Planning for your Engineering Insurance requirements
Engineering is a highly specialised sector that presents complex risks for insurance providers. The diverse nature of engineering machinery, the varied nature of the processes involved and the sometimes hazardous environments work is carried out in all add to the challenge for those not familiar with the industry.
For all those reasons, it pays to consult a specialist in engineering insurance cover and here at Stanmore Insurance Brokers we are exactly that.
We have many years’ experience in providing insurance for engineers, so we know all about the unique requirements of the industry and understand the varied covers that your business needs – many of which may not be available in an off-the-shelf product.
That means we’re able to offer you a bespoke package of engineering insurance options tailored to your needs, in exactly the same way you create bespoke, accurate products to the specifications of your clients.
Before that can happen, you need to think about your insurance requirements in as much detail as possible, so here are some of the issues and products we advise our clients to consider when planning their essential engineering insurance cover.
Be clear about the kind of company you are and the engineering insurance you need
Engineering is wide-ranging term that needs qualifying if you are to get the appropriate cover for your business.
A traditional steel fabrication works represents a very different set of risks to a hi-tech, precision electronics facility. Make sure you list everything your business does clearly, so insurance providers know the kind of work you undertake. That way, you avoid your engineering insurance policy details being loaded to include high-risk services you do not offer, like foundry or heavy lifting work.
More importantly, you do not want to be undertaking work that is not listed in your business description as this may invalidate your insurance and put your entire business at risk.
Understand the risks your engineering insurance policy has to cover you against
There is insurance you have to have by law, such as Employers’ Liability for engineers, and insurance that it is advisable to have to limit your exposure to risk.
How much or how little risk you take on is ultimately your decision, but it is not one you should make without taking expert advice.
We are a highly experienced assessor of risk for all types of engineering insurance. We offer informed guidance to help you understand the risks specific to your business. Our approach is to provide you with a menu of choice, whereby you select the specific covers and protections your individual business needs (with advice and assistance from our experts of course.)
The result is a truly bespoke package of cover, reflecting your appetite to risk and the specifics of your business model.
Some of the dedicated forms of engineering insurance cover you may want to consider include:
Product Recall Cover
A product recall can be hugely expensive for an engineering business. In the worst case, it could even close your business down as you struggle to meet the costs involved in recovering every faulty product and putting the problem right.
Product Recall insurance cover is there to reimburse some or all of the money involved in this expensive process.
It can pay for transporting all the faulty products back to your factory, correcting the problem itself and for the loss of profits you incur while your product is off the market. It can even be extended to cover you against claims for damages caused by a defective product.
Brands and Labels Cover
This type of cover comes into effect if your products are damaged but not completely destroyed by fire, flood or another form of accident.
Although they may still be useable, you may not want to sell them off as ‘seconds’ bearing your brand name for risk of devaluing your reputation.
A Brands and Labels policy covers you against the cost of recovering your products and removing any badges or logos prior to selling them as ‘white label’ products.
Business interruption cover
Business Interruption Cover is something we recommend to all our customers, regardless of the sector they work in. For engineering companies, it’s especially important as so much potential interruption is out of their hands.
Long, complex supply chains make problems more likely. Over 70% of manufacturing companies do not have full visibility of their supply chain and 80% have experienced at least one instance of supply chain disruption. So business Interruption that extends to Unspecified Suppliers is essential in any engineering insurance policy.
We are also able to advise on interruption cover that applies to Unspecified Customers, and to instances of Denial of Access to your premises, or a customers’, that prevent you doing further business.
Metalworkers Extension Cover
Some branches of engineering present considerable risk, with hot metal fragments, cutting or welding equipment and heavy machinery contributing to workplace hazards.
A metalworkers’ extension is an addition to standard forms of site engineer insurance that takes into account such activities and protects your business accordingly.
Cyber cover
More and more engineering resources are being pushed online nowadays, with specifiers in almost every sector preferring to access plans and drawings digitally.
Such files are incredibly valuable assets, so we recommend you protect them by taking out Cyber Insurance cover.
This will help by covering you against loss from malicious Denial of Service (DoS) attacks, theft through hacking or a catastrophic failure of your IT systems and servers that renders your data unrecoverable.
The above are just some examples of the kinds of engineering business insurance cover we recommend you consider. It is by no means a definitive list, and different companies will have different priorities that will all be considered carefully before we make a recommendation.
Other types of insurance such as Theft in Transit, Directors & Officers Liability or Business Travel cover may also come into play, so whatever kind of engineering company you are and whatever kind of insurance you need, the golden rule still applies: Speak to the engineering insurance experts first.
Talk to Stanmore the insurance people about specialist insurance cover for engineering now – call our team on 01204 570 370
