Business Interruption Insurance
Property insurance pays to repair your building and replace your equipment. But what about the income you lose while your business is closed for repairs? That is where business interruption (BI) insurance comes in.
BI insurance covers:
- Lost revenue — The income you would have earned if the business had continued operating
- Fixed costs — Rent, loan repayments, employee wages, and other costs that continue even when you cannot trade
- Temporary relocation — The cost of operating from alternative premises while yours is being repaired
The indemnity period is the maximum time the policy will pay out. After a major hurricane, rebuilding can take 12–24 months. Choose an indemnity period that realistically covers your recovery time.
After Hurricane Irma (2017), many Caribbean businesses took over 18 months to rebuild. Businesses with only a 6-month indemnity period were left without income support during the critical recovery phase.
Cyber Insurance
As Caribbean businesses move online, cyber risks are growing rapidly. Cyber insurance covers:
- Data breach costs — Notification, credit monitoring, legal defence
- Ransomware attacks — Ransom payments and recovery costs
- Business interruption from cyber attacks — Lost income while systems are down
- Third-party claims — If customer data is compromised
Even small businesses are targets. In fact, small businesses are often preferred targets because they typically have weaker cybersecurity.