What Business Insurance Do I Need?

Three covers are required by law for the businesses they apply to: WIBA for every employer, with no small-employer exemption; third-party motor cover for every vehicle on the road, including passengers for PSVs; and marine cargo cover with a Kenyan-licensed insurer for imports. Certain professions, such as doctors and advocates, must also hold professional indemnity. Fire and public liability are not required by general law, but landlords, lenders and tenders often insist on them.

Expect to provide a completed proposal form, your KRA PIN, a certificate of registration or incorporation, a CR12 for limited companies, and the ID or passport of the person signing (some covers, such as bonds, ask for every director's ID). The insurer will also want a list of what you are insuring and its value, staff numbers and annual earnings for WIBA, your premises' construction and security, and three years' claims history.

Simple risks, such as a shop package or WIBA, can often be placed within a few working days of sending a complete proposal, and sometimes the same day. Cover generally starts only when the insurer accepts the proposal and the premium is paid, unless the insurer issues an official cover note. Larger or unusual risks take longer because the insurer may want a survey or valuation first.

For most small businesses, no: the proposal form asks about construction, neighbouring buildings, security and fire protection instead. Larger, higher-value or hazardous risks are often surveyed or referred to the insurer's underwriters first, and some trades and non-first-class buildings are always referred. If the insurer recommends improvements after a survey, carry them out; they can become conditions of cover.

Yes, but tell the insurer the business runs from your home. Some office packages are written only for commercial premises, so a home business is often quoted section by section: all risks for laptops and phones, stock cover, public liability if clients visit, and cyber cover if you take payments or hold customer data online. Do not assume your home policy covers business stock or equipment; ask before you rely on it.

An SME package (also called a business combined or office package) puts several covers into one policy with one premium and one renewal date. Fire and perils is usually the compulsory core; you then choose sections such as burglary, money, all risks, public liability, WIBA, goods in transit, fidelity guarantee and business interruption. Each section has its own sum insured or limit, so you insure only what your business actually has.

The main types are: fire and burglary (property and stock), money, all risks for portable equipment, public and products liability, WIBA and employers' liability for staff, business interruption, fidelity guarantee, goods in transit and marine cargo, commercial vehicle cover, contractors all risks and machinery covers, insurance bonds, professional indemnity and cyber. Most insurers also sell an SME package that combines several of these in one policy.

Published minimum premiums for SME packages start at about KES 10,000 a year, and market estimates put a small office from about KES 20,000, a shop from about KES 25,000 and a restaurant from about KES 45,000 a year, before levies. Your price depends on what you insure and its value, your trade, location, construction, security and claims history. Statutory levies and stamp duty are added on top.

Often, yes. At least one insurer states that its SME package can be paid in instalments, and several offer premium financing, where a bank or financier pays the annual premium and you repay it monthly, usually with interest. Others expect the full premium before cover starts. Ask for the total cost of financing, not just the monthly figure, and keep payments up: a missed instalment can end the cover.

Naveah Capital is an insurance agency that compares 9+ of Kenya's top insurers, so you see several packages and prices for your trade instead of one. We check the sections, limits, excesses and warranties that decide claims, flag covers a landlord, lender or tender will ask for, and help you when you need to claim. Tell us about your business on WhatsApp or the quote form to start.