Your business and the conditions in which it operates are dynamic, so it’s important to review and update your insurance regularly. Ensuring that you have the right type and level of insurance cover for your business needs as they evolve, means appropriate financial protection against potential losses and greater peace of mind in a claim.
If your insurance broker doesn’t have up-to-date information about your business, they won’t be able to deliver customised protection against your unique risks that every business owner deserves. Why? Insurance companies will only agree to offer coverage for the information disclosed to them at the time a policy is taken out. If anything important is left out, you’re unlikely to have protection in a claim.
The pandemic posed many new challenges for businesses to ensure a safe workplace for their staff and customers — as they are legally required to do. It’s important that your business insurance policy covers you for any new requirements in your industry.
While workplace conditions have been particularly fluid over the past few years with vacant or changing premises, fluctuating stock levels, and staff movements, business conditions are forecast to continue evolving over the coming years. Change, as the saying goes, is the only certainty and your business insurance policy must reflect this to ensure you are protected in an insurance claim. Be sure to let your broker know if any of these situations apply to you, as soon as possible, so they can make any necessary changes to your coverage.
It’s no secret that Australia has experienced a property boom in recent years. While much of the media focus has been on the boom in residential property prices, the value of many commercial properties has also risen as construction costs increase.
If you haven’t had your commercial property valued recently, you should seriously consider doing so. Due to the increase in costs of construction materials, the sums insured nominated at your last insurance renewal could fall substantially short of what you need in the event you need to make property repairs or rebuild. A revised valuation can help ensure you can purchase an appropriate level of insurance coverage, and you won’t be left out of pocket in a claim.
Likewise, if the value of your business assets has changed, this could also affect the amount of business insurance cover you need. For example, if you have taken advantage of tax incentives to buy new assets, such as the temporary full expensing scheme, then you may have more business assets to insure than you had a year ago.
Most businesses will need to evolve their offerings to stay relevant, meet market needs and remain profitable. If you’ve introduced new products or services since you last reviewed and updated your business insurance, you could have additional liability insurance requirements.
While Product Liability Insurance isn’t required by Australian law, it is strongly recommended for any business working with any type of product. The addition or removal of products will likely require changes to your policy. Similarly, any changes you make to the types and formats of services you offer should be followed by a policy review to ensure you have appropriate insurance protection in place.
Failing to review or update your business insurance coverage to cater for your changing business needs can leave you uninsured, underinsured, or both. Either of these outcomes could affect the survival of your business in a worst-case scenario claim. At the very least, they could seriously impact your business continuity and cost your bottom line dearly.
Having the right type and level of coverage instead will minimise the impact of negative events on your business. It can help ensure you’re able to continue on the planned trajectory for your business, without facing destabilising situations where you’re without suitable cover to protect you in a claim.
CBN Insurance brokers are here to help you review and renew your business insurance coverage according to your specific circumstances. We get that life and business changes, and we’ll always take the time to understand your needs before recommending appropriate types and levels of business insurance cover for you.
Connect with a CBN Insurance Broker today to help ensure your insurance truly covers all your current business needs.
