Brexit has been weighing on the minds of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) for some time now, and it is their greatest concern, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

Just less than half of SMEs were concerned about Brexit in 2019. With 22%* of SMEs being fairly concerned while 24% were very concerned about the impact Brexit will have on their business. While the outcome of the transition period is still up in the air, SMEs can finally be confident that Brexit will be coming to an end.

Yasha Kuruvilla, Associate Insurance Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “The outcome of Brexit has been a cause for concern for SMEs since the referendum took place. No matter the outcome at the end of the transition period, businesses will have new worries to come next year.”

The business landscape will undoubtedly change in the aftermath of Brexit, and SMEs will need assistance navigating this new arena. Insurers can provide additional assistance and in fact, are already doing so with 28% of SMEs currently receiving business strategy advice from their employer, a service that should see increased usage at the end of the year. Of the 72% of SMEs that are not receiving such services, 41% of them would like to.

Kuruvilla adds: “These additional services offered by insurers will become quite valuable once the transition period is over. This is especially true in the event that a trade deal is not agreed and ratified by the end of the transition period. Businesses will encounter a plethora of new challenges in this case, and any additional assistance would be greatly appreciated. Insurers offering these services could find themselves picking up new clients in the near future.”

*The survey data is taken from GlobalData’s 2019 UK SME Insurance Survey.