Mid-market businesses in the UK and Ireland are pursuing ambitious growth plans while facing widespread disruption, according to Chubb’s 2026 Middle Market Risk Radar.
More than nine in 10 businesses surveyed had experienced at least one disruptive incident in the past three years, including business disruption, cyber incidents and climate-related events.
Yet they remain in growth mode. Almost all (97%) plan to launch new products or services in the next 12 months, 89% expect to grow their workforce, and 82% plan to expand internationally or enter new markets.
Cybersecurity was the biggest concern, cited by 70% of businesses, followed by economic uncertainty (64%), talent acquisition and retention (62%) and operational risk (61%).
Concern rises with size. Some 81% of mid-sized businesses rated cybersecurity, data privacy and financial crime as a major or significant risk, compared with 52% of smaller businesses. Phishing or business email compromise was the most common cyber event, reported by 42%, and 37% had been disrupted by a cyber incident at a supplier or technology provider.
Costs are rising too. Chubb’s 2026 cyber claims report found the average value of cyber claims for mid-sized businesses in Europe and the UK tripled between 2020 and 2025. But only 36% of businesses surveyed said they had a cyber policy that is regularly reviewed and tailored to their changing risks.
Jimaan Sané (pictured, left), head of growth for global cyber at Chubb, said firms that had suffered a cyber incident were nearly twice as likely to have a tailored cyber policy. The challenge, he said, was helping businesses prepare before an incident occurs.
Businesses reported mixed confidence in their preparedness. More than seven in ten feel completely or very prepared for cyber attacks and major IT outages, but fewer feel ready for natural catastrophes, extreme weather and reputational damage.
“Understanding those dependencies, planning for disruption and making sure insurance protection reflects how the business is evolving are all important parts of building resilience,” said Andy Houston (pictured, right), head of commercial insurance for the UK and Ireland at Chubb.
International expansion brings a significant gap. Almost eight in ten (79%) businesses surveyed operate internationally, but 19% of those have no insurance in place for their overseas operations.
The findings echo other research this month. Aon found only around one in five UK organisations has a formal risk management plan for business interruption, supply chain or cyber risk, and far fewer have quantified their exposures. CFC found most SMEs don’t realise their cyber cover includes incident response or responds to human error.
For brokers, the overseas finding is the clearest opportunity. Mid-market clients expanding abroad often assume their UK programme travels with them, and many need locally compliant cover in each country. Insurers have been expanding their multinational networks to meet that demand, with Intact’s now reaching more than 170 countries and territories.
The cyber findings point the same way. With claims values rising and only around a third of firms reviewing their cyber cover regularly, brokers have a strong case for annual cyber reviews, particularly for growing clients adding technology, suppliers and new markets. Supplier-driven cyber disruption, affecting more than a third of firms, is also worth raising, since contingent business interruption cover varies widely.
