Healthy outcomes start with a conversation with us.
Is your business insurance up to date? It’s vital to review your insurance program regularly— especially if you’ve been with the same broker and insurer for several years.
As your business changes over time, your risks, priorities and needs will change as well. An insurance health check can ensure your program remains competitively priced and relevant for your business.
What does a health check involve?
Insurance health checks should not be driven solely by a quest for lower premiums. Brokers sometimes focus too much on comparing premiums or insurers. Ensuring good financial value is important, but as your broker we’ll check your policies comprehensively to identify potential gaps and ensure all insurable risks are covered. Where necessary, we’ll involve qualified professionals, such as engineers, forensic accountants or insurance property valuers.
A robust health check usually includes evaluation of:
- All policy terms and conditions
- Adequacy of the sum insured, deductibles and premiums
- Specified limits and sub-limits for all insured risks
- Physical risk exposures with assets, contracts, liability and people
- Risk tolerance and mitigation strategies
- Policy appropriateness in light of recent claims trends
The outcome of a health check should be a formal report, including a traffic light analysis (Acceptable, Review and Change) to indicate key recommendations.
When should I request a health check?
Health checks are particularly useful when business circumstances change; such as if you’re expanding your business, acquiring or selling.
Similarly, changes to your claims trends may warrant a review. If you’ve changed insurers a few times in the past, your broker should specifically enquire about the reasons why.
How can I achieve better value from a health check?
Don’t be reluctant to challenge your broker, and don’t be offended if your broker challenges you. It’s all part of exploring your tolerance for risk and understanding where there are exposures that you are not comfortable with.
Ask if your broker can recommend structural changes to lower your premiums. Combining separate policies can sometimes achieve significant savings. Alternatively, splitting insurance programs can be more appropriate for certain business models.
Your insurance health check is also an opportunity to provide feedback on your broker relationship. Factors you may wish to consider include whether their service model is working for you, and whether you feel the right people are working on managing your needs.
Health checks are also a good way to measure the competence and passion your broker has for winning your business.
It’s all about selling your risk to the insurance marketplace.
There’s a lot to think about, and that’s where a great broker can help. Properly prepared, robust conversations with your broker are vital for achieving the best possible insurance outcomes.
By asking and answering the right questions, you can secure the right balance of protection that enables your business to confidently trade, grow, and recover in the event of a loss.