by Chris Clare

Have you ever thought about keyman insurance? If you have then this is the article you probably should read before you go any further. If you are going to arrange keyman insurance this might be the most valuably bit of information you could gather in your overall research.

One constant in the world of business is that you are only as good as the people working for you, and this is a certainty no matter what other changes occur in the business world. With this in mind it is vital to ensure you have the best resources at hand and that you take care of them.

And this statement is especially valid when you are considering small businesses. In the UK, there are about 4 million businesses which have only up to 4 employees. In fact, just over 95% of all UK businesses have fewer than 10 workers. These organisations, especially, should be actively contemplating Keyman insurance policies, especially Keyman life insurance.

As a business owner you know the people in whom you trust the running of your business every day. The people who make your business successful and continue to drive it forward. You know that without these people working on your behalf your business may not succeed.

It is in protecting these people that Keyman Life Insurance comes into it’s own. Keyman can help protect against the difficulty of losing an employee to prolonged absence or even death of an integral staff member, a factor which can be of crucial importance to the success or failure of your business.

This type of insurance is designed for you to sort out a contingency plan such as recruit a suitable replacement or even train someone up to take on their role and therefore maintain the business and its profits.

Without a doubt this is by far the most useful use that keyman can be put to, but it has to be said, not the only one. Let me explain, if a shareholder or business partner actually dies very soon their estate will come knocking at your door for their share of the company. If you actually consider this think when this happens will you have the funds to actually give them when they come calling? If not the business could be put into a critical position through no fault you yours or theirs. Well, it is for this reason that Keyman life insurance is so beneficial, key-man life insurance would essentially pay out and give you the funds to pay the estate and therefore discharge any claim they might have over the business.

If one of your financial guarantors dies, this again could have a significant impact - even resulting in the calling in of a loan and possible bankruptcy. Keyman life insurance could protect you in this situation by paying off the loan for you on the death of the guarantor.

So in essence, taking out Keyman Life Insurance is similar to taking out personal life insurance, except that you are insuring the lives of your employees. Also you as the insurance policy holder will be the beneficiary at the end of the insured persons life as opposed to the family members. There is even the possibility that your company could be claiming back tax relief on the policies taken out.

The fact is that for the security of your business - be it limited company, partnership, sole trader, or whatever - a Keyman life insurance policy will bring, at the very least, some peace of mind, but, possibly, it could help you face the nightmare of trying to replace the irreplaceable.

About the Author: