We all love a bit of festive fun, but tinsel induced injuries are something you could definitely do without this season. From decorations, to parties and empty offices – when it comes to Christmas at work there are lots of things that can cause problems for your business.
Unfortunately, Christmas is a time when burglaries and thefts rise. This is because there are more opportunities for criminals to break into empty properties or take advantage of relaxed security measures. However, don’t worry – we’re here to help you stay safe this festive season!
Check Your Insurance policies
The end of the year is always a good time to check your business insurance policies to make sure they’re up-to-date. This way you can go into the New Year knowing that your business is properly protected.
Your business insurance policy should cover all of the risks you might face while you run your business. The policy is often tailored specifically to your business and needs to be reviewed regularly to make sure it still meets your requirements. Business moves fast so you might find that your insurance policy no longer covers everything you need it to. For example, you might have grown in size since the policy was taken out, or have more stock that you need to account for.
Securing your premises
Keeping your premises and office secure can become more of a challenge during the festive season. You’ll likely have more deliveries, more visitors and maybe even guests if you are hosting parties. With all of this added footfall it’s important to keep track of who’s coming and going.
Here are some steps you can take to keep your premises secure during the Christmas period:
- Remind staff of your security procedures so you can keep track of who’s coming in and out of the building.
- If you have temporary staff working with you over Christmas, perform proper background checks to stay on the right side of your insurance policy. This could include CRB checks or checking they have the right licenses to use heavy machinery.
- If you’re planning to close your business over the festive break, or your staff are working from home make sure your camera and security systems are fully operational. You should place the cameras where they are clearly visible as this alone can deter criminals.
- To get the best results from your camera system, you’ll need to have bright, adequate lighting around the outside of your building too.
- If you’re a retail business dealing with lots of cash during the Christmas season – try to reduce the amount of money you keep on site. This might mean making more trips to the bank or using a service to collect and deposit your cash for you. Remember not to bank or cash up at the same time every day as this could make you an easy and predictable target.
- Carry out a pre-holiday checklist to ensure that your premises is secure before breaking up for the holiday. This could include checking that all of the doors and gates are locked, as well as designating a member of staff in case emergency access is needed
Refresh Your Cyber Security
As well as keeping your physical assets secure, you also need to think about protecting your digital assets. Here are some steps you can take to keep your cyber security standards high this Christmas.
- Remind your staff not to click in suspicious links or attachments from emails they don’t recognise.
- Keep your cyber security tools up to date including antivirus software and firewalls.
- Have a back-up and recovery system in place – so if anything should happen while you are out of the office your important files can be recovered. It’s recommended to have a physical on-site back up and a cloud back up in case the hardware is corrupted or damaged.
- Be mindful of posting on social media informing potential criminals that the office is empty during the festive break.
Keep your staff safe
When decorating the office or throwing parties, there are increased hazards for your staff members. Remind them that all boxes and trip hazards should be stored safely out of the way, and only use approved lights that have been PAT tested for your Christmas tree.
If you are planning on having a real Christmas tree, remember to water it and switch off the Christmas lights overnight. Dry Christmas trees and warm lights are one of the leading causes of home and building fires during the festive season.
If you have any questions about your business insurance policy and how it could be affected over the Christmas period, our experts are here to help. You can call us on 01926 495 113 or use our contact form to submit an enquiry.
