Posted by
Standard Bank Namibia
on 18 Apr 18
Categories:
Legal & Insurance
If you own or rent a commercial property, you need insurance. It's as simple as that. From offices, shopping complexes, industrial factories and warehouses, to distribution centres, residential complexes and hotels, commercial properties are prone to a unique set of risks you won't find in residential properties, and which require tailored insurance products.
Have a look at the list of potential risks below and ask yourself if your business is truly covered in the event of the unforeseen?
Unwelcome guests
If you're in the tourism industry, it could happen that you will be liable for theft or damages occurring to uninsured goods belonging to your guests. There's also the problem of guests heading off without paying their bills, leaving you a bit lighter on profits.
Light fingers
Shoplifting is a headache faced by shop owners everywhere. Of particular concern is that insurance companies usually need to see signs of forced entry when investigating theft claims - whereas there are usually few, if any, signs of a shoplifters dirty work.
Putting out fires
No, we're not talking about the metaphorical fires of everyday work crises, we're referring to actual fires which might spring up, and require you to extinguish or fight them at considerable cost.
Stock standard
Do you deal with food or other perishables? Then you need to consider what would happen if your refrigerator goes on the blink overnight and leaves you with a rotting pile of unsellable stock. And what about if you rent cars or bicycles or other stock which leaves your premises and returns in a less-than-ideal state? All points to ponder.
Normal service will resume... shortly
Your building might be subject to forces beyond your control which leave your business unable to operate as normal. Earthquakes, floods, sinkholes, wayward trucks crashing through your wall - these are all potential culprits. If you can't work, you can't earn, which could affect your ability to pay bills, salaries, expenses and other important stuff.
Goods on the go
If your goods have to travel,whether from the factory to the shop down the road, or across the border into a neighbouring country, you'll need to consider the transit risks, including traffic accidents, delays, breakdowns and other such issues.
When good machines go bad
All equipment eventually breaks down. Whether it's relatively inexpensive kit such as laptops, or massive apparatus such as mining excavators, the costs of repair will always hot your pocket hard, unless you're covered.
Be prepared
This list only scratches the surface of commercial property risk. There's also the 'traditional' risks of window breakages, employee dishonesty, power surge damage and so on, all of which tend to pop up at inopportune times. If you're worried that you're not fully covered, consider getting in touch with the Standard Bank Commercial Property Insurance team and have a chat about your options.