Many businesses have employees who travel regularly as part of their job. This is a part of many industries that can open up new markets and help to keep important clients happy. Nothing can replace meeting with someone for a firm handshake and a smile. With this travelling brings on a diverse amount of risk that your business is taking on. Your business should have written policies in place for how to protect company information while employees are travelling. Here are some things to consider:
- Are your employees flying or driving?
- Is the car being driven an employee owned vehicle, a company vehicle or a rented vehicle?
- Are the employees taking a company laptop, tablet or other computer device?
- Are all of your insurance policies still in place when the employee is out of state?
- Is the employee coming home immediately after business is done. If not, policies need to be clear when they are on company time and when they are off.
Here is a list of policies to consider when having employees travel as part of their job. It is also always a good idea to consult your agent or insurance professional about the risks you may be taking.
Hired and Non-owned Auto Insurance – Hired and non-owned auto insurance is commonly added as an endorsement onto a commercial auto insurance policy. The endorsement adds additional coverages for the insured for an automobile accident involving a vehicle they don’t directly insure.
Commercial Auto – Commercial auto insurance for company vehicles is an important aspect of any business insurance program. This coverage provides protection against physical damage and injury resulting from car accidents. It should also provide some protection from theft and vandalism.
Workers’ Compensation – Depending on where your employees are travelling to you may need to check with your insurance agent or carrier to make sure your employees are covered underneath your workers’ compensation policy while they are travelling. The Walsh Test is a good measuring stick to determine where jurisdiction will be when a workers compensation occurs involving more than one state.
Cyber Liability Insurance – Cyber Liability Insurance, also known as Data Breach Coverage is coverage for your business from the intentional or accidental release of secure information to an unsecured environment. A breach is typically a single incident where confidential, or protected information, is either viewed, copied, or stolen by someone not authorized to have access to the data. You need to have a strict company policy in place for how you will safeguard company and client information while the employee is travelling.