Effective risk management strategies can safeguard your business continuity amidst disruptive events, protect the financial health of your business from unforeseen losses, and ensure you follow regulatory requirements in Australia. Given Australia’s vulnerability to natural disasters, risk mitigation also significantly prepares small businesses for such events.

But did you know that Risk mitigation also plays an important role in organising your insurance? Insurers will assess your business’s risk and the chance of a potential claim when deciding on the premium or if they will offer insurance. If a business does nothing to reduce the risk of a potential claim event, insurers will either choose to increase your premium or not offer terms at all.

Things that insurers often consider include:

• Security and Maintenance on your premises to reduce the risk of a claimable event
  • • • Alarms
      • Security Cameras
      • Fire Hydrants
      • Controlled Access Points
      • Temperature Sensors (particularly important if you stock items that can spoil due to low or high temperatures)

• Cybersecurity measures to reduce risk of Cyber Attack
  • • • Secure password practices
      • Firewalls, Anti-Virus Software
      • Regular Backups
      • Multiple directors to authorise payments
      • Staff training to make them cyber aware
      • Incident response plans on potential cyber attacks

• Good OH&S practices if you are considering a Management Liability, Professional Indemnity, or Directors & Officers policy
  • • • Staff training and education on
        • Harassment & Discrimination
        • Safety training
      • Company policies and procedures

• Business Continuity plan on how your business will continue to operate in response to a disaster or major disruption
  • • • The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the importance of preparing for risks that don’t allow a business to operate from their premises. Businesses should develop a plan that allows them to continue to get an income, in a similar scenario. The plan may include flexible working arrangements, such as remote working capabilities or diversifying your products or services. An example of this would be a service professional who cannot meet with clients in the office, to work from home and offer Zoom/Teams meeting with clients. Or, a restaurant who cannot open it’s doors, to offer food delivery, or paid cooking classes virtually.

These mitigation measures reduce the likelihood of needing to make a claim and can also potentially lower premium costs, as they lower the overall risk associated with insuring the business.

Ausure Brokers can help guide you with specialised businesses in helping you assess potential risks