10 Ways To Lower Your Business Insurance Premiums!

Insurance is one of those things that is absolutely crucial for any business – or family – but which we often pay somewhat begrudgingly.

There is nothing fun or sexy about insurance. No child ever said, "I want to be an insurance agent when I grow up!"

This is an expense that you ‘need’ and not one that you want. Not only that, but there is every chance that you will never need it. In fact, you would definitely hope that this would be the case!

So, this presents something of an affront – you’re paying out a rather large fee every single month, all the while hoping that you never actually get to benefit from it!

Of course, we all know the perils of deciding not to take out insurance. If you should find yourself needing it, this can then be enough to cripple your business.

So instead, the objective should simply be to get that insurance for the lowest amount possible – by lowering your premiums.

In this post, you will discover ten ways to do precisely that.

1) Update Your File

The first thing you need to do is to review and update your insurance file. This file should contain all your insurance policies so that you can get to them quickly as they are needed. It’s also a good idea to keep copies of all claim forms here and to have copies of claim forms for each type of policy. Keep a duplicate insurance file at an off-site location too – just in case anything ever happens to the original!

2) Review Auto and Equipment Schedules

While you’re going through this file, now is the time to review schedule of covered vehicles, machinery, and more. One thing to make sure of at this point, is that you don’t still have items listed here that you no longer own.

Quickly go through the policies and then ask your broker to update them to reflect any changes if necessary.

Also ensure that the vehicles are still valued at what they were originally listed at. The value of your policy will be based on the cash value of those vehicles. Seeing as those values decline over time, you need to ensure this is reflected in your policy.

3) Review Your Employee List

Another thing that will change over time is your employee list. Companies will turnover new employees and it’s important that you review the list of vehicle drivers from time to time. Your insurer might be charging more for an employee who is no longer on your books!

Of course reassessing your details this way could actually lead to your premiums going up or down. But even if they go up, this is still very important as otherwise you may be unable to claim!

4) Look for Overlapping Coverage

Sometimes you might find that you have coverage from two different insurers. For instance, you might find that property insurance covers an item that you have also insured separately. Likewise you should look out for free coverage that is often included with bank accounts and loans.

Paying for insurance twice is a waste of money!

5) Maintain a Consistent Safety Plan

Of course, the very most important way to keep your premiums low is to make as few claims as possible on them.

A safety plan is something that any company can put together in order to reduce the likelihood of accidents, injuries and lawsuits. This will only work so long as the plan is consistent and clearly communicated however. That might mean investing in training for your staff, it might mean holding meetings and sending newsletters… but whatever the case, invest some time in this and it can cut your overheads in the long term.

6) Correctly Classify Your Workers

The amount charged for compensation for workers is going to vary depending on their classification. Therefore, it falls to you to ensure that you have classified all of your employees correctly.

7) Ask!

You know what they say: if you don’t ask, you don’t get! Sometimes the very best way to get a lower rate on your insurance premium is simply to ask your broker for tips. Or more specifically, you can try asking them about ‘premium reduction strategies’. They can then go through some options with you.

Another option is to speak directly with the insurance provider. They want to hold on to your custom, and so of course they’re going to be eager to provide the best value possible. Just ask: this is a little high for us, how can we make it lower?

8) Be Active in Trade Organizations

Trade organizations will sometimes offer insurance coverage through their members via affiliation with insurance companies. This coverage is sometimes actually cheaper than what you would be able to get directly. Even if this service isn’t offered, the organizations will often provide tips and advice on how to get insurance at a lower rate.

9) Adopt Health Specific Changes

Your rates go down if your workforce is healthy. Therefore, it’s up to you to try and create healthy environments. You can do this by implementing health-positive changes such as encouraging people to get up and move around, or letting more light into the workplace. Likewise though, you can set an example by giving up smoking, or organizing healthy events such as group walks or sponsored runs. This can also be good for team moral and for your company’s reputation.

10) Train Your Employees

As briefly mentioned, a health strategy for your organization will often mean investing in training. That might mean training your staff in first aid and CPR. It might mean training your staff to be safer operating machinery. It might mean training them to look after their own health.

All these things can cost a company money in the short term, but like so many conscientious decisions they will save you $$$ in the long term. It’s not just your insurance premiums that will be positively affected here, but also things like sick pay, reparations, lost income and more.

In short, being thoughtful and investing wisely now can save you a huge amount of money on your commercial insurance premiums going forward.