Willis

Travelling internationally or residing abroad for business may in the past have seemed more exotic and exciting than dangerous. Not so today. Caught between the pressure generated by the current security environment and the increased focus on corporate responsibility, corporations must pay closer attention to the personal safety of its staff than ever before. Threats against Western interests require corporations to be more proactive in their approach to security and contingency planning in order to protect their human and financial assets and to reassure their employees. Shifting regional volatility means that clients may find themselves in hostile situations in territories where they had previously felt there was an acceptable level of risk.

These threats impact employee well being, corporate liability and business continuity. It is essential that organisations with such exposures assess the risks to their business and staff and take steps to mitigate them. They must also demonstrate that they are able to respond effectively to a crisis. While some companies have extensive security and risk management resources in-house, few security departments have handled sensitive and time-consuming kidnapping, extortion or political detention incidents. The financial and management implications of such incidents and possible subsequent litigation have made clear the need for expert preventative and incident management advice.

Your company could benefit from kidnap, extortion and detention coverage if it:

• Operates overseas
• Sends executives, employees or representatives overseas on business
• Conducts business in high-risk territories (including Latin America, Africa, Asia or the Middle East)
• Is involved in the aviation, oil, energy, construction, banking, telecommunications, utilities, mining or manufacturing industries
• Is involved in reconstruction projects in Iraq or Afghanistan.