At this week’s Business Networking South Leicestershire (BNSL) meeting, we enjoyed an informative and thought-provoking 10-minute presentation from Josh Makepeace of Everywhen Insurance Brokers.
Josh, a qualified insurance professional holding the Cert CII qualification, gave members an insight into the work carried out by Everywhen, the company’s growing presence in Leicester and, most importantly, some of the risks that business owners should be thinking about.
His presentation highlighted why business insurance is about considerably more than simply finding the cheapest renewal quotation. It’s about understanding the risks your business faces and ensuring you have appropriate protection when something goes wrong.
Find out more about Everywhen:
https://www.everywhen.co.uk/
Meet Josh Makepeace – Your Local Insurance Broker
Josh is an Account Executive at Everywhen, helping business owners understand, manage and protect against the risks they face.
He explained that his approach is based on building long-term relationships and providing practical, straightforward advice in an increasingly complicated insurance market.
Rather than simply quoting for a policy, Josh takes time to understand how a business operates, the people it employs, the customers it serves and the potential risks associated with its activities.
This personal approach helps ensure that the insurance recommended is appropriate for the business rather than simply being the cheapest available option.
Everywhen – A Growing Insurance Business in Leicester
Josh also introduced members to Everywhen’s recently refurbished Leicester offices.
The business has established a significant presence in the city, with more than 60 colleagues based at its Leicester office.
Although Everywhen operates as part of a much larger national and international insurance broking organisation, Josh emphasised that it remains committed to providing local, personal service.
The Leicester team supports businesses of all sizes and across a wide variety of industries, combining local relationships with access to the resources and insurer relationships of a much larger organisation.
Everywhen is also continuing to grow and recruit, creating additional opportunities for insurance professionals in the region.
Everywhen Leicester
First Floor, Waterloo House
71 Princess Road West
Leicester
LE1 6TR
Opening hours: Monday to Friday, 9am–5pm.
How Everywhen Helps Businesses
Josh explained that arranging suitable business insurance involves several important stages.
1. Understanding Your Business
The first step is getting to know the business properly.
What does it do? How many people does it employ? What types of customers does it serve? What equipment, premises or specialist services does it rely upon?
Understanding these details helps identify the risks that need to be considered.
2. Reviewing Existing Insurance
Everywhen can undertake a review of a business’s existing insurance arrangements.
This can help identify potential gaps in cover, areas where protection may no longer be appropriate and opportunities to make savings.
For businesses that have grown or changed significantly since their policies were first arranged, this can be particularly valuable.
3. Accessing the Insurance Market
Josh explained that Everywhen works with both major and specialist insurers.
Its relationships and substantial buying power provide access to a wide range of insurance solutions, helping brokers find suitable protection for different types of businesses.
4. Support Beyond the Insurance Policy
Everywhen’s services can extend beyond arranging insurance.
Depending on the business’s requirements, additional support can include property valuations, health and safety services and driver training.
Importantly, Josh stressed that supporting clients when they need to make a claim is a fundamental part of the service.
Explore Everywhen’s business insurance services:
Small Business Insurance – Everywhen
Cyber Security – A Growing Risk for Small Businesses
One of the most important subjects covered during Josh’s presentation was cyber security.
He highlighted figures from the 2026 Cyber Security Breaches Survey indicating that 43% of businesses surveyed had identified a cyber security breach or attack during the previous 12 months.
It’s easy to assume that cyber criminals are only interested in large organisations, but Josh explained that smaller businesses can be attractive targets because they may have fewer security measures in place.
Many of the businesses represented within BNSL rely heavily on:
- Email communications
- Online banking
- Cloud accounting systems
- Customer databases
- Websites and online ordering
- Digital business records
A successful cyber attack could disrupt access to these systems, prevent a business from trading and potentially create significant financial and reputational consequences.
Josh encouraged members to consider whether their current insurance arrangements provide suitable protection against cyber-related incidents.
Learn more about commercial insurance:
Everywhen Business Insurance
Don’t Forget the Risks Involving People
Another area Josh highlighted was the potential financial impact of disputes involving employees, customers and other third parties.
Even where an allegation against a business is ultimately unfounded, defending a claim can be expensive and time-consuming.
As businesses grow, their exposure to employment disputes, liability claims and management-related risks can also increase.
Josh explained that company directors and business owners may face personal exposure in certain circumstances if appropriate protection is not in place.
This makes it important to review areas such as management liability, directors’ and officers’ insurance and employment practices liability.
Find out more about management liability:
Everywhen – Management Liability Insurance
Will Your Insurance Still Be Suitable in Five Years?
Josh also encouraged members to think beyond their immediate insurance requirements.
A policy that is appropriate today may not provide suitable protection as a business develops.
Changes that can affect insurance requirements include:
- Moving into larger premises
- Employing additional staff
- Taking on larger contracts
- Purchasing new equipment
- Expanding into new markets
- Increasing turnover
- Introducing new products or services
His advice was to think about where your business might be in three to five years and ensure your insurance arrangements are reviewed as your circumstances change.
A Real-Life Insurance Claim Exceeding £1 Million
Perhaps the most memorable part of Josh’s presentation was a real client case study demonstrating why having the right insurance broker can make such a difference when disaster strikes.
The case involved a manufacturing business where a fire broke out inside a spray machine during normal production.
The incident damaged machinery, stock and surrounding areas, bringing automated production to a halt.
The business faced an immediate challenge: how could it continue trading, retain its employees and reassure customers while dealing with such a substantial loss?
A Rapid Response
Josh explained that the insurance team acted quickly.
Loss assessors were appointed the following day, with insurers, loss adjusters and other specialists becoming involved immediately.
Regular meetings and proactive claims management helped the business understand the process and work towards recovery.
Keeping the Business Running
Despite the scale of the incident, the business managed to resume production manually within days.
The first insurance claims payment was received within six weeks.
Most importantly, the business continued trading and retained its employees despite a loss exceeding £1 million.
The example demonstrated that insurance is not simply about having a policy document filed away somewhere.
When something serious happens, having appropriate cover and an experienced broker who can support the claims process can make an enormous difference to a business’s ability to recover.
Don’t Leave Your Insurance Renewal Until the Last Minute
Josh concluded with some straightforward advice for business owners.
Start reviewing your business insurance around six months before your renewal date.
Leaving everything until the final few weeks can limit the time available to review cover properly, approach insurers and consider alternative arrangements.
By starting early, business owners can have a proper conversation about their risks and make informed decisions without feeling rushed.
Josh also encouraged members to seek a second opinion, even if they have been using the same insurance provider for many years.
As he reminded the group, never underestimate the power of a second opinion!
Need Business Insurance Advice?
Whether you’re a sole trader, small business owner or managing a larger organisation, it is worth making sure your insurance arrangements reflect the risks your business actually faces.
Josh Makepeace and the team at Everywhen can help review your existing policies, identify potential gaps and explore suitable options for your next renewal.
Contact Josh Makepeace – Cert CII
Account Executive, Everywhen
Email: joshua.makepeace@everywhen.co.uk
Mobile: 07816 078449
Website: https://www.everywhen.co.uk/
Another Excellent BNSL Presentation
A big thank you to Josh for delivering such a useful and informative presentation.
His real-life case study was a particularly powerful reminder of the importance of having the right protection in place before something goes wrong.
It was another great example of the knowledge and expertise available within Business Networking South Leicestershire.
Our weekly presentations allow members to share their professional experience, explain their services and help other business owners make better-informed decisions.
Come Along to BNSL
If you run a business in South Leicestershire or the surrounding area and would like to meet experienced local professionals like Josh, why not come along to one of our meetings as a guest?
BNSL is a friendly, relaxed and supportive business networking group focused on building genuine relationships and helping members grow their businesses.
With only one member representing each profession, members benefit from exclusive representation of their particular trade or service.
Interested in joining us?
Contact the BNSL Committee to arrange your visit.
Local. Supportive. Affordable. Real.
— The BNSL Committee
