As the population moves towards 70% vaccination against COVID-19, many businesses are slowly transitioning staff back to the office.

But it’s essential to manage this process, not only to ensure the business meets its WHS obligations, but also to ensure its operational processes are fit for a new world.

Steadfast’s head of human resources Justin Mark says everything starts with providing a safe work environment. Review your business’s sanitisation stations, cleaning roster and set rules for wiping down work spaces.

COVID-19 has led to new cyber threats, with figures from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission showing Australians have lost $309,108 to phishing scams since the start of the pandemic in 2020. This year to date, the commission has received more than 10,000 scam reports.

Insurance can seem like a complex area, which is why it’s so important to understand the basics. Here, we explore some of the fundamental concepts that underpin most business insurance policies.

An insurance policy has a number of different parts, explains Steadfast broker support manager, John Clark. “The policy will set out the cover that applies under the policies, the conditions you must comply with and any exclusions. Almost every policy will include these features,” he says.

In a stunning attack, in early 2021 one of the Northern Territory’s government’s IT systems was brought down by a ransomware attack, disabling the system for three weeks.

As this demonstrates, cyber criminals are becoming increasingly sophisticated and strident in the demands they make over the organisations they target. But there are steps business owners can take to reduce the risk of these fraudsters doing serious damage their firms.

The 2021 March floods that hit the eastern seaboard bring home how important it is to be prepared for a flood, especially if your business premises are located in an area that is prone to flooding.

Steadfast Group’s executive general manager - corporate development, Martyn Thompson, says a visit to the local council’s web site is the first step when exploring how flood-prone a property is. “Most local councils have a flood map for their area on their web site. Be aware climate change is changing the way areas flood, so make sure the map is up-to-date.”

COVID-19 continues to pose a significant risk to Australian employers, even as we begin to return to more normal ways of working.

Managing the liability risk of unfair dismissal claims

Mr Grossman says that to avoid unfair dismissal claims as a result of redundancies, employers need to have documented procedures for employee termination, and ensure that they are rigidly followed.

What is the cyber risk to small and medium business?

In just 3 months there were over 13,000 cybercrime incidents reported to the Australia Centre for Cyber Security (ACSC). This equates to one case every 10 minutes. Cyber-attacks are an extremely lucrative form of criminal activity, which is fueling a dramatic increase in the number of attacks on Australian businesses of all sizes.

Although bushfire season is here, this risk is only one of a host of different sources of fire. Arson is often the cause of fire and poor maintenance standards are another serious fire risk for businesses.

For instance, damaged or old electrical cabling is all too often the cause of a fire, especially in older buildings. Another problem, says Michael White, Steadfast’s broker technical manager, is incorrect storage of flammable materials.

If you offer a professional service, chances are you're selling your knowledge. But what happens if your advice isn't right? We look at the risks involved in giving advice for a living.

To err is human, or so the saying goes.

Superstar footy players miss match-winning kicks, the savviest politicians put their foot in it, and yes, even the very best business professionals provide advice that can go awry from time to time.

For athletes and politicians, a mistake often simply leads to a loss or an embarrassing headline, soon to be forgotten. But what happens if you're an accountant, lawyer, financial planner or and give advice that isn't on the money?

Let's take a look at some of the consequences below, as well as how you can protect yourself against them.

Operating a business online can be cost effective and flexible, with overheads substantially less than a high street shop-front and ready access to global markets. Yet with a never-ending list of things to think about, from supply-chain logistics, to digital marketing, payment gateways and legal, insurance often becomes a ‘hope for the best’ exercise without accounting for the true business risk exposures.

To ensure your online business is protected in a claim, we’ve created a checklist of key covers to consider.