Do you remember when the state’s regulations for running your establishment was as simple as carrying the right Colorado bar insurance or restaurant insurance and following some simple guidelines for hygiene and cleanliness?
That may seem like a distant memory now, as restaurant owners scramble to keep up with the latest developments in the COVID-19 situation and the constant changes in Colorado’s rules and regulations.
So, while the rules regarding effective restaurant insurance coverage haven’t changed, let’s take a closer look at the current requirements for any establishment that serves food and allows patrons to dine in.
Your Responsibility as a Restaurant Owner
If there is ever a confirmed case of COVID-19 among your employees – or even if there is one among your patrons – you are expected to follow some important guidelines. Namely, you will need to notify the local public health agency and cooperate with their recommendations.
Before you get to that point, though, there are a number of policies you need to implement to try and minimize the risk of transmission. These guidelines can be divided into different categories and provide rules for the food service space, employees, pick-up spaces, and bars.
According to the most current public health order, restaurant owners are expected to:
- Implement symptom monitoring protocols for employees
- Keep your occupancy levels set to your county’s current dial level
- Patrons in different parties must be 6 feet apart
- Parties should be kept to 10 people or fewer
- You can expand to outdoor dine-in services with the guidance of local public health authorities
- Employees must wear masks inside and should be encouraged to wear them outdoors as well
- Increase the intensity and frequency of cleaning and hygiene practices
Resources to Help Your Restaurant
One thing that we can say for sure about the “new normal” is that the situation is constantly changing as new discoveries are made and further research is carried out.
In order to keep your business running, Colorado has provided a number of important resources to ensure you have the most recent information, rules, and regulations at your fingertips. So, if you need further details, be sure to take full advantage of these resources:
- Colorado COVID Symptom Support tool
- Colorado Retail Food Establishment Rules and Regulations
- Distancing Space Calculator
- Employee Screening Form
- Guidance on Heightened Cleaning and Disinfecting
- Restaurant Operating Considerations
Dining Out in the “New Normal”
Finding ways to accommodate your customers and create a safe environment that follows all the state’s regulations is – and will likely remain – something of a challenge for most restaurants.
Colorado’s COVID-19 regulations have certainly created something of a “new normal” for everyone, and restaurants need to find ways to adapt so that they can keep their customers feeling safe in a difficult time.
Until these regulations are lifted, though, restaurant owners are going to have to deal with a wide range of customers, from those who refuse to where any kind of face coverings to those who won’t step foot inside your establishment until they know for sure that every possible disinfectant has been used on every possible surface.
In other words, the landscape has changed, and while you can’t please everyone, you can at least live up to the new standards set by the state and keep your business open.
The Coverage You Need
You may not be able to fill your restaurant like you could last year, but the current situation does allow you to welcome customers for dining in as long as you’re following your county’s guidelines.
Despite all these changes, there are some things that have remained the same – and that’s all the risks that restaurant owners have always dealt with.
This year has changed the priorities for many businesses, but it’s important to remember that your Colorado restaurant insurance should provide the coverage you need for all those things that you faced before COVID (and will have to deal with during and after, too).
No one knows what’s going to happen next, so it’s important to make the choices that will help keep your business running in uncertain times.
