Unlike third-party losses, first-party loss is often overlooked. In addition to initial recall expenses, the potential long-term losses from the damage to a company’s reputation and loss of sales may continue for months or even years. Since these losses can be catastrophic, this article focuses on ways to manage first-party incident exposures.
Costs from a product recall or contamination can easily become many millions of dollars. In addition to the physical expense of a recall, falling sales due to poor consumer confidence, brand rehabilitation expenses and potential shareholder lawsuits may also contribute to long-term losses.
Despite recall frequency and the potential for extraordinary costs, most companies don’t adequately plan, prepare and practice for—or buy insurance to protect against—product recall events. In addition to proper insurance coverages, careful planning is essential in managing the risk of a recall.
