The hotel sector in the UK is big business.

Unlike perhaps 10-20 years ago, today there is a seemingly ever-increasing guest preference for small boutique hotels, rather than the vast national or international chains. Many guests today are looking for individuality and design flair rather than a global “look” that’s the same wherever you are in the world.

This offers a fantastic opportunity for smaller hotel owners but like any business, this type of enterprise brings with it risk. That’s why hotel insurance exists.

Small hotels and perils

Your hotel is potentially at risk from several generic types of potential problem. They are those perils that threaten:

• your building(s) – examples might include floods, fire and perhaps subsidence;
• the contents of your establishment – to the above list one might add things such as burglary;
• your financial position, due to being sued by guests for injuries (or damage to their property) suffered as a result of staying in your hotel;
• your employees and through them you, if they’re injured in the course of progressing their work duties on your behalf.

In the case of the final category above, here you have little choice. Apart from some highly unusual exceptions, the law will require all employers to have employers’ liability insurance in order to protect their employees and their own financial position, against such eventualities.

Insurance

Employers’ liability insurance is typically included within a package of protection covering all the above areas.

Collectively, this is called “hotel insurance” and it might also include other optional protection too – such as a loss of earnings element if, for example, your hotel is badly damaged by fire and cannot re-open until such time as restoration is complete.

An experienced provider of hotel insurance can provide full details of both the core and optional ancillary elements of a typical policy.

Looking for cover

Margins in most business areas are under pressure today. Cost containment is essential.

This though can sometimes lead to a slightly dangerous inclination to start shopping for the cheapest hotel insurance around and therein lies a danger.

Some hotel owners assume that all hotel cover is more or less the same, varying only in its premium. This is, to put it bluntly, mistaken.

In reality, what a hotel policy covers and doesn’t cover, can be very significantly different from one case to another. Another factor that’s worth taking into account is the policy’s conditions. Having extensive cover may be useful but rather less so if the conditions under which you can claim will be difficult to meet in your unique circumstances.

Perhaps the best illustration of one such area is that of subsidence. Not all buildings’ insurance necessarily covers this risk automatically. That’s not something you’ll wish to discover for the first time in the event you’re trying to make a claim for subsidence damage to your property.

The message

The title of this brief article mentions low cost hotel insurance.

While it’s perfectly understandable to look for that, don’t forget that the cost of your policy will be of no interest to you whatsoever in the event you’re trying to make a claim under its provisions. That’s why cost shouldn’t be the only or even perhaps the major factor in selecting a hotel insurance policy.

Instead, examine your risks and financial position, then decide upon the cover you’d wish to have for peace of mind. Search for policies that meet your criteria in those areas rather than those that carry what appears to be an attractive price tag.