Industries

Restaurant & Hospitality Insurance

Property, liability and workers' compensation for restaurants, cafés, bakeries, bars, caterers and food trucks, built around how you cook, serve and deliver.

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Full-service restaurants
Cafés, coffee shops and counter-service restaurants
Bars, taverns and lounges
Pizzerias and takeout restaurants
Caterers and event food service
Food trucks and mobile vendors
Bakeries with retail counters
Delis, bagel shops and specialty food stores

Restaurants combine many commercial risks in one room: open flames and grease, wet floors, expensive refrigeration, alcohol, staff on their feet all day and drivers on the road. A policy that fits a quiet café won't necessarily fit a bar with late hours and live music.

We help restaurants and food businesses across the U.S., from neighborhood cafés and bakeries to bars, caterers, and food trucks. This page focuses on businesses that prepare and serve food and drinks, not hotels or other lodging. We start with how you operate: cooking methods, alcohol sales, hours, delivery and catering.

Details matter when there's a claim. Spoilage limits, equipment breakdown, assault and battery exclusions and, if you serve alcohol, whether your liquor liability reflects your actual sales are all worth reviewing before something goes wrong.

Common risks

Slip-and-fall injuries

Wet floors, spills, icy entrances and crowded dining rooms are frequent sources of customer injury claims. General liability typically responds to these claims, and floor-care routines and inspection logs can help defend them.

Kitchen fires

Grease buildup and cooking equipment create real fire risk, and a serious fire can close a restaurant for months. Insurance companies typically ask how often hoods and ducts are cleaned and whether the cooking line has an automatic fire suppression system that meets UL 300, a standard for commercial kitchen fire suppression systems.

Food spoilage and equipment breakdown

A failed walk-in cooler or a power outage can ruin inventory in hours. Spoilage and equipment breakdown are often endorsements with their own limits, and losses from an off-site power failure may need utility services coverage.

Liquor liability

If you sell or serve alcohol, general liability usually excludes claims tied to a guest's intoxication, so ask about liquor liability, which is typically written separately. Many bar and tavern policies also limit assault and battery claims, so those terms deserve a close look.

Employee injuries

Burns, cuts, slips and lifting injuries are common in kitchens. Workers' compensation requirements vary by state, and how you report payroll for tipped and part-time staff affects both pricing and audits.

Delivery drivers

Employees delivering in their own cars can expose the restaurant after an accident, and personal auto policies often exclude or limit delivery use. Hired and non-owned auto liability can help protect the business, while owned delivery vehicles need commercial auto.

Coverage to consider

Insurance options depend on your business, location, licensing requirements and carrier availability.

Business Owners Policy (BOP)Packages property, business income and liability for many smaller restaurants and cafés, subject to eligibility rules often tied to alcohol sales.
Commercial Property InsuranceBuilding, kitchen equipment, inventory and business income, with spoilage and equipment breakdown added as needed.
General Liability InsuranceCustomer injury and property damage claims. For businesses that sell or serve alcohol, it usually excludes claims tied to intoxication.
Liquor liabilityIf you sell or serve alcohol, ask about liquor liability for injury or damage claims linked to the alcohol you served. Some umbrella policies can sit over it and others exclude it, so check both.
Workers' Compensation InsuranceKitchen and front-of-house injuries; requirements vary by state.
Commercial Auto InsuranceFood trucks and owned delivery or catering vehicles, plus hired auto for rented vehicles and non-owned auto for employees' cars used for deliveries or errands.
Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI)Harassment, discrimination and wrongful termination claims, a real exposure for businesses with large or changing staff.
Cyber Liability InsuranceCard data breaches and ransomware affecting point-of-sale and online ordering systems.

How quoting works

01
Start with your business
Tell us what you do, where you work and what you want to protect — or send your current policy.
02
Explore your options
We approach insurance companies that consider your type of business and explain the available choices.
03
Talk it through
A licensed ALP agent reviews coverage, limits, deductibles and price with you before you decide.

Written by ALP Insurance

Common contract and certificate requirements

Landlord named as additional insured on general liability, often with limits set by the lease
Waiver of subrogation (your insurer gives up its right to recover from the landlord) on property and liability, as many commercial leases require
Event venues and catering clients asking for additional insured status and, if you serve alcohol, proof of liquor liability
Proof of liquor liability for landlords and, where required, licensing authorities
Certificates naming commissaries, festivals, markets or municipalities for food trucks and vendors
Umbrella limits above general liability, which some leases and venues require

A certificate is evidence of insurance; the policy and its endorsements provide the coverage. Send us the insurance section of your lease or event contract and we'll compare it with your policy.

Certificate Center →

Helpful information for a quote

Annual food and alcohol sales, and hours of operation
Square footage, construction and the years the roof, wiring, plumbing and HVAC were updated
Cooking methods, number of fryers, and your hood suppression and cleaning schedule
Payroll by position and number of employees
Delivery and catering details, including who drives and whose vehicles are used
Current policies and loss runs (claims history reports) for the last 3–5 years, if you've been insured before
The insurance section of your lease

Have what you can — we'll ask for anything else an insurance company needs. Starting a new business? You can begin without prior policies or loss runs.

Upload your current policy

Frequently asked questions

Do I need liquor liability if I only sell beer and wine?

Usually, yes. The liquor liability exclusion in most general liability policies applies to businesses that sell or serve alcohol of any kind, not just full bars. Laws on a seller's responsibility for harm caused by an intoxicated guest, often called dram shop laws, vary by state, so ask about liquor liability for each location.

Can a restaurant use a business owners policy (BOP)?

Many smaller restaurants can, depending on sales, alcohol percentage, cooking methods and building details. Larger or bar-heavy operations are often written on separate property and liability policies.

Is food spoilage part of my property policy?

Sometimes, but limits are often low. Spoilage may need its own endorsement or equipment breakdown coverage, and an off-premises power failure may need utility services coverage.

We use third-party delivery apps. Do we still have auto exposure?

Possibly. Your agreement with the platform matters, and staff who deliver directly in their own cars can still create exposure for the restaurant, so we review how delivery actually works.

What do landlords usually require?

Most commercial leases ask for general liability naming the landlord as additional insured, property insurance on your improvements and contents, a waiver of subrogation and sometimes an umbrella. Sending us the insurance section of your lease lets us compare your policy with it.