Change for good
Are you one of the thousands of ‘non-essential retailers’ who reopened on the 15th June? Retailers can now open their doors and welcome customers, if the government’s five tests are met. You will have to have a completed risk assessment in consultation with trade union representatives or workers. Essentially this means having measures in place to manage the risks of coronavirus transmission in line with the current Health and Safety legislation. The government says it will work with local authorities to carry out spot checks on retail premises, as well as follow up on concerns by members of the public. Customers covered by the Bira Insurance retail scheme have automatic access to Health & Safety guidance.
Alok Sharma, Business Secretary, said: “The high street sits at the heart of every community in the country. Enabling these businesses to open will be a critical step on the road to rebuilding our economy, and will support millions of jobs across the UK.” Now may be the time you need that helping hand, find the facts about the financial support available from the UK government. Click on any of the support measures and this will link you to the relevant section of the UK government web site.
Reaching out
It’s important that you keep your insurers informed that your premises are no longer unoccupied. This ensures that they remove any terms that may have been imposed whilst you were not trading. Have a think about your contents and stock values too. Most policies ignore depreciation and pay for new contents to replace those that have been lost or damaged. The sum insured must represent the amount that it would cost to purchase at replacement value. This may vary enormously from the pre-coronavirus period. Also consider also any stock that would have been sold to customers and still held on the premises and therefore your responsibility. Stock should include goods in your care, custody or control.
Supporting people
You can’t have helped notice that in recent weeks COVID-19 has shared the media focus with another, longer standing disease that resulted in the violent death of George Floyd in Minneapolis - Racism. This is a complex and deeply sensitive issue. Towergate Underwriting, who provide the Bira Insurance service, don’t underestimate the gargantuan task of identifying and eradicating systematic racism, privilege and unconscious bias from our society. We have to start here, at home, before we can add an educated voice to be heard across the wider world.
We are examining all parts of our business to identify how we can do more to create and maintain an inclusive, unbiased working culture for all colleagues. We believe that the foundation for change is for people to educate themselves. This is more than people simply saying they are anti-racist. Our colleagues are required to take an number of regulatory training modules which will now include ‘Unconscious Bias’ to better understand how biases impact all our views and decisions. Anti-racism is the commitment to fight racism wherever you find it, including in yourself.
- Provide support, rather than advice, to friends, family and colleagues that are part of the BAME community in the UK.
- Sign a petition for change – in the UK, there are petitions for justice in the case of Belly Mujinga, the National Rail worker who was spat on while doing her job and later died of coronavirus.
- Reaching out to your MP - changing policies in this country that negatively impact people of colour tangibly improves black lives. The more voices who share their views with their MP, the better.
Make sure that you have the right insurance programme in place to protect your business and your staff. At Bira Insurance our goal remains ever more relevant – to look after business, and take care of people.
If you have any questions, please call Towergate on 0300 123 5939 to talk to the Bira Insurance team
Find out more about Bira Insurance
Looking after business, taking care of people
This is a marketing article provided by Bira Insurance.
British Independent Retailers Association (Bira) are an Introducer Appointed Representative of Towergate Underwriting Group Limited. Bira Insurance is a trading name of Towergate Underwriting Group Ltd who are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered Address: Towergate House, Eclipse Park, Sittingbourne Rd, Maidstone, Kent ME14 3EN. Registered in England with company number 4043759. www.towergate.com/fair-processing-notice
