Events such as this winter’s flooding in Cumbria and Yorkshire or the Buncefield Oil Depot explosion in 2005 had a massive impact on local businesses. Many businesses don't survive such a major event as they haven’t made adequate provision for when a crisis hits. So it’s essential for businesses to have a robust business continuity plan in place that also incorporates a disaster recovery plan.

1. Keep calm and carry on.
How a business continuity plan will sustain your business if disaster
strikes.
Businessesare operating in a world full of risk and uncertainty. Flood,fire,a catastrophic
accident,a cyber attack or the impact of travel infrastructure like Crossrail or HS2 couldall have a
devastatingeffecton your business, particularly on a small or mediumsizedcompany.
Fortunately,these kind of eventsare unusual but in a seriesofthree articles we’ll lookat how to
mitigate the effectshouldthe worst happenand what plans to put in place to make sure your
businesscontinuesto operate or evenavoidsmajor disruption inthe first place.
We can all recall eventsthathave seriouslyimpactedbusinesses,thiswinter’sfloodingin Cumbria
and Yorkshire forexample orthe BuncefieldOilDepotexplosionin2005. But how doesa business
survive sucha majorevent? The realityismanydon’t because theysimplyhaven’t made adequate
provisionforwhenacrisishits. A recentsurveyfoundthat nearlyathird (32%) of businessesdon’t
have a businesscontinuityplan,makingthemlessable towithstand amajorcrisis.
So it’sessential forbusinessestohave arobust businesscontinuityplaninplace thatalso
incorporatesadisasterrecoveryplan. Oftenconfusedasthe same thing,there isquite adifference
betweenthembutbothare vital toensure a comprehensive strategy.
A businesscontinuityplan ensuresan organisationcancontinue tooperate followingan
unexpectedevent. It setsoutthe processesandprocedures thatare required tomake sure
essential businessfunctions are maintained duringandafteradisaster.Itenablesabusinessto
protectits missioncritical servicesandgivesitthe bestchance of survival.
As part of thisprocess,organisations should alsodevelop adisasterrecoverplan that ensuresa
companycan regain itsfull operational abilityaftersuchan event. Itshould containmore technical
plansfor specificgroups allowingthemtorecoveraparticularbusinessapplicationsuchasIT,
critical supplieridentification,essential personnel,recoveryof vital recordsand informationabout
contactingkey vendorsandclients.
Withoutcontingencyplans, copingwithadisasterandmakingsure yourbusiness doesn’tgounder
mightseemlike animpossibletask,butthere ishelpoutthere. Forbusinessesaffected byflooding
it comes invariousforms:
 Followingthe recentfloods,the Governmenthas stumpedup anextra£11 million, aspart
of the pre-existingCommunitiesandBusinessRecoveryScheme, toenable local authorities
to give assistance worthupto £2,500 foreverybusinessaffected.
 Local GrowthHubs administerthese Governmentgrants. Inaddition,manyhave set-up
theirown schemestosupportSMEs in fundingcritical capital investmentsuchasnew
equipmentorthe costof hiringmachineryorpremises.
 Businessesadverselyaffectedbyfloodingcouldbe eligible forthree monthsrelieffrom
BusinessRates.

2. Otherconcessionsare offeredbyGovernmentagencies.
 HMRC will give businesseshitbyfloods uptothree monthsadditional time topaytaxes
includingVAT,PAYEandcorporationtax.
 For businessesunabletofile accountsorotherdocumentsdue toflooding,Companies
House will agree anextensionandnotapplylate filingspenalties.
 The Floodline Service, ahelpline providingfree advice andsupport, isavailable on0345
988 1188.
 The Associationof BritishInsurers hasissuedspecificadvice forbusinessesthathave been
flooded. It includesinformationaboutbusinessinterruptioncoverthat canhelpwith
critical issuessuchas payingsalaries,increasedcostsof runningyourbusinessandany(pre-
tax) shortfallsinprofit.
 Major highstreetbankshave alsomade a commitmenttoprovide financial supportto
businessesinaffectedareas. The packagesinclude amixture of repaymentholidays,
reducedor waivedfees,loanextensionsandincreasedflexibilityof terms.
But it’snot justfloodingthatcausesmajordisruptiontobusinesses. The fire atthe Buncefieldoil
storage depotin2005 had a profoundimpact on hundredsof companies. Nearly400 businesses
had to be evacuatedandmanyof those were unable toreturntotheirpremisesforanumberof
daysor evenweeks. The short-termbusinessrecoverycostshave beenestimatedat£2.2 million
withthe estimatedtotal costsexceeding£1billion,thisremainsBritain’smostcostlyindustrial
disaster.
Dacon Plc,a UK basedcompanyprovidingarange of contact centre andcommunicationsolutions,
suffered severe damage toitspremisesinthe explosion. Havingto workfrom cramped,temporary
cabinswithintermittentlossof powerandwaterand disruptiontoadministrative andmanagement
systems, made tryingtorebuildthe businessall the more difficult.
EFM providedimmediate anddirect support, throughfinancial management andadministrative
help. EFMwas able toofferpromptassistance byresolvingcreditcontrol issuesand helped
managingthe insurance claim.Duringthe re-buildingprocess, EFMsuccessfully helped
managementmigrate Dacontoan improvedcompanyinfrastructure andimplementednew
financial control systems. Asa resultDaconnot onlysurvivedareal crisis,butemergedstronger
and more organisedthanbefore.
EFM’s expertscanofferadvice onhow to developa businesscontinuityplan,to mitigate future
disasters orunplannedemergencies.