Risk management should be a top priority for doctors and dentists – and their focus should be equally on intangible and tangible assets. For practices and individual professionals, Cyber crime and other threats can affect reputation, supply chains and patient information, to name just a few. Do you fully understand your asset risk?
Tangible versus intangible assets
Insurance is a key element in your risk management toolkit. However, if you don’t understand your intangible risks then you won’t know if you have the right type or level of cover.
It is relatively easy to understand, identify and value your tangible assets – such as medical or dental equipment and premises.
However, working out the risks to your reputation, goodwill and patient data, and what damage to any of these would actually mean for you, is a lot harder.
Threats to your assets
Cyber crime is one of the biggest threats to businesses.
Government figures show that almost half of UK businesses were victim of a Cyber breach or attack in 2017, with the cost to the economy estimated at more than £11bn.
As well as digital crime, your reputation and other intangible assets are at risk from a number of threats. For example, dentists are finding that they are increasingly exposed to claims against them which ultimately could threaten their whole career. In fact, 90% of dentists fear being sued.
The recent introduction of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) could also be a concern. With potential fines of up to €20million, being compliant should be a top priority for practices. As well as fines, there is huge reputational risk from not properly looking after patient records – as well as obviously loss of data.
So, what can you do to protect your intangible assets?
Having a robust risk management policy and practices in place is key to protecting yourself and your business. Some of the things you can do to protect your practice include:
- Cyber security training
- GDPR compliance training
- Work with legal and other professionals to ensure you have the right policies in place, and understand what your intangible risks are
- Work with a specialist broker who can help you understand what risks you can insure and help you identify what level of cover you need.
While you might be taking every necessary precaution and have an exemplary record, Cyber criminals can be clever and it is easy to slip up. In those scenarios, insurance is your best option. If you choose a good insurance policy, you will also benefit from expert advice and training for areas mentioned above.
Often practice owners believe that Cyber liability is covered under their traditional property or liability cover. However, often these policies do not explicitly include or exclude this type of risk and therefore, is a ‘silent risk’.
In the event of a claim, you don’t necessarily know if or how much you are covered. Cyber liability insurance is a dedicated policy that will give you the peace of mind that your risk is managed.
Understand the risks to your intangible assets
Speak to a member of the All Med Pro team who are all experts in helping you to choose the right insurance and level of cover for you – giving you the peace of mind that your intangible assets are protected.