Many SMEs unprepared in event of a claim, says Zurich’s claims proposition manager

Neil Fraser, the claims proposition manager at Zurich, has said that many SMEs will find themselves unprepared in the event that they need to make a claim.

Fraser has told Insurance Business that a large number of SMEs may not have even considered whether they have the right level of cover, and will not do so until they have to call upon their insurer. This level of ignorance partly exists because a great deal of SMEs do not think they will ever have to deal with a claim, says Fraser.

“You don’t expect your shop or your office space to go up in flames, or to have a flood or a traumatic escape of water which means that you can’t operate,” Fraser told Insurance Business.

“Coming into your shop and finding it has burnt down, or getting the call from the fire brigade that your shop is on fire is obviously very traumatic and worrying. [SMEs] are in business and are trying to make money, and there’s often a lot tied up in those premises.”

Fraser also said that perceptions that insurers are unwilling to pay out on claims, were far from true.

“The worst thing possible from a claims handler’s point of view is to find that there are doubts about the policy cover,” he said.

He urged SMEs to think about claims before they happen and towork with their brokers to make sure they’ve got the right cover. It was also important to be honest about the cover that they needed he said, and to make sure that they are not using outdated figures when securing insurance.

He added that even the smallest business should have a recovery plan, including an immediate strategy for what to do on the first day a claim happens.

Mark Dugdale