January 2004

a broker can manage all your business needs

Nearly four in five* (79%) of the UK's small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) have no business continuity plan in place and face severe business interruption at their own cost should disaster strike. With this in mind, the online search facility, www.insurancexpert.co.uk is urging the UK's 3.5million SMEs to speak to their local insurance broker to ensure they have all their business assets insured and are prepared for every eventuality.

Figures** show that fire and theft accounted for more than two thirds (65%) of all general business claims in the second quarter of 2003, both of which can result in new work premises and equipment being needed. Not only this, natural disasters and terrorist attacks are becoming more common place and coupled with the increasing risk of fire, theft, flooding, vandalism and the resulting collapse of IT systems, mean if businesses aren't adequately insured, the costs can be highly detrimental.

Business interruption insurance protects a company from the loss of turnover or trading profits from damage to a company's property that prevents the normal operation of the business. A local insurance broker can assess your business' individual needs and offer expert, impartial advice on both valuations and premiums from across the market as a whole, finding you a competitive and, where necessary, tailored policy.

Derek Gibbens, spokesperson for www.insurancexpert.co.uk comments: "Apart from the standard risk that any business should be aware of, many small and medium sized businesses require specialist insurance needs above and beyond the standard policies available on the market and would benefit from having these needs serviced by their local insurance broker. Not only do brokers understand your individual business needs more, but they are on hand to offer continuing service and advice throughout the policy, and most importantly in the event of a claim, saving your business time and money."

"Shopping around for the best insurance policy available has never been more important, especially in today's turbulent world, and a broker can scour the market for you to find the best deal. They have expert knowledge of the thousands of policies available and can negotiate on your behalf to find one that has specialist cover to suit all your business needs."

New online search facility, www.insurancexpert.co.uk offers a local insurance broker search facility specifically for small businesses. The free online search facility is easy to use, offering details of specialist insurance brokers for small businesses based on selected postcodes or towns. The site also offers a specialist knowledge centre containing educational tips on how to get the best insurance deals, particularly for small businesses, what to do when things go wrong, and how a broker can facilitate this for you. It highlights the benefits of dealing with a local or specialist broker and provides tips on buying insurance and making a claim.

For more information visit www.insurancexpert.co.uk

*According to Xbridge, May 2003
** General business claims results – quarter 2, 2003, Association of British Insurers