NSURE BLOGS

Insurance Brokers have many qualities, but self-promotion is not one of them and over the years we have not been particularly great at publicising the benefits of using our services.

But following the recent widespread flooding, it is perhaps an appropriate time for a little blow of the brokers trumpet and an insight as to some of the work done, much of it unseen.

The proposed Rampion Wind Farm is without doubt a massive and exciting project and of particular interest to all Nsure staff as the vast array of offshore wind turbines will be quite visible from the windows of the Nsure office in Worthing, should it be built.

In the early 2000s, just around the time of the Dot Com Boom, some insurers stood up, took notice and began to develop a product designed to address the financial loss that might arise out of data breaches. This was at a time where most companies were just beginning to realise the economic potential of the Internet. At this time insurers were looking  to target the big dotcom companies such as Amazon, Yahoo, eBay and Google.  

This isn’t the first and will not be the last time that I write about the danger of underinsurance, but yet another recent survey has revealed that a significant proportion of buildings in the UK are underinsured.

But it is not just buildings, underinsurance is rife in many areas. Machinery and stock are frequently undervalued, a recent industry study for the Chartered Institute of Loss Adjusters found that over 50% of Business Interruption sums insured are too low and with liability insurances, indemnity limits are often not sufficient to cover potential claims for personal injury, damage to property or financial loss.

Don't Let The Lights Go Out On Your Business

Fears that the 2012 London Olympics opening ceremony might have come under cyber-attack have been detailed by officials for the first time.
The concern was that the lights could have been turned off during the ceremony.

Whilst maintaining adequate IT security is a must, things happen that can be beyond your control or simply go wrong. Criminals are also becoming far more sophisticated and evolving ways around advancements in IT security. How confident are you that you and your staff will always follow procedures regarding passwords and security, not open that email containing a virus or leave a laptop or phone containing information on a train, plane or a bus?

There will always be unintentional human error and unfortunately also the risk of intentional damage. Tight contractual requirements with providers are also a must, but how easy will it be to obtain damages or what if that company goes bust?. And it's not just big businesses being targeted by hackers, but lots of small ones too. Whilst the large-scale hack attacks on the news often involve big companies, small companies are also at risk and often don't have the financial resources to get back on track after a hacking attack or other kinds of data loss. In fact, over a third of global targeted attacks were aimed at businesses with less than 250 employees. Cyber-attacks are quickly becoming one of the greatest risks faced by smaller companies.

Nsure Renewables client, Cleanwind Ltd, formed in 2009 to meet the demand for experienced technicians in the wind industry, has experienced significant growth.

Amongst many other services, Cleanwind currently provide blade cleaning teams throughout the UK and Southern Ireland to tackle the on-going issue of dirty blades, nacelle's and tower sections. Their cleaning practices ensure that all damage concealed behind years of operational dirt, grease and algae growth is disclosed and reported back to clients.
"We work hard to ensure we use cleaning agents which best suit the environment, using the most environmentally friendly products available. We also work closely with our suppliers, who provide us with specifically designed washing units to meet our operational needs" explains co-owner, Paul Quinn.

Within my previous blogs I have provided various reasons & scenarios as why businesses today should seriously consider buying Cyber Liability Insurance. I am now able courtesy of CFC Underwriting to provide ten reasons to buy Cyber Liability Insurance. CFC Underwriting are one of the UK's major providers of Cyber Liability Insurance and are therefore extremely well placed to provide this information.

Nsure are pleased to announce that they have agreed a bespoke liability insurance policy wording with Zurich Energy for their renewable energy insurance book of business.

A recent article published by a technology services provider in the states suggested that 60% of companies suffering a major loss of data will shut down within six months of the event occurring. Whilst this may seem extreme consider how rapidly the situation could escalate -:

Pentland Road Wind Farm (Pentland) on the Isle of Lewis, Scotland, has been in construction since early Spring 2012. Nsure Renewables, specialist insurance brokers for the renewable energy industry, arranged all insurances for the £27 million project in conjunction with financing from the Co-Operative Bank, and, as with every wind farm has proved to be demanding in more ways than one.

In the early 2000s, just around the time of the Dot Com Boom, some insurers stood up, took notice and began to develop a product designed to address the financial loss that might arise out of data breaches. This was at a time where most companies were just beginning to realise the economic potential of the Internet. At this time insurers were looking to target the big dotcom companies such as Amazon, Yahoo, eBay and Google.

Cyber insurance is a fast emerging market despite the fact that the risks have been out there for some time. The increase in the number of attacks along with media & press coverage has brought increased awareness to both the general public and business. The fact of the matter is that these risks will not be going away anytime soon and if anything are far likely to increase.

The UK finds itself in the top ten for the first time in 2012 jumping eight places to seventh following a significant rise in hacking with the USA topping the league ahead of China and Russia. The last few years have seen a marked rise in "hacktivism" and following the infamous hacking of the Sony PlayStation Network the landscape has now changed forever with LinkedIn only recently having been hacked as well.

More and more Mobile Applications and Non-Mobile Applications are converging on us and people are continuing to download applications without thinking. Users are asking for more seamless plug and play technology such as HDMI, USB & SD Cards bringing with them more complexity and in consequence greater vulnerability. It is worth noting that the total bill for cybercrime footed by online adults in twenty four countries was circa $388 billion over the last twelve months.