Protect your Business!
I recently read an article indicating that approximately half of small businesses do not have a formal plan for their business.
Being a business owner means you probably have a million things on the go. But although you are busy, do not ignore the need to consider what would happen to your business if one of the owners or a key person within your business:
- Dies
- Has a long period of illness,
- Suffers a total and permanent disability (TPD)
Assuming the aim would be for your business to continue if any of these events were to occur, suitable business plans should be made for the selection of a successor or distributing the proceeds of the business. A failure to make such plans for these issues could result in the immediate failure of your business or at the very least, create unnecessary complications.
Conversations we have with our small to medium business clients typically include consideration to:
- Who is to take control of the business and how is the transfer to be funded,
- What may happen to the business if a key employee can no longer work in the business due to disability or death or another event.
This issue of key staff, managers or directors can be easily overlooked. Without these people your business could struggle – a director whose credit rating and guarantees provide loan funding to a business, a sales manager who has developed important relationships, producing a high level of sales and contributes to the profitability of the business, or a manager who has extensive knowledge of business operations, systems and processes that keep the business running smoothly.
We understand that insurance cannot cover every situation. However it can be used to cover events including death, total and permanent disability, and critical illness. Insuring key people within your business as well as the business owners is a critical component when we are looking to guide small to medium business owners on how to protect their business.
We believe the following areas should be addressed:
- Keeping the business going.
- Business succession planning.
- Protecting you and your family personally.
Our role with our clients involves:
- Exploring needs and creating an insurance solution.
- Determining the types of cover required.
- Determining the amount of cover required.
- Selection of most appropriate products.
- Facilitating the underwriting process.
There is a lot to consider!
We can play an important role for you around the provision of advice in these areas, including helping to identify your needs, coordinating other specialists – typically an accountant and solicitor/lawyer, as well as all the requirements to implement the correct strategy for your business.
Andrew Bolingbroke enjoys building long-term relationships with clients and working alongside them as their life plans develop and change over time. This gives his clients confidence that, through Boutique Advisers, they have clarity and structure around their finances. Andrew enjoys working collaboratively with clients’ other trusted advisers to ensure that they have a truly holistic financial journey.
