High Net Worth Individuals, or HNWIs, are classified here in the UK as those with an annual income over £100,000. Alternatively, they’re individuals who can self-certify that they hold net assets to the value of £250,000 or more. Clearly, these individuals make good targets for criminals looking to make a quick buck. Their value makes them valuable! As a result, the security services required are greater than they would be ordinarily.
The team here at Stok K9 Security Services, who provide a comprehensive security provision for both HNWIs and UHNWIs (Ultra-High Net Worth Individuals), wanted to explore the kind of security needed for these more vulnerable parties.
Manned guarding and personal security
For all the unquestionable benefits of digital security measures, of which there are many, there’s nothing quite as reassuring as having a physical security in presence, be that at your property or when you’re out and about. HNWIs (and UHNWIs, in particular) often find themselves in the limelight or the public eye, and close personal security is therefore a must for these individuals.
After all, nobody has eyes in the back their head, and when you’re as ‘valuable’ a target as these people are to criminals, to be out and about is also to be exposed. Trust is an immensely important thing to HNWIs and being able to trust your security detail is the most important thing of all. That’s why using SIA-licensed officers screened and vetted in accordance with British Standard 7858 is so imperative.
Regular review
What with the constant improvements being made to technology, new weaknesses and blind spots crop up more regularly than you think. A property which was secure a decade ago might now, for instance, be incredibly exposed and at risk thanks to the more sophisticated tools that criminals have at their disposal.
That’s why, here at Stok K9 Security Services, we advise a regular auditing and review of your HNWI security provision, even if you think it can’t be improved; there are always areas that can be improved, no matter how watertight your security is. This kind of proactivity is essential in keeping HNWIs safe.
The moment security teams and strategies become complacent is the moment when an incident occurs. The margin for error is so slight when it comes to HNWIs because criminals are willing to put in the effort precisely because the rewards can be so great. That means one slip-up, one oversight from a strategy perspective, can be costly.
Make use of technology
Of course, physical security and reviews are crucial, but that doesn’t mean that technology doesn’t have a place in modern HNWI security strategies. Indeed, it plays as large a part as it has ever done. We’ve talked previously about the trends dominating the world of remote surveillance (which you can find here) but the relevant points, particularly for HNWI security, are as follows:
- Use 4K or UHD (Ultra High-Definition) security cameras. Far from being a preserve of huge, flat-screen TVs, 4K surveillance helps ensure crystal-clear levels of security.
- Consider drone surveillance, particularly if your valuable assets take the form of large properties, which have many blind spots and points needing covering. Drones provide an easy way to provide a comprehensive picture of a property’s security. They can be used in a similar way, incidentally, to help audit and review security setups.
- Cloud-based systems. The downside of these high-tech security cameras is that they produce a staggering quantity of data and information. The easiest way of dealing with such large quantities is to utilise cloud-storage systems which are now highly sophisticated.
The ‘New’ HNWI
There’s been a new generation of HNWIs developing, globally, for some time now. There are many younger HNWIs, for instance, than in previous years. With that change in demographic comes changes in habits. Although this is something of a generalisation, younger HNWIs are less likely to hunker down in their property than their more ‘traditional’, older counterparts. They want to be visible and enact social change; they want to travel and do lots of different things – whether personal, work-related or philanthropic. In other words, they want to get out there, and we want to help them feel safe in doing so.
It’s great, of course, that they no longer ‘fear’ – for want of a better word – living because of their economic position (which many HNWIs used to) but it means their security also needs to adapt and scale up correspondingly. These individuals might, for instance, prefer a smaller but more flexible security detail than something larger but more rigid. Around-the-clock availability that works around the constantly changing lifestyles that these individuals follow, is very much now the trend.
Contact us for HNWI security services
So, if you’d like to find out more about our various HNWI security services, then get in touch! Contact Stok K9 Security Services today on 0800 002 5761 or by emailing us on info@stokk9services.com.