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Loss of refrigerated stock can have a significant impact on your pharmacy and your customers, yet there are some simple steps you can take to help avoid this situation.

Every year, Guild Insurance manages a significant number of pharmacy claims where refrigerated cold stock has been damaged and needs to be disposed of. It’s therefore vital that all pharmacy staff understand the role they might play in these incidents occurring and, more importantly, what they can do to reduce both the likelihood of them happening and the impact if they do.

What happens?

According to Guild’s claims data, there are four key causes for refrigerated stock being damaged.

• Storm damage – In these cases, the impact of the storm causes a loss of power. Sometimes the reasons for this loss are obvious, such as when power lines come down. However, there are cases where the reason power has been lost won’t be obvious. Storm damage can also prevent access to a building or premises, meaning any opportunity to access and move the refrigerated stock is hindered.
• Failure of power supply – This occurs when there’s been a loss of power to the premises. There can be several reasons why this occurs, such as faults with or overloaded network supplies. Sometimes there’s a warning it’ll happen; however, unfortunately, other times there isn’t.
• Accidental damage – This is when stock has been damaged accidentally due to staff actions, largely due to human error. Common examples include staff leaving the fridge slightly ajar without realising, not placing stock in the fridge as needed, forgetting about a delivery, or unplugging the fridge for other purposes and not plugging it back in.
• Breakdown – This occurs when the fridge has stopped working or isn’t working effectively, and therefore the correct temperature isn’t maintained. Unfortunately, in many cases, this isn’t realised until the temperature has been impacted for too long and the stock is damaged.

The impact

While insurance is there to assist pharmacists when these incidents occur, it isn’t a magical solution that can immediately solve the problem. There’s a process for determining what stock has been lost, ordering replacement stock, and then receiving this replacement. A quick turnaround in processing an insurance claim unfortunately can’t guarantee when the stock will be back in the pharmacy. This can disrupt operations due to a lack of stock.

When a business can’t operate as usual, this impacts both customers and the business. In some cases seen by Guild Insurance, stock has been a special order for a patient but was not placed in the fridge as required, meaning the patient couldn’t collect their medication when expected. This can be frustrating for the patient and detrimental to their health. Similarly, a pharmacy with scheduled vaccination appointments and a booked nurse may be left without available stock.

How to prevent these incidents

Some of the incidents leading to cold stock being damaged are hard to predict and manage. However, all pharmacists should consider actions they can take to reduce the likelihood of significant stock loss.

Don’t go it alone

• Know your requirements – Ensure you and your staff are aware of and comply with state and territory requirements regarding cold stock storage, disposal, temperature monitoring, and reporting.
• Processes and protocols – Pharmacies should have clear protocols for receiving deliveries, placing stock in fridges, monitoring temperatures, maintaining fridges, and reporting issues. Staff must be trained to follow these protocols.
• Ways of working – Human error is a major contributor to stock damage. Mistakes happen when staff are tired, stressed, or distracted. Reflect on workflows and identify ways to reduce errors.
• Have a plan for power loss – You can’t control when you lose power, but you can be prepared. Have a plan for both planned and unplanned outages, which could include:
  • The use of a generator.
  • A cooler box with ice or gel packs ready.
  • An agreement with another site to use a suitable refrigerator.
• Reminder tools – Simple reminders like stickers can help prevent human errors. Place signage near the electricity meter box and fridge power source to prevent accidental unplugging. Consider a power point locking device or wiring the fridge so it can’t be unplugged.
• Maintenance – Regular maintenance is crucial. Fridges need to be cleaned, serviced, and repaired as needed. While maintenance costs money, the cost of losing stock due to a breakdown can be far higher.
• Stock levels – Keep only the stock needed for the business to minimise losses if an incident occurs. Also, review your insurance policy to ensure the sum insured is appropriate.
• Alarms – Fridge alarms can alert staff when the temperature goes outside the ideal range or when the fridge door is left open. These alarms can be added if not already a feature of the fridge.
• Additional fridges – If space allows, having multiple fridges and avoiding overloading them can provide backup storage in case of a breakdown.
• Alternate power source – A backup power source, such as a generator or uninterruptible power supply (UPS), can keep fridges running during outages. UPS devices are cost-effective and can be fitted to existing fridges without an electrician.
• Stay informed – Pharmacists and staff should stay up to date on best practices for cold storage. The Federal Government’s National Vaccine Storage Guidelines, Strive for 5 provides valuable insights applicable beyond vaccines.

Guild Insurance Limited ABN 55 004 538 863, AFS Licence No. 233 791. This article contains general information only and is not intended as legal advice. Guild Insurance supports your Association through referral fees for certain products or services. RHQ324852 Preventing the Loss of Cold Stock 03/2025.