Tips for working from home

The spread of Coronavirus (Covid-19) is unprecedented and we understand this is an incredibly difficult time for families and businesses. We are here to help customers and businesses who are affected by the impact of Covid-19 in these challenging times and have created a guide on some of the risk measures to consider when working from home.

With the current guidance on coronavirus limiting travel to and from workplaces, it’s likely that more of us will be working from home more than we usually do, and for some it might be the first time. Whether you’re new to this or a seasoned veteran, there are a few things we can all do to keep healthy and connected.

Click here to download our Risk Management guide, ‘Managing additional home working exposure‘.

Get the right equipment

The best places to work at home are those that are an uncluttered and comfortable (but not the sofa!), ideally with great natural light and no distractions. If you’re working from home for an extended period of time, consider creating a dedicated workspace and think about what other equipment you might need.

Check your Wi-fi

An increase in people working from home is likely to have an impact on wi-fi networks, which may affect your ability to connect to company systems. If you do experience connection issues, consider checking your broadband provider status, before looking into whether any problems are related to your employer’s network.

Data protection

Sometimes when we work from home we may need documentation to continue to deliver in our roles. Data protection principles continue to apply at all times. Make sure you are prepared before you work from home. If you need relevant materials, ensure these are protected and secure on your laptop so you can easily access them when you are working from home.

Don’t just sit there!

Sitting in one place for a long period of time is not good for us, regardless of whether we’re in the office or at home. There can often be fewer distractions at home so it’s easier to just keep going and then realise you have worked for hours with little to no movement.

Make sure you take regular breaks, get up from your workspace, stretch your legs or something else that gets the blood moving. A short walk is a great way of clearing the mind and improving creativity.

Home Insurance

When it comes to the potential impact on home insurance, we suggest that people check with their insurers whether the change in circumstance will make any difference to their cover. For Zurich home insurance policyholders, cover allows normal clerical working from home so this change in conditions shouldn’t pose much of an issue.

We are here to help customers and businesses who are affected by the impact of Covid-19 in these challenging times and have created a guide on some of the risk measures to consider when working from home.

The World Economic Form have provided some tips on how to stay productive at home, to read these click here.

The BBC have also provided some tips, focusing on how to preserve your mental wellbeing during the outbreak, to read that click here.