What is Outdoor Seating Coverage?
Outdoor Seating Coverage is insurance protection for your restaurant’s patio, sidewalk cafe, deck, rooftop seating area, or other outdoor dining spaces. This coverage typically includes property insurance for outdoor furniture, umbrellas, planters, heaters, lighting, and other outdoor equipment, as well as liability coverage for customer injuries that occur in outdoor seating areas.
Outdoor seating creates unique exposures including weather-related damage to property, furniture tipping over in wind, customers tripping on uneven surfaces or deck boards, slip-and-falls during rain, burns from patio heaters, and injuries from falling tree branches or debris. Your outdoor property and liability exposures should be specifically included in your commercial property and general liability policies, and you may need additional coverage if your outdoor seating extends onto public sidewalks or involves significant permanent structures like a built deck or roof covering.
What You Need to Know
Unique Outdoor Risks:
- Weather-related damage to property
- Furniture tipping over in wind
- Customers tripping on uneven surfaces or deck boards
- Slip-and-falls during rain
- Burns from patio heaters
- Injuries from falling tree branches or debris
Policy Limitations to Watch For:
Some policies have special sublimits or exclusions for property kept outside, or they may only cover outdoor items if they’re brought inside after hours.
Public Sidewalk Considerations:
If your outdoor seating extends onto public sidewalk, you likely need additional insured status on your policy for the city or property owner, and you may have additional permit requirements.
Why It Matters for Restaurant Owners
Outdoor seating has become increasingly important to restaurant operations, especially after COVID-19 demonstrated the value of outdoor dining spaces, but many restaurant owners don’t properly insure their outdoor areas.
Property Coverage Gaps:
If you have $50,000 worth of patio furniture, umbrellas, and heaters, and a severe storm or vandalism destroys everything, you need to make sure your commercial property policy covers outdoor property and has adequate limits.
Increased Liability Exposure:
From a liability perspective, outdoor seating areas often have more hazards than indoor dining—uneven surfaces, weather exposure, proximity to street traffic, lack of climate control, and potential for objects to blow around in wind. A customer who trips on an uneven patio brick or is injured by a toppling umbrella in a windstorm can sue you just like any other premises liability claim.
Essential Steps:
Make sure your insurance agent knows about your outdoor seating, accurately describes the setup, and ensures both property and liability coverage extends to these areas. Also verify you have adequate coverage limits considering that your total property value includes both indoor and outdoor furniture, and your premises liability exposure increases with additional seating areas where customers congregate.