Between the lasting effects of the pandemic, catastrophic losses from hurricanes, hailstorms, and wildfires to the mix and you’ve got a pile of costly claims that are impacting the cost of insurance and making a focus on organizational resilience more important than ever.
In addition, surging inflation, supply chain delays and the rising cost of goods have increased the cost of doing business nationwide. These challenges, coupled with rampant inflation,1 have insurers raising premiums and reducing limits to cope with the rising cost of claims.
The current state of the insurance market requires businesses to have present themselves in the best possible light to enable their brokers to present the best-case scenario to insurers.
This means that in partnership with your insurance advisor, demonstrate to the marketplace why they should want your business (i.e., a good loss history and corrective measures taken to prevent similar losses from reoccurring, proactive risk management/transfer practices, proper safety protocols, and property upgrades.)
The following are 5 ways to reduce risk in a volatile insurance marketplace:
As the global economy grapples with a potential recession, organizations need to prepare for potential premium hikes and take steps to make their businesses a more attractive risk. Organizations should:
1. Improve their properties’ risk profile.
With shrinking capacity in many property insurance markets around the country, hospitality businesses need to stand out as “best in class” risks. Incorporate mitigation tools, such as installing water leakage alarms, improving security monitoring, and scheduling regular maintenance of higher-risk equipment, such as HVAC systems and fire sprinkler systems.
2. Prioritize exposures.
In these economic conditions, organizations will likely need to take on more risk. Reassess and evaluate deductibles, limits, and insurance program structures to identify areas where the company can maximize its bang for the buck. This may include raising deductibles or self-insured retentions or decreasing limits to reduce premiums.
3. Reevaluate the valuation of assets.
With repairs and replacement costs up significantly over the past few years, reassessing the value of your business assets is crucial. Make sure policy limits reflect anticipated replacement and labor costs.
4. Embed risk reduction in company culture.
Making safety and wellness key tenets of the workplace can reduce workers compensation claims and also improve worker satisfaction by showing employees the organization cares about their well-being.
5. Be creative.
Don’t be afraid to look beyond the primary market for coverage in these volatile times. Retain an expert to help identify the biggest exposures and develop an insurance strategy to best protect against those risks.
It’s important to work with an experienced insurance advisor on navigating inflation insurance pricing in challenging market conditions.
1 Insurance Journal, “Home, Commercial Rate Hikes Not Enough to Offset Construction Costs: Moody’s,” May 19, 2022.
2 Pew Research Center: “In the U.S. and around the world, inflation is high and getting higher,” June 15, 2022.
