Home > Business Insurance News > Bosses 'ignore death and illness planning'

Bosses 'ignore death and illness planning'

Published On 11 April 2007 at 11:58:12

The majority of the owners of small businesses are not making any plans for their enterprise should they become seriously ill or die, a report suggests.

According to Barclays Financial Planning, 67 per cent of the owners of the country's smallest businesses have no plans in place to deal with death or long-term illness. Overall, 46 per cent of all business owners have no plans in place should they become unable to work.

Nearly half (47 per cent) said that it was "too early to think about" these issues, despite the fact that 25 per cent of all SME owners are over 55.

"It is concerning that so many owners - and particularly those who work alone and have no obvious successor who could keep the business ticking over in their absence - are leaving the future of their business and that of their family or business partners to chance," said Stephen Ingledew, the commercial director at Barclays.

"With the cost of long-term care and the need to save to fund retirement constantly increasing, it is imperative that business owners make the necessary moves to translate their livelihood into a financial safety net should they or their family need it."

Elsewhere, Barclays' report highlighted the fact that many SME owners do not plan to retire in the near future - 32 per cent said they would either retire after they reached 65 or that they never plan to give up work.

Recently, Barclays launched a series of seminars for the owners of small businesses, which aimed to help increase their profits and marketing plans.

 

Related Business Insurance News:

• Business insurance 'important for home workers'
  16 May 2007 at 14:52:50
  People who work from home need to carefully consider whether they have adequate business insurance, a leading provider has warned.
• FPB criticises the HSE
  19 April 2007 at 15:29:54
  The Forum of Private Businesses (FPB) has hit out at a new campaign from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) which aims to dispel workplace myths.
• Bosses 'must protect staff from robberies'
  11 April 2007 at 15:02:17
  The owners of small and medium-sized enterprises need to make sure they protect their staff from robbery, according to an industry expert.
• SMEs 'lack plans to cope with extreme weather'
  20 March 2007 at 12:25:09
  Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the UK are not planning for extreme weather conditions, according to new research.
• Business hit by cost of 'yob culture'
  12 March 2007 at 11:20:11
  British businesses are being hit financially by an increase in 'yob behaviour', according to a new study.
• Safe SMEs "entitled" to cheap insurance
  9 February 2007 at 11:05:09
  SMEs could see their insurance costs rising as a result of recent legislation, the Federation of Small Business (FSB) warns.