In the unfortunate event of a total loss, it's not just the big, expensive things in your office you'll need to replace.

Desks and chairs are obvious enough but what about the finer details? A stapler here, a kettle there - all these little bits and pieces add up.

The cover provided by this policy is 'all risks'. This means that your property is covered for physical damage (accidental or malicious) and all other losses like fire, theft and flood. It's even covered if it's temporarily away from your office.

Items in your care

If you have things in your office that aren't actually owned by you, they're covered if you're the one responsible for them. (If they've been hired-in or borrowed, for example).

Quibble-free cover

What's more, this policy doesn't ask you to prove there's been a break-in following a theft. Although light-fingered visitors to your building might cause heartache and inconvenience, at least your insurance won't make it worse.

Whether you're based in a dedicated office or at home, few businesses these days can survive without relying on at least some technology.

A world without emails, spreadsheets, phone calls and the internet would be a pretty lonely and labour-intensive place. It makes sense to protect your equipment and the advantage it gives you.

Thankfully, just like the general office contents policy, the cover provided is 'all risks'. This means your invaluable technology is covered for theft, accidental and malicious damage, loss, fire and flood.

And your equipment is covered even when it's temporarily away from your usual location (when you're visiting a client's premises for example).

These days, if you have a laptop or PDA you're in the office. Like it or not.

Problem is, taking your cutting-edge, finger-tip world out and about means it's much more likely to get lost, dropped or stolen. And that could send you right back to the dark ages.

Cover wherever you are.

Anything electronic and portable for the use of your business can be covered by this policy, anywhere in the EU or anywhere in the world. The cover is for accidental loss, accidental damage, malicious damage and theft.

Where you work is pretty fundamental to your business. Ironically, because you're there everyday, it's easy to take it for granted and forget it needs protection too.

As you would expect, this policy will cover the cost of repairing damage to (or the rebuild of) your premises caused by fire, flood and accidents. What you might not be expecting is that things like gates, fences, private roads, paths, pipes and cables are covered too.

And in the event of, say, water damage from a burst pipe it will cover the reasonable costs you incur if you have to take the office apart trying to find it.

Tenant's improvements

You don't have to own the building you use to have invested time and money in it, of course. If you lease your office space and have made alterations to it, you'll need to make sure these are covered too.

So, you'll be glad to hear that cover extends to fixtures and fittings, partitions, decorations and (if attached to the building) external signs, aerials and satellite dishes added by you.

However unreal the prospect of a catastrophic fire, flood or even a major theft at your business premises might be, the consequences of not being able to continue trading there could cause very real problems indeed.

Without normal access to your office and everything in it, you could find it a real struggle to keep on top of deadlines and continue to meet your clients' expectations.

Business interruption insurance will help get you up and running somewhere else, and quickly.

The cover is split into two parts. Add one or both of these to any other sections of office insurance for one comprehensive policy:

1. Increased costs of working - Also known as 'additional expenditure'. If you have to relocate to temporary premises, this policy will cover the cost of moving and any extra rent you'll have to pay as a result. If you have to lease additional equipment, that's covered too.
   
2. Loss of income - If you're out of action for any length of time, this cover will pay the difference between the income you actually achieved during this period and what you were reasonably expecting to achieve.

Business interruption insurance usually covers a period of up to twelve months.

This is the minimum period of cover we'd recommend. Weeks out of action can very quickly turn into months and it's a fact that 80% of businesses fail within two years of a major catastrophe.

So please get in touch on 0845 872 5090 or contactus@policybee.co.uk if you'd like a quote for a period of more than twelve months.

Running a business is complicated and potentially onerous. The huge amount of legislation in the UK and Europe means there are numerous legal pitfalls waiting for the unprepared.

In our experience, tax, property and employment issues prove to be the three most common causes of complaints and disputes.

Help when you need it most

It's unlikely you'll have your own in-house legal department so the next best thing is a commercial legal expenses insurance policy.

In the case of an unexpected dispute it will provide invaluable cover for your legal costs and other expenses. In addition, you get access to a 24 hour legal helpline for advice on commercial law and business matters.