Bosses confused over insurance policies
TEES bosses said they are confused by insurance policies, as new research showed many were putting their business at risk.
According to market research firm Onepoll, one in ten small businesses in the North-east didn’t know if they were insured and 29% admitted to having little or no idea what their policy covered.
If misfortune struck, up to 3,800 of the region’s 107,000 small business owners could be risking their homes by operating without insurance because they have given personal guarantees against their business.
Chris Howitt, owner of CMH Joinery in Darlington, said the onus was on insurance advisors to do more to help.
“Sometimes people are shocked when they file a claim and are told they are not getting the money they thought they were entitled to.
“We’re insured for up to £7m on public liability. If we didn’t have the correct level of cover, we wouldn’t get the work”.
Denis Pinnegar, business development director for BiB Insurance in Darlington, said companies needed to wise up. He said: “You wouldn’t drive to work without a seat belt on. Businesses should take steps to ensure they have the appropriate insurance, which is a critical part of a company’s risk management portfolio”.
One third of respondents to the survey said the time-consuming and overly complicated process of arranging business insurance pushed it down the list of their priorities.
