Over the last few days we have been hearing snippets of information from Sony and the hack of it’s PlayStation network. Being an Xbox live person, I have never been a member of the PS network, but assume that it is a very similar type of system, as far as storage of personal details is concerned.

We should never accuse anyone of complacency, but you do tend to find with regular online payment networks, that the smaller the amount the less attention you pay to it. So, you have a regular credit card subscription of £10 every month, you just tend to accept it and it continues. Then, a super hack steals the details of not a few, but potentially millions of customers. The guy on the radio this morning said that credit card details are only worth a couple of dollars each, so they would get a potential $50,000,000. Simple maths tells us that up to 25M peoples details may have been stolen.

The question is, was this just a “teenage hacker” or someone more sinister. The answer is, in the vast majority likely to be, more sinister. So how does this “fit” with compensation, seeing as we are more litigious now?

Whatever Sony decide, will be in association with not only their lawyers, but also their business insurance company. Not that we expect there to be any compensation paid, because it is likely to fall to the credit card companies.

But here in the UK, what happens if you store customers card details and then lose them? The answer is, very little actually. You cannot claim on your pub, shop or restaurant insurance policy, because there has not been a physical loss. We keep customers card details, locked away, for a period of 18 months, but without the three digit security code. This is in case we have to refund any monies and always pay this to the card that paid the insurance in the first instance. This is a fraud prevention measure and, without the 3 digit code, the card details are useless.

So, if yo do decide to store some details, make sure you ditch the 3 digit code.

If you look in the press today, one of the major newspapers are stating that your insurance for the family car is going to be nearly a £1,000 per year. Now, we all know that newspapers like a bit of scaremongering, and the £1k a year bill will probably only apply to people living in the cities, parking on the street.

However, there is no smoke without fire and insurance premiums are definitely on the increase. We have some companies who have not had an increase on their business insurance premiums for three or four years. This year though we are going to have to put through a small increase, just a few percent, but I know that they are going to bleat that they should not have an increase. But, even looking at inflation over the past 18 months, realistically they should expect some sort of increase, whether or not there has been a claim or not.

But, if a business is realistic, what sort of premium increase should they expect? In January this year, the insurance premium tax rate increased by 1%. So, without even thinking about a “profit” increase, the tax rate has already gone up. So, in addition to the 1%, what should you really expect? If you have been claims free for a few years, your expectation should be for an increase in the region of 2 or 3%, plus the 1% IPT rise.

It depends on the type of product though, takeaway and restaurant insurance premiums are increasing at a higher rate than maybe, office and shop insurance. This is due to insurers individual experiences with these types of risks. As far as takeaways, fish and chip shops and restaurants are concerned, more and more insurers are withdrawing from the market. As they withdraw, the basic economic principle of supply and demand kicks in, which means they can charge higher premiums than they could last year.

If you are finding that you have had an increase over and above the few percent we have mentioned, then you really should give us a call to see what we can do for you.

But

Most UK based restaurants and takeaways, operate from buildings either leased, or rented, from a third party landlord. A formal legal agreement, or lease, is usually provided. When we say usually, it is not a legal requirement to have a lease, for example if a family member or friend is letting to someone. But, without a lease there can be hugely complex legal issues arising in the event of damage.

Think about the example when a property is let short term, “to help a friend out”. This is all well and good, but what happens if the windows are smashed or worse, there is a fire or flood? Who is responsible for the repairs?

If there is a lease in existence, it will specify who exactly is responsible for arranging the commercial building insurance. It may be the landlord, who then charges the tenant. Or, alternatively the tenant may have a full insuring and repairing lease when they have to arrange cover for the structure (as well as their own contents and liabilities).

As experienced an experience business insurance broker, we would estimate that in England and Wales, over 90% of lease agreements state that the landlord arranges a separate policy. For the remainder, the tenant is responsible.

However, within these lease agreements, even if the landlord arranges cover for the building, the tenant is normally responsible for certain parts of cover. We usually explain that buildings should cover everything that you would not normally take with you if you moved location. This will include the shop front glass. But, not all policies will cover this. And, in the example we are talking about here for restaurant insurance, it is up to the owner of the business to ensure that their package policy also cover the glass. You should also check that you have an adequate limit.

Many policies include this, but for a basic couple of thousand pounds. When you add up the potential costs if all the windows in the premises were smashed, this is likely to be many, many thousands of pounds.

Over the last few years we have been inundated by adverts telling us to “cut out the middle man” and go direct. In certain circumstances, there is a benefit to going direct, but you have to know exactly what you want. This tends to only work if you are buying a physical product. When you are looking at financial services, such as insuring your assets and liabilities, a business insurance broker is that person you need to speak to.

But why, what does a broker do for you that you cannot do yourself? The first you need to know is that a broker does not charge you for advising you on the cover you need, nor for actually going out and getting the quotes for you. So whether you think they are adding a benefit or not, there is not cost to you in finding out.

We liken it to looking for a needle in a haystack, on your behalf. You can, if you spend long enough looking around get yourself a quote. But there is no need for you to do this as a broker will look around on your behalf. There are hundreds of different insurers, with only a handful happy to deal with different types of cover, say restaurant insurance, direct.

It is difficult therefore even to find an insurer that does not operate solely through a broker. So why do insurers choose to accept business only through brokerages? The reason is that very, very few insurers actually provide all types of cover. Some will look for pubs and shops and others will look for hotels and oil rigs. A broker knows exactly what a particular insurer wants to underwrite. You approach them with your individual business requirements and before the phone call has even finished they have a pretty good idea of which insurer they will approach.