Weatherproof Your Business To Keep Trading Through Winter

If your bricks-and-mortar business keeps closing down in bad weather, it’s time for some weatherproofing. – We don’t think of our businesses requiring weatherproofing until there is a major disaster on our hands. But, unfortunately, this one fundamental mistake costs the US economy millions of dollars every year. From floods to snow days, forgetting to protect your business against these outside influences could see you losing custom, cash, and loyalty.

Here are some top tips from industry experts on how you can weatherproof your home, no matter the occasion. Take our advice, follow these guidelines, and you’ll never get caught out in the cold again.

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Simple Steps To Weatherproof Your Business

It’s not just about battening down the hatches and hoping for the best. Protecting your investment from the elements can be as straightforward or as complex as you make it.

1. Secure against Snow Days

Snow days cost you money, they cost the economy money, and they cost everyone time. You might have celebrated them as a kid, but that’s no reason to cheer as an adult who can’t get the car out of the driveway. Snow days cost between $3-4 million^[1] depending on the state and the extent of the damage. Between closures due to lack of staff and bad weather bursting pipes and causing injuries, expect a snow day to cost your business, too.

Has your business closed down due to snow? A partnership with a commercial snow removal firm such as Earth Development snow removal could get you back on track. Another protection against snow days is to invest in a boiler with an anti-freeze control, so you don’t wake up to a burst pipe.

2. Flood or Water Damage?

Is it flood damage? Or is it water damage? Regardless of which of these it is, do you have business insurance that covers your bricks and mortar establishment? If not, get some before flood season truly kicks in. Flood insurance and water damage insurance are two very different things, so be sure to discuss them in-depth with your insurance broker before you commit to buying. Remember: insurance costs will be higher if you live in an area prone to flooding.

Recent reports indicate that floods cost the USA economy over 3,750 million dollars a year. In 2017, a wet year, this number leaped to 60,700 million dollars.

3. Earthquake Proofing

There are things you can do to protect your business against earthquakes. The least of these is to get the insurance that will help you if your property is damaged. Otherwise, you must call in a construction company to take a look at your property. They will inspect the foundations, brace any walls liable to cripple, reinforce your masonry walls, and use state-of-the-art construction tech to make your building safe again^[2].

Govcon estimates that US earthquake costs are in the region of $4.4 billion every year.