GlobalData findings recommend the principle cause UK SMEs wouldn’t have a standalone cyber insurance coverage coverage is as a result of they assume it’s unlikely their firm will likely be a sufferer of a cyberattack. Nevertheless, a report by cybersecurity marketing consultant JUMPSEC discovered that the UK is essentially the most focused nation exterior the US for ransomware assaults.

GlobalData 2022 UK SME Insurance coverage Survey

In GlobalData’s 2022 UK SME Insurance coverage Survey, 42.6% of respondents said that the principle cause they don’t have a standalone cyber insurance coverage coverage is as a result of they assume it’s unlikely their firm will likely be a sufferer of a cyberattack. This reveals that serving to SMEs perceive their cyber threat stays a key problem for insurers in rising new enterprise on this line.

As well as, 17.1% of respondents said that cyber insurance policies are too costly, whereas 16.8% declare their firm is properly protected. As an illustration of the cyber threat confronted by UK SMEs, a report from JUMPSEC discovered that the UK is essentially the most incessantly focused nation exterior the US for ransomware assaults.

In Europe, 20% of such assaults happen within the UK. Moreover, JUMPSEC discovered that ransomware assaults elevated by 87% within the UK within the first half of 2023 (in comparison with 37% globally). It expects 2023 to be essentially the most prolific yr for ransomware, surpassing the earlier highs in 2021.

Whereas many SMEs imagine it’s unlikely they’ll fall sufferer to a cyberattack, they’re regularly turning into extra involved about this threat. GlobalData’s 2022 UK SME Insurance coverage Survey discovered that fifty.7% of SMEs are involved in regards to the threat of a cyberattack – a 1.2 share level improve in comparison with 2021. The hesitance in direction of buying a cyber insurance coverage coverage amongst SMEs is considerably comprehensible, with lots of them trying to lower prices wherever potential amid the cost-of-living disaster. But the monetary and reputational value of being a sufferer of a cyberattack might be deadly, particularly in such unsure macroeconomic circumstances.

General, the price of falling sufferer to a cyberattack far outweighs the price of a cyber insurance coverage coverage. Insurers want to speak the significance of those insurance policies and persuade SMEs that they should enhance their safety as cyberattacks grow to be a rising concern.

Charlie Hutcherson is an affiliate analyst at GlobalData