Have you protected the future of your business? Every day you manage risks to keep your business running smoothly and will have insurance in place to cover your business property, machinery, vehicles and more. But what about the risks that affect your most valuable assets – your people? The death or serious illness of a business owner or key person can have a huge impact on the financial wellbeing of your business. Businesses, whatever their size and structure, can have many varied reasons for financial protection. St. James's Place believes in tailored solutions, so that you can rest assured that your business is financially resilient, both now and into the future.

Employee Benefits

Putting a comprehensive employee benefits package in place can provide financial wellbeing not just for your employees, but also support the financial wellbeing of your business. An employee benefits package can also: 

• Increase the appeal of your business when it comes to recruiting. 
• Help you to retain talent within your business.
• can provide savings for both employees and you as an employer. 

Financial employee benefits include: 

• Private medical insurance
• Life insurance
• Critical illness cover
• Sickness cover

Business Loan Protection

Your business may have some form of debt, be it overdrafts, loans or mortgages. These could be from a lender, such as a bank, or through a Director's Loan Account. If an owner, shareholder, partner or key person died, or was taken critically ill, these loans could quickly become a liability. Negative effects can include: 

• Key liquid assets in the business needing to be used to repay the loan. 
• Assets may have to be sold at short notice to repay the loan. 
• alternative finance needing to be raised. 
• A lender seeking repayment from the guarantor, or their estate. This could mean your personal assets, including your home are at risk. 
• The business being forced into administration. 

Business loan protection can help repay outstanding financial commitments. 

51% of businesses have some form of business debt yet only 2 in 10 use an insurance policy as security (as reported in Legal & General's state of the nation's SME's report 2019).

Profit Protection

Many businesses can suffer financially on the death or serious illness of a key member of staff. Negative effects can include: 

• Loss of profits or sales.
• The cost of finding and training a replacement.
• Potential loss of customers and suppliers, if the key staff member was their main contact. 

Key Person Protection can help to provide financial stability in the event of a key member of staff being taken critically ill or dying. The business pays the premiums, and, if the insured person dies or becomes critically ill during the policy term, the policy will pay out the agreed sum to the business. This financial payout can help the business to remain viable, continue to trade, and have the opportunity to find a suitable replacement. 

52% of businesses would cease trading in under a year if a key person died or become critically ill, (as reported in Legal & General's state of the nation's SME's report 2019).

Business Succession Planning

Many businesses can face continuity issues on the death or serious illness of a director, shareholder or partner. Negative effects can include: 

• Interruption to the normal day-to-day running of the business. 
• Disruptions to loan repayments and overdraft arrangements with your bankers. 
• Changes in ownership and control of the business. 
• The potential to have to work with new co-owners who you haven't chosen who don't know your business. 

Business succession planning (also known as partnership and shareholder protection) can help the other owners to keep control of their business if one of them dies or is seriously ill. 

Nearly 50% of businesses have no specific arrangements for their shares if a shareholder died, (as reported in Legal  & General's state of the nation's SME's report 2019).

These services may involve the referral to a service which is separate and distinct to those offered by St. James's Place.