Coping strategies against extreme weather events: A survey of SMEs in the UK

Wedawatta, GSD; Ingirige, Bingunath; Jones, K

Abstract

Small and Medium-scale Enterprises (SMEs); which generate more than one half of the employment
and turnover, form an important sector of the UK economy. In fact, SMEs are considered as the
backbone of the UK economy due to their significant economic and societal importance. Despite
SMEs being the main drivers of the UK economy, they are also said to be the most vulnerable to the
impacts from various disruptions such as Extreme Weather Events (EWEs). Consequently, increased
intensity and frequency of weather extremes in the UK during the recent past has created a significant
impact on the SME community. As the threat of EWEs is expected to further increase in future, the
need for SMEs to implement effective coping mechanisms to manage the effects of EWEs is also
increasing. This paper aims to identify and evaluate the current coping mechanisms implemented by
SMEs to ensure their business continuity in the event of a weather extreme. The paper presents the
findings of a questionnaire survey, conducted as part of “Community Resilience to Extreme Weather –
CREW” research project, addressing this issue. It is identified that SMEs mostly rely on generic
business continuity strategies as opposed to property level protection measures. The paper highlights
the importance of raising the uptake of coping strategies by SMEs, as many were found without
adequate coping strategies to deal with the risk of EWEs.

Citation

Wedawatta, G., Ingirige, B., & Jones, K. Coping strategies against extreme weather events: A survey of SMEs in the UK. Presented at COBRA 2010, Paris

• Presentation Conference Type: Other
• Conference Name: COBRA 2010
• Conference Location: Paris
• End Date: Sep 3, 2010
• Publication Date: Sep 1, 2010
• Deposit Date: Oct 12, 2011
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• Additional Information: Event Type : Conference