Bug Byte

Here are two probable facts regarding commercial auto insurance:

1. You probably don't have enough coverage.

2. You're probably paying too much for what you do have.

Once you've taken out the minimum auto insurance required by law, it's relatively inexpensive to increase your liability coverage, says David Snyder, assistant general counsel of the American Insurance Association. "Additional layers of coverage, even up to $1 million or more, don't cost that much more money," he explains.

Smart planning about deductibles can also keep your policy expenses down. "If you're more likely to write off a $1,000 expense than report it to an insurance company, then why are you carrying a $250 deductible?" asks Barry Schimel, co-founder of the Institute of Profit Advisors, a national consortium of business consultants in Chicago. Schimel also advises staying on top of seasonal changes in vehicle usage and discontinuing insurance coverage whenever a vehicle isn't used regularly.

Contact Sources

N.P. James Insurance Agency, (978) 369-2771, http://www.npjames.com

Barry Schimel, (800) WE PROFIT, http://www.weprofit.com

Sharp Thunstrom & Batson, (619) 463-5548, bobsharp@stbcpa.com

This article was originally published in the February 1999 print edition of Entrepreneur with the headline: Bug Byte.