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A family business is a precious thing. It’s born, nurtured and passed from old to young – a legacy filled with love, sweat and tears.
Allowing an outsider to influence your family business is not always easy. No matter how you approach the business, the insurer, broker and risk manager will always be the outsider.
But there are some who have mastered the art of the supportive partnership. Global insurer Chubb is well known for its long and fruitful relationships with clients. One example is its connection with Trinchero Family Estates – one of the largest family-run independent wineries in the US.
Chubb has worked with Trinchero for many years, providing coordinated service for several lines of insurance coverage, and helping the family grow their estates and develop their business into state-of-the-art, automated operations.
“Trinchero are first and foremost wine producers. Their specialty is sourcing and producing wines, and they also have very strong distribution, marketing and sales operations. Their strong suit and primary focus is to produce wine and get it into market,” said Thomas Neale, risk specialist at Chubb Risk Engineering Services, who has been working on the Trinchero account since 1994.
“Chubb has helped Trinchero by providing many different lines of insurance coverage along their journey. We have the ability and expertise to provide back up and guidance, so that as Trinchero acquire new properties, we can assist them by evaluating if they are up to appropriate standards – especially when it comes to fire protection and wildfire defenses.”
Business owners often have strong intuition and a gut feeling about their operations. If an outsider - trusted or not - contradicts the gut, their advice can sometimes be difficult to swallow. Consider small business owners, who make up a huge percentage of US businesses, and some of whom are quite drastically underinsured.
Some insurance professionals could do more to educate business owners, so that their intuition becomes one of business best practices, and so that the insurance protection gap is narrowed. That would require strong collaboration between the insurer and the insured – something Chubb practices in abundance.
“As a family business, Trinchero are very collaborative,” Neale told Insurance Business. “They’re looking for partners when it comes to all aspects of their business, and we’ve provided good products, service and support over time.
“Trinchero are interested in listening to any concerns we may have about any aspect of their business. They’ve always been open to suggestions because they’re looking to improve their business. Often, we will provide information on best practices, and then it’s up to them to make a decision whether to implement a business change. It has always been a very open relationship, which is enjoyable and positive.”
