Rethink your Commercial Insurance Application

Every small business needs commercial insurance, but what kind and how much?  These questions have grown increasingly complex with the evolution of new companies that straddle different industrial models. One example are the popular rideshare services such as Uber Technologies and Lyft.  Until recently, these Transportation Network Companies (TNCs) operated in the gray area between the insurance regulatory standards that apply to technology companies and those that apply to transportation companies.

In California, Uber recently suffered a significant defeat at the state Capitol when the Senate Insurance Committee moved forward legislation that would boost insurance requirements covering drivers who use private vehicles to accept ride requests via smartphone apps.  Defining the start of TNC services to be when a driver opens an app like UberX means that TNCs would no longer be able to suggest that drivers’ personal policies might cover accidents when a call for service has not yet been received, and that companies would have to pay premiums for commercial insurance as a result.

Given the rapidly shifting liability landscape for these and other kinds of companies, it is important for business owners to stay current with state and industry-specific commercial insurance coverage requirements.  If you are a small business owner, it’s also essential to make sure that you are covered in all the ways that count, from general liability, to property, to commercial auto insurance.

Acord is a nonprofit insurance industry organization that supplies standard forms, which help to increase efficiency and encourage compliance.  One of the most commonly used commercial insurance forms is the Acord 125: Commercial Insurance Application form. The Acord form 125 is a general form that accompanies paperwork for other specific types of insurance coverage, including commercial auto coverage.  The Acord commercial application is very self-explanatory, and using PDFfiller it is quick and easy to fill out.

You can find a fillable acord 125, along with other commercial insurance forms in PDFfiller’s forms library. Get started now!