Business Interruption Insurance
When unexpected events force your business to slow down or temporarily close, business interruption insurance helps keep you financially stable while you recover. This coverage is designed to replace lost income and help cover essential expenses so a short-term disruption doesn’t turn into a long-term setback. At Wisco Insurance, we help Wisconsin businesses prepare for interruptions caused by covered events and maintain continuity during challenging periods.
What’s Covered by Business Interruption Insurance
Lost Revenue
Helps replace income your business would have earned if operations had not been interrupted by a covered loss, such as fire, storm damage, or other insured property events. This support helps stabilize cash flow while repairs are underway.
Operating Expenses
Covers ongoing costs like rent, utilities, property taxes, and loan payments even when your business isn’t generating revenue. These expenses don’t stop during a closure, and coverage helps prevent financial strain.
Employee Wages
Assists with payroll costs so you can retain employees during a temporary shutdown. Keeping staff in place helps ensure a smoother and faster return to normal operations once your business reopens.
Temporary Relocation Costs
Helps cover expenses associated with moving operations to a temporary location while repairs are completed. This can allow certain businesses to continue operating, even at reduced capacity.
Training and Restart Costs
Provides support for expenses related to resuming operations, such as retraining employees, recalibrating equipment, or marketing efforts to bring customers back after reopening.
Why Business Interruption Insurance Matters in Wisconsin
Severe Weather and Property Damage
Wisconsin businesses face risks from windstorms, heavy snow, flooding, and other weather-related events that can cause extended closures. Business interruption coverage helps offset income losses during these recovery periods.
Limited Emergency Reserves
Many small and mid-sized businesses don’t have large financial reserves to absorb weeks or months without revenue. This coverage helps bridge the gap and keep obligations manageable.
It Protects Long-Term Stability
Whether you operate a storefront in Janesville, a service-based business in Brodhead, or a commercial operation near Kenosha, maintaining financial stability during disruptions is key to long-term success. Business interruption insurance helps support that stability when it matters most.
Business Interruption Insurance FAQs
What types of events are covered by business interruption insurance in Wisconsin?
Business interruption insurance typically applies when your business is forced to close or limit operations due to a covered property loss, such as fire, wind damage, severe storms, or certain types of water damage. In Wisconsin, this often includes closures caused by heavy snow loads, windstorms, or storm-related property damage. Coverage only applies when the interruption is tied to a loss that would otherwise be covered under your commercial property policy, making it important that both policies work together properly.
Is pandemic-related closure covered under business interruption insurance?
In most cases, standard business interruption policies do not cover closures caused solely by pandemics or government shutdown orders without direct physical property damage. Many Wisconsin businesses learned this during COVID-19. While some specialized policies or endorsements may address certain communicable disease risks, traditional business interruption coverage is generally triggered by physical damage to insured property. Reviewing policy language carefully helps set clear expectations about what is and isn’t covered.
How is the reimbursement amount calculated?
Reimbursement is typically based on your business’s historical financial records, including revenue, operating expenses, and payroll prior to the interruption. Insurers estimate what your business would have earned if the loss had not occurred, then subtract expenses that were not incurred during the shutdown. For Wisconsin businesses with seasonal fluctuations — such as retail, tourism, or construction — accurate documentation is especially important to ensure reimbursement reflects real operating conditions.
Does this coverage apply if a supplier or vendor shuts down?
Standard business interruption coverage usually does not apply if your business closes solely because a supplier or vendor shuts down. However, some policies offer contingent business interruption coverage, which may help when a key supplier, manufacturer, or customer experiences a covered loss that directly impacts your operations. This can be valuable for Wisconsin businesses that rely on regional suppliers or just-in-time inventory and want additional protection against supply-chain disruptions.
How long does business interruption coverage last after a disruption?
Business interruption coverage generally lasts for the period of restoration — the reasonable amount of time it should take to repair or replace damaged property and resume normal operations. Policies often include a maximum coverage period, which may range from several months to a year or more, depending on the policy. For Wisconsin businesses facing weather-related damage or construction delays, having an appropriate coverage duration helps ensure financial support lasts through the full recovery process.