Why you should partner with Barnes Commercial for your insurance solution

We caught up with Head of Insurance, Nick Long and asked him some questions about how we help businesses in the care sector:

Who is Barnes Commercial and what services do you provide for the care sector?

Barnes Commercial is an independent, family-owned commercial insurance broker, helping clients in the care sector to secure the right insurance for their business by offering impartial advice and guidance on how to manage business risk. We have in-depth knowledge of this sector, which allows us to support a variety of businesses and organisations including care homes, nursing homes, domiciliary care firms, children’s homes, care related charities, and those providing care services.

We can arrange a wide range of insurance covers from standard liabilities, buildings and contents, legal expenses and machinery breakdown, to refrigerated drugs, abuse cover, residents contents, medical malpractice (for private work), cyber liability and more. And because we understand the needs of the businesses within the care sector, we can secure industry specific wording and extensions, for complete peace of mind.

What benefits do your products bring to clients in the care sector that your competitors do not?

It’s how we bring the right insurance covers together in a comprehensive solution with honest and impartial advice and guidance, which differentiates us from our competitors.

We know that some brokers are leaving customers without cover at a moment’s notice, and that renewal terms can be left until just a few days before renewal, a situation we never want our clients to experience. Our approach of managing client relationships means that we try to always be engaged in our clients business activities, because we want to be more than just an insurance broker, we want to be seen as an extension to their management team.

Barnes Commercial clients receive a highly personal service from a broker who has expert knowledge of the care sector. As an independent broker we are not tied in to any one insurer or policy, so our clients can be reassured that our recommendations will be just what is needed to protect their business from commercial risk. We start the insurance review process early, to make sure nothing is missed, to discuss any changes to the business since the last quotation, to check for over or underinsurance on a previous policy, and allow the time to approach our insurer partners for the right solution. Our aim is to make sure that our clients have the right level of insurance at the right premium to protect their business.

We recognise that every care home is unique with its own set of challenges, so by developing a closer relationship we naturally build a trusted partnership – our clients know they can rely on us to help whenever they need us.

What’s your advice for a care home owner looking for insurance?

We recommend anyone looking for commercial insurance to make sure they give themselves time to work with their broker, to find the best solution for their specific needs. A good broker will want to look at all areas of the business and build an insurance programme that provides robust protection for the business now and also looking to the future.

The cheapest premium might look attractive initially but not actually cover everything adequately and if the worst should happen and you need to make a claim, you could find the cover isn’t as extensive as you need it to be, or there’s no cover at all.

It’s a good idea to carry out an annual insurance review at each renewal. Your circumstances might have changed and insurance covers available may also be different. Keeping in touch with your broker and sharing information helps to build a good relationship, which will make your next renewal even more straightforward. They will understand your needs and will be able to advise of any anticipated changes to the insurance market or legislation changes that may affect future policies, availability of cover and changes to premiums.

We’d welcome the opportunity to carry out a no obligation review of cover levels, even if the renewal date isn’t for a while. Understanding any areas of concern and being prepared for conversations with your broker and insurer will facilitate a smooth renewal process and help to ensure the right level of cover at the right premium.

How do you work with your clients in the care sector?

We look to assess our clients’ needs based on business set up and their specific exposure to risk. We’ll then look at insurance products, which we believe will best protect them from the identified commercial risks associated with their business.

These can include general insurance covers such as public and employers’ liability, buildings and contents insurance and legal expenses cover, to business interruption, abuse cover and specific domiciliary care cover. Our specialist insurer partners allow us access to industry specific wordings and extensions that can prove invaluable in a crisis situation.

We deal with our clients on an individual basis, so our recommendations for covers and any specific extensions will be particular to each business’s needs, to help safeguard the future of the care facility should the unexpected happen.

You can find out more about the covers available for the care sector on our website here.

What types of organisations can you help in the care sector?

We can help a range of organisations in the care sector including the following:

Care homes, nursing homes, care charities, domiciliary care entities, hospices, alcohol and drug rehabilitation centres, care and day centres, children’s homes, retreats.

We would be pleased to hear from companies regardless of their CQC rating, because we know that change can happen very quickly and are able to consider solutions for all variants of rating.

Why should we choose Barnes Commercial?

As specialists in the care sector, you can be assured that the advice and guidance we provide will be relevant to your specific needs. We put you and your business at the heart of everything we do, supporting you with honest advice and providing tailored insurance solutions that will bring complete peace of mind.

From typical buildings and contents insurance, or public liability and employer liability insurance, loss of licence and residents’ effects, we will help you to manage potential risk. We provide freedom from worry, allowing you to focus on running your business and providing an outstanding care service.