Business Interruption Insurance covers financial losses that are a direct consequence of a fire or flood. Business Interruption will assist with elements such as loss of profit, loss of rental and additional staff costs. Business interruption looks forwards not backwards, so quite often a Business Interruption claim runs for several years as the financial loss to a business continues long after it reopens. You may also have other costs, such as marketing and advertising, that are needed to get customers back on board. These are all taken into account with Business Interruption.
BOOK APPOINTMENTJustifying how your business would be performing, had the claim not occurred, is extremely challenging. You have to show to Insurers the company's performance historically, and other factors that could have influenced trading over the interrupted period. Markets are examined in your specific industry to see how it's performing generally, as well as local factors such as increases or decreases in your market share due to competition. Preparing, collating and presenting these to Insurers to maximise your entitlement is a time-consuming and tactical exercise requiring significant experience, vision, and imagination.
CLAIMS PROCESSLoss Adjusters and Forensic Accountants appointed by your Insurers often seek to make this process difficult. We are only interested in getting the best settlement for you by presenting your case in an accurate and forward-thinking way. Whilst being mindful of your obligations to mitigate the loss, we also offer practical advice based on over 70 years of experience.
When you call Insurers, a Loss Adjuster will be appointed by them to investigate the claim. Remember, the Loss Adjuster is not independent, they are retained by the Insurance Company to look after their interests and minimise any pay out. They will try to repudiate the claim if they feel you have not met the conditions of your policy.
They may argue that you are under-insured, applying techniques to significantly reduce your claim value. Insurers also usually appoint Forensic Scientist teams to aid their quest of repudiating (not paying) a claim. In fact, all the third party "specialists" employed to investigate your claim are not truly independent parties - they are engaged and paid by the Insurance Company.
To minimise the impact on Business Interruption, our primary role is to diminish the impact to your day-to-day operations, helping your business to recover. We will assist in locating temporary offices, warehouses, plant, machinery, hire and other temporary arrangements. We can also deal with press agencies, your employees and other internal or external parties.
Appeasing staff and suppliers without jeopardising your Insurable position is also important. If employees and suppliers think the business may not survive then this can have a devastating effect on the company. Banks and other investors will also want to know the likelihood of a successful outcome from the Insurance Claim. We can deal with this for you too.
You will receive no support from Insurers or Loss Adjusters for this. It is in their interests to try to dictate the level of cover to minimise any pay-out. This is a niche area and we can ensure you receive your true entitlement.
You may be a good negotiator but are you an expert in insurance? DON'T GO IT ALONE.
Make your property safe and mitigate any additional damage.
Collate the required information and negotiate your entire claim including including but not limited to Reinstatement Works, Stock or Content Losses & Business Interruption.
Oversee all parties including Insurers Loss Adjusters and their Specialists.
Interpret your policy, its wording and any conflicts relating to compliance with its conditions.
Push Insurers to accept liability as quickly as possible, in order to obtain Interim Payments to help you maintain your business operations.
Maximise your entitlement of Business Interruption cover and justify any Increased Costs of Working.
Survey the property to identify any defects not visible to the naked eye to protect your long term investment.
Aid with specialist appointments should assistance be required in complex situations such as your own forensic scientists.
