensure they understand how to gauge whether a person may have reached a point where he or she should no longer be served, or needs to be escorted off the premises. Also, enforce strict rules against consuming alcohol while on shift. Once you can show insurance companies staff members have been educated about how to behave responsibly, it should be easier to purchase coverage for them.

Necessary Even if Alcohol Isn't Involved

It’s a good idea to have this kind of insurance even if your establishment does not serve alcohol and has no plans to do so in the future. Whenever people get together to enjoy time away from home, they might engage in discussions that could cause tempers to flare.

There’s often no way to predict when or if incidents will happen. However, the legal costs associated with unexpected events in your establishment can be financially debilitating, and very stressful. Being proactive by purchasing restaurant assault and battery coverage can help you feel prepared no matter what the future holds.