Identifying and managing risk is critical to the protection of community assets and businesses.

By reducing risk, and therefore vulnerability, insurance premiums can be reduced, claim history and frequency is improved, and communities become more prosperous and safer places to live and work. At Aboriginal Insurance Services (AIS), our goal is to help communities identify those risks that could result in injury or property loss, and encourage implementation of programs and services to lessen or erase them over time.

We understand the limitations many community’s face, both financially and from a human resources perspective. However, equipped with knowledge, ongoing support, and skills training, we know that Aboriginal communities can benefit greatly from adopting a risk management program, even one small step at a time.

No two Aboriginal communities are alike and risks are not “made to scale”.

Some communities face risks similar to those of large cities or municipalities, other communities are smaller, with limited resources and much less margin of error. Because risks are not one-size-fits-all, the plan to manage them must be one-of-a-kind. 

The Community Risk Assessment Survey (CRSA) was designed as a community assessment tool in collaboration with our clients to assess each community on an individual basis, taking into account the overall operations and management that makes each community unique and bench mark the results with similar communities across the country. By participating in the CRSA, communities gain a better understanding of their risk exposures, often discovering risks that might not have crossed their minds.

Understanding risk management is the key to reduced premiums

Uncertainty is at the heart of risk. You may be unsure if an event is likely to occur or what the consequences would be if it did. Insurance is based on risk. When you get an insurance policy, the insurance company is taking on some of your risk. For example, if you drive a car, you risk that your car will be damaged in an accident. Having auto insurance means if the car does get damaged, the insurance company will pay you for the repairs. By having a policy, your risk is lower. However simply having insurance does not mean everything is taken care of. Failure to recover data from damaged computers, loss of stored materials, losing the irreplaceable – these risks require management.

There are as many different types of strategies for managing risk as there are types of risks. These include accepting the consequences of the risk and budgeting for it, transferring the risk to another party by insuring against it, fixing the risk, or reducing the negative effect of the risk with preventative measures. Different types of risk management plans can deal with calculating the possibility of an event, how the event might impact you or your business, what the risks are with certain ventures, and how to mitigate problems associated with those risks. Thankfully, most risks can be prevented by implementing a few simple procedures.

To achieve success, it’s vital that both management and leadership be committed to risk management. For this reason, we conduct on-site interviews to determine attitudes about risk management, levels of commitment, and also to identify an employee within the community that could participate in our “Risk Assessment Ambassador Trainee” to be designated as the risk management liaison/trainee with your insurance broker and management.

 

Remember, the greater the hazard or risk, the higher the premium – the lower the risk, the lower the premium.