How can I help my business?

We are in unprecedented times – a phrase that has been applied to our circumstances since the start of the first Coronavirus lockdown over a year ago, evolving into yet another variation on ‘normal’. The business community is constantly being asked to adapt, to reflect the changes that need to be made to help keep us all safe, but to also help keep your business going. Measures we hadn’t even heard of over a year ago need to be in place to help protect your staff, your customers, your business and you. An important step is to continually discuss your insurance cover with your broker: you are likely to have reduced your business insurance cover while staff are furloughed, your business is temporarily closed, your fleet is laid up, your business has no visitors, or you are adapting your business to the lockdown measures. Make sure the cover is right for your business as it functions right now, and adapts as you do.

As insurance brokers, our job is to help you manage your risks, your business and help your future. So, we’ve pulled together some resources and links that you and your business should find helpful as we start to open our businesses back up. These are all free to use, you don’t have to be a current client, you don’t have to sign up to anything; you don’t even have to speak to us. We just want to help.

Re-opening your business

The following guides and checklists will help you plan what you might need to do to effectively re-open when the time is once again upon us. These are just templates and guides for you to use as you need, they are not exhaustive and you should remember to edit and tailor to your particular requirements. As ever, please remember to discuss any changes to you business with your insurance broker.

We have produced some quick reference checklists to help – this is not in place of government advice and guidance, but to help:

If many of your staff will remain at home, then this  Employee Work From Home Guide and we have further information regarding workplace mental health. You can adapt for your company’s specific circumstances and circulate to all. We also recommend regularly updating your Business Continuity plan as situations change, or get a plan in place if you don’t already have one:  Business Continuity Planning Toolkit

For those businesses taking the opportunity to diversify: speak to your broker immediately! For example, if you are self-employed as a taxi driver, or contractor, or tradesman, you and your vehicle will be covered for a specific set of circumstances; if you are now for example delivering food, be aware that wouldn’t be covered. It is a simple change, though, to include ‘hire and reward’ cover but you need to discuss with your broker or your insurer asap.

Some links to essential services and support for you and your business:

British Bank - emergency loans
NCSC - Cyber Essentials
NHS 111
Government Coronavirus advice page
Government Email alert sign-up
World Heath Organisation
HMRC Tax Helpline information
Business rates guidance for retail

This short video outlines key points from the government’s Covid-19 secure guidelines

Unoccupied premises

There are a lot of unoccupied premises at the moment: retail, hospitality, offices. Check your property insurance small print as some insurers will provide cover for 30, 60 or even 90 days unoccupied (see Cover Overview Unoccupied Property Insurance). This usually comes with the conditions that the empty property is regularly checked internally and externally, utilities switched off, water drained from radiators etc. However, some insurers are advising a more relaxed approach to this considering current Government guidelines not to leave home unnecessarily. It is essential that you speak with your broker or your insurer for clarity – especially if you have stock to consider – to avoid being caught out.

Cyber security

With staff home alone and your devices spread, your company may be more vulnerable to a cyber attack. This is the prime time to review your standard cyber incident response. If you don’t already have Cyber Essentials Certification, then it is worth taking a look; even if you don’t certify, there are steps you can take to help your IT systems be more resilient against a breach. The following will also be helpful for you and your employees:

Other considerations
  • Directors & Officers: you may be held personally liable for actions your company makes: redundancies, job role changes, allegations of supply chain mishandling.
  • Trade Credit Insurance: this monitors the credit of your supply chain, will warn you if there are potential issues and can help if a debtor then can’t pay. Essential if you rely on others.
  • Fleet: if your fleet is off the road, you can amend cover to be ‘laid up’, which means the vehicles are still insured against damage, but the road risk element is removed (help save some money). Similarly, if you are starting to get more of your fleet back on the road with the lockdown easing, then it is essential to update your insurance broker so the correct cover can be reinstated.
For more advice, get in touch with our team
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infographic business interruption insurance covid-19