Toolkit
Business Impact Analysis Template................................................................................................................. 34
Employee Emergency Contacts Information Form .......................................................................................... 36
Management Emergency Contacts Information Form ..................................................................................... 37
Employee Emergency Preparedness Survey .................................................................................................. 38
Discontinuied Operations Checklist.................................................................................................................. 39
Excel Worksheets ............................................................................................................................................. 41
Tabletop Exercise Template ............................................................................................................................. 42
Do I Need Business Interruption Insurance?*
Business interruption insurance can be as vital to your survival as a business as fire insurance. Most
people would never consider opening a business without buying insurance to cover damage due to fire and
windstorms. But too many small businessowners fail to think about how they would manage if a fire or other
disaster damaged their business premises so that they were temporarily unusable. Business interruption
coverage is not sold separately. It is added to a property insurance policy or included in a package policy.
A business that has to close down completely while the premises are being repaired may lose out to competitors.
A quick resumption of business after a disaster is essential.
1. Business interruption insurance compensates you for lost income if your company has to vacate the premises
due to disaster-related damage that is covered under your property insurance policy, such as a fire. Business
interruption insurance covers the revenue you would have earned, based on your financial records, had the
disaster not occurred. The policy also covers normal operating expenses, including payroll, that continue even
though business activities have come to a temporary halt.
2. Make sure the policy limits are sufficient to cover your company for more than a few days. After a major
disaster, it can take more time than many people anticipate to get the business back on track. There is generally
a 48-hour waiting period before business interruption coverage kicks in.
3. The price of the policy is related to the risk of a fire or other disaster damaging your premises. All other things
being equal, the price would probably be higher for a restaurant than a real estate agency, for example, because
of the greater risk of fire. Also, a real estate agency can more easily operate out of another location.
Extra Expense Insurance
Extra expense insurance reimburses your company for a reasonable sum of money that it spends, over and
above normal operating expenses, to avoid having to shut down during the restoration period. Usually, extra
expenses will be paid if they help to decrease business interruption costs.
Please contact Lorraine Emerick at Marshall & Sterling for a review of your current policy to ensure that
there are no surprises in the event of a business interruption claim.
*Source: Insurance Information Institiute http://www.iii.org/article/do-i-need-business-interruption-insurance
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