The pandemic rolls on, and it is time for businesses to focus their money and efforts in a more efficient way. Insurance is no different.

At Ausure Horizon we have always promoted a coverage first approach to insuring your business, but as the purse strings tighten we understand that many will be making difficult decisions as they fight for survival. It is important to remember that simply because work slows risk does not disappear. However, your business is likely going through changes that could present opportunities for savings without sacrificing the coverage that is most important.

Here are 10 ways you could save money on your insurances today without sacrificing key covers;

1. Business Interruption – Review your sum insured! Business Interruption saves businesses, but you shouldn’t be paying for sums insured you would never receive following a claim. If your turnover has dropped then make sure your policy is up to date and your broker has explained the way the policy reacts to a claim, there could be significant savings to be made by simply having the correct information and understanding.
2. Lay Up Cover – Do you have Trucks, Machinery or Utes that haven’t been used in months? There are options with many insurers to note the items that are not currently required to reflect the reduced risk. In some cases this could save $1,000’s dollars per item.
3. Transit Insurance – Speaking of Trucks for those companies that have a Transit policy it can pay to review your gross freight earnings; some transit insurers will consider a midterm adjustment to reflect the more accurate workload.
4. Money Cover – Has your business made the move to contactless payments? If you are no longer storing cash at your premises consider removing the section from your policy.
5. Stock sum insured – Companies with fewer customers will require less stock. There is no point in paying for stock levels that simply do not exist. Reduce your stock and content insurance limits to reflect current day replacement values.
6. Public Liability – Review your current policy, how has your turnover changed since your last renewal? Are you importing fewer goods from abroad? Is your business spending less on subcontractors? All of these can have significant effects on the price you pay for your Public Liability Insurance.
7. Workers Compensation – For those hit hardest the unfortunate reality is staff numbers will have reduced. Have you made sure the lower wages are reflected on your Workers Compensation insurance?
8. Stamp Duty Exemption – Businesses in NSW are heavily taxed when it comes to insurance But companies throughout the state with a turnover under $2m could be exempt from paying Stamp duty on certain insurance types, this could be $1,000’s.
9. Open Claims – What about all those incidents and claims that might have occurred over the years that you simply didn’t have time to claim or follow-up? Reopening claims is not difficult. Chase reimbursements to those claims that you are entitled too!
10. Just ask for help! – Many insurers are happy to come up with some form of relief for those businesses that have policies that are not being used. Refunds for months where operations have ceased or extensions to credit terms are just some of the ways insurers have helped our clients that have been most affected.

Hopefully, a few of these ideas will help you save money during these uncertain times. But it would be wrong of us to ignore the growing risk in some other areas. As businesses adapt and life gets harder for many employees there will no doubt be new and growing risks for those businesses that are having to find new ways of keeping the doors open. Those having to make the difficult choice to reduce staff numbers will have increased chances of employment practices litigation, as times get harder there may be an increased risk of crime and fidelity incidents, and with more staff working remotely there comes greater potential for cyber vulnerabilities.

What’s most important is to consider how the changes you are making to your business will affect your insurance policies. Insurances are only useful if they remain up to date, a proactive Insurance Broker will be able to make sure you’re correctly covered and your premiums are competitive.

If you are unhappy with your current level of service, or would just like another opinion on the appropriateness of your current insurance program. Please feel free to contact https://www.ausurehorizon.com.au/ or 1300 639 000