risk control services

Better Protection for Your Business

Resources for Your Risks

Your business depends on a well-coordinated team to keep things running smoothly. Still, facing decisions about adapting to crisis is a lot to consider because you have more than just employees to think about - a pandemic impacts everyone.

At Westfield, our designated team of risk-service professionals is here to help. With the array of information available, our team continues to be on the lookout for information to share that will support your business.

Use our convenient online agency locator to find a knowledgeable agent near you, and access our resources below to help you navigate some of the more common challenges faced by businesses today.

Situational Topics

Managing a Safe and Successful Business

With assistance from a panel of subject matter experts, your personal Risk Control Representative is primed to guide you through a broad range of issues. Westfield has 170 years of experience and know what it takes to run a safe and successful business, including:\

Understanding major risk exposures in your industry
Analyzing accidents and recognizing trends in your losses
Helping you establish solutions that provide results

Email a risk control professional today.

Protecting Your Property

Fire, wind damage, flooding from a burst water pipe—these are all accidents that can significantly disrupt your business. At Westfield, we can help you understand the impact of key losses by leveraging our vast database of claims. Separating the information by industry, geography and other factors helps our Risk Control team provide protection plan suggestions that meet your needs, including:

Sprinkler Assessment

Unfortunately, fire sprinkler systems often fail because they’re shut off and never turned back on, or they’re under-designed for certain storage arrangements. You also have to ensure they have adequate water supply and are effectively maintained. Let us offer insight on how to maintain adequate fire protection.

Electrical Safety

Although electricity is essential for keeping your business running, it’s also a primary source of fires. Because electrical failures typically occur behind a wall, panel or covering, they’re often hard to detect. As a result, quality electrical preventive maintenance is very important. You may want to consider looking for safety hazards with infrared thermography, which provides a visual image of electrical hot spots. Our Risk Control Representatives can help you create a personalized electrical preventive maintenance program.

Special Hazard Assessment

We have access to loads of data on claims and special hazards—and we use this information to determine key exposures at your organization. In addition to “book knowledge,” we process what we see and learn in the field to help you implement the most effective controls for your business, including prevention of hazards related to:

Storage and use of combustible liquids and aerosols
Commercial cooking
Idle pallet storage
Dust explosions
Paint spray and powder coating operations
Plastics and foam construction
Alarm detection and maintenance

Continuity Plan

We understand that even with thorough preventive measures, losses will occur. That’s why you need a sound continuity plan, which allows you to resume business operations as quickly as possible after an incident. Extensive preparation will minimize your losses and simplify your recovery process. You should determine:

If you understand the likelihood of key exposures
If you need to establish steps to prevent further damage during an event, such as whether your business requires a generator
If you need to ensure that vital business records are kept intact and damage free
If you need additional assets to rapidly restore key equipment, resources and other dependencies
If you need access to alternative work locations to continue critical functions
If you need to perform training, audits and drills to ensure plan preparedness

Your business is unique and there’s no “off the shelf” emergency plan that can be adapted for all companies. But our Risk Control Representatives can help you establish a program that works for you.

Westfield Safety Resource Center

It may seem daunting to stay current and aware of the various hazards you face, but we’re here to help with our comprehensive safety resource center—an easy-to-use site featuring more than 2,000 reports to assist you in identifying, assessing and controlling your risks. The site provides you with access to technical reports, news updates, handouts and checklists to support your efforts in workplace safety, fire protection, fleet safety and managing liability exposures.

As a Westfield customer, you receive this service at no cost. Simply complete our request form and e-mail it to us. A risk control professional will get in touch with you to help setup your account. Got a question? Simply send us an email.

Helpful Links

Below is a selection of helpful links on a variety of safety topics:

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA): You can access all OSHA standards, record keeping information, workplace inspections, free publications and posters, news releases and contact information.
Department of Transportation (DOT): If your business operates trucks with a GVW in excess of 10,001 pounds, you’re required to register your vehicles with the Department of Transportation. Visit DOT’s website for information about registering your fleet, updates on standards and vehicle inspections.
Safety and Fitness Electronic Records System (SAFER): Use this tool for documenting and tracking fleet safety information taken from roadside inspections, audits and accidents. You also have access to overall safety scores based on your fleet’s history with the Department of Transportation.
National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA): You can review NFPA codes, standards and fire statistics, including an analysis of past fire losses and what can be learned from these tragedies. Please note that access to specific code requirements may involve a membership fee.
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Pocket Guide for Hazardous Chemicals: This guide will help you recognize and minimize chemical hazards. Workers, employers and occupational professionals can access information about general industrial hygiene for several hundred chemicals.
Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC): Explore information related to product safety, product recalls, reporting unsafe products, safety standards and press releases featuring various updates.
National Agricultural Safety Database (NASD): Visit this website for information about farms and agricultural businesses. The site provides a variety of resources, including online safety videos, training topics and technical bulletins.
National Food Service Management Institute and the U.S. Department of Agriculture: The National Food Service Management Institute and the U.S. Department of Agriculture have partnered to establish more than three dozen standard operating procedures for food service operations, including personal hygiene, food recalls, food storage, etc.
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS): Learn how to prevent losses for your business on our nation’s highways. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety is an independent, non-profit organization dedicated to providing safety information for consumers, including vehicle ratings, educational videos, laws and regulations.
National Equipment Register (NER): As a division of ISO Crime Analytics, the National Equipment Register has built a website designed to assist heavy-equipment owners and insurers in fighting theft. The site has an interactive map that allows you to study theft patterns across the country and receive alerts about heavy-equipment theft.