Many employers would like to think so, and many others would caution those who think this way to be careful. Careful of what you ask? Employee dishonestly claims. These are claims committed by some of your most trustworthy employees and they are on the rise due to many factors. No, business owner wants to believe that an employee is stealing from them, but the cold hard truth is that they can, and many do steal from their employers.
In today’s environment employers feel that their employees should be grateful that they have a job at all. Though this may be right in some instances many employees feel that they are being taken advantage of and feel that they deserve more given that many companies have furlough employees and those who remain are in some cases doing the work of two and sometimes three employees all for the benefit of the “company”. The remaining employee could feel justified in just taking a little to offset their additional duties they may feel that they deserve this raise and feel that it is owed to them.
Whether you agree with this or not, the fact of the matter is that this Pandemic has only made things worse. Insurance claims have almost always seen an increase in times of duress, and this is no different than times past.
What can an employer do to protect themselves against a potential crime. The first answer is to be aware of the facts that employees need to be monitored especially those who handle a firm’s money and checking accounts.
The biggest issue that we see in the insurance industry is clients coming to us after they discover the loss, which is too late. Yes, the cost of a commercial crime coverage will add to your insurance costs but given the potential loss exposure the cost is negligible when weighed against the possible loss.
Over the years, we have had several employee crime claims, two of which amounted to being over $500,000! Each one was done by a “trusted employee’ over a period of years. No company is immune to this sort of event.
Here are some suggestions to help protect your business along with considering purchasing crime insurance.
- Check who has a company credit card and confirm their purchases each month.
- Review with your bookkeeper the bank accounts each month.
- Review the checks issued by your accounting department, frequently and review the signatures on each if practical.
- Make sure that employees take their vacation time, banks require their employees to take two-week vacations as they feel that during this period any discrepancies can be discovered.
- Confirm vendors and make sure that you are receiving their goods.
- Check payroll records again time sheets.
- Work with your accountant as they may be able to discover fees, or charges that do not make sense.
Finally, purchase employee crime insurance this coverage is very reasonable and protects the company from criminal acts that you do not catch. For more information on this important coverage part to your commercial insurance program. Speak to the professionals here at BAW Insurance. We will be happy to obtain a quote for your review.