Is There Insurance That Protects a Business Owner From a Strike?

Even if you are only a little tiny-bit news savvy, you are probably aware of the breaking news about how politics is affecting a business. When an online company won a contract with the government to supply detention centers in Texas with bedding furnishing, no one would have imagined the upheaval?

Employees of the online furniture business voiced their disapproval via a thoroughly disruptive strike.

Notwithstanding that the decision to do business with the detention center was based on the commercial advantage of gaining profit and that in place of sleeping on the floor, the children at the centers would get actual mattresses and beds, the company’s employees determined that the transaction would make a statement of approval for detaining those illegals that were unlawfully attempting to cross the border.

The result of the walkout is in no shape or form good for business and as the refusal of employees to return to work continues it only gets worse and worse.

But while worker strikes occur within many industries – from teachers, hotel staffers and garbage collectors to nurses, hospital and aging home workers and other business employees – there is one common thread connected to the broad diversity.
It can bring extensive financial loss to the boss and his or her corporation.

And while there are a slew of insurance products that actually protect the business owner, there is only a specialty type of coverage that can shield a company from the devastation related to a workers’ strike.

It’s called Strike Insurance.

A strike insurance policy can only be bought separate of a business owners policy because it is considered specialty coverage.

It is best to sit down with an insurance specialist to determine if your business would actually benefit from this type of coverage.

As far as protection is concerned, the policy would cover the financial losses related to a continuous strike. Should your business suffer the effects of an employee strike, you would be compensated for day-to-day loss of income and monetary damages related to the walkout. Be aware, though, that policy limits apply and a strike that sees no end would also not be subject to an infinite duration of coverage protection.
For more on this type of special coverage, contact an experienced insurance agent that has the know-how and network of leading insurance companies to locate the right fit for your business situation – at the best quote.

How to Protect Your Business From a Cyber Attack

What is your chief worry when it comes to business?

Ask any business owner and it is VERY likely that you will get the same response: cyber attacks!

Cyber attacks consistently remain the primary concern of most company owners.
And there is good reason for that.

Contemporary research concluded that in 2018 there were triple the amount of medical industry computer data breaches in the medical industry than the previous year, with more than 15 million medical records exposed!

An independent 2019 inquiry led researchers to these findings: there were 1,200-plus data breaches leaving 440 million personal data exposed!

But of all the studies, this conclusion resonates loudest among the average business owner. Fifty-eight percent of the total amount of 2018 cyber attacks were aimed at small business corporations. Swallow that statistic along with another one: data breach recovery expenses averaged about $385,000. all Perhaps most noteworthy is the same year’s Data Breach Investigations Report conducted by Verizon: 58 percent of all cyber attacks were directed towards small business, with recovery costs at an average of close to $385,000.

What can a company – large, small or medium-sized – do to shield itself from becoming the target of a cyber attack? Aside from technical and learned safety tactics, a related insurance policy can be the catalyst of assistance to climb out of the mess created by hackers – with the coverage paying for associated losses.
Here are just a couple of associated claims examples that prove the point.

Two Data Breach Insurance Claim Scenarios

Ransomware Coverage

An employee working in one of the departments of a global agency accidentally opened an email that exposed the business computer system to a virus, possibly impacting up to six hundred and sixty servers all around the world.
The agency chartered a global IT forensics enterprise to deal with the misfortune. This included getting the ransom amount that the hacker demanded, negotiating with the criminals and completing a forensic investigation.

After the IT forensics team got the hackers to go down from the first ransom demand of $540,0000 to $450,000, insurance coverage stepped in, paying the ransom, allowing the decrypting to move forward.

Negligence Coverage:
A patient was livid when she discovered a nurse employed at the doctor’s practice where she had been treated exposed her medical records. She accused the nurse of passing on her private medical records as well as her personal data to other people. Adding insult to injury, said the patient, was that the nurse altered the records to include false information meant to humiliate her.
The doctor’s office issued a statement that there is a standing policy of not allowing access and disclosure of patient information. Nonetheless, the nurse had crossed the lines of professional creed set down by the medical practice.
The matter was resolved by a 5 digit out-of-court settlement which the insurance company covered.

Durable Medical Equipment Industry: About Insurance and Related Bonds

The manufacturers, distributors, sellers, renters and service people involved in the durable medical equipment industry are part of a very lucrative business that is consistently in demand. Nonetheless, the exposure to risks is as exceptional as the line of work.

In the event a related product is deemed faulty those that supplied it may be liable for associated property damages, bodily injury or death…

Insurance for the Durable Medical Equipment Manufacturer

Risk exposure for each piece of equipment that is manufactured is determined in relation to its type and usage. Specific types of equipment need to be fashioned in very sterile circumstances.

Some equipment is designed to sustain life, and some are used in the hospital’s operating room.

Insurance companies place the varying durable medical equipment into three separate groups:

- For diagnosing
- For therapy
- For monitoring purposes

Insurance for Durable Medical Equipment Dealers

Dealers involve themselves in either the selling or renting aspects of products like:

- Wheelchairs
- Oxygen apparatus
- Respiratory machinery
- Therapy devices
- Orthopedic equipment

Clearly, the renting of the equipment is much more problematic than selling. This is due to the following reality:

- Renting equipment leads to less preventative care and attention to manufacturer’s instructions

- Renting equipment can lead to lawsuits due to breakage or malfunction and their subsequent negative effects on already physically weak patients.

Bond News for the Durable Medical Equipment Provider

Dealers of Durable Medical supplies are subject to Federal bond requirements. In order to get Medicare reimbursements, durable medical equipment providers, as well as those that deal in prosthetics and orthotics and supplies must acquire a $50,000 bond.

Of particular note is the country-wide competitive bidding that will take place between July 16, 2019 and September 18, 2019. Any dealer that has the appropriate bond can take part in the bidding, after which, three-year contracts will be granted to those deemed worthy.

As of now, there are one-hundred-thirty competitive areas in the United States. Each competitive bond area necessitates 1 bid bond. This applies to a provider that bids on all sixteen of the different products presented as well. If there are several bidders for the same bond area product, there is still eligibility. For instance, if there are five or more bidders for the same product, at least five contracts will be presented. If there are fewer than five bidders, at least two contracts will be presented.