A chef in Winter Park has spent two years cooking for friends’ parties, and now she has her first paying job: a rehearsal dinner for eighty guests at a historic home near Lake Osceola. The client sends a contract the same day, and the event coordinator follows up with a short email. Before load-in, they need a certificate of insurance showing general liability, the venue named as an additional insured and proof of liquor liability if she pours the wine. She has a business license, a menu and a van. She does not have a single insurance policy.
That is how most new catering companies in Florida discover their insurance needs: a venue or a client asks for proof, usually with a deadline. The good news is that a starter catering program is not complicated. The key is buying the right pieces in the right order, so the first certificate you send actually satisfies what the venue asked for and the business is protected when something goes wrong.
Start with general liability
General liability is the foundation, and it is the coverage nearly every venue and event planner asks for first. It responds when a guest is injured or someone else’s property is damaged because of your operations: a guest who slips on a spill near the buffet, a chafing dish that scorches a venue’s floor, a dessert table that collapses onto rented linens. For a caterer, the policy should also include products and completed operations coverage, because foodborne illness claims often surface after the event is over and the guests have gone home.
Venues usually specify limits, often a per-occurrence and an aggregate limit, and many ask to be named as an additional insured. Our article on what insurance caterers need in Florida walks through the core coverages, and our page on general liability insurance explains how the policy is structured.
Decide how you will handle alcohol
Alcohol is where new caterers most often get caught out. If your company serves, pours or sells alcohol, even wine the client bought, you need liquor liability coverage, and many general liability policies exclude it. Some caterers carry liquor liability year round; others avoid the exposure by letting a licensed bar service handle drinks. Either approach can work, but the choice should be made before you sign a contract that says you will provide bar service.
Florida’s dram shop law limits liability for serving alcohol in many situations, but it does not eliminate it, and the exceptions involve exactly the kind of mistakes that happen at busy events. Our article on catering and off-premises alcohol service explains where the gaps are, and our page on liquor liability insurance covers the coverage itself.
Insure the van and the drive to the event
A catering company spends a lot of time on the road, loaded with equipment, food and staff. A personal auto policy usually does not cover a vehicle used mainly for business, and it may deny a claim if the van was carrying a full load to a paid event. Commercial auto covers vehicles the business owns. If employees drive their own cars to pick up supplies or deliver orders, hired and non-owned auto coverage protects the business when one of them causes an accident. Our page on business auto insurance explains both.
Protect your equipment
Chafing dishes, warmers, mobile ovens, coolers, tents and serving pieces add up quickly, and most of it travels from event to event. A standard property policy may cover equipment only at your kitchen, not in the van or at a venue. Inland marine or equipment floater coverage follows the equipment wherever it goes. Our page on inland marine insurance explains how it works.
Workers’ compensation as you grow
In Florida, most non-construction businesses must carry workers’ compensation once they have four or more employees, part-time staff included, and corporate officers may be able to elect an exemption. Catering work involves knives, hot equipment, heavy lifting and long hours on your feet, so injuries are common even at small companies. Many caterers carry workers’ compensation before they are legally required to, because venues and corporate clients increasingly ask for it. Our page on workers’ compensation insurance covers how it is placed.
Getting the first certificate right
When a venue asks for a certificate of insurance, read the request carefully. Venues often ask for specific limits, additional insured status, a waiver of subrogation and sometimes primary and noncontributory wording. A certificate that lists the right coverage but leaves out the endorsement the venue required can delay or cancel the booking. Our article on catering insurance requirements for Florida event venues explains what venues typically ask for.
What it costs to start
For a new caterer, the starting premium depends on expected revenue, the number of events, whether you serve alcohol, the size of your staff and the vehicles you use. A small company that does not serve alcohol and uses one van typically pays much less than one that runs full bar service at large weddings. Our article on how much catering insurance costs in Florida covers what drives the price.
Worth confirming before your first event
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General liability with products and completed operations coverage
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Limits that match what your venues and clients require
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Additional insured, waiver of subrogation and primary and noncontributory endorsements available on request
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Liquor liability, if you serve or pour alcohol in any form
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Commercial auto for business vehicles, and hired and non-owned auto for employees’ cars
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Equipment coverage that follows your gear to events
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Workers’ compensation status that matches your staff count
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A way to get certificates issued quickly for new bookings
For more, see our page on catering company insurance, biggest catering insurance claims in Florida, what catering insurance does not cover and event liability insurance for caterers.
Talk to us
Prestige Insurance Group helps new catering companies across Florida put the right coverage in place before the first event, from a single-owner operation to a growing company with staff, vans and bar service. Send us your first venue’s requirements and a description of your services, and we will build a program that meets them and grows with the business.
Call the office nearest you. Se habla español.
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Miami: 305-969-8776
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Orlando: 407-993-2331
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Stuart: 772-247-3788
This article is general information, not legal advice. Coverage forms, licensing requirements and carrier appetite vary and change over time. Prestige Insurance Group, Florida agency license L057894.
