How would you sum up your 2021?
For most businesses, it’s been a bad year in terms of losses. Income and profit have been hit hard and without a drive to innovate, most businesses have ended up folding.
If your business is still up and running, then you’re one of the lucky ones.
Now let’s talk about your insurance. Is it up for renewal yet? Have you used it up? Are you planning on changing insurance companies to find better discounts?
Well, you might want to learn how you can efficiently do that with these tips.
Know Your Loss History and set a better budget
Insurance underwriters are always on the lookout for areas of vulnerability to increase rates where they can on your coverage policy. To mitigate these instances, you need to find out what your loss history is. Understand what contributed to those losses and how you can minimize the recurrence of such events.
By doing this, you’ll hit two birds with one stone. You’ll know more about how to make your business more secure from damages and losses and at the same time get better discounts on the insurance policies you carry out.
Insurance rate increases are constant. It doesn’t matter how clean your loss history is, when the industry raises the rates, you will have no choice but to comply or find a better insurance company that can give you a better deal.
Now you need to set a budget and allow for increases in the future. A modest forecast would be a 10-15% increase at least 60 days before renewal.
To help you set a better budget scheme, try to find your areas of vulnerabilities and loss history to get a better idea of where you can improve.
In a perfect world, you’d want full coverage in all aspects of your insurance policy. In the real world, you may not need as much inclusivity. The reason for that is this: the wider the coverage, the more expensive it becomes.
From a financial standpoint, this isn’t a wise decision. Would you really need flood protection when your business is situated in an elevated, arid location? How about fire? Do you really need to drive up the cost of your insurance when your risk of catching fire is especially low?
So, understand your loss history, create a proper budget, and understand your risk loss to set what you need in your insurance policy coverage appropriately.
Don’t Wait Until Your Insurance is Up for Renewal to shop around.
The Early Bird Gets The Worm
Don’t wait until your insurance’s renewal is almost up. The looming threat of an expiration date is sure to drive you to enter into a contract that’s not necessarily in your best interests. Worse, you could be renewing your old contract that isn’t exactly fit for your requirements.
So, in order to prevent this from happening, shop around early and find the insurance companies that offer the best deals at the right price.
Even if you’re happy with your current insurance company, it still helps to know what else is out there. Who knows, you just might find something better than your current plan or compel your current insurance company to match what the competition offers to ensure your loyalty.
Build A Strong Relationship with Your Agent/Broker
Agents and brokers work on a commission. The better the deal they get for you, the better the commission you get.
Now, if you really want to give them more incentive to help you out, build a stronger relationship with them. In that way, you’ll always be on their mind when they find the best deals in town.
The key thing here is to always be transparent with your agent/broker with what you need and what you are prepared to pay for. In turn, you should also listen to their input as to what is best for your company, whether you like it or not.
By being transparent with your agent/broker, you can reach a middle ground in terms of the best insurance policy for your company.
Get the Insurance Policy that you need
Last but not least, find the right insurance that your company needs. Not the one based on your wants.
Some people believe that the best insurance policies advertised by insurance companies are the ones they need. This may be applicable for the vast majority but, if you’re serious about increasing your protection without the added cost, consult your broker/agent and find the one you truly need.
Contrary to popular belief, customizing your insurance policy doesn’t necessarily make it more expensive. In fact, with the right assessment, you can reduce the price by taking the necessary steps to minimize perceived risks that insurance policy underwriters believe your company possesses.
Now, this doesn’t mean you should seek out the insurance company that offers the lowest prices in the market. You should do your research and seek guidance from your broker/agent to lead you o the best deals. Do your research and you’ll be able to secure an insurance policy that’s neither too expensive nor too cheap and still cover the bases.
Up For a Renewal? Never Miss Out Again with COI Tracker!
COI Tracker is the most efficient insurance policy software in the market today that ensures you’ll never lapse again. COI Tracker makes renewing your insurance easy as it sends reminders early. You can set the alert however early you want to ensure you have a long lead time to secure a better deal.
It also helps you organize the certificates of insurance policies your contractors or vendors submit to you for business purposes. This efficient recording software ensures the COIs in your possession are valid throughout the course of your project.
For more information about the product, send us an email or call us at COI Tracker. We can provide a demo for you if you are interested in the product. We can also answer your questions if you want to know more about what we offer.