Every $US1 ($1.36) a business spends on hurricane mitigation cuts loss exposure by an average of $US105 ($142.47), according to an analysis by FM Global.

The commercial and industrial property insurer analysed more than 10,000 wind and flood-related investments and their associated reduction in property loss and business disruption exposure for 1800 clients worldwide, from 2008 to last year.

And the 1-to-105 ratio does not reflect repercussions such as damage to reputation, market share and shareholder value.

“Businesses often wonder if they are getting a good return when they invest in preventing hurricane-related wind and flood damage,” Senior VP Engineering and Research Brion Callori said. “This analysis has yielded a pretty convincing answer.”

FM Global says any business exposed to flood risk should invest in a flood emergency response plan. The insurer’s loss history shows facilities with well-organised plans suffer 70% less damage and resume operations sooner than those without.