Personal Lines
Shop Owners
Employee Theft and Crime Coverage: What a BOP Doesn't Include
Aaron Ameduri
Last reviewed: September 23, 2026
A standard Businessowners Policy covers third-party liability and property losses, it doesn't cover theft committed by your own employee. That's a separate coverage, usually called employee dishonesty or crime coverage, and a lot of shop owners assume it's already baked into their BOP until they actually need it.
Why a BOP excludes this
General liability and property coverage are built around losses caused by third parties or accidents, not intentional acts by someone on your own payroll. Employee theft is treated as a distinct exposure that has to be added on purpose.
What employee dishonesty coverage actually includes
- Theft of money, securities, or inventory by an employee
- Forgery or alteration of checks by an employee
- Computer fraud, an employee manipulating systems to redirect funds
Who actually needs it
Any business where an employee handles cash, has access to inventory of real value, or has any authority over payments or accounts. A small shop with one or two trusted employees and low cash handling is a different risk than a retail operation with regular cash drawers and multiple staff.
What it depends on
How much coverage makes sense depends on how much exposure actually exists, register cash on hand, inventory value, whether anyone has check-writing or payment authority. Worth sizing the limit to the real number, not just adding a minimum and moving on.
Common questions
Does this cover theft by a business partner, not just an employee? Depends on how the policy defines covered persons. Worth checking specifically if you have partners or co-owners with financial access.
Do I need this if I do background checks on everyone I hire? Background checks reduce risk but don't eliminate it. Trusted employees are still the most common source of these claims, not strangers.
Send me how cash and inventory move through your shop, and I'll tell you if this is a real gap or not.
— Aaron