If you own and operate a zoo or an aquarium and you have guests and tourists coming to see various sorts of animals in your aquarium, you will need to have teh appropriate insurance coverages on a commercial/business policy; which is different than someone who, for example, has their own home aquarium with fish and creatures in it at their home (normally covered under homeowners insurance). Homeowners that collect exotic fish or other aquarium animals may need to have special coverages or a separate policy in addition to home insurance.
Read on to get a basic understanding of aquarium and zoo operators insurance, or get expert advice from an insurance professional local to you by
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In the following guide, we will explore what aquarium insurance is, what type of an aquarium insurance policy you may need, and how you can obtain a great aquarium insurance policy for yourself or for your business so that you’re always protected from unexpected events and accidents.
What Is Aquarium Insurance?
Aquarium insurance serves multiple purposes. For example, if you have a large aquarium with exotic fish in it that you collect at home, you’ll need to make sure that your home, belongings, fish, and expensive aquarium and aquarium equipment are all protected. After all, accidents can happen. No one likes to think about an aquarium breaking and causing severe water damage in their home. No one likes to think about a natural disaster occurring at their home and losing their aquarium and their precious exotic fish or other animals. But again, these things can happen, and it’s important to be prepared.
This is where aquarium insurance comes in. Aquarium insurance protects you from accidents and accidental events that may have been caused at your home in relation to an aquarium. In a business setting, wildlife parks, amusement parks, petting zoos, and some other locations that have large aquariums will need to be protected as well. Aquariums can become extremely expensive, and you want to know that your investment is protected no matter what.
Who Might Require Aquarium Insurance?
Several types of individuals or companies may require aquarium insurance. Again, this type of insurance may be necessary for individuals if they have an aquarium-based business or if they simply have a large aquarium with fish in it at home.
On the other hand, marine life aquariums and home aquariums or exotic fish aquariums require more detailed and protective insurance policies. For example, if you own a zoo and are looking for a zoo aquarium insurance policy, your insurance policy will likely cover your facility, your aquarium, the fish and other animals in your aquarium, liability for the visitors who come to yours location, and various other things, depending on the policy that you have. These are the two groups that mainly require aquarium insurance.
What Types of Aquarium Insurance Are There?
In most cases, there are three main types of aquarium insurance. Below, we will outline each of these types of aquarium insurance and explain what they are.
Basic General Aquarium Insurance
Standard, general, or basic aquarium insurance can cover most aquarium sizes. Whether you have a rather small aquarium of 12 or 14 gallons in the tank or a larger 40 or 60 gallon aquarium tank, the basic plan for aquarium insurance will cover most general issues of liability.
With the basic insurance, your aquarium will be covered, and the fish and other aquarium animals inside the container will also be covered. It’s also important to think about possible liability issues that could be associated with the aquarium. For example, if the aquarium were to break inside your house and cause injury to someone visiting, they may be able to sue you for the injuries that they incurred. In this case, you will need to have liability insurance associated with your basic overall insurance.
Finally, in some cases, aquariums breaking or having problems can cause other damage to your property and belongings. For example, an aquarium that breaks all over the floor may cause serious water damage to your flooring and home infrastructure. In this case, you want to have coverage for these potential accidents as well so that you are always protected.
Exotic Fish Insurance
Many people have a hobby of collecting exotic fish. If you have this hobby and you are looking for insurance for your aquarium that contains exotic fish or if you have multiple exotic fish aquariums, you will need a different insurance policy from the one that is for basic aquarium owners. Typically speaking, basic or general aquarium insurance will not cover fish that are exotic. These fish are simply out of the realm of basic aquarium coverage.
If you are a collector of exotic fish, you likely already know that you will need to take out a special aquarium insurance policy that is particularly designed for the collection of fish that you have been keeping at your home or your place of business. In some cases, exotic fish can be extremely expensive. Certain exotic fish are hundreds of dollars each. Other exotic fish are thousands of dollars each.
Naturally, this shouldn’t keep you from having a wonderful exotic fish collection that intrigues you and entertains you. You simply need to make sure that you are covered in case of an accident. It’s sort of like owning expensive jewelry when you own expense exotic fish. You need to make sure that they are protected. Again as with basic or general aquarium entrance, you want to consider liability insurance with this insurance as well so that you are covered in the event of an accident that causes physical injury or harm to someone’s body or their property. You also need to think about coverage for the aquarium and equipment itself as well as individual fish, of course. And finally, property damage or damage to your belongings should also be a concern when it comes to your exotic fish aquarium.
Marine Life Aquarium Insurance
We discussed basic aquarium insurance and insurance for exotic fish. Now let’s look at marine life aquarium insurance. This type of insurance is for those who may own or operate zoos, wildlife parks, water parks, or other businesses that have an intense focus on aquariums and the animals inside. Again, this is completely different insurance from general insurance and exotic fish insurance. Naturally, insurance plans in this realm tend to be the most expensive. These policies will cover liability for visitors to your zoo, the animals inside the aquariums, your entire facility, and often times, other aspects of your property and business as well.
As you shop around for a Marine life aquarium insurance plan, you will need to think of all aspects of your business. For example, you may want to consider coverage for your company vehicles, workers compensation coverage, basic business risk coverage, and more. This is a type of insurance will take a while to plan out, so make sure that you work with a professional and high quality insurance agent to find a plan that meets all of your needs exactly.
How to Choose What Insurance You Need?
When it comes to choosing what insurance you will need personally or for your business, again, consider the three types of aquarium insurance options listed above. Once you can narrow it down, you can look at insurance agents in your area that cover the type of aquarium insurance that you are looking for. Make sure to discuss your options with an agent individually. You should never simply shop off the shelf for an insurance plan covering your aquarium. These types of plans need a lot of detail and planning in order to cover exactly what you need.
What Different Types of Aquariums Are There?
It should go without saying that there are multiple types of aquariums, and which type of aquarium you choose to have for your home or business will influence what type of aquarium insurance plan that you get as well. Here, we will go over the seven main types of aquariums. The first four types of aquariums are for the home, and the next three types of aquariums are for wildlife parks, zoos, visitor aquariums, and other large operations that focus on having aquariums for their business.
Home Aquarium: Freshwater
At home, there are four main types of home aquariums. First, there are freshwater aquariums, and these are standard when it comes to the hobby of collecting fish. Freshwater tanks usually range from 72 to 85 degrees. These types of aquariums are fairly basic and do not require any technical chemicals. There is also not a need for fancy light fixtures or any other type of equipment that is specialized.
Home Aquarium: Coldwater
Coldwater aquariums tend to be slightly more expensive than freshwater aquariums. They are simply freshwater aquariums that have a colder temperature. Generally speaking, the temperature of a coldwater aquarium is lower than 70 degrees. Goldfish need to be kept in cold water aquariums, which is why youneed to have some equipment to keep the water at the correct temperature in most cases.
Home Aquarium: Marine
Marine aquariums have salt water in them. These are aquariums that often feature colorful corals, wonderful invertebrates, and extremely beautiful fish. Because they are more specialized than standard freshwater or cold water fish, you will need to purchase more equipment, and they are overall more expensive.
Home Aquarium: Brackish
Finally, when it comes to home aquariums, there are brackish tanks. These are quite rare when it comes to the hobby. Brackish water is defined as freshwater and saltwater mixed together for fish and other animals that require this kind of water, but again, it is rather rare.
Zoo Aquariums for Small to Medium Animals
Zoos tend to have different types of aquariums. Small aquariums are generally for small to medium-sized animals.
Zoo Aquariums for Large Animals
Larger animals like whales, sharks, sea turtles, and seals will need large aquariums. These are usually outdoor and indoor, which puts them at risk for more problems and require specific insurance policies to cover all of the aspects of owning these types of aquariums.
Theme Park Aquariums for Animal Shows
Lastly, theme park aquariums that feature killer whale shows or other large exhibits with large animals will require entirely different types of aquariums, and therefore, again, you will need to get a different type of plan.
What Are the Recommended Insurance Options for Commercial Aquariums, Zoos, and Wildlife Parks?
If you own a zoo, wildlife park, or commercial aquarium, there are other things that you need to think about when it comes to purchasing insurance. The following types of insurance may be beneficial to your company in protecting you from possible liability or lawsuit problems:
- Commercial Property Insurance
- General Liability Insurance
- Commercial Auto Insurance
- Inland Marine Insurance
- Workers’ Compensation Insurance
- Commercial Crime Insurance
- Other Types of Recommended Insurance
There are several other types of insurance that aquariums, zoos, and wildlife parks will want to consider as well. These include the following:
- Stop gap liability insurance
- Liquor liability insurance
- Environmental impairment insurance
- Commercial umbrella insurance
- Employee dishonesty insurance
- Employee benefits insurance
- Non-owned auto and hired insurance
- EPLI coverage insurance
- Equipment breakdown insurance
- Business auto insurance
- Bailees insurance
How Do You Go About Obtaining Aquarium Insurance?
If you are interested in obtaining aquarium insurance, it is essential that you have a good understanding of the property that you have in relation to your query. Go over all of the items that you own that help your aquarium function and get an idea of how much you have spent on this aspect of your business and what types of protection you need.
Once you have this information and you understand how much you can spend on this type of insurance plan, you can seek out the help of a professional commercial insurance agent in your area — or several agents to get multiple quotes. Speak with the agent that you choose to find an insurance policy that covers the aquarium and aquarium equipment that you own and fits all of your needs.