Business Interruption Insurance
Boise, Idaho Falls, Logan, Still & Leavitt - Mountain Home, ID, Rexburg, Rigby, South Salt Lake, Tremonton, Twin Falls - Alta Insurance

A fire, a major storm, a burst pipe, or a cyber incident can bring day-to-day operations to a sudden stop. Even when your building is still standing, lost income and ongoing bills don't wait for you to reopen. Business interruption insurance is designed to help bridge that gap—giving your business the financial support it needs to recover and get back to serving customers.

At Leavitt Select Insurance Services, we help businesses across Idaho and Utah understand how this coverage works, why it matters, and what you can do to prepare.

What Is Business Interruption Insurance?

Business interruption insurance helps support your business financially when a covered event temporarily disrupts your operations. Rather than covering physical property damage (that's what your property policy is for), it focuses on the income and expenses tied to keeping the lights on while you recover.

Depending on your policy, this coverage may help with:

• Lost income during a temporary closure
• Ongoing operating expenses, such as rent or payroll
• Temporary relocation costs if you need to operate elsewhere
• Certain added expenses required to continue operations

In simple terms, it's designed to provide financial breathing room while your business works its way back to normal.

Good to know: Business interruption coverage generally applies only under specific circumstances and in accordance with your policy terms. Many policies also include a short waiting period before coverage begins. Reviewing the details with your agent is the best way to understand what your policy includes.

Why This Coverage Matters

When operations stop, the costs don't. A closure can mean weeks—or longer—without revenue, all while fixed expenses keep adding up. Business interruption insurance can help you:

• Replace lost income so a temporary setback doesn't become a permanent one
• Keep paying your team, helping you retain valued employees through the recovery
• Cover fixed costs like rent, loan payments, and utilities that continue regardless of whether your doors are open
• Reopen faster by easing the financial pressure that often slows recovery

Simply put, this coverage can be the difference between reopening confidently and struggling to stay afloat.

Disruptions Can Happen in More Ways Than One

Across Idaho and Utah, severe weather—from heavy storms and flooding to high winds and hail—can create major challenges for businesses of every size. But weather is only one source of risk. Operations can also be interrupted by:

• Utility outages
• Cyber incidents or ransomware attacks
• Supply chain disruptions
• Equipment breakdowns
• Fires or water damage
• Road closures or an inaccessible facility

Even a business that avoids direct physical damage can face significant downtime if employees, vendors, systems, or customers are affected.

Types of Business Interruption Coverage

Coverage is often structured in a few different ways. Your policy may include one or more of the following:

Business Income Coverage

Helps replace lost income if your business suffers property loss or damage from a covered event, such as a windstorm or fire. Coverage generally continues, after a waiting period, until the damaged property is restored. It may also help with operating expenses—like utilities—that continue even while activity is paused.

Extra Expense Coverage

Helps reimburse reasonable costs above your normal operating expenses that you take on to avoid shutting down during the restoration period. This can include expenses that keep the business running and, in some cases, payroll for key employees so you can retain them.

Contingent Business Interruption Coverage

Helps address lost income and expenses when a disruption strikes a key supplier or manufacturer rather than your own location. For example, a natural disaster overseas can ripple through global supply chains—this coverage can help offset the impact of resulting delays.

When considering limits, think about how long it might realistically take to get fully back up and running, and talk with your agent to help make sure your coverage is a good fit.

What You Can Do Now: Building a Recovery Plan

Insurance is one part of resilience. A clear recovery plan is the other. Putting a few things in place ahead of time can make all the difference when a disruption hits.

Have a client retention plan

Decide in advance how you'll stay in touch with customers so you don't lose them during a closure. Options include posting notices at your location, reaching out by phone, email, or mail, and updating your website, social media profiles, and local channels.

Line up back-up resources

Think through what you'd need in an emergency. Do you have a back-up power source? A back-up way to communicate with your team and customers?

Keep duplicate records off-site

Store copies of key information in a safe deposit box or secure off-site location, including:

• A list of employees, key customers, and vendors with contact details
• Insurance policies and your agent's contact information
• A back-up of your electronic data
• Inventories of equipment, software, hardware, and furniture
• A list of emergency vendors (plumbers, restoration contractors, and the like)
• Copies of essential business plans and agreements
• Photos of your business and assets, inside and out

Coordinate with other businesses

Your operations can be affected even without physical damage if suppliers can't deliver or customers can't reach you. Talk with your suppliers and partners about their own preparedness so everyone is on the same page.

Protect your building

Inspect your property regularly for potential hazards—signs of faulty wiring, leaky gas connections, or structural issues. Addressing problems early can reduce both the risk of injury and the extent of property damage.

Identify your critical activities

Know which operations you simply can't afford to pause, and figure out what it would take to run them from another location if needed.

The Business Recovery Checklist at www.fema.gov is a helpful resource as you build your plan.

What to Do After a Disruption

If the unexpected happens, a few early steps can help smooth your recovery:

• Prioritize safety first. Make sure employees and customers are safe, and don't re-enter a damaged property until it's cleared.
• Document everything. Take photos and video of any damage and keep records of losses and added expenses.
• Contact your agent promptly. Reaching out early helps get your claim moving and keeps you informed about what your policy covers.
• Track ongoing expenses. Hold onto receipts and records for costs you take on to keep the business running.
• Put your communications plan into action. Let customers, vendors, and employees know your status and what to expect next.

We're Here to Help

Every business is different, and so is every policy. The team at Leavitt Select Insurance Services can walk you through your options, help you understand how business interruption coverage fits alongside your other policies, and work with businesses throughout Idaho and Utah to build protection that matches your needs.

Ready to talk it through? Contact Leavitt Select Insurance Services today to review your coverage.

This content is provided for general informational purposes only and is not a statement of coverage. Coverage descriptions are general and subject to the terms, conditions, and exclusions of your specific policy. Damage due to flood is excluded from most property policies. Please review your policy or speak with your agent for details specific to your situation.

Reference: www.iii.org

Frequently Asked Questions

• Is flood damage covered under business interruption insurance?

  Business interruption coverage typically responds only when the disruption stems from a covered event under your property policy, and flood damage is excluded from most standard property policies. If flooding is a concern where you operate in Idaho and Utah, separate flood coverage is usually needed, and business interruption may then tie to that. We can help you understand how these pieces fit together.

• How much business interruption coverage do I need?

  There's no one-size-fits-all answer, since it depends on your revenue, fixed expenses, and how long it might take to reopen after a disruption. A good starting point is to estimate the income and ongoing costs you'd need to cover during a realistic recovery window. From there, we help businesses across Idaho and Utah set limits that make sense for their operations.

• How long does business interruption coverage last?

  Coverage generally applies during the "restoration period"—the time it reasonably takes to repair or replace the damaged property and get back to normal operations. Many policies also include a short waiting period before benefits begin. Because recovery timelines vary from one business to the next, we work with clients throughout Idaho and Utah to think realistically about how long reopening might take and to confirm limits and time frames that fit.

• Does business interruption insurance cover lost income if my building isn't physically damaged?

  It depends on your policy. Traditional business interruption coverage is usually tied to direct physical loss or damage from a covered event, like a fire or windstorm. That means a slowdown with no physical damage—say, a dip in foot traffic—often isn't covered on its own. Some policies can be extended to include situations like a nearby road closure or a supplier's shutdown. For businesses across Idaho and Utah, we can help you review the specifics and understand what your policy includes.