3 quick fire reasons your businesses needs separate cyber insurance

By PETER VICKERS INSURANCE BROKERS | business, small business, Insurance, Cyber Security, business insurance |

PETER VICKERS INSURANCE BROKERS

For the first time ever Cyber insurance has topped the global risks for SME’s in Allianz’s Risk Barometer 2020.

What once seemed an insignificant risk is now dominating the insurance market – so why are so many businesses exposed to a cyber-attack?

Smaller companies often face more exposure to cyber criminals – with less sophisticated IT systems, less budget and the inability to properly train their staff to spot an attack, such as a phishing email.

While all business owners would have a business insurance policy they may not necessarily be covered for a cyber-attack. Here a 3 top reasons why it might be worth considering purchasing a cyber-policy.

Business insurance packages may not include cyber insurance

Peter Vickers Insurance Brokers has seen an increase in business packages including cyber insurance as part of the package but it’s important to understand that this is extremely basic cover and will often leave business owners underinsured.

Almost every business now holds some form of customer data from emails to names and over 80% of business now trade online. If your IT systems are compromised it is most likely that your cyber policy cover included in your business package won’t actually provide adequate protection to help your business recover after an attack – both from a monetary value and your reputation.

Just as business insurance packages can offer add-ons, so can cyber insurance packages allowing you to find the policy that best suits your needs for a reasonable premium.

Your business might be covered but what about third party coverage

While your own business might be covered in the event of a hack or cyber-attack it’s important to note that there could be significant affects to other third parties associated with your business. Losses can be suffered by others in the event of an incident depending on the relationship with the business and this can have series legal and costly consequences.

Full cyber protection can cover costs associated with remediation, including payment for the legal assistance, investigators, crisis communicators, and customer credits or refunds.

Don’t forget that insurance is the last line of defence

Just purchasing cyber insurance won’t protect your business. As business owners it’s important to work to identify risks and to educate your staff on cyber risks. For the last two years negligent employees have been the root cause of the data breaches which businesses experienced.

If a business has failed to appropriately train an employee or a contractors basic cyber cover included in your business package may not be valid, rendering it useless. Many of Peter Vickers Insurance Brokers clients have experienced this and we now advise all clients to consider purchasing an additional policy.

Please remember that the advice in this article is general and each business will have its own unique needs and risks. Please contact one of our insurance brokers to understand about how cyber insurance can benefit your business.

In 2019, business interruption was classed as the top concern for businesses globally for the sixth year running. Yet this cover remains one of the most misunderstood areas of insurance for business owners. This case study details a real-life scenario where business interruption insurance was essential to save our client's livelihood after a critical fire.

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