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A Winnie Solution for Parcel During Delivery Process
Cover Story
A ‘WINNIE’ SOLUTION FOR PARCELS DURING DELIVERY PROCESS
Dato’ Winnie Lim, Founder of Solution Risk Group of Companies has made a name for herself as a specialist in the insurance sector. She dives into an industry, learns its risks and puts together clever solutions that deliver peace of mind. The Smart Parcel is her latest offering. It provides insurance protection for parcels during the delivery process, RACHAEL PHILIP writes.
echnology has kept up T with the boom in online shopping making e-Commerce swift and seamless, and keeping both retailers and shoppers happy. But there has always been one area that could well zap this joy from us – receiving a parcel with damaged goods.
That last mile of delivery – sometimes the riskiest – now has an insurance protection plan, which covers damage and loss to your parcel due to delivery vehicle accidents, flood, theft, robbery and other unforeseen events. The wide-ranging product, developed by Solutions Risk Consultants Sdn Bhd, is the answer the e-Commerce sector has been waiting for.
“I feel it is a timely product,” says Dato’ Winnie Lim, Founder of Solution Risk Group of Companies.
“With the pandemic and the various lockdowns imposed on people in the last two years, consumers were forced to go online to make purchases. Many first-time buyers learned of the convenience of online shopping, while many regular online shoppers ventured to buy bigticket items online, such as bicycles, television sets, laptops, handphones and cars etc.
“There is a certain amount of anxiety when you shop online. You can’t blame them. What happens if my purchase arrives damaged, broken or, worse, lost?”
Courier companies have a basic insurance plan which provides a maximum coverage of between RM100 and RM300, depending on the company, regardless of the weight and value of the parcel. This does little in terms of comfort what more compensation if a parcel is damaged or lost.
Dato’ Winnie is familiar with the logistics sector. She has been working with a number of courier companies these last two years.
“I first created this product for a particular courier company. This company was seeing many cases of loss and damage parcels, especially big-ticket items. We rolled out the plan and it turned out to be a winwin for all stakeholders.”
Seeing that this could benefit the logistics industry as a whole, Dato’ Winnie firmed up the insurance solution plan for parcels and in December 2021 launched a brandnew platform that would cater to the logistics players.
“I figured that if I wanted big volume, I need a user-friendly platform that links us up with all the courier companies. These are our clients. If a shopper wants to ship a bicycle from KL to Penang, they can opt for the insurance at the checkout point. This is where our platform kicks in. It facilitates both sales and claims.”
The insurance premium is based on the value of the consignment multiplied by the surcharge rate. Dato’ Winnie assures that it is very affordable. A business-to-business company, Solution Risk deals with a large number of logistics players. This keeps the premiums low, she explains.
The maximum liability is RM5,000 per consignment note or the value of the consignment, whichever is lower. For sum insured above RM5,000, a special approval is required. Generally, the claim process is not complicated, and the duration of coverage is 14 days.
TAILOR-MADE PRODUCTS
A maverick of sorts, Dato’ Winnie has founded many businesses but her heart and expertise lie in insurance.
“I may have done many things in life but I’ve never moved away from the insurance service industry. I have some very loyal staff here, some who have been with me for three decades. We enjoy coming up with new products and solutions for our customers.”
While the company mainly services corporate clients, it also handles a small percentage of individual accounts. Their principals are Allianz Malaysia, Tokio Marine Insurance, Great Eastern General & Life Insurance, Zurich Malaysia, Etiqa Malaysia, MPI General Insurance, Lonpac Insurance, Chubb Insurance and AmBank insurance.
All these insurance companies have their regular policies, says Dato’ Winnie, but Solution Risk creates specialised products for the Malaysian market by bundling 10, sometimes 15 liabilities or risk exposures into one purposeful and affordable product.
Over the years, Solution Risk has become well-known for these all-inone products, which have benefitted many, including MRCA members.
Despite the lockdown, Dato’ Winnie has stayed in touch with the various industry leaders. This has continued to open doors for her team, in terms of venturing into new industries.
“I create exclusive products for the market or a whole industry after learning about it and becoming familiar with it. For instance, when I was with a particular insurance company, I created a good product for pawn shop owners. This is doing well.”
SPECIALISED PRODUCTS
The Cyber Risk Solutions and the Smart Retail Solution are two other popular products from the company. The former is a customised policy aimed at protecting SMEs from the risks arising from the digital space such as network security and privacy exposure.
“The lockdown saw a rise in the number of cyber attacks stemming from the many loopholes in the online world. We have come up with an exciting plan which features quick response time – within 10 minutes our insurance consultants will initiate a local Response Manager to the case; within an hour the manager will contact the client and initiate the relevant response team.
“I am not worried when big companies get hit. They have formidable cyber walls and large teams to handle the crisis but when SMEs are hit, it worries me because they are unable to handle the risks and the financial losses it entails,” she said.
The Smart Retail Solution, meanwhile, packs 20 coverages into one product, from business losses sustained from Covid-19 to fire insurance, machinery breakdown, deterioration of stock, group personal accident, public liability, etc.
It is a well-thought-out and practical plan that reflects the needs of retailers in these pandemic times. It features no-claim discounts, emergency relief benefits, event liability cover and free renovation insurance, also known as Contractor All-Risk insurance, among others.
“The Contractor All-Risk insurance is a must-have if you want to do even minor works of renovations at outlets in shopping centres.”
Renovation works are also a hazard at areas of dense population such as condominiums. Dato’ Winnie has your back with her Smart Condo Insurance. The policy covers both minor and major renovation as well as maintenance works. It includes public liability coverage and damage to the tenant’s and the joint management body’s property, among others.
“There have been cases of third-party body injury, loading and unloading site damage, and such. In fact, this is one area which I feel the government must step in and make compulsory for contractors to have before they embark on renovation works,” she asserts.
GOING DIGITAL
Dato’ Winnie says that in the last few years she has sold some of her other
SMART RETAIL SOLUTION THE ALL-IN-ONE PACKAGE
Smart Retail Solution is a customizable product with up to 17 types of covers for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) providing the most comprehensive protection for your business. The coverage options consists of: • Fire / Commercial Fire • Fire Consequential Loss • Terrorism • Burglary • Money • Machinery Breakdown Customers can choose to insure under: Flexi Plan or Combined Single Limit Plan Value added benefits includes:
• Goods in Transit • Personal Accident • Public Liability • Employer’s Liability • Deterioration of Stock • Glass • Mobile Plant • Electronic Shield • All Risk • Product Liability • Fidelity Guarantee
No Claim Discount (NCD)
NCD up to 20% subject to no claims recorded (Except Fire & Con Loss)
Emergency Relief Benefit Renewal Bonus
Auto increase up to 20% of the principal amount (Except Fire & Con Loss)
First Loss Without Average Cost No Excess
Nil excess for all miscellaneous classes
Inconvenience Relief Benefit*
An immediate lump sum cash disperse as supporting funds after a loss has occurred. For all miscellaneous classes of insurance
* Additional premium required. Please refer to the policy wording for the full terms and conditions
Up to RM1000 per day for income loss during duration of repairs after a loss has occurred.
Authorized Agent: Solution Risk Consultants Sdn Bhd (213521-X)
No. 165, Jalan Maharajalela, 50150 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Tel: +603-2148 3811 (Hunting Line) Fax: +603-21459896 Email: src@solutionrisk.com Website: www.solutionrisk.com Construction / Renovation Benefit
Enjoy Free Contractors’ All Risks coverage up to RM500,000 per location and include Public Liability insurance as per existing policy limit.
Underwritten by:
businesses and now hopes to focus the next few years with Solution Risk as she plans her succession.
“We have digitised our business and have put in new systems. We now store our files in the cloud. During the lockdowns our staff could work seamlessly and efficiently from home. In fact, we were busy gathering data from our clients and storing them on our platform.”
These efforts proved useful as it allowed the Solution Risk team to provide swift compensation claims to policy holders who were positive Covid-19. Those quarantined at government-designated centres received RM2,000 while COVID-19 related deaths saw claims of RM20,000. Her corporate clients, whose staff were not policy holders, were also entitled to death and medical claims.
“The sum may not be much, but we do all the leg work and they receive the benefits.”
She also encourages her clients to get their businesses covered for COVID-19 interruptions.
“Many signed up for this. So, if there is a COVID-19 case at their outlet and they have been ordered to shut down for 10 or 14 days, the policy pays them RM2,000 per day. In these two years my staff and I have been busy processing many claims.”
POSITIVITY OUT OF THE PANDEMIC
Suffice to say Dato’ Winnie and her team have not been sitting still. The events of 2020 and 2021 have not all been negative.
“I just want to encourage business people that even during a downturn we can use the time to do something that can benefit our businesses, things which we cannot do during normal times. As an example, we managed to do a lot of housekeeping, training and even virtually connecting with our customers.
“One good thing that came out this are e-documents. Before the pandemic, many of our customers would insist on hardcopies but, because of the lockdown, customers now accept e-documents.
“The pandemic has taught us that we must always be ready for challenges, we must be open to new things, even new ways of doing business. I believe we did the right thing by going digital. Our customised products have helped many. We had the opportunity to educate many.”
