February « 2010 « BusinessInsure Blog

Archive for February, 2010

Fish and Chip Shop Insurance – tips to reduce your quote

Tuesday, February 9th, 2010

The first tip we always say to potential customers when looking for a cheap fish and chip shop insurance quote is to speak to a professional.

In every town and city the length and breadth of the land, there are business insurance brokers screaming out for your business. You may have been with the same broker for years and accept the 5/6/7% increase they apply, year in year out, now though is the time for change.

Your insurance is high because there are businesses that are run with less professionalism, they are the ones that have the fires and the liability claims, if you have a good claims experience, use it to your advantage.

Other pointers are to let your broker know if you have shutters on your windows, do you live in, how often is your frying range serviced, do you have a formal health and safety policy etc. All of these things make a big difference in insurers understanding what is good about your business and giving you a better price.

The tip we do not recommend, is going to a website that “promises” to compare business insurance. Quite simply, don’t bother. There is not one of these sites in the UK that actually compares ALL insurers. They charge so much commission to insurers that only certain insurers can afford to deal with them.

Posted in compare business insurance, fish and chip shop insurance | No Comments »

Wholesalers insurance – who do you import from?

Monday, February 8th, 2010

When looking around for a wholesalers insurance quote, you really need to have certain information to hand to make this process as smooth as possible. Financial information about the company, such as estimated turnover, wages and gross profit are a minimum.

When you look at the different elements of cover provided by the policy, there are certain questions that you will be asked. One of these relates to the actual products that you are wholesaling. Here in the UK, it does not matter where you bought the products from. If I purchase from you, this is the financial relationship that is governed by English or Scottish Law.

If there is an injury or damage caused, then I am entitled to make a claim under your product liability insurance. Your insurers, if a valid claim, can choose to pursue settlement against the insurers of the original manufacturers, but your policy will pay out first.

So, insurers want to know where you import from. If you buy within the EU this is good, as a potential claim is easier to pursue than if you import from the Far East. This is not saying that there is a difference in the quality, simply that the legal costs (for your insurers) in pursuing a claim are cheaper within the UK/EU than outwith.

So, you need to declare to your commercial insurer exactly where you are sourcing the products from. Some policy wordings need to have separate clauses added noting if imports are received from outwith EU. Certain, smaller, underwriters simply do not have the capabilities to underwrite these types of products and you are more suited to arranging a policy with a different capacity provider.

Posted in product liability insurance, products liability insurance, wholesalers insurance | No Comments »

Internet retailers insurance – do I need a different policy?

Sunday, February 7th, 2010

Go back just 10 years and if you had asked most people if they knew what an Internet retailer was you would be met with some very blank looks.

Nowadays though nearly everyone knows that you can but products from a shop, mail order or from the Internet.

Things have moved on from the dot.com bust of 2000/2001 and online shops are now competitive, efficient and best of all you can get the goods much quicker. But, they are different in many ways from a traditional shop. For this reason you cannot simply arrange a standard shop insurance policy. You need to speak to a business insurance broker and explain to them in detail all of your business activities.

It is not a problem arranging cover, it is just that you do not want an insurer to turn around and say that you are not covered, in the event of a claim, because you failed to declare a material fact about your business.

If you trade from home, this can help you get a better quote. If you trade from an industrial unit, you may need to have certain security in place, depending on the nature of your stock (ie is it theft attractive) and how much (in value) you hold.

Posted in business insurance broker, shop insurance | No Comments »

Block of flats insurance – why is it so difficult to get a quote?

Saturday, February 6th, 2010

Commercial building insurance is a money spinner for most insurers. There are hundreds of thousands of buildings, form offices, to shops to industrial units and every one is likely to have a policy somewhere. Over the years, insurers collect the premiums and usually only pay out when there is a bad storm or a bad winter.

So, this raises the question, why do people find it so difficult to get a block of flats insurance quote? The reason is that many insurers do not know whether to categorise as residential or commercial.

Commercial tends to mean you are earning some sort of fee or income. Residential, you live there yourself. So, where do you put flats? They need to be on one “block” or “umbrella” policy.

The best thing to do is to speak to a commercial insurance broker, as opposed to a household one.

You do need a specialist policy, for example that includes alternative accommodation (for flat owners) in the event of a loss.

Most policies can cover any number of flats as long as it is more than one. It is more sensible to get a single policy so there are no arguments between insurers, for example, about who is responsible for the roof in the event of a storm loss.

Posted in block of flats insurance, flats insurance | No Comments »

Business insurance premiums on the increase?

Friday, February 5th, 2010

Private car insurance premiums have increased by nearly 20% during 2009. Of course, there are still bargains to be had but overall, the average premium per policyholder is increasing at nearly 40 times inflation.

What lies in store for business and commercial insurance premiums during 2010? Insurers traditionally by many different forms of re-insurance to protect themselves in the event of catastrophic and/or significantly high (in value) losses from a single event.

For every pound that you spend on, say, shop insurance, approximately 15 to 20 pence is paid to re-insurers. So, if the re-insurers ramp up their prices then this is passed down the line. Re-insurance renewals are the same as most policies and run for a year, they tend to be renewed in early January, or at the end of Q1.

We have not seen reports of significant increases in re-insurance premiums so far. This does not mean though that there will not be increases. The less efficient insurers, and there are too many, simply are not capable of controlling their costs effectively. They run inefficiently and the costs, whatever they say, are passed on to you and I.

So, the way to deal with this is to look for an underwriter, or capacity provider, that is lean and mean, they want your business and their expenses are pared to the bone. This way, they can offer you the best deal.

Posted in commercial insurance, retail insurance, shop insurance | No Comments »

Sunbed and Tanning Salon Insurance

Thursday, February 4th, 2010

The British love affair with changing the colour of their skin, through UV rays, has not changed. Sure, the recession, credit crunch and un-employment have put paid to many people weekly visits, but they are still popular.

There are scares stories, of people being burned, but legislation is slowly coming into force to stop excessive use and in particular, use by under 16’s.

Many commercial insurance companies over the years have steadily stopped covering these types of establishments. The reason is that the potential for liability claims is perceived to be too high.

But, sunbed and tanning insurance policies are still available, albeit with a restriction on injuries caused as a result of the use of the sunbeds. This is of course not ideal but it firmly places the onus on the owner of the establishment to make sure that there are adequate protections in place to prevent injury to members of the public.

A good package policy will include other standard covers, such as business contents, glass, money, business interruption and liabilities.

Posted in salon insurance, sunbed salon insurance, tanning salon insurance | No Comments »

Small business insurance – easy payment terms

Wednesday, February 3rd, 2010

The last decade will go down in history as the one where UK consumers really learned how to pile up the debt. Despite all the doom and gloom, house prices between 2000 and 2010 increased by over 25%, across the country. This is even taking into account the huge hit taken in 08 and 09.

During the decade, debt was easy, debt was fine and worst of all for many, debt was something that you didn’t worry about. But, the cost and availability of debt is now much higher and harder. No longer can you self cert yourself into a £300k mortgage.

But, for other areas of life and business it depends on what type of debt you are taking on. If you have spent most of you adult life working for someone else, the new decade (as yet un-named) may lead you to branch out on your own and start a new venture.

As part of this process, you will more than likely search for, and purchase, small business insurance. The reason for saying small, is that you will look for the most competitive policy you can for the cheapest premium.

For this reason you would not necessarily look for an all singing, all dancing, commercial combined insurance quote, just a basic policy.

You will find, when starting out, that any money you have disappears at warp speed. So, you will be pleased to know that all UK insurers offer some form of credit. Either, 6, 10 or 12 months. You need to look out for the interest free deal. This is the best kind of dent to take on, where someone else pays for it!

Posted in commercial combined insurance, small business insurance | No Comments »

Commercial combined insurance – what is it?

Tuesday, February 2nd, 2010

When receiving a new business insurance quote request from a customer, the first thing we ascertain is whether it is a new venture or an existing business.

Where a business is already trading then, in all likelihood, they will have an existing policy is force.

For many types of trade, such as shops, hotels or restaurants, a simple package policy will suffice. For more complex risks, it is more than likely that a commercial combined insurance policy will be in force.

But what exactly is included in such a policy and why are they used? The whole point about these policies is that they are bespoke. You, in conjunction with your brokers professional advice, can effectively pick and choose the sections of cover you need.

For example, a package policy may automatically include cover for goods in transit. If you only send through a 3rd party and they have suitable cover, why pay twice?

A word of warning though, if you are looking for one of these types of policies. Speak to two different advisors and get them to recommend the right policy. One of them may miss out on a few small details which could prove vital in later years.

Posted in business insurance, business insurance quote, commercial combined insurance, commercial insurance | No Comments »

Salon insurance – public liability for rent a chair

Monday, February 1st, 2010

A few years ago, the following scene which I saw in my hometown, was replicated throughout the UK. If a new shop was opening up, there was at least a 20% chance that it was going to be a hair or beauty salon. It just seemed to be that the “in” thing to do was to open a salon.

We have seen though that this was partly a combination of easy investment money from the banks and easy spending from Joe or Joanna Public. Salons have survived the past few years though, many through diversification.

If a salon has a nuber of “chairs” they will rent one out at a fixed fee to an individual. That individual can then undertake as much hairdressing as they wish, with the money in excess of the weekly fee they pay for the chair, going to them as profit.

This is happening more and more, but you do need to consider the terms and conditions of your salon insurance. The person renting the chair does not work for you, is not paid wages and is not therefore covered under your policy.

What you need to do is insist, as part of the lease terms for the rent a chair, that they have their own public liability insurance. Quite a few UK underwriters wil do this cover for around £75 per annum. The person needs to be over 18, have at least two years experience and be claims free. This is less than £1.50 so don’t accept any excuses that they cannot afford it, insist on them having adequate protection.

Posted in hairdressers insurance, public liability insurance, salon insurance | No Comments »