Benjamin Franklin - Risk Manager
Benjamin Franklin, recognized that, by organizing or being involved with a group of like-minded business owners, one could spread the risk amongst all of the business owners and save costs as well. This is just one way to lower insurance premiums.
By 1751, it was almost fashionable for the professional or business owner to be a member of a fire brigade. Franklin developed the idea to bring the members of the fire brigades together to create an insurance company. By 1752, The Philadelphia Contributorship was created and is regarded by many to be the model of the modern day insurance company in the United States.
The concept was simple. Business owners contributed premiums and losses were paid from proportionate shares of the premiums. The owners spread the risk of loss over the many subscribers.
Local chambers of commerce frequently have insurance company discounts for members and the costs of membership are relatively low. Trade groups, unions, and professional organizations often have affiliate membership programs for insurers and those insurers offer discounts.
So, follow Ben's example and get involved with your other local business owners through organizations and groups. You could be saving valuable premium dollars and " a penny saved is a penny earned."
It is not always necessary for an employer to join a group, and get group coverage, to cut insurance costs.
I am a licensed agent for a top-rated insurance company that lets employers offer access to their employees, without the company needing to contribute any money to the plan at all. These are individual policies that the employees purchase and own, and with an employer’s help, they can pay for these via payroll deduction. If there are enough employees, we can write it as a Section 125, which gives the employees a break on the insurance cost (being paid with pre-tax dollars), and also gives employers a break on payroll taxes. It is an employer’s option if they want to compensate their employees a little extra to cover the insurance cost, but it is not required. In effect, with a Section 125 “worksite” plan, employers would actually save money if they offered their employees the type of insurance we offer.
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Benjamin Franklin had a remarkable impact in so many ways, including saving money through co-operation. A Benjamin Franklin article just received the ‘Top 100 Electricity Blogs’ Award http://bit.ly/z8Ckp