Here to help YOU...
Business insurance is a complex subject. To find out more about the various covers available, please read our useful guide to business insurance below. Click here
Premium Saving Tips
You don't buy a new Jaguar for the price of a Skoda.
Insurance is like most things - you get what you pay for, so always check your cover!!
There are however ways to keep your premiums down and here are some tips for your convenience:
Click on the area you would like to read about:
Motor Insurance
Home Insurance
Travel Insurance
Business Insurance:
- Do I need to have employers' liability insurance?
- What is combined business insurance?
- What is buildings insurance?
- What is contents insurance?
- What is public and employers liability insurance?
- What is professional indemnity insurance?
- What is product liability insurance?
- What is business interruption insurance?
- What are specified perils and all risks?
- What is books debts protection?
- What is legal expenses cover?
- What is personal accident cover?
- What is tools and equipment cover?
- What is tax and VAT investigation cover?
- What are corporate and financial services?
- What are employee protection benefits?
1. Do I need to have employers' liability insurance?
Yes, it's the law if you employ anyone, even if they are only part time.
You should also display your current certificate of Employers liability clearly in the workplace and keep old certificates stored safely for forty years.
top 2. What is combined business insurance? Running your own business is a serious matter and it makes sense to protect your interests from claims that could be a significant financial burden on the company. At all time you should make sure that you are sufficiently covered for incidents involving members of the public or their property, yourself, your employees and your property.
We have a specifically designed package of insurances (combined business insurance) to suit most medium and small businesses which will allow you to obtain quotes for any or all of the following:
• buildings and contents cover
• employers liability, public liability, professional indemnity, products liability, treatment risk and personal accident cover
• goods in transit and contract works
• equipment, machinery, tools and signs
• equipment breakdown
• business money cover, event cancellation cover and copyright cover
• engineering material damage and engineering business interruption
• tax and vat investigation, book debts, business interruption and legal expenses
• fidelity guarantee (staff honesty), financial loss, slander and libel
top 3. What is buildings insurance? Buildings insurance generally covers the structure of the property and its fixtures or fittings, including garages, out-buildings, drives, walls, fences, etc.
Buildings insurance covers the cost of repairing or rebuilding the property if it is damaged. Most policies also cover damage caused through: fire, lightning, earthquake, storm, flood, burst and leaking pipes, theft, vandalism, collision by vehicles, aircraft and animals, falling trees and in some cases subsidence and heave or landslip.
You can generally choose between being covered for specific risks or all risks.
top
4. What is contents insurance? Contents insurance can be some or all of the actual items in the property including any of the following: machinery, plant, trade furniture, tenant's improvements to landlord's property, fixtures and fittings including office equipment and computers, work in progress, office furniture and stock etc.
Again, you can generally choose between being covered for specific risks or all risks
top
5. What is public and employers liability insurance? All private individuals and organizations can take on liabilities if others suffer loss through either acts that are careless or negligent, or because of defects in their property or goods supplied to them.
Many insurances are now available to provide financial protection to meet the costs of defending claims and damages that may become payable.
Employers' liability insurance is however compulsory by law. It provides cover for sums for which the insured may be liable to pay to any employee in respect of Accidental Death, Bodily Injury or Disease arising out of and in the course of his or her employment.
Similarly Public liability covers the liability of the insured in law to members of the public for injuries suffered or property damaged.
top
6. What is professional indemnity insurance? A professional person or firm needs professional indemnity cover to protect themselves against the claims for loss due to wrong advice or failure to do what should have been done.
top
7. What is product liability insurance? Product liability insurance covers the liability of the manufacturer or seller of goods which have caused injury or damage to others or their property.
top
8. What is business interruption insurance? Where loss of gross profit, gross revenue or gross rentals due to reduction in turnover and increased cost of working following loss or damage caused by any of the insured perils is experience this is covered by business interruption insurance
top
9. What are specified perils and all risks? Buildings and contents can be insured against loss or damage caused by individual Specified Perils or All Risks.
Specified perils do vary for each policy, but generally these include cover from the following causes:
fire, burst pipes, malicious damage, riot, storm, flood, falling trees, lightning, aircraft, leakage of fuel from fixed oil or heating installations, impact by road vehicles, explosions and earthquakes
All risks includes the specified perils above, plus Accidental Damage which covers the insured items against being accidentally dropped, knocked, lost or damaged.
top 10. What is books debts protection? Books debts protection covers cost of monies due following loss of or damage to books/records.
top
11. What is legal expenses cover? Legal expenses is available to cover legal costs arising from a variety of disputes in connection with your business. Cover varies with each policy, but generally the following are covered:
Employment disputes and awards, legal defence, property protection, personal injury, Inland Revenue investigations and vat disputes
top
12. What is personal accident cover?
This cover provides benefits for you or your named employees if you or they are killed or injured in an accident. Cover is for:
• Death, loss of limb(s) or eye(s)
• Permanent and total disablement
• Total disablement (temporary)
• Partial disablement (temporary)
• Medical expenses
top
13. What is tools and equipment cover?
Tools and equipment cover, covers loss of or damage to tools and equipment owned by you or your employees or hired/borrowed by you. Tools and equipment are those that are usual to carry out your trade and do not include cover office equipment, mobile telephones etc.
top
14. What is tax and VAT investigation cover? Tax and VAT investigation insurance covers the legal costs and expenses of any appeal by the insured against any terms and conditions imposed during the period of the insurance by the Inland Revenue or HM customs and Excise upon completion of an in-depth investigation into the Insured's most recently submitted business accounts in respect of the insured's: PAYE, business tax and VAT arrangements
It is essential that the business has fully complied with the legal requirements for the maintenance of books of accounts and tax returns, has all account and tax returns within the required time limits and was VAT-registered when any alleged VAT offence occurred
top
15. What are corporate and financial services? All businesses have different needs and require individual solutions to ensure that the correct cover is obtained.
Specialised corporate services - can be any of commercial all risks, professional indemnity, loss of profits, domestic and worldwide liability schemes, hazardous occupations, financial loss, marine, aviation, goods in transit, contractors all risks, health & safety audits, disaster recovery programmes, claims assessing services, risk control & insurance audit, directors and officers liability, building defects, agricultural and livestock, executive kidnap and ransom, film producers all risks indemnity, engineering and computer breakdown, property portfolios, engineering, motor trade etc.
Specialised financial services - pensions (group or personal), key man assurance, share protection, commercial mortgages, staff financial reporting service, investment advice, unit trusts, serps schemes and employee counseling, partnership protection, trustee investment advice.
top
16. What are employee protection benefits? Without doubt the most valuable asset in any business is its employees - providing your employees with a valuable remuneration package will of course assist in retaining high quality staff as well as attracting new candidates.
As an employer you will also be removed from the need to make moral decisions regarding the financial security of employees and their families in the event of an illness or the death of one of your staff.
Employee protection benefits - life assurance, critical illness protection, private medical insurance, income protection.
top
Motor Insurance:
Second car discounts
If the main vehicle in your household has maximum no claims discount, you could receive up to 60% discount off the second vehicle in your houshold - provided of course, that this vehicle has not had any claims and does not have a young driver named on it.
Company car bonus
Were you aware that if you have been driving a company car, you can transfer your claim free years of driving on to a personal policy.
Pass Plus
If you are a new driver, you can earn up to the equivalent of one years no claims bonus by taking a 'Pass Plus' certificate.
Garaged
Vehicles which are garaged over night receive a discount as they are less of a theft risk.
Mileage
Standard mileage is around 12,000 per year. If you do less than this, tell us and you will, with most policies, receive a discount.
Voluntary Excess
Most policies will have a standard excess in place. This is the amount you pay towards a claim and is usually between £50 and £150. You can however increase your excess for a discount. Be careful though, to check what excess is already on your policy.
Named Drivers
If you have an 'Any Driver' policy which, as the name suggests, insures anyone to drive your vehicle, you could save money by putting an age limit in there or restricting it only to named drivers.
top
Home Insurance:
Rebuilding cost not purchase price
You should insure your house for the rebuilding cost, not the purchase price. Purchase prices are often much higher than the rebuild cost.
Security
Discounts are available for window locks, certain types of door locks and alarms. If you have any security measure in place at your home, tell us and we'll tell you if you're eligible to a discount.
Smoke alarms
A discount is available for houses protected by smoke alarms
Neighbourhood watch areas
Neighbourhood watch areas are proven to be less risky areas for insurers. If you live in one, tell us.
Buildings & Contents under one 'roof'
If you insure your buildings and contents with one insurer, you get what is known as a combined discount. As well as this, if there is a claim which affects both policies, if you are insured with just one insurer you only have to pay one excess.
Mortgage Lenders can take a lend!
If you currently insure your Buildings with your mortgage lender, it is more than likely you are paying too much! If you are worried about the penalty clauses some of these establishments charge, don't be, most insurers will pay this for you!
top
Travel Insurance:
Travel Agents
Never accept the price from your travel agent for insurance until you have checked other sources. Many Travel Agents substantially load their premiums.
Delete baggage etc
If your personal posessions are insured through your household policy for All Risks Worldwide, you don't need to insure them under your holiday insurance policy. Most insurers will give you a discount to remove the Personal Posessions if they are already insured elsewhere.
Annual multi trip
If you are going on holiday and taking out insurance, 2, 3 or more times a year, you could find it cheaper with an Annual Multi Trip Policy.
Group policy
If there is a group of you going on holiday. Insure yourselves as such and you will receive a group discount.
top |
