Michael Petersen As the year draws to a close, shopping malls begin to experience a significant rise in foot traffic as many South Africans and international tourists rush to complete their Christmas shopping.  These heightened buying trends, aided by annual bonuses traditionally being paid around this time, lead shops to open their stores for longer and increase their stock intake as a means to capitalise on shoppers’ inflated budget. However, what should be a joyous occasion could turn rather sour as higher store revenues traditionally tend to attract criminals.  This is according to Michael Petersen, CEO of Risk Benefits Solutions (RBS) , one of South Africa’s largest independent insurance and risk specialists, who says that a spike in crimes ranging from in-store robberies to cash-in-transit heists, among other shopping mall-related crimes, usually mark the beginning of the festive season.  “In the build up to Christmas, the number of shoppers increase and...

George Davis Drought conditions have many devastating effects on communities and the surrounding environment. While the devastating effects of drought are first realised within the agricultural sector, the ripple effect into other sectors and consumers’ personal lives is quickly felt.  This is according to George Davis, Head: Construction and Engineering at Risk Benefit Solutions (RBS), one of South Africa’s largest independent insurance and risk specialists, who says that this has already become evident with the implementation of water restrictions in Gauteng last week.  “Businesses – across all sectors – need to start realising the potential devastation and associated costs that can arise from the current drought conditions, and should be implementing risk management strategies accordingly.”  South African Water Minister, Nomvula Mokonyane1, was recently quoted stating that South Africa is currently experiencing its worst recorded drought since 1992, and as ...

Annelie Smith The risks facing businesses are greater than ever. Each day a business and its executives are exposed to a vast array of risks - both internally and externally - that have the potential to negatively impact a business’ cash flow, operations, reputation and ultimately the success of the business. According to Annelie Smith, Corporate Executive at Risk Benefit Solutions (RBS) , often businesses, and in particular small and medium enterprises (SMEs), don’t know the true extent of the risks impacting their business, or have measures in place to protect themselves from the consequences of these risks.  She adds that when implementing a risk management plan, businesses need to identify all possible threats against their business. “Often businesses obtain insurance for the more ‘obvious’ risks such as fire and perils, theft and damage to property. There are however so many other lurking risks which could be harmful to a business if the necessary protective measures...