Flying Felix

As we all marvel at the death defying jump made last week by Felix Baumgartner, have you ever considered  covering your own “high flying” staff in event of absenteeism through accident or
sickness?  The loss of a member of your team for even a short period can have consequences not just to your business  operations but also to your company profit as the wages for those affected still
need to be paid. 
At Castlemead Insurance Brokers in Bristol we have insurance solutions to cover your business. 

A Personal Accident policy can be arranged to provide payments to you to cover the more ordinary accidents which can befall your staff which can include payments to your business to cover;

• Death
• Permanent Total Disablement  
• Permanent Disabling injuries 
• Temporary Total Disablement 

Additional benefits to cover sickness can also be included. 
These covers can be purchased easily and inexpensively – please contact us for further information.

Conference Cover

As the political conference season nears its end, have you ever considered the costs of having to cancel, postpone or abandon your own company conference?  Additionally, have you considered the costs involved as a consequence of damage or destruction to equipment you may hire for the event?

 Whether arranged as an AGM or a fund raising event the costs involved can be substantial for any business.

 

Cancellation cover can be purchased to cover a multiple of risks, which can include;

• Costs of cancellation or abandonment, which can include the failure of key speakers to appear at the conference
• The Liability for you as an employers and your liability for injury to third parties visiting your conference. Cover will also include any damage you may cause to the venue
•  The costs of any equipment your hire in, such as specialist lighting or microphones

Please contact us about arranging insurance for your next conference.

 

 

Kidnap and Ransom insurance cover

With many of Castlemead's clients expanding their operations into new territories, we have been increasingly talking about the need for kidnap and ransom insurance.

The policies indemnify the insured for: -
• ransom monies paid from kidnapping or extortion
• Loss of ransom monies whilst in transit/delivery
• Expenses involved including travel and accommodation costs
• Medical services and hospitalisation
• Business Interruption losses
• Consultants costs

Helpline numbers and access to International Crisis Response teams are provided as part of the arrangements.The quotation process also involves a review of the travel plans and security arrangements, highlighting and addressing areas of weakness.

We have recently placed cover for companies travelling to countries including Somaliland and Puntland so, if you need someone experienced to look into this area of business insurance for you, get in touch with us....

Are your gold medals covered?

Would your valuables be covered to their full value in the event of a theft at your property? When did you last review your household contents sum insured?

At Castlemead Insurance Brokers, we review the sums insured with all of our private clients to ensure the standard policy limits are amended where applicable and claims are paid in full. Common areas of review include: -

Jewellery, watches and valuables whilst away from the home

• Standard overall limit of £3,000
• Individual limit of £1,500
  Items over this limit to be specified and valuations obtained

Paintings, antiques and works of art

• Standard overall limit of £10,000
• Individual limit of £2,000
  Items over this limit to be specified and valuations obtained

Sports Equipment

• Standard overall limit of £1,500
• Replacement set of golf clubs normally exceed this limit

Rebuilding sum insured for your property

• Must be accurate to avoid deductions in the event of a claim
• Castlemead can help you in this valuation

Increasing Motor Fleet Premiums

Motor insurers are attempting to apply rate increases to their motor fleet premiums to combat the rising costs of personal injury claims and fraud. At Castlemead Insurance Brokers in Bristol, we look after clients in the haulage, retail, manufacturing and service industries, many of whom run large vehicle fleets. Keeping premiums to a minimum and reducing claim costs ensures our clients remain competitive in their particular field, this done through: -

• Maintaining a independent broking philosophy using over 15 motor insurers
• Providing an in house claims service ensuring non fault claims are dealt with by the negligent parties insurers
• Analysing claims costs
• Targeting specific drivers and/or divisions
• Calculating optimum excesses
• Implementing risk management measures
• Discounts available for cameras
• Driver licence checking
• Driver training
• Vehicle reversing sensors
• Plant and vehicle security

Castlemead are here to help with your motor fleet insurance needs.

International Insurance

Castlemead Insurance in Bristol recently won a client who had chosen to relocate their business to a country outside the UK. The insurances we placed had to be robust enough to cope with: -

Local Legislation in the country of domicile

• Most countries have their own regulations which dictate the types of insurance which are compulsory to purchase in that region
• Minimum limits must be purchased locally, but top up insurance can be bought in the UK to match the other group companies cover

Different perils available

• Buying insurance locally in the country of domicile can leave gaps compared to wider cover available in the UK market. Care needs to be taken when combining the two portfolios

Cover requirements for the individuals based abroad

• Special arrangements need to be made to cater for the Travel and Healthcare insurance requirements for those wishing to come back to the UK for treatment and/or for extended stays
• Insurance cover for employees residential property in the UK may need to be amended to cope with periods of unoccupancy

Different contractual requirements

• Establishing which division trades with each customer and the contractual terms in force is essential
• The Territorial Limits and Jurisdiction provisions within the policies purchased must reflect the potential liabilities

  Imports / Exports

• Marine cover needs to include all countries between which goods travel at the required limits

We were able to ensure all the above points were included within the insurance arrangements placed within our new clients’ insurance budget.

Getting Fire Claims paid

Castlemead Insurance Brokers recently took a weekend phone call from a client who had the misfortune to be the victim of an arson attack. Once the fire brigade had departed, we calculated an anticipated loss of £150,000, with a requirement for an interim payment to keep the cash flow in order.

The insurer concerned issued the required cheque within the required timescales as at the loss adjuster meeting which we attended we were able to prove: 

Sums insured were adequate and had been recently reviewed

Policy conditions had been complied with including: -

• Waste warranty
• Claim reporting condition
• Perimeter security in line with facts disclosed
• Proposal form declarations were accurate
• Business description matched the clients activities
• Business Interruption declaration supplied within the specified timescales
• Estimated Gross Profit figure therefore up to date

Had the fire occurred at your premises, are you confident you would have achieved the same result with your broker?