The Insurance Family Blog

Liquor Liability Insurance for Your Restaurant – Are You Covered?

Posted by Susie Scherff on August 29, 2011 at 9:30 AM

Coverage

Liquor LiabilityLiquor Liability Insurance for California restaurants and bars defends you against any charges of negligence related to the service of alcohol on your premises, and also indemnifies your business for any financial loss if you are found to be legally liable for any negligence.  As the owner, you are responsible for your patrons when alcohol is served to them under California’s Liquor Liability laws. 

Think of it this way - if a patron of your establishment has one beer too many under your roof, and is involved in an automobile accident an hour after they have left your business,  the injured party can hold you liable for damages under liquor liability laws.

Am I Covered?

You might think because you have general liability coverage for your restaurant or bar that you are covered for liquor liability. General liability insurance excludes coverage, for persons or organizations in the business of manufacturing, distributing, selling or serving alcoholic beverages, for injuries or damage arising out of selling serving or giving such alcoholic beverages to a person already under the influence of alcohol, or if it causes or contributes to the intoxication of any person.  Liquor liability insurance coverage can be purchased as an endorsement to your general liability policy or as a separate policy.

Take action

In addition to purchasing a liquor liability policy, businesses can limit their risk to claims and help reduce their insurance costs by taking a few proactive steps such as:

  • Training employees to refuse service to obviously intoxicated patrons.
  • Require employees to carefully measure the amount of alcohol they pour into a drink.
  • Refuse service to patrons who are prone to fight or cause incidents.
  • Enroll employees in insurer-sponsored training. This training will help your employees limit your exposure to claims, and many insurers offer a premium discount to businesses that have their employees complete the training.

All of these factors mean that liquor liability in California is a tricky business, so it is important to consider California Liquor Liability Insurance for your restaurant. 

Click here to contact Sutherland-Scherff about Liquor Liability Insurance as part of our restaurant insurance packages.

Topics: Business Insurance, restaurant insurance, Insurance