The Lowdown: Spirits, Stouts, Craft Brews and More

By | March 18, 2019

“The more you know, the more you know you don’t know.” – Aristotle

Though attributed to Aristotle, he didn’t really say that, exactly. More likely, he said something very complicated, but the idea behind his wisdom is this:

On your journey to learn more, there are times when you realize that you have a lot more to learn.

Insurance coverage can be that way, especially as you journey into niche areas.

Understanding liquor liability is a niche to consider – with more than 320,000 full service restaurants, bars and liquor stores, employing a combined 6 million people (US Census Bureau). It’s worth pursing the additional knowledge specific to the coverage needed to protect businesses against a number of unforeseen incidents for which they can be held liable.

Beyond these traditional establishments, new trends give rise to new opportunity to share your acquired knowledge. In 2018, there were more than 7,000 breweries in operation with 9,000 active permits filed with the Alcohol, Tobacco & Trade Bureau by midyear. Many of these are combining sales, entertainment, tastings and open pub hours to the tradition of brewing and distribution. The Distilled Spirits Council reports 9 years of ‘rapid’ growth in the spirits industry with a new interest in premium whiskey, scotch, rye and tequila giving rise to theme bars and tasting room appealing to Millennials.

More “fast casual” restaurants, such as Taco Bell Cantina, are testing alcohol sales along side their fast food offerings. According to Night Club & Bar, hospitality is the fastest growing segment of alcohol sales and more sports stadiums are offering craft beers along side their hot dogs. New alcohol delivery services are also being tested by restaurants, either as part of their own take out offering, or through partnerships with third party delivery services. Lastly, google ‘views & brews’ and you’ll find there’s a lot of recreation around outdoor hiking and drinking, yet where lies the liquor liability? Unlike traditional establishments, training of employees and understanding of liquor liability may be new to many of these operators.

This month our sponsor, McGowan Administrative Services, offers insights into liquor liability coverage for establishments in your community and here’s a quick lowdown on their insightful guide, How Well Do You Understand Your Liquor Liability Coverage?

Page 1: Real life scenarios you can share with business owners about damages and injuries caused by intoxicated patrons.

Page 2: Definition of dram shop laws and variations by state.

Page 3: Why general liability insurance is not enough.

Page 4: What does liquor liability insurance cover?

Page 5: Importance of proper employee training – and its limitations.

This guide provides you with a great marketing piece with which to review the risks businesses are facing when serving or selling alcohol – especially those adding it to an existing business where general liability may be their primary coverage.

Happy reading – Pam Simpson

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