Searching for Affordable Insurance for Your Unique Business? Here’s the Hard Truth

Al3x Lee

Guru
1000 Post Club
1,053
Look, I know what you're thinking:

"Oh, great, here we go again with Al3x Lee, the guy who thinks he’s going to be the next California Insurance Commissioner. You know, the one who’s convinced that if he could just get everyone on board with Actual Cash Value (ACV) coverage for all insurance, he’d save the entire insurance industry from its supposed doom. I mean, how noble. What a hero."

But that all aside, there's something else that needs to be said...

I'm getting really tired of these people with their "totally unique" little businesses. The real gems. The ones that call your office at 3:00 PM on a Friday and think they're doing you a real favor by even letting you look at their business insurance. They're selling artisan homemade soaps or running a kombucha yoga studio. Congratulations.

They want you to build a custom insurance policy from the ground up, just for them. Oh yeah, sure, let me just sit down with my team of 15 Harvard-educated lawyers and personally write you a one-of-a-kind policy. Maybe I’ll get the Supreme Court on the phone to sign off on it, too. I mean, why not, right? You’re special. You’ve got this special little sandwich shop, or dog grooming business, or who-knows-what, and you think, “I need the most intricate, handcrafted, legally sound insurance policy ever written in the history of mankind—oh, and make sure it only costs $500 a year.” What a fantastic deal. What could go wrong?

And let's talk about the demands. They want coverage for everything. Because you know, in their mind, every single possible disaster is just lurking around the corner. And they expect everything under the sun to be covered by a little bargain-bin BOP policy. Well, guess what, genius—insurance doesn’t work like that. Did you ever hear of qualitative risk assessment? Didn’t think so. That’s where we assess what’s actually likely to happen, based on reality. But no, you want to transfer every single risk, every random possibility, onto an insurance company. You want us to hold your hand through every bump in the road. And of course, you want to pay next to nothing for it. That’s what makes you so special.

You probably don’t even know what Total Cost of Risk is, do you? Let me explain it to you real simple: it’s the real cost of handling your risks, not just the magical number you want to pay for your premium. It’s what it actually costs to make sure your little slice of the world doesn’t fall apart every time someone sneezes. But no, you don’t want to hear about that. No one wants to. You just want to roll in, point to the cheapest policy, and act like you've found the secret sauce to eternal safety. And when things go south—when your storefront floods because, oh, I don’t know, you’re next to a river—you’ll be the first one to cry about why your $200 a month policy doesn’t cover the Great Deluge.

And let’s not forget who’s really to blame for this whole mess. Oh yeah, the insurance companies. They’ve turned the whole industry into a freaking joke. “Only pay for what you need!” Really? Who wrote that gem of a slogan? Because guess what: now everyone thinks insurance is like ordering off a McDonald's menu. You want to pick and choose? Oh, sure, we’ll just throw a little “cyber all-risk” on the side, maybe a dash of “EPLI with judgment costs included”—hold the deductible, please! And don’t even get me started on the “15 minutes could save you 15%” nonsense. Yeah, because when your policy doesn’t cover anything useful, at least you’ll have saved a whole 15 percent. What a deal! What could possibly go wrong?

If you come in my office thinking you're going to get a one-of-a-kind policy, hand-carved out of marble, all for the cost of a Netflix subscription, then guess what—you’re living in a dream world.
 
Yep and as you said they call you on Friday at 3PM needing the new insurance certificate by 4PM.
Exactly.. I really curse myself with this stuff though. Immediately after posting this, I had a guy email me asking if I could write a policy for his wife's Veterinarian practice.. one tiny little twist... he wants to use the open space in the leased building for a pickleball business. Like actually have courts and let people come pay to play on them. He wants this covered under the same policy and lease as his wife's Vet office...

Somehow I'm the crazy one for suggesting he should really separate the two operations
 
Repeat after me: "Im sorry I do not have a market for this one...." Im sure the Farmers guy down the street will take it.

And as another business idea you could truly merge the businesses into one: Post Surgical Pickle Ball Therapy for Dogs, Cats, and Rats
 
Repeat after me: "Im sorry I do not have a market for this one...." Im sure the Farmers guy down the street will take it.

And as another business idea you could truly merge the businesses into one: Post Surgical Pickle Ball Therapy for Dogs, Cats, and Rats
I figured I could just send him your way. @marindependent has a solution for everybody.
 
Look, I know what you're thinking:

"Oh, great, here we go again with Al3x Lee, the guy who thinks he’s going to be the next California Insurance Commissioner. You know, the one who’s convinced that if he could just get everyone on board with Actual Cash Value (ACV) coverage for all insurance, he’d save the entire insurance industry from its supposed doom. I mean, how noble. What a hero."

But that all aside, there's something else that needs to be said...

I'm getting really tired of these people with their "totally unique" little businesses. The real gems. The ones that call your office at 3:00 PM on a Friday and think they're doing you a real favor by even letting you look at their business insurance. They're selling artisan homemade soaps or running a kombucha yoga studio. Congratulations.

They want you to build a custom insurance policy from the ground up, just for them. Oh yeah, sure, let me just sit down with my team of 15 Harvard-educated lawyers and personally write you a one-of-a-kind policy. Maybe I’ll get the Supreme Court on the phone to sign off on it, too. I mean, why not, right? You’re special. You’ve got this special little sandwich shop, or dog grooming business, or who-knows-what, and you think, “I need the most intricate, handcrafted, legally sound insurance policy ever written in the history of mankind—oh, and make sure it only costs $500 a year.” What a fantastic deal. What could go wrong?

And let's talk about the demands. They want coverage for everything. Because you know, in their mind, every single possible disaster is just lurking around the corner. And they expect everything under the sun to be covered by a little bargain-bin BOP policy. Well, guess what, genius—insurance doesn’t work like that. Did you ever hear of qualitative risk assessment? Didn’t think so. That’s where we assess what’s actually likely to happen, based on reality. But no, you want to transfer every single risk, every random possibility, onto an insurance company. You want us to hold your hand through every bump in the road. And of course, you want to pay next to nothing for it. That’s what makes you so special.

You probably don’t even know what Total Cost of Risk is, do you? Let me explain it to you real simple: it’s the real cost of handling your risks, not just the magical number you want to pay for your premium. It’s what it actually costs to make sure your little slice of the world doesn’t fall apart every time someone sneezes. But no, you don’t want to hear about that. No one wants to. You just want to roll in, point to the cheapest policy, and act like you've found the secret sauce to eternal safety. And when things go south—when your storefront floods because, oh, I don’t know, you’re next to a river—you’ll be the first one to cry about why your $200 a month policy doesn’t cover the Great Deluge.

And let’s not forget who’s really to blame for this whole mess. Oh yeah, the insurance companies. They’ve turned the whole industry into a freaking joke. “Only pay for what you need!” Really? Who wrote that gem of a slogan? Because guess what: now everyone thinks insurance is like ordering off a McDonald's menu. You want to pick and choose? Oh, sure, we’ll just throw a little “cyber all-risk” on the side, maybe a dash of “EPLI with judgment costs included”—hold the deductible, please! And don’t even get me started on the “15 minutes could save you 15%” nonsense. Yeah, because when your policy doesn’t cover anything useful, at least you’ll have saved a whole 15 percent. What a deal! What could possibly go wrong?

If you come in my office thinking you're going to get a one-of-a-kind policy, hand-carved out of marble, all for the cost of a Netflix subscription, then guess what—you’re living in a dream world.
Even though I am not a producer, I get asked for this exact stuff many times a year. I think it is because alot of my wife's friends have all these dream side gigs now that kids are grown. Hiking guide, charity therapist, fascial stretch, yoga, therapy dog stuff, selling their artwork or candles at craft shows, sourdough bread maker, personal life coach, etc

I send them all to links like Thimble insurance that is super simple for them.

 
Do tell - What is a
Literally know 2 of them. Basically, they created a non profit to counsel people that don't have the money for therapy. Both conduct it out of home & are connected to their church.....so, it is complicated insurance wise.

I didn't even mention the in home dog groomer or the woman that does excercise classes in her driveway & the park
 
Literally know 2 of them. Basically, they created a non profit to counsel people that don't have the money for therapy. Both conduct it out of home & are connected to their church.....so, it is complicated insurance wise.

I didn't even mention the in home dog groomer or the woman that does excercise classes in her driveway & the park

Yep, that's right up @Markthebroker's alley
 
Back
Top