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Esure set to raise premiums after motor insurance profits fall 80%

27 August 2015 By Digital Curator Leave a Comment

Image via Flickr user Leap Kye

The company behind Sheilas’ Wheels and Go Compare says it has been affected by an increase in the frequency of small personal injury claims

Esure, owner of Sheilas’ Wheels and Go Compare, has said it is planning to raise premiums after a surge in small injury claims helped push half-year profits in its motor insurance underwriting business down by four-fifths.

The company said trading profit for that area of its business was down 80.7% to £3.3m as it was “impacted by claims inflation, in particular the market increase in the frequency of small personal injury claims”. Its shares dropped nearly 9% as the fall contributed to a 21% slide in underlying pre-tax profits for the first six months of the year to £46.5m.

Stuart Vann, Esure’s chief executive, said: “The claims environment in the motor market continues to deteriorate and as a consequence we will seek to implement further rate increases in the second half.”

Esure acknowledged that increasing premiums might cost it customers. The group has more than 1.4 million motor insurance policies and about 570,000 in home insurance.

Vann’s comments about increasing car premiums come after an AA reportshowed they had risen by 5.5% across the industry in the second quarter after years of decline. It also pointed to the issue of claims inflation – more frequent claims with higher damages.

See Full Story on theguardian.com

Administering your company’s Corporate Motor Insurance Scheme

25 August 2015 By Digital Curator Leave a Comment

Image via Flickr user Axion23

When you are not primarily an insurance company, administering a corporate motor insurance scheme can be a very serious challenge. This becomes even harder if you have a large fleet of company cars, in addition to a staff motor insurance scheme mediated by the company. Insurance, especially when handling claims, can be such a hustle for someone who is primarily in Administration, Finance, Procurement, or HR, depending on the company. We have prepare a small cheat sheet that can help you to take charge of your company’s motor Insurance Scheme and give you that satisfaction of being “on top of things” Here is the list

1. Take Charge!

The number one cause of stress for employees who manage motor vehicle insurance issues is lack of clarity on who is in charge of what. The process of coordinating motor insurance concerns usually involves at least all the departments we listed above, and depending on the organization, the person who is in charge may be in any one these departments. If you are involved in the process but it is unclear who exactly is in charge, then you have two options. First, you can decide to seek clarity from your boss as to where the buck stops when it comes to the company’s motor insurance scheme. If your boss doesn’t know, you may be in trouble, but work towards clarifying who is in charge of it. The second option is to take charge. Many workers fear additional responsibilities and then go ahead to waste good energy scheming how to avoid the work. If you take charge of it, officially or otherwise, you will have control over it and it will make it easier to administer the scheme.

2. Draw a Map

Secondly, draw a process map that shows how each process should be handled. If you are not into maps, you can use a list showing all steps each case goes thorough before it is resolved. Process maps (or their equivalent) can help you to figure out what needs to happen at every stage and are a good way of measuring your progress down the line. The only predictable thing when it comes to insurance is when you need to pay your premiums. You can never plan when to make claims because they result from accidental events. A process map will make you ready to handle any unforeseen situation with clarity, and without the need to figure out everything each time something happens.

3. Use Checklists

The beauty of everything in insurance is that the processes used by insurance companies are very well mapped out. It is possible to develop checklists to help you handle every claims process, or every motor insurance procurement process. Checklists will help you to be certain that you have done everything required, and you will not need to spend time thinking through every process you need handle. For instance, you may have all the documents needed to file an application for motor insurance cover committed to memory. If you do not translate that to a checklist, you may miss one of the important documents simply because you have no method of verifying that you have filed all documents. Then again, since you don’t fill these forms on a daily basis, it is easy to forget a small detail in the forms. A checklist will eliminate all the stress you may experience in such situations.

See Full Story on capitalfm.co.ke

Guide to Business Insurance

13 August 2015 By Digital Curator Leave a Comment

Image via Flickr user Murat Erturk

As a business owner it is sometimes difficult to know what insurance you need and how much of it to buy, so we’ve put together a guide to help you.

To start searching for business insurance cover, hit the ‘get quotes now’ button.

Get a new business insurance quote

The type of insurance policy you buy may differ depending on the size and type of business you are running, your insurance budget and whether any of your customers have requirements about what insurance cover you should have.

Public liability insurance

Public liability Insurance protects you against claims for compensation from people outside your business who have suffered an injury or whose property has been damaged because of your business.

It can also cover more serious claims resulting from construction accidents which cause serious damage to a building or injuries to a member of the public.

If you come into contact with members of the public – including your customers – either at their premises or yours you should think about getting a public liability insurance quote.

Employers’ liability insurance

If you have employees, even part-time or on a short-term basis, you must buy employers’ liability insurance – if you don’t you are breaking the law.

If you are an employer make sure that you stay within the law and buy employers’ liability cover.

Property insurance

Most businesses would find it difficult to work without the tools of their trade or with no access to their place of work – whether you’re a consultancy business and rely on your IT equipment or a plumber who couldn’t work without their tools.

Could you afford to replace all of your business equipment or stock in the event of it being destroyed, lost or stolen?

When buying this cover, it is important to ensure that the sum insured on your contents list is equal to or greater than the value of your equipment; not just the items you think are important (so don’t forget about the boring stuff like office chairs and filing cabinets).

This also applies to your own or hired-in plant if you work in the construction industry – could you afford to replace it if you didn’t have business insurance? If you do buy cover make sure you insure the plant to its full value.

If you own the building you work from you should make sure that it is properly protected.

Another cover to consider is business interruption insurance. This will make up for the money you lose if you can’t work because your property has been destroyed, stolen or damaged.

Professional indemnity

Professionals are effectively selling their knowledge and expertise to their customers – you may be doing this in a number of different ways including providing advisory and consultancy services and producing designs.

If your client loses money because of a mistake you’ve made or because your work is late or not up to scratch, you may be faced with a claim for compensation.

Professional indemnity insurance can protect your business by paying for this compensation and legal costs.

What else do I need to know about business insurance?

You may feel confident that you know what insurance to buy but not how much.

For public liability and professional indemnity you will need to choose a limit of cover which is right for your business.

Employer’s liability insurance is required by law if you have employees and you must purchase a minimum of £5 million in cover – although many policies will automatically cover you for £10 million.

When buying property insurance the most important thing is to make sure you are not under-insured. Be sure to calculate the total value of all the entirety of your property – you can’t pick and choose what you want to be covered.

To compare business insurance cover, please click on the “get quotes now” button.

See Full Story on moneysupermarket.com

Small Business Owner Should Have These 13 Types of Insurance

11 August 2015 By Digital Curator Leave a Comment

Image via Flickr user The Elite Ayrshire Business Circle

1. General Liability Insurance: Every business, even if home-based, needs to have liability insurance.

2. Property Insurance: If you own your building or have business personal property, including office equipment, computers, inventory or tools you should consider purchasing a policy that will protect you if you have a fire, vandalism, theft, smoke damage etc.

3. Business owner’s policy (BOP): A business owner policy packages all required coverage a business owner would need. Often, BOP’s will include business interruption insurance, property insurance, vehicle coverage, liability insurance, and crime insurance.

4. Commercial Auto Insurance: Commercial auto insurance protects a company’s vehicles. You can protect vehicles that carry employees, products or equipment.

5. Worker’s Compensation: Worker’s compensation provides insurance to employees who are injured on the job. This type of insurance provides wage replacement and medical benefits to those who are injured while working. In exchange for these benefits, the employee gives up his rights to sue his employer for the incident.

6. Professional Liability Insurance: this type of insurance is also known as Errors and Omissions Insurance. The policy provides defense and damages for failure to or improperly rendering professional services.

7. Directors and Officers Insurance: this type of insurance protects the directors and officers of a company against their actions that affect the profitability or operations of the company.

8. Data Breach: If the business stores sensitive or non-public information about employees or clients on their computers, servers or in paper files they are responsible for protecting that information.

9. Homeowner’s Insurance: Homeowner’s insurance is one of the most important kinds of insurance you need. This type of insurance can protect against damage to the home and against damage to items inside the home.

10. Renter’s Insurance: Renter’s insurance is a sub-set of homeowner’s insurance which applies only to those whose who rent their home. The coverage is protects against damage to the physical property, contents of the property, and personal injury within the home.

11. Life Insurance: Life insurance protects an individual against death. If you have life insurance, the insurer pays a certain amount of money to a beneficiary upon your death.

12. Personal Automobile Insurance: Another very important type of insurance is auto insurance. Automobile insurance covers all road vehicles (trucks, cars, motorcycles, etc.).

13. Personal Umbrella Insurance: You may want some additional coverage, on top of insurance policies you already have. This is where personal umbrella insurance comes into play.

See Full Story on forbes.com

Why is car insurance needed?

7 August 2015 By Digital Curator Leave a Comment

Image via Flickr user Finance Blue

Having car insurance is a legal requirement and with the right level of cover, provides financial protection in the event of your vehicle being damaged. It will also provide cover for injuries to other drivers, passengers or pedestrians, and their property.

Accidents happen, so it’s reassuring to know that you’re covered financially if you’re involved in one.

The good news is that premiums are falling, reflecting the commitment of insurers to pass on the savings from reforms in the civil litigation system in 2013. For example, by legislating to protect insurers from fraudulent whiplash claims and claimant lawyers’ excessive costs, insurers are now able to be more competitive with their prices.

Figures from the Association of British Insurers show that the average premium fell by 3% to £358 in the first quarter of 2014.

Why is car insurance necessary?

Having car insurance is essential because it covers your expenses in the event of vehicle damage or injuries to other drivers, passengers or pedestrians.

All motorists must be insured against their liability to other people, as stipulated in the Road Traffic Act 1988.

Insurance can also provide financial support if your car is stolen, vandalised or destroyed by fire.

The only instance in which you don’t need it is if your vehicle has been declared off the road through a Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN) from the DVLA.

What if I’m not insured?

Driving without car insurance is illegal. If you don’t have it, you could be fined or disqualified from driving.

The maximum fine is £5,000, plus you’ll receive at least six penalty points on your licence.

The Government is currently reviewing penalties for uninsured drivers who kill or are involved in accidents.

The police also have the power to seize and destroy any vehicle being driven without cover.

See Full Story on rac.co.uk

12 Useful tips if you are travelling during this long weekend

7 August 2015 By Alex Tan Leave a Comment

Image via Flickr user James Martin

SG50 is just around the corner! As Singapore marks 50 years of independence this year, it is declared that 7 August 2015 (Friday) will be an additional Public Holiday for all of us.

Making use of the long weekend, there will be some people who will take this opportunity to enjoy a short getaway. Well if you do so, don’t forget to try and catch the NDP 2015 live on the internet, so make sure you have access to the internet.

Here, I would like to share some travelling tips when you’re overseas:

1. Do not leave your wallet at the back pocket of your jeans. It is very important to keep your wallet in your front pocket, especially a pocket that is secured with zip.

2. Scan all your travel documents and email them to yourself.

3. Photocopy your passport identification page, and airline tickets just in case you lost it.

4. Do not leave your stuffs unattended. Most of us have the habit of leaving their bags at their feet while using our phones or leave it on the chairs when we are at cafés or restaurants.

5. Keep your money rolled in a lip balm, just in case you’re being robbed and you still have some money to use.

6. Get a travel insurance! For a reasonable fee they will not only cover medical and dental emergencies, but also reimburse you for lost baggage, trip cancellations, or delays, rental car damage, and more.

7. Always bring some medications just in case you fall sick during your travel.

Don’t use short cuts, narrow alleys or poorly lit streets.

Avoid travelling alone at night.

Do not discuss travel plans or other personal matters with strangers. Just remember that strangers in a foreign country has absolutely nothing to do with you.

Avoid scam artists by being wary of strangers who approach you and offer to be your guide or sell you something at bargain prices. If you watch Scam City on tv, you will know what kind of tricks these people can play.

If your possessions are lost or stolen, report the loss immediately to the local police. Keep a copy of the police report for insurance claims and as an explanation of what happened.

How optional are healthcare benefits to employees

4 August 2015 By Digital Curator Leave a Comment

Image via Flickr user Cabinet Office

Health care benefits are optional for most smaller employers, but of critical importance to most employees. Employers of all sizes should be aware of the pros and cons of offering health benefits to their employees.

Benefits are a critical piece of an employee compensation package, and health care benefits are the crown jewel. Health care benefits, along with time-off benefits, are the most popular of benefits to employees. Every employer must at least consider whether to offer these types of benefits and in some cases employers must offer health care in order to remain competitive with other businesses for the most talented employees and avoid penalties imposed by health care reform. Another reason why many employers choose to offer health care benefits is so that they themselves can take advantage of less expensive health insurance than they could get on their own as well as tax breaks for the contributions made by the business.

Unless you are an employer in Hawaii, you are not required by state law to offer your employees health insurance benefits. Hawaii is the first state to require employers to provide health insurance to employees. The law, the Prepaid Health Care Act, was passed in 1974 and requires employers to provide health insurance to all full-time employees, either through an indemnity plan or an HMO. (The requirement that Massachusetts employers with more than ten employees make a fair share contribution for full-time employees’ health insurance coverage costs or pay a fair share contribution per employee is no longer in effect as of July 1, 2013, due to to the implementation of federal health care reform.)

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and related legislation requires employers with 50 or more full-time employees (or a combination of full-time and part-time employees that is equivalent to 50 full-time employees) to offer adequate health coverage or be subject to assessment if their employees receive premium tax credits to buy their own insurance. This mandate is in effect beginning in 2015. Conversely, beginning in 2010, small businesses with fewer than 25 employees may be eligible for a tax credit for purchasing health insurance for their employees.

If you do make the decision to offer health insurance benefits, be aware that you call into play a whole series of laws that will tell you what coverage you have to offer and how you have to offer it. Therefore, the first decision to make is whether to offer health insurance at all.

See Full Story on bizfilings.com

How to Properly Insure Your Business and Employees

30 July 2015 By Digital Curator Leave a Comment

Image via Flickr user Pasu Au Yeung

The process of selecting insurance for your business may be tedious, but if calamity strikes you’ll be happy that you’re properly insured.

Earthquakes, fires, mold, asbestos, employee hacker—there’s any number of calamities that can shutter the doors of your business. When disasters happen—man-made or natural—you want to be able to rebuild when the time comes. But that can’t happen without preparation.

The main challenge is determining the best coverage. Are you carrying the right kind of insurance to protect you, your company, your employees, and your customers? How much is too much? Are you underinsured? Insurance preparations need to be made in the early stages of crafting your business plan. Generally coverage is based on your risk exposure and the type of business you own. Larger businesses generally have a risk manager to assess possible complications and look at all of the variables. As a small business owner, that role will likely have to be filled by you. To help, you can download III’s Business Inventory Software, to help you catalog your property.

How to Properly Insure Your Business and Employees: Choosing Coverage

As impossible as it may seem, insurance coverage is available for almost every possible risk your business may face. And naturally, the cost and amount of coverage of policies vary among insurers. Many insurers offer insurance packages (specific to certain industries) that combine several coverage options sold as a single policy at a price that is usually lower than if the same insurance was purchased separately.

Below are the types of insurance most business owner’s should consider:

• Property insurance protects a person or physical property against its loss or the loss of its income-producing abilities.

• Casualty insurance protects a person or business against legal liability for losses caused by injury to other people or damage to the property of others.

• Workers’ compensation insurance pays for medical care and replaces a portion of lost wages for an employee who is injured in the course of employment, regardless of who was at fault for the injury.

• General liability insurance covers legal matters due to accident, injuries, and claims of negligence.

• Commercial property insurance covers everything related to the loss and damage of company property due to events such as wind and hail storms, fire, smoke, civil disobedience, and vandalism.

• Product liability insurance protects against financial loss as a result of a defect product that causes injury or bodily harm.

• Also known as errors and omissions insurance, professional liability insuranceprotects your business against malpractice, errors, and negligence in service provided to your customers.

• Despite urban legend, homeowners’ insurance policies do not generally cover home-based business losses.

• Business auto insurance provides coverage for autos owned by a business. It pays any costs to third parties resulting from property damage or bodily injury for which the business is legally liable, up to the policy limits.

Other policies to consider include:

• Key employee insurance life or disability income insurance compensates a business when certain key employees become disabled or die.

• Criminal liability insurance covers damages intentionally done by employees. Even when you’ve done your due diligence by conducting extensive background checks of each employee, criminal acts are completely unpredictable.

• Directors and officers liability insurance protects directors and officers of corporations or not-for-profit organizations if there is a lawsuit claiming they managed the business or organization without proper regard for the rights of others.

• Umbrella policies are designed to provide protection beyond the general liability and auto liability policies, or other policies, when the policy limits have been reached.

• Had a computer virus that wiped out your data? Do you have a disgruntled employee that is posting negative stories on social media sites? Denial of service, spamming, hacking, and pinging are just a few of the cyber assaults that can damage a business, according to III.

• As the name indicates, terrorism insurance provides coverage to individuals and businesses for potential losses due to acts of terrorism.

How to Properly Insure Your Business and Employees: Special Cases

Some business owners will find that they need specialty insurance because of the nature of their service. It’s always safe to check and see if your business requires coverage above and beyond what is usually necessary.

• Bailee insurance pertains to the loss of garments or linen as a result of fire, water damage, loss or theft. There is also coverage for loss or damage to customers’ property accepted for laundering, dry cleaning, pressing, dyeing, alteration, repairing or other similar work.

• Contamination/Pollutant cleanup and removal insurance. This provides coverage for cleanup and removal of pollutants often used in the cleaning process.

• Contents coverage. With most policies, property insurance for business contents covers furniture, fixtures, inventory, office equipment and other supplies stored at your facility or off-premises. You may insure those items for Replacement Cost or for Actual Cash Value, which pays only for the depreciated value of the property. Replacement Cost policies have higher premiums; however, they can help your business recover from a loss faster, since you can replace all of the lost or damaged property with new items.

• Spoilage covers the value of property spoiled as a result of a breakdown of your temperature control system due to conditions beyond your control.

• Mechanical breakdown covers mechanical or electrical breakdown to your boilers, pressure vessels, refrigeration systems, piping and mechanical and electrical machines or apparatus that generate, transmit or simply use mechanical or electrical power.

• Outdoor signs covers an outdoor sign not attached to the building.

• Burglary and robbery covers the risk of theft by outsiders.

• Employee dishonesty covers some risks of theft by your own employees.

How to Properly Insure Your Business and Employees: Hiring Help

If you’re overwhelmed by the process, don’t worry. You don’t have to suffer through mounds of paperwork yourself. You can navigate the process with the help of an insurance broker, or independent agent, who is a licensed individual representing a small business owner and works on commission or a for a service fee.

Contact business trade associations to see if they sponsor an insurance program designed specifically for your business. Tap your personal and professional network for recommendations and referrals. Y

Here are some other factors to consider:

•    Is the insurer a specialist in this area of insurance coverage?
•    Will you be able to speak with a “live” person?
•    Will you have an agent assigned to you that you’ll be working with all the time?
•    What is the claim paying process?
•    Does the insurer give discounts on premiums for multiple policies?
•    What is the carrier’s financial strength, assets, paying ability?

Young advises small business owners to “make sure they’re providing the same information to all parties to get the most accurate analysis.” She says a small biz owner should get a minimum of two quotes, but she generally gets five or more.

Determining the proper insurance for your business is one of the most critical decisions you will make. It’s important to consult an expert in this matter but also you’ll have to do your own homework. Knowing the above types of insurance is a good start.

by Faith Thomas

See Full Story on inc.com

Car Disasters: Cracked Windshield

14 July 2015 By Digital Curator Leave a Comment

Image via Flickr user Infrogmation of New Orleans

Measure the crack or chip. If the crack is less than 12 inches long, or if the chip smaller than a quarter, the damage can typically be repaired without having to replace your windshield.
If you’re going to drive your car before you repair the windshield, make sure the crack or chip doesn’t interfere with your view.
Protect against dirt. Dirt that gets into a crack or chip can make it more difficult to repair. Placing a small piece of clear tape over the point of impact can help, but make sure that the tape doesn’t block your vision when you’re driving.
Stay away from the sun. Park inside a garage or in a shady area. Letting heat build up in your car can weaken the windshield even further and cause the crack to grow.
Contact an auto-glass provider for windshield repair or replacement. Look for a glass installer that is AGRSS-registered and has National Glass Association-trained technicians. Many glass installers offer mobile service and will come to you.

Don’t’s …

Don’t ignore the problem. Small cracks and rock-chip “bull’s-eyes” can spread if not repaired. Large cracks can affect your visibility and may even result in a traffic violation.
Don’t drive the car if a crack is longer than 12 inches or if a chip is larger than a quarter. The integrity of your windshield has likely been compromised.
Don’t blast your air conditioning or use your defroster on high. Extremes in temperature are never a good thing for a cracked or damaged windshield. If you must defrost your windows, warm the car up gradually by using the heater.
Don’t jolt your car or windows. Try to avoid slamming doors with the windows all the way up. Creating extra pressure inside the vehicle in this way can cause the crack to spread.
Don’t wash your vehicle. Water in the damaged area can cause your windshield to crack further.
Don’t repair cracks longer than 12 inches or chips larger than a quarter. Have your entire windshield replaced.
Don’t go to a general mechanic for windshield repair or replacement. Use an auto-glass-repair specialist.

by Shamit Choksey

See Full Story on cars.com

All you need to know about hiring a helper in Singapore

9 July 2015 By Digital Curator Leave a Comment

Image via Flickr user Hans Splinter

One advantage that living in Singapore offers is affordable domestic help. Some expats – especially singles or couples without children – find that maid service once or twice per week is enough. But for others, especially those with families, a full-time maid to help with cooking, cleaning, shopping, ironing and childcare can be a blessing. Most helpers in Singapore are from the Philippines or Indonesia and are diligent, conscientious women who are working to support their families back home.

The Cost

Part-time maids are available for between $10 and $20 an hour, and can be hired independently or through a company. Full-time, live-in maids can be hired for as little as $450 per month, although expats often pay them $650 or more, depending on their level of experience. Employers must also pay a monthly levy (currently $265) to the Singaporean government, plus a security bond of $5,000. Employers are responsible for providing accommodation, insurance, food and medical care for their maids, in addition to hiring costs, airfares for bi-annual home leave, transfer costs, and an annual bonus.

Responsibility

First-time employers must complete an Employers’ Orientation Programme, which involves attending in person ($20), or taking a three-hour online course ($30). Visit www.mom.gov.sg for more details.

Holidays

Most expats give them every Sunday and public holidays off, plus a two-week holiday every two years to their home country. To counter the instance of maids working without rest, the Ministry of Manpower has mandated that from 1 January 2013, all employers give helpers one day off per week (or be compensated if they choose to, or are required to work).

Hiring

Fees vary, but from around $400, a maid agency will find you a maid, and will usually give you the chance to interview several. Alternatively, you can source a maid yourself (log on to the Ministry of Manpower website), but the process can be confusing. Some expats who are leaving Singapore help their maid to find work by advertising on notice boards or by word of mouth.

See Full Story on expatliving.sg

Insurance Agency Singapore | Commercial Insurance and Personal Insurance