Managing your business' risk

Running a small business in South Africa can be a difficult thing with so many different types of risk out there.

While some of these potential hazards can complicate things, Santam understands that the more a business owner knows the better for his or her business.

At Santam we understand that the world of risks can be confusing. That is why we've identified some of forms of risk facing South African small businesses specifically as well as some practical tips to help you manage those risks.

How to manage your business' physical risk

Buildings (or your business premises) often constitute the most common type of physical risk. According to Santam's claims records over the past three years, claims as a result of wind, fire water, hail and snow damage are the most common types of claims for businesses.

As a business owner, you can manage physical risk properly by ensuring that the gutters on your premises has been cleaned (especially in winter) and that hazardous materials (such as acid, gas, flammable or poisonous materials) are stored far away from areas where it could cause damage. You can also make sure that your employees receive adequate training to handle these materials properly.

How to manage risks related to your business' location

It's always a good idea to know exactly what risks your business faces as a result of its location. You can make china company verification online if you need.

If, for example, your business is located in an area where a number of buildings have been erected in a flood-plain, you must consider the risk associated with it and ensure you get the appropriate insurance cover for your business.

Enforcing the safety of your business premises by ensuring you have proper railings, slip-proof floors, an alarm and other anti-crime measures, can help reduce your business insurance premium, regardless of where you are located.

Some technological risks to consider

According to Santam's audit and forensics team, technological risks are becoming the common cold of today's business world.  Technological risks can include anything from losing your customer data to data fraud and theft of information.

As a business owner, you have a responsibility to protect your business' technology infrastructure as well your clients' contact details and personal information. You can ensure that you have a back-up of all your computerised information by making sure your employees have been trained to back up your business' data on a separate device such as a CD, DVD or hard drive.

If, for example you lost internet access for the day, would your business grind to a halt? Make sure you have an information technology specialist on standby to assist you in the event of temporary setbacks like these.

While risk is always going to be a factor in your life as a business owner, being aware of the risks facing your business can go a long way in helping you to protect your livelihood. We hope that these practical tips will help you as a business owner reduce your exposure and minimize the impact of unforeseen events.

Verification of a Chinese company

How the verification of a Chinese company should look like? What kind of information can be obtained through this process? Is it really an essential step, or can the whole process be skipped? We will answer these and similar questions below.

Usually, the whole process begins when we’ve finally find a suitable Chinese company. Many depend on when we made the first successful contact: if we simply received an e-mail offer, risk factor is higher than in the case in which we met our supplier during trade shows.

The most important thing that we will find out through verification process, is the type of a company and its scope of activities. Chinese companies, which are dealing in international trade, usually fall into two categories: these are either trade companies or manufacturing companies. Sometimes the former impersonates the latter, but a proper verification process will help to reveal the real identity of the company.

In many cases, the person who claims to represent the Chinese company has no legal title to do so. Therefore it is always necessary to find out, who is the legal representative of the company. As we say:chinese company credit.

Verification is helpful in revealing the physical address of the factory. It is important, if we want to proceed further and send someone to check our shipment. On the other hand, ISO 9001 certificate is awarded to a particular facility, not to the company as a whole. Companies which possess factories cannot be simply shut down overnight – it may happen though to some of the trading companies, especially after receiving our payment.

Through verification process, the authenticity of provided documents and certificates will be also checked. The rule is simple: the Chinese are able to forge everything, but the truth can usually be easily revealed.

If you want to know more about the most popular methods of fraud, documents necessary in the import process and during the custom clearance, please refer to our other guides.