One thing that you don’t want more of when it comes to business transactions is more costs. Especially when those costs are preventable, it can make you feel like your business is more of an uphill climb than it should be. Some types of accidents and incidents are just truly unfortunate cases of timing, but in many cases, prevention is the key to making sure you don’t have unnecessary expenses.
If you are a business owner or are interested in business dealings, consider that the following four are examples of business costs associated with accidents. Some of them are financial costs, and others are more related to psychological value. Specifically, look at vehicle accidents, insurance costs, negative branding, and reservations people may have about worker safety concerning your company.
Vehicle Accidents
What happens when one of your workers gets in a vehicle accident? If they get injured, they will be missing work, and there will be health costs. If they were in a company vehicle when it happens, that could result in lawsuits depending on who was to blame. The best way to avoid vehicle accidents is to make sure that all of your employees drive defensively, and also that you make sure any company vehicles are maintained properly and up to optimal safety standards.
Insurance Costs
Then there is the matter of insurance costs from accidents. If something goes wrong within your company framework that has insurance associated with it, then your insurance company should take care of the brunt of the cost. However, after this initial cost is covered, it’s very likely that your business insurance rates are going to go up, potentially a whole lot, and the cumulative effect of this can be very dire for your financial situation.
Negative Branding
Beyond finances, if there’s an accident that ends up associated with your business, I can be very detrimental for your branding. For example, if there is an accident at a grocery store concerning safe food temperatures, how likely will it be that people will continue to purchase food at your store? It’s important to understand that if bad things happen that people translate to the way your business runs, then they will choose a competitor of yours to get similar services.
Worker Safety Reservations
If your company is known for being accident-prone, potential workers may have reservations about joining your business because of these incidents. It is one thing to have a job that is known to be dangerous and risky. It’s another thing to have a job that should be safe, but people seem to be getting hurt at because of a lack of care in preparation on the part of the company owners. If you can’t get good people working for you because they are scared of accidents and injuries, that is going to make your business less secure.