NEWSLETTER

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British drivers and homeowners knowingly void their insurance

 

A new study has found that over half of the UK is engaging in activities or habits that could render their car or home insurance claims void.

The findings, provided by MoneySuperMarket who surveyed 2000 motorists suggest that drivers are offending by engaging in relatively minor acts, such as allowing someone else to drive their vehicle or leaving a window open. Both could potentially invalidate a claim should one need to be made in the event of a burglary, incident or accident.

You can see a breakdown of the most common offences from the survey below:

 

Violation	Insurance Type	Percentage Committed	Aware of offence
Leaving the door unlocked when leaving the house	House	21%	67%
Leaving windows open when leaving the house	House	34%	56%
Letting other people drive your car	Car	31%	50%
Failing to turn on the burglar alarm when leaving the house	House	17%	47%
Changing jobs and not informing your car insurer	Car	13%	46%
Driving with a pet on the seat unrestrained	Car	17%	36%

 

The statistics also suggest that millennials are the chief culprits in terms of age groups, with three-quarters of those quizzed aged between 25 and 34 admitting to committing offences that could invalidate their car insurance. 80% also admitted to doing the same when it came to their home insurance.

Conversely, those aged 45 to 54 years old were less likely to commit acts that would invalidate their home insurance, with drivers over 55 years of age the best behaved.

Tom Flack, editor-in-chief of MoneySuperMarket offered the following on the study’s findings: “There are lots of ways that drivers can accidentally find themselves in a position where they’re flouting the rules of their insurance policy. Yet surprisingly, our latest research reveals that many are actually aware of the risks but are still willing to gamble.

“What may seem like a trivial action, such as not informing your insurer when you change jobs, may result in your insurance being voided, meaning that if something goes wrong, your claim won’t be paid.”

Could influencers be the next big thing in the insurance industry?

 

Given the threats posed by cyber attacks to businesses of all sizes, the increasing number of brokers offering a tailored cyber insurance package to suit a range of clients with vastly different resources is encouraging to see. The ever-evolving danger that comes with operating a company and protecting your data in the modern world certainly means that cyber insurance will continue to remain a pressing necessity for businesses worldwide, but what might the next big untapped market be for the insurance industry?

Online outlet Insurance Business are speculating that the influencer market, currently worth a whopping &7.7 billion offers huge potential for growth that could make it highly lucrative for insurers. After delving into the specifics, it’s not hard to see why; a gigantic number of people on the planet either have their own smartphone or access to one and use social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter. Each is filled with public figures or people who make their living as a result of their interesting or infectious personality, unique style or talent.

However, there are hidden dangers that many within that industry may be unaware of that could cost them very dearly, even for those influencers who may confine their activities to posting the odd photo on Instagram. You have only to look at the case of American actor Roseanne Barr recently being axed from her own television show earlier this year after an ill-advised tweet to understand the damage that can be done to a career with one simple post.

As an example, influencers or public figures who carry out promotional work for another firm are often required to be particularly careful with what they say and do in a public space. What should happen if you casually post something that contradicts that company's core values or brings their reputation into question?

“If you bring a brand into disrepute by something that you do or say, in the form of a tweet or an off-the-cuff remark at a public event, then you could fall foul of the terms of that contract in terms of the quality of endorsement or promotion that you’ve been hired to do,” offered James Brady, Hiscox’s head of media. “The brand could bring a claim against you for damage to its reputation, potentially, under breach of contract.

“A lot of these people don’t really appreciate the exposures that they have, or that are attached to the activities that they are carrying out. They may not even consider that they need to buy an insurance policy. I think it will be as much of an education of those individuals as to the product being available and the risks and exposure that face them.”

The risks to influencers operating on social media are plenty, which creates an interesting gap in the market for young, popular stars with thousands of followers who might be less business-minded and unaware of the risks attached to their role. Given that social media and its many influencers and public figures are clearly not going anywhere, perhaps it’s an industry that will see significant growth over the next few years.

Read our top tips on how to purchase travel insurance

 

As we head towards the festive season, if you’re planning on taking a trip or two, getting your travel insurance right could not only save you a headache but also a considerable amount of money.
To help make sure you’re suitably covered when you’re abroad, we’ve put together some helpful tips on some of the things you should consider.

Single-trip vs multi-trip
Depending on how many trips you plan on taking in a 12-month period, it’s worth considering whether it may be more suitable to purchase a multi-trip policy. If you’re positive that you’re only taking one trip this year, then a single-trip policy will, of course, be the best choice. However, if you’ve got two or three trips planned over the course of 12 months, a multi-trip policy could be considerably cheaper when compared to the collective cost of individual single-trip policies. This is especially true if your holidays are lengthy breaks or quite a far distance to travel e.g. outside of Europe.

The cover limits
Unfortunately, even when you're on holiday, things can go wrong. It’s important that you read the fine print and ensure you are adequately covered for certain eventualities such as illness, accident, injury or even cancellation of the trip. For medical expenses, most insurance experts would advise cover of &2 million, and for personal liability, it is recommended your cover limit is &1 million. While some policies may offer a higher limit for these expenses, this will most likely raise the price of your premium, so you should consider if the higher limit is excessive in order to avoid paying over the odds.

The excess
Following on from cover limits, checking the excess of your cover is also vital. The excess of your claim is the amount you will be required to pay before the insurer pays out. Some policy premiums will look cheap at first glance, but it may be due to a large excess. It is possible to adjust your excess on some policies to a price you feel you are prepared to pay, however, keep in mind that this will have an impact on the premium. It is also worth remembering that some policies will include separate excess charges dependent on the incident. For example, a mugging could fall under medical costs and loss of personal belongings and result in excess being charged for both, so take an extra bit of time to read through all the details.

Your baggage
Baggage cover means that you are covered if your baggage is lost, stolen or damaged, with the average policy paying out in the region of &1,500. Before you add baggage cover to your travel policy, it’s worth checking if your possessions aren’t already covered under your current home contents policy. You should keep in mind that many insurers will have a limit on the payout for individual items such as phones, laptops or cameras. At times, it can be quite difficult to claim for items lost when abroad so, if possible, keep any receipts or evidence that you took the item(s) with you.

What else should you consider?

 

• Missed departure: A travel insurance policy will cover any additional expenses that are incurred by missing your flight, due to events outside your control.
• Loss of passport: Covering you for additional travel expenses as a result of replacing a lost passport.
• Delay: Covering you against any delays due to adverse weather, technical issues or industrial action, however, planned strikes will not be included.
• Scheduled airline failure: Covering you in the event of the airline going out of business.
• Cash: Covering you for loss of or damage to money held as cash.

Could improving your home invalidate your home insurance?

 

If you're a homeowner then you’ve probably considered making some changes to your property at one point or another, whether that involves renovating, decorating or extending.

While home improvements can add considerable value to your home, it is vital that you speak with your insurer and eliminate the risk of being underinsured.

With all of the costs associated with moving into a new house, plenty of homeowners are now opting to enhance their own home instead of searching for a new property. In a recent study from Co-op insurance, it was found that approximately 75% of homeowners have made changes to their property since moving in.

If you’ve recently carried out, or are currently planning on having major building work done, such as adding a conservatory, converting the loft or adding an extra bedroom, you must receive planning permission and all work must be carried out following the correct regulations in order to avoid invalidating the cover on your home.

It is also worth remembering that even if the work carried out on your home is completed to the correct standards, you will still need to notify your insurer of these changes. When the original cost of your premium was calculated, this figure was based on the value of your home at that time and the potential rebuilding cost. If the value of your home were to rise due to improvements, you could be underinsured and your cover may become null and void.

This also applies to any new constructions outside of your home such as garages and sheds, as your building insurance should cover both your home and outbuildings.

If you plan to work on your home, you should contact your insurer before any work begins, provide them with as much information as possible and be sure to ask if you need to make any changes or increase your cover for the duration of the build.

Don’t forget to double check your contents insurance at the same time, as your possessions may not be covered if they were damaged during the construction process. For the extra peace of mind, look into legal cover to help with any potential disputes with the tradesman over poor workmanship.

SMBs are driving a market surge in Cyber Insurance

 

Last month, we wrote that as a result of findings by NTT Security, 66% of UK businesses are not insured in the event of a breach of information or data loss. Senior executives agreed that cyber insurance was vital to protect against cyber-attacks, but were unaware if their company had sufficient protection or suitable coverage in place. This may have strengthened the notion that such protection was typically utilised by larger companies with more capital at their disposal, but according to a recent study by Cyber Policy, it appears as if that isn’t the case.

The firm has revealed that the small and medium-sized business market has seen tremendous growth within the last year, with quarterly growth averaging out at 69% and reaching a peak of 150%.

This is down to several factors, namely due to the increased accessibility and affordability of cyber insurance coverage and packages that make it far easier to seek out a product to suit a business of any size. The industry is responding to a global need for cyber insurance with an increasing number of brokers offering flexible and appropriate cover that isn’t solely affordable for large businesses, and it’s clear that SMBs are taking advantage of that whilst also typically requiring higher limits and extended coverage.

Beyond that, what’s provoked this need for protection from cyber attacks from SMBs? The study suggests that contractual obligations are playing a big part, with many alluding to contractual requirements with third-party vendors meaning that cyber insurance is an essential part of the way that they must conduct business in order to gain and secure clients.

SMBS are also more likely to be the target of cyber-attacks, with half of all attacks in 2017 targeting them due to the comparative ease of targeting their data in comparison with big companies with stronger security.

With this in mind, it’s no wonder that small-to-medium business owners are driving this surge in the cyber insurance market as the business world continues to adapt to the ever-evolving threat posed by cyber-attacks.

If your firm is unhappy about its coverage or strategy for coping with data loss and security breaches, please contact us to discuss your cyber insurance options.

UK car insurance premiums drop 13% in the last year

 

Given that the general perception of car insurance is of a ceaselessly costly expense, news of a national drop in the cost of car insurance premiums is sure to be welcomed by every driver across the country.

MoneySuperMarket’s findings, gathered from analysts of insurance quotes created on their website over the last year, suggest that the average cost of a full, comprehensive policy in the UK has dropped by &70 over the last year, falling to &483 from &553. It’s a welcome respite from a trend of premium cost increases, which are 17% up in comparison with the third quarter of 2013, and has been put down to new government policies and the continued efforts of the industry to bring down the number of fraudulent claims. Specifically, the Government’s reversal on the personal injury discount rate (or Ogden discount rate) is seen to have gradually lowered the cost of insurance for drivers.

As expected, there are variations all over the country and different age groups have seen contrasting decreases in their premium costs. For instance, those living in Chelmsford find themselves with the distinction of seeing the biggest drop with an 18% decrease worth &93 in the average premium cost, whilst residents of Peterborough (17%) and Reading (16%) aren’t far behind. Meanwhile, South East London’s prices have fallen 15% from the same point last year, but it still remains the most expensive area of the country to insure a car with drivers forking out an average of &390.

All age groups have seen a decrease to some degree, but young drivers will see the biggest benefit from this news. Drivers aged 17 to 19’s premiums have fallen by an average of 28%, with over a quarter slashed from the average cost of insurance. Drivers in their 30s and 40s also stand to profit, with decreases for those age groups sitting at 9% and 7% respectively.

Whilst insurers aren’t legally allowed to take gender into account, women have seen their average costs lowered by 17% with men not lagging too far behind with 9%.

“The significant drop in premiums is great news for motorists across the UK,” said Tom Flack, editor in chief at MoneySupermarket. “Younger drivers, who traditionally pay the highest prices, can take comfort as the cost of driving continues to decrease. It’s a much better picture for drivers than this time last year.”

What is landlord insurance, and why might I need it?

 

If you’re a landlord renting your property out, then home insurance might not be enough to cover you if you run into problems with your property or enter a payment dispute with those renting your home. Landlord insurance is designed to protect you in the event of the common issues that you can run into when it comes to rental properties, such as physical damage or loss of rent related to your tenant/s.

The insurance itself is made up of three policies; Building, which covers the physical space that you own itself, Contents, which covers everything inside the building and Tenant Protection, which is designed to cover you from the potential risks that tenants bring such as loss of rent, or damage caused to your rental property.

It’s important to make sure that you choose the correct cover for you and the home that you’re renting out when it comes to landlord insurance; a flat owner would not need the building insurance aspect as this would already be covered, but a house owner certainly would, for example. Contents insurance is especially key for those landlords who supply their properties furnished and would look after those objects in case of damage, whilst an absence of Tenant Protection could see your wallet hit hard should your tenant damage the property deliberately.

Landlord insurance also offers a lot of the standard damage cover that a home insurance policy would, with fire, storm, flood, water and impact damage typically included. Returning to Tenant Protection, it also offers cover for the legal cost of having to evict a tenant as well as having to replace the locks.

It can also help to compliment your existing home insurance policy, so if you take all three landlord policies out, then you won’t require further contents or building insurance. Conversely, if you already have contents and building covered in your pre-existing home insurance, then you would need only purchase rental protection to offer comprehensive protection.

What is public liability insurance, and why should I have it?

 

Even with the most conscientious and careful of businesses, accidents do and can happen. Be they a result of a wet floor or loss of concentration, it’s impossible to eliminate the risk of injury, damage or loss of possessions when members of the public, clients or non-employees visit your premises. This is exactly why Public Liability insurance exists, and why it should be a key part of your business cover, if it isn’t already.

In a nutshell, Public Liability insurance exists as a means of protecting businesses against claims of injury or loss that could potentially be caused as a result of activities being carried out by you or an employee of your company. For instance, should a member of the public or a client fall whilst visiting your premises, and be forced to take several months off from work as a result of an injury, then public liability insurance can help to cover legal fees and compensation costs that this example could incur.

Whilst it isn’t compulsory by law for all companies to have public liability insurance, its worth can go beyond acting as protection for your business; clients and customers are likely to check such provisions are in place prior to conducting work with you on their own sites or on your premises, making it a potentially key component in helping to bring in more business.

Whilst its presence doesn’t cover claims made by your employees, it’s important to note that public liability falls under the bracket of an allowable expense, meaning that it can be tax deductible when it comes to determining your taxable profit.

Public Liability insurance shouldn’t be used as an excuse to get lax with personal and business safety standards, of course; any company with a history of frequent or repeat accidents will surely build themselves a bad reputation in their industry. But it does allow businesses to function with a certain degree of comfort, knowing that they are protected in the event of any issues.