Your insurance agent should be able to advise you on how to reduce and leverage your risk. These four, free value-added services are just some of the ways we can help you make better business decisions.
1. Reviewing Contracts
Often times, businesses sign work contracts that require proof of insurance, so they’ll come to us for a certificate of insurance. Clients often contact us after signing a contract. Then sometimes they find out they don’t have the coverage they thought they had. Contacting your agent before signing contracts can help you figure out whether it makes sense to move forward. If we review ahead of time and can say up front “you’re missing XYZ coverages,” it gives you options. You can decide to comply, increase the bid to help cover the cost if that applies, or negotiate that out of the contract. It at least lets you know ahead of time that you could be spending additional money. In some instances, you could be making less than the cost of the insurance requirements.
2. Building Your Employee Handbook
Many small businesses feel that they don’t need Employment Practice Liability (EPL) insurance. The sentiment is that you don’t need protection from discrimination or sexual harassment lawsuits. Many small business owners think, “we know each other, it wouldn’t happen to us.” According to a recent study, more than half of all EPL claims are against employers with fewer than 50 employees.
Even if you don’t want to purchase EPL coverage, it’s important to have an employee handbook. Having your HR policies and procedures formally outlines will help in preventing and defending against EPL claims. We have easy to use programs that guide you through the process. There are over 100 templates you can choose from to find a handbook format that fits your business. We can also connect you with trusted experts if you would like additional advice.
3. Offering Electronic OSHA Logs
Our online tool for keeping electronic OSHA logs makes recordkeeping much easier. And, it allows you to actually put that data to use. Our tool allows you to drill-down into reports and run analytics. This allows you to identify areas to focus on, like employee safety training. As employee awareness about workplace hazards and safety increases, workers are more likely to follow safe work practices. This in turn helps reduce risk and claims. There is also the ability to upload existing spreadsheets so you don’t lose historical data. When needed, it’s great to be able to securely generate OSHA mandated reports and forms from the electronic records you’ve already created.
[Read More: OSHA Small Business Handbook]
4. Providing Cyber Security Guidance
Unless you’re a kid running a lemonade stand in your front yard, your business needs to be thinking about cyber security. We offer various types of cyber coverage, plus guidance on reducing cyber risk and assistance with putting best practices in place. Three of our team members are Accredited Cyber Risk Advisors (ACRA), a designation by the Beyond Insurance Global Network. The ACRA professional designation consists of a fast-paced, deep dive into the complex world of cyber insurance, to train and certify select industry professionals in cyber security best practices.
We’ve all seen the news about recent cyber attacks, so we understand that it’s important to do everything possible to prevent an incident. Insurance may cover the financial cost, but it can’t erase reputation damage or the impact to clients in the event of operating down-time.
[Read More: Cyber Security for Your Small Business]