Small businesses upbeat despite downturn

Date: 2nd September 2009

Partnerships and small business owners in the UK are holding their nerve in the credit crunch and remain "bullish" about their survival prospects, Hiscox UK has said.

According to the insurance provider, a majority (54 per cent) feel "confident" that they can ride out the downturn, even though 45 per cent predict that the troubled economic climate will not clear until next summer or later.

Hiscox also detected confidence in the business models of many smaller firms, with 88 per cent of the total not yet having enforced cuts to worker salaries.

A slightly smaller total (82 per cent) also indicated that they were continuing to spend the same amount on office maintenance as they were prior to the onset of the downturn.

Around 95 per cent also said that they have maintained insurance cover levels.

Alan Thomas, small business insurance expert at Hiscox UK, said: "It's good to see that many [firms] are so confident about their survival prospects and have avoided some of the more difficult measures such as salary cuts and redundancies."

He added: "The fact that a majority … believe that the downturn in the UK shows no sign of abating, makes it more important than ever for businesses to ensure they have sufficient cover."