The building, the lawsuit, and the lost income — bundled into one policy.
A BOP is the workhorse of small-business insurance: commercial property, general liability, and business income in a single package, priced to save you money over buying them apart. It's also honest about its limits — it leaves out the work truck and the payroll on purpose. We place the BOP and the pieces around it, so nothing falls through the crack. From an independent agency that writes Nationwide every day.
The short answer
A Business Owners Policy (BOP) bundles the three coverages nearly every small business needs — commercial property, general liability, and business income — into one package, usually with equipment breakdown included, and often cheaper than buying them separately. Nationwide is a leading small-business insurer and tailors BOPs to the common risks of different industries. What it deliberately leaves out: your work vehicles (that's commercial auto) and your employees getting hurt (that's workers' comp). We place the BOP and both of those, and when your business grows past the BOP's size limits we move you up to a commercial package policy without starting over.
Three core coverages, one policy.
The whole point of a BOP is that it bundles the essentials a small business can't operate without — and Nationwide usually folds equipment breakdown in too. Here's what each piece actually does.
Commercial Property
Your building, equipment, inventory, furniture, and fixtures — against fire, theft, wind, hail, and other covered losses, whether you own or lease the space.
General Liability
A customer slips in your shop, you damage a client's property, or you're accused of advertising injury — this covers defense costs and settlements up to your limit.
Business Income
If a covered loss shuts you down, this replaces the income you'd have earned while you recover — plus extra expenses to get running again. The most-overlooked, most-valuable piece.
Equipment Breakdown
Mechanical or electrical failure of the systems you run on — HVAC, refrigeration, electronics — that standard property coverage won't touch.
Endorsements worth bolting on.
A BOP is a starting point you build on. The ones we bring up most for NWA businesses: cyber liability (breach response and data claims), hired & non-owned auto (for employees running errands in their own cars — a bridge to commercial auto), and employment practices liability. Ask us what your specific operation is missing.
Three things a BOP leaves out — on purpose.
This is where businesses get caught: they assume the BOP covers everything with the word "business" attached to it. It doesn't, and it's not supposed to. Here's what lives outside the package.
The work vehicles
The second a vehicle is used for the business, it needs commercial auto — a BOP won't touch it. Even an employee's own car on a work errand is an exposure. We write that policy too.
The team getting hurt
Workers' compensation covers employee injuries and is not in a BOP. Most Arkansas employers with staff are required to carry it. We handle it alongside the BOP so there's no gap.
The size ceiling
A BOP is built for small business. Pass roughly 100 employees or $5M in revenue, or add higher-hazard exposures, and you move up to a Commercial Package Policy. Same job, more room.
Professional liability and flood aren't in it either.
If you give advice or a professional service, you likely need professional liability (E&O), and a BOP doesn't include flood. Both are written separately. The value of an independent agent is catching those gaps before a claim, not after — which is exactly the conversation we have at the quote.
Most small businesses fit. Some don't — and we'll say so.
As a rule of thumb, BOP candidates have fewer than 100 employees, under about $5 million in annual revenue, and operate in a class the carrier is comfortable packaging.
Eligibility is really about your class.
Retail shops, offices, many contractors, wholesalers, and service businesses are classic BOP fits. Some operations — certain restaurants, higher-hazard trades, and specialized risks — may need their coverages written separately or placed on a commercial package policy instead.
Because it's genuinely class-by-class, the honest answer is: tell us what you actually do day to day, and we'll tell you whether Nationwide's BOP fits — or whether a different structure or a different one of our 40+ markets is the better home.
Built for the storefronts and shops of NWA.
Northwest Arkansas is one of the fastest-growing small-business corridors in the country — the shops, offices, clinics, salons, and contractors filling out Bentonville, Rogers, Springdale, and Fayetteville are exactly the businesses a BOP is designed for. And they sit under the same hail-and-wind exposure as every roof in Benton and Washington counties, which makes the commercial property and business income pieces more than a formality.
The practical move for a local owner: insure the building and contents at replacement cost, size business income to how long you'd realistically be closed after a storm or fire, and don't leave the work vehicles and payroll uninsured just because they're outside the BOP. That's the whole-account view we bring.
The resources that come with a Nationwide commercial account.
Beyond the policy, Nationwide gives commercial clients real tools: Loss Control Services (mylosscontrolservices.com) for safety and risk-reduction resources, a Business Solutions Center, and a Cyber Resource Center for breach preparedness. We'll point you to the ones that fit your operation.
The pieces we'll talk through.
Priced on your business, not a webpage.
A BOP's real advantage is bundling — packaging property and liability together usually beats buying them apart. But the premium depends entirely on your operation, so a planning number would mislead more than help. This isn't a quote or a guarantee. What moves it:
Backed by an A (Excellent) carrier.
On November 7, 2025, AM Best affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A (Excellent), stable outlook, for the members of the Nationwide Property and Casualty Group — the companies behind this coverage in Arkansas.
Where Nationwide fits small business
- A leading small-business insurer serving over half a million businesses nationwide, with BOPs tailored to the common risks of specific industries.
- Real client tools — Loss Control Services, a Business Solutions Center, a Cyber Resource Center, and yearly On Your Side® Reviews to keep coverage matched to the business.
- A policyholder-owned mutual (founded 1926), Fortune 100, rated A (Excellent) by AM Best for the P&C group that writes this coverage.
- Room to grow — add endorsements now, move to a commercial package policy later, without re-papering everything.
What we'll tell you honestly
- A BOP is not your whole insurance program. Work vehicles, workers' comp, professional liability, and flood live outside it — we make sure they're covered, not assumed.
- We'll tell you when Nationwide isn't the answer. It's one of 40+ commercial markets we place — if another fits your class better, we'll say so.
- We don't adjust your claim. The Nationwide adjuster decides the payment; we can't overrule them, but we advocate hard for you.
- The A+ (Superior) rating you may see is Nationwide's life/annuity arm — a different company from the P&C group insuring your business. We won't blur the two.
The policies that live next to your BOP.
One account, not four loose policies.
The value of putting your commercial lines with one independent agent is that the BOP, commercial auto, workers' comp, and umbrella get built to fit together — same renewal conversation, no gaps between them, and one person who knows the whole picture when a claim crosses policy lines.
Nationwide BOP questions.
What does a Nationwide business owners policy actually cover?
A BOP bundles the coverages most small businesses need into one policy: commercial property (your building, equipment, inventory, and fixtures), general liability (customer injury, property damage you cause, advertising injury), business income (the money you lose while you can't operate after a covered loss), and equipment breakdown (mechanical or electrical failure of your systems).
Nationwide tailors BOPs to the common risks of different industries, and you can add endorsements like cyber liability on top.
What does a BOP NOT cover?
Three big ones, on purpose. A BOP does not include commercial auto — the second a vehicle is used for the business, that's a separate policy. It does not include workers' compensation — employee injuries are a separate policy most Arkansas employers with staff are required to carry. And it generally excludes professional liability (E&O) and flood, which are written separately.
We place all of those too, so nothing falls through the crack between policies.
Is my business eligible for a BOP?
Most small, lower-to-moderate-risk businesses are. As a general rule, BOP candidates have fewer than 100 employees, less than about $5 million in annual revenue, and operate in a class the carrier is comfortable packaging.
Some industries — certain restaurants and higher-hazard operations, for example — may need coverages written separately or a commercial package policy instead. Eligibility is class-by-class, so tell us what you do and we'll tell you whether a BOP fits.
What happens when my business outgrows a BOP?
A BOP is built for small business, so when you pass the size limits — more than about 100 employees or $5 million in revenue — or add exposures a BOP can't package, you move up to a Commercial Package Policy (CPP). A CPP does the same job with more flexibility and room for higher-hazard operations.
We handle that transition without starting your coverage from scratch.
Does a BOP cover business interruption?
Yes — that's the business income piece, and it's one of the most valuable parts of a BOP. If a covered loss such as a fire shuts you down, business income coverage replaces the revenue you'd have earned while you rebuild, and can cover extra expenses to get running again.
Time limits and conditions apply, so size it to how long your specific operation would realistically take to recover.
How do I get a Nationwide BOP quote in Northwest Arkansas?
Start at our commercial quote form or call (479) 286-1066. Have basic details ready: what your business does, annual sales, your building's construction and square footage, and how many employees you have.
Because we're independent, we can quote Nationwide's BOP against our other commercial markets and tell you honestly which one fits your operation best.
If our business-insurance guides and coverage comparisons are helpful, mark Cribb Insurance as a preferred source so more Northwest Arkansas owners find our local explanations.
Let's build the whole account, not just the BOP.
Tell us what your business does and what you're insuring. We'll quote Nationwide's BOP against our other commercial markets, size the property and business-income limits to your real operation, and make sure the work vehicles and workers' comp are handled too — so nothing falls through the gap between policies. If a different carrier fits your class better, we'll tell you.
Cribb Insurance Group Inc. is an independent insurance agency licensed in Arkansas. We are not Nationwide, and this page is not endorsed, sponsored, reviewed, or approved by Nationwide. "Nationwide," the Nationwide N and Eagle, "Nationwide is on your side," and "On Your Side" are service marks of Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company and its affiliates, used here nominatively to identify products we are appointed to place. Nationwide's Arkansas commercial policies are issued by Nationwide-affiliated underwriting companies.
This page describes coverage in general terms for informational purposes only. It is not a policy, not an offer of insurance, and not a guarantee of coverage, availability, eligibility, or price. Included coverages, endorsements, eligible and ineligible classes, eligibility thresholds, limits, program terms, and availability vary by class, by state, by policy, and over time, are set by the carrier, and are subject to underwriting review, guidelines, and approval and to the terms, conditions, limits, and exclusions of the policy actually issued. A Business Owners Policy does not include commercial auto, workers' compensation, professional liability, or flood; those are separate policies. Eligibility guidelines (such as employee count and revenue) are general industry references, not a guarantee of acceptance. If anything on this page conflicts with the issued policy, the policy controls.
Financial strength ratings are opinions of an insurer's ability to meet its ongoing insurance obligations, are subject to change, are not recommendations to purchase, hold or terminate any policy, and do not address an insurer's claims-handling practices; current ratings are at ambest.com. The A (Excellent) rating referenced applies to the members of the Nationwide Property and Casualty Group; a separate Nationwide life/annuity company carries its own rating. Third-party marks and resources referenced (including loss-control, business, and cyber resource centers) are the property of their respective owners. Statements about Arkansas requirements, including workers' compensation, are general information, not legal advice; requirements change and depend on your specific business — confirm current obligations with the appropriate Arkansas authority or a licensed advisor.
Last reviewed July 2026.