Ghost kitchens in Texas typically need general liability with products coverage for food that leaves the building, hired and non-owned auto or commercial auto for any delivery you run yourself, cyber liability for online ordering, and property coverage for equipment inside a shared or leased kitchen. Workers’ comp is optional for most Texas private employers, but a non-subscriber gives up important legal defenses.
This page is for delivery-only operators: a single cook running three virtual brands out of a commissary in Dallas, a restaurant group using spare kitchen capacity for an app-only concept, or a tenant in a purpose-built ghost kitchen facility in Houston. No dining room does not mean no liability.
What a Texas delivery-only kitchen has to satisfy
A ghost kitchen is still a retail food establishment in the eyes of the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) and local health departments, which permit and inspect under the Texas Food Establishment Rules (25 TAC Chapter 228). Employees need an accredited food handler course within 30 days, and operations handling exposed time/temperature-control-for-safety foods may need a Certified Food Manager. In a shared facility, confirm whose permit covers your station.
If you employ your own drivers, Texas minimum auto liability is 30/60/25 (in thousands of dollars), and that minimum sits on the driver’s personal policy unless the business owns the car. Workers’ comp is elective under Labor Code §406.002. Non-subscribers must file a notice with TDI-DWC, notify employees, and lose the contributory-negligence and assumption-of-risk defenses if a cook sues over an injury.
Contracts matter as much as statutes here. Commissary leases often require you to name the facility operator as an additional insured and waive subrogation, and delivery platform agreements set their own terms. Read both before you buy coverage.
Virtual brand risks: shared kitchens, app orders and sealed bags
Running five brands off one line multiplies allergen risk. A customer orders pad thai from your noodle brand with a no-peanut note, the ticket prints without the modifier, and the reaction lands on your products liability. When a third-party courier leaves a bag open in a hot car for forty minutes and the customer gets sick, you will still be the first name on the claim.
Shared space creates its own losses. Another tenant’s fryer starts a fire that ruins your equipment, or a grease trap backup floods the whole line. If your own driver hits a cyclist in Deep Ellum, the injured rider sues your company. And because nearly every sale runs through a tablet or an ordering API, a compromised account or a data breach can halt revenue entirely.
Ghost kitchen insurance must-haves
- General liability with products-completed operations — illness, allergens and foreign objects in food eaten miles away.
- Hired and non-owned auto — employees delivering in personal vehicles.
- Commercial auto — any vehicle owned by the business.
- Cyber liability — ordering platform breaches, payment data and extortion events.
- Business personal property — your equipment and inventory inside someone else’s building.
- Equipment breakdown and spoilage — shared walk-ins fail too.
- Business income with dependent property — when a facility shutdown or platform outage stops orders.
- Workers’ compensation or a non-subscriber injury plan — burns, cuts and slips on a crowded line.
What underwriters ask a delivery-only operator
Expect questions about how many brands you run, total sales, whether you deliver yourself or rely entirely on apps, the facility’s fire suppression and hood cleaning, who owns the equipment, and what your lease requires. Carriers also want to know about allergen controls and how you seal bags, since tamper-evident packaging reduces contamination disputes.
Pricing improves with tamper-evident seals, ticket systems that print modifiers in bold, driver MVR checks, multi-factor authentication on ordering accounts, and a clear written split of responsibilities with the kitchen operator.
One application, several carriers for your virtual brands
Provident Financial Group is an independent agency. One application goes to multiple carriers, and we compare how each treats multiple brands, delivery and cyber side by side. Once you bind, we issue live certificates of insurance naming your facility operator. Call (866) 964-6660 to walk through your setup. Coverage is subject to underwriting and policy terms.
Frequently asked questions
Does a ghost kitchen need its own policy if the facility is insured?
Yes. The operator’s policy protects the operator, not your food, your equipment or your employees, and most facility leases require you to carry your own coverage.
Who is responsible when a third-party app driver crashes?
Generally the driver and the platform’s arrangements respond first, but your business can still be named. Hired and non-owned auto is a sensible backstop.
Can one policy cover several virtual brands?
Usually, as long as every brand is disclosed to the carrier. An undisclosed brand can create a coverage dispute after a claim.
Do delivery apps require insurance from restaurants?
Platform agreements vary and change, so review yours. Some ask for general liability limits or additional insured status, and we can match your policy to the contract.
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