Insurance People Dec15/Jan16 by Insurance People

insurancepeople

Neil Williams See page 16 Insurance People inside include:

Reg Brown Alan Cleary Sue Noble

Phil Bunker Sue Coffey

Mike Smith

Simon Calderbank Tim Grant

Susanna Way

Phil Hayes Terry Wellard

Cover artwork: Carol Newman

issue 59 December 2015 / January 2016

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The IP team wish all our readers, contributors, sponsors and advertisers a Happy Yuletide and a very prosperous New Year

insurancepeople

surance “The In with ne Magazi ity” Personal www.insurancepeople.uk.com

Dear Editor,

Editor and Publisher

Consultant Editor

Andrew Newman

Brian Susman

Commercial Director

Production Director

Jeni Hall

Adrian Susman

Editorial

Andrew Newman FCII, Dip.M andrewnewman@talk21.com 01892 730539 Design & Production

Adrian Susman adrian@insurancepeople.uk.com 07981 993974

me here in The November edition of IP reached the read even e mad hine suns ee Spain. The 25 degr to say I felt it was more enjoyable, and I just wanted ever published. probably the best edition you have Ian Clark's Fascinating articles like Uber v. TFL; being of interest in interview (his involvement in IBRC Hawkes' cyber view of my IIB connection); Andy packed 'News'. security; and very interesting and cis - but the I do not believe I ever met Dan Fran derful memory won a is ary obitu at dignified and upbe how lucky us se reali of this young man. It makes me long. so for life yed enjo have old boys are to was Reg Brown's Perhaps the most interesting to me g story, and natin 'Postcard Emporium'. What a fasci d by a black face lems prob t grea the one can imagine in the USA ness busi man trying to start an insurance . dice preju l racia sive at that time of mas Thanks again for keeping me 'in the

loop',

December 2015 / January 2016

In this issue

Late news

Market talk

Cyber risk

Insurance, Kedric Rhodes (former MD of TEn Direct etc) er Brok at non-exec

Cover artwork: Carol Newman

Simon Calderbank, HCC International

8 Commercial Director

Loyalty first! Terry Wellard

www.insurancepeople.uk.com

12 Printers

Reg Brown The Postcard Emporium

Pensord Magazines & Periodicals Tram Road, Pontllanfraith, Blackwood NP12 2YA

New asbestos rules Mike Smith, Incorporated Insurance Group

insurancepeople PO Box 537 Tonbridge Kent TN12 9WG t 01562 862990 m 07981 993974 e adrian@insurancepeople.uk.com

Interview Phil Bunker, LV= Broker

Jeni Hall jeni@insurancepeople.uk.com 07969 510172

Phil Hayes’ miraculous recovery continues

Phil Bunker and insurance are more than just good friends!

Bouquets & Brickbats Alan Cleary

Conscious capitalism Neil Williams, NVW Solutions

Also find us on:

Ones that got away! John Cleese “escaped”

18 ISSN 2043-9202 Insurance People is published monthly by Buttermere Wedge Publishing Limited. While every attempt has been made to ensure that the information contained within this publication is accurate, the publisher accepts no liability for information published in error, or for views expressed. All rights for Insurance People magazine are reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without prior permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited.

Customer communication Sue Coffey, Covéa Insurance

19 25

Terry Wellard considers the loyalty factor

News On the move Who’s going where?

Alan Cleary presents his annual B&B’s

On the Road

DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016 insurancepeople 1

insurancepeople

Late News

A-Plan turnover up 10% -Plan Holdings reports turnover up 10% to £67.4m (£61.5m) in the year to the end of February 2015 and underlying EBITDA up 9% to £24.7m (£22.7m) The company reports highlights as: “ ... : growth driven by increase in new business volumes; strong retention rates with 9 out of 10 invited policies renewing; four new branch openings with total number of branches now standing at 78; growth in EBITDA achieved despite

significant investment in local, targeted marketing; successful investment by HgCapital provides significant firepower to support further growth”. The company says that the investment by HgCapital will support “...the further opening of new branches and selective M&A activity focussed on independent brokerages looking to realise the benefits of joining a national group”. Carl Shuker, chief executive, comments, “The

past financial year has been a landmark one for A-Plan as we continued our impressive growth trajectory whilst delivering a high quality and personal service to our clients in a friendly, professional and efficient way. “This strong set of results has been achieved against a backdrop of challenging conditions for the industry and our ability to continue to gain market share clearly demonstrates the appeal of our proposition

and its clear differentiation from commoditised internet based distribution models. “As premium inflation continues, the on-going investment in the business through the expansion of our branch network and customer acquisition initiatives ensures we have a strong platform for future growth. We look forward to working with our new shareholder to support the business through the next stage of its journey.”

Covéa backing for Road Safety Week ovéa Insurance gave its backing to a national Road Safety Week campaign, led by Hampshire Fire & Rescue and supported by the ABI. The campaign aimed to raise awareness of the four factors which are present in almost all of the ‘killed or serious injury’ collisions on UK roads and also cause the majority of ‘minor’ collisions.

The initiative, called Project Pictogram, centred around five simple icons which graphically illustrated these fatal driving habits which are: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Speeding Using a mobile phone or electronic device while driving Not wearing a seat belt Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs Driving too close to the car in front

Hampshire fire and rescue shared the graphics and encouraged their use by all organisations with motoring interests to promote road safety. Covéa focused on one driving behaviour each day throughout Road Safety Week and shared the pictograms through social media. Marketing & communications director at Covéa Insurance, Carol Geldard says,“This was a practical approach to highlighting the causes 2 insurancepeople DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016

of most fatal road accidents and made the connection between driving behaviour and the fatal consequences of certain driving habits. We have a vested interest in making our roads safer, not just as insurers, but because there are too many avoidable deaths on the road, with Carol Geldard young people being disproportionately represented in these numbers. Therefore education and awareness are vital and the reason why we were using social media to get the message out during Road Safety Week.”

FCA seeks input on big data he FCA has launched a “call for inputs” on the use of big data in retail general insurance. It will focus on three topics – does big data affect consumer outcomes?; does big data foster or constrain competition?; and does the FCA’s regulatory framework affect developments in big data in retail general insurance?

The call for inputs will close on January 8 and the FCA aims to publish a feedback statement in mid-2016.

market talk

Andrew Newman

in association with:

A higher purpose than profits? he article by Neil Williams on page 16 in this Yuletide issue of IP certainly explores the bigger picture. The prospect of ‘conscious capitalism’ transforming business companies towards a higher purpose than just profits would appear to require a long period of social and cultural change gestation.

Akin perhaps to that of the evolution of workplace health & safety, since the first legislation following the Industrial Revolution – and still evolving to this day. Such a ‘conscious capitalism’ ethos could get off the ground – but would it ever fly? Let’s be honest, even if we only look at our own sector, the one word

that sums up the current sand in the cogwheels towards ‘conscious capitalism’ is “greed”. If it took a major social culture change two centuries to get, say, workplace safety legislation where it is today, then might not a similar timespan be needed for conscious capitalism?

According to Capt Picard of Star Trek fame, “material gain” had been eliminated by the 24th Century. While that genre can explain away all the technical wonders of that period using invented jargon, Picard often simply puts human evolution down to changes in the human psyche and the elimination of poverty.

New coach & mentor team t the time of writing, the aforementioned Neil Williams and two coaching and mentoring colleagues are setting up a website. Neil tells me the trigger behind this collaboration derives from the frustration sometimes expressed by mentees that the coach or mentor doesn't always possess an integral understanding of a particular work sector.

“Most coaches subscribe to the notion that you don’t need to be a subject

Sue Noble

matter expert in order to coach or mentor effectively, and of course this can be true,” says Neil. “But it’s also true that the journey to effective and positive results can be shortened where both people can speak the same business language and have real shared experiences.”

particular emphasis on personal & professional development, capability management, and social media.

Susanna Way

Hence this newly formed team of insurance professionals and experienced coaches and mentors to provide a tailored service for the insurance sector. Joining the venture are Sue Noble, an experienced executive coach, qualified to Level 7 (Masters level), and a qualified leadership trainer and coaching supervisor with nine years’ experience of working within insurance with junior managers to CEO level.

Susanna Way also joins with experience in delivering large scale IT and customer service change within pension annuities, PMI, and general insurance products. Her coaching and mentoring of both individuals and teams put

As for Neil Williams, his 40 years in the insurance industry in both underwriting and broking involved sales and operational management. He has been a coach for the past ten years. He is currently a non-executive director of TEn Insurance Services. “To quote the vernacular, both Sue and Susanna, ‘definitely have the tee shirt’” says Neil. “They’ve led, managed, trained and delivered through good times and bad.”

www.CoachingInsuranceProfessionals.co.uk “There to support insurance professionals develop through coaching and mentoring"

DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016 insurancepeople 3

market talk

Collins - 628 not out! New transparency in London market

MCC – Me and Cleese at Clifton Brian Susman writes: he appearance of John Cleese in the Ones that got away on page 17 of this month's issue of IP sends the mind racing back to the heady days of the 1980s (was it?), when Monty Python's Flying Circus was all the rage – and when I was a mere slip of a lad in my late 40s.

My insurance journalistic activities took me quite often in those days to the old Sun Life. Based in Bristol, they were hospitable folk and somewhat ahead of their time in PR, thanks to the excellence of their then publicity and marketing man, Alan Bell, one of the few people I looked up to – physically, that is. Knowing my cricketing proclivities – if not prowess - he was kind enough to invite me down to Bristol, to guest for a Sun Life team in a charity match against the Playwright's XI, to be staged on a Sunday afternoon in the grounds of the magnificent Clifton College. I accepted with almost indecent haste. A crowd of around 1,000 turned up on a suitably fine day. But they weren't there to see me. It was more the likes of the Playwrights' skipper, Tom Stoppard, and particularly John Cleese and Terry Jones, from the Python team. An old boy of Clifton College, Cleese was no mean cricketer, having played for the college 1st XI; Jones made no pretensions of being a cricketer. But they both made their mark on the day.

Batting early in the Playwrights line-up, John Cleese was actually run out after scoring only a couple of runs; standing at slip, I could readily see that. However, we assured him that the crowd had probably turned up more to see him than us, and suggested that we rescinded our appeal to allow him to continue. Which he did, to the tune of another 30 or so runs. Terry Jones made more of a mark on himself than the cricket, as I recall. He spent most of the afternoon in the St John Ambulance tent, having injured his arm while fielding. Details of the scores escape me, but I'm pretty sure that the Playwrights XI had a convincing win. Perhaps it is significant that I am unable to recall how I fared with the bat. l

Playing at Clifton College gave me the opportunity of studying the framed copy in the pavilion of an old scorebook entry which contained the highest recorded cricket score by an individual. A.E.J. Collins made 628 not out, at the age of 13, in a Clifton College inter-house match in 1899 – a score that necessitated the use of every last vestige of space on the scorebook page. He went on to take 11 wickets, as Clarke's House beat the opposition by an innings and 688 runs – somewhat one-sided, I suggest. The sting in the tail was that A.E.J. Collins was killed in action at Ypres, in 1914, in the early days of the First World War.

Opportunity knocks in London market n his article on page 10 this month Terry Wellard highlights the alleged “use and abuse” against London market specialists. I spoke with Paul Chainey, CEO of London market schemes and affinities broker Miles Smith regarding the wider opportunities opening up for brokers.

“

An influential provincial broker, or a major regional broking group ignores the London market at their peril.

Many new facilities are created by the schemes and affinities brokers, and many new A-rated insurers and capacity providers enter the UK market via these offices. Many are ambassadors of meaningful product extensions, and minimisation of warranties – a far cry from the oldfashioned perception of Lloyd’s and the London market as the office of last resort.

4 insurancepeople DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016

Impending legislation in the 2015 Insurance Act will raise the profile of these issues, and it’s evident that ‘savvy’ brokers are preparing for new business, and the retention of major renewal accounts, based on this new transparency. Paul Chainey

However, this is not new to the brokers of the London market, with unique products pitched in utmost good faith to well established and experienced underwriters.

They look upon this development as an opportunity, and it is a brave - or maybe naive broker that ignores them.

”

Peterborough Cathedral 5th February 2016! More networking time at The Grand

in association with:

On the Mend! Phil Hayes ack in April we broke the news about the life changing injuries suffered by the effervescent Phil Hayes, managing director of 2direct, in a freak motor accident at the end of February, and the resilience he was showing in his long road to recovery.

I spoke with Phil recently, and am pleased to update on his continued miraculous recovery. From being initially paralysed from the neck down, he has been showing the same grit and determination he has revealed in his business career, and has been proving the doctors wrong. In the immediate aftermath of his accident, Phil’s wife Joanne was told to expect his hospitalisation for up to 18 months, and that he would ‘remain in a wheelchair’ as his legs were unlikely to work

properly, and his arms may never fully recover the trauma to his spinal cord. He underwent two lengthy operations to rebuild the broken vertebrae in his neck, and within four weeks took his first steps. “I will never forget that feeling, standing up and taking those first steps after weeks of paralysis,” Phil told me emotionally. He was transferred to a specialist spinal injury rehabilitation unit in Sheffield, and says they worked him extremely hard whilst there. Within two months he was released to continue his rehabilitation from home, with almost daily sessions with Peterborough City Hospital’s neurological physiotherapy team. “I’m now walking well, and continue to improve the

Sussex CII celebrates new name he forthcoming Annual Dinner of the Insurance Institute of Sussex (formerly the Brighton Institute) takes place on 29 January 2016 at the Grand Hotel, Brighton. Dinner secretary Paula Cook tells me the dinner is already a sell-out and will include celebration of the name change.

Another change is that formal speeches will be minimised - priority moves towards more networking time and a more informal evening. Whether that’s a good or a bad thing depends on your point of view. As a member of this institute, my vote has always favoured the networking theme, and I did my best to encourage the 1990s’ change of venue from the dreaded* Hove Town Hall to the Grand. * Space prevents me saying more, which is probably just as well!

strength in my arms. I may never be the same as before, however am grateful to be alive and am amazed at my recovery to date. I am humbled by the support and care shown by my industry friends.” Phil recently attended a charity fundraising race night organised by close friends from Woodcock Holmes Estate Agents, where over £3,000 was raised for the Neurosurgery Education and Research Fund at Addenbrookes Hospital - it was reported that there wasn’t a dry eye in the house! Despite this accident Phil is beginning to get back to work, engaging with clients on 2direct products as well as promoting his new venture with Sally Dunscombe at Annecto Legal. In addition, he also stepped into the role of President of the Insurance Institute of Peterborough in May. Unsurprisingly, his message is one of encouraging all members to have the drive, ambition and tenacity to achieve their goals. Phil says that with this, "we can create our own ‘good fortune’, and the impossible can sometimes become achievable". True words, Phil.

Phil Hayes

For the Institute's upcoming annual dinner on Friday 5th February 2016, Phil has secured the incredible surroundings of Peterborough Cathedral, to whom all proceeds on the night will be donated. Phil is keen to ensure the event does justice to the surroundings, and would be grateful for all support. This exclusive and prestigious black tie event is sure to sell out fast, so he urges you to secure your ticket at the ‘early bird’ rate of £75 up to 15 December 2015 (£95 after that). Phil Hayes: “In addition to an excellent four-course meal, you will be entertained by the wellknown and loved comedienne, impressionist, actress and singer Debra Stephenson. This is an event not to be missed with a beautiful venue, an in-demand entertainer… and my presidential speech!”

market talk

FCA puts away its gun?

in association with:

Covéa enhance e-trade proposition

Loyalty forever n his article this month on page 10 Terry Wellard takes ‘loyalty’ as his subject, with a sideswipe at those insurers who treat the loyalty of any customers they retain for more than one year with contempt at renewal.

I discussed with Terry the recent speeches made by Tracey McDermott, acting chief executive of the FCA. Her address on Moving

Tracey McDermott

icture an 18 year-old trainee underwriter sitting at a City desk in Bury Street, just across the road from where the Gherkin now stands. Fortified with a cup of freshly brewed tea (in a china cup!) and a Penguin chocolate biscuit provided by a paternal employer, I see myself settling down for a pleasant afternoon of “renewal consideration” - playing ‘God’ by dishing out compulsory excesses and premium

towards a Sustainable Model of Regulation seems a step in the right direction, and in sharp contrast to her predecessor’s gun slinging talk of “shooting first and asking questions afterwards”. Little wonder we have seen compliance and other regulators being lampooned with spoof business titles such as “Antibusiness Development Manager”, Business

loads to any policyholders unfortunate enough to have suffered more than one claim in the last renewal year. There were two golden rules drilled into us. One, “It’s a no claim discount, not a no blame discount. Two, “Don’t penalise any loyal long-term policyholders.” Quite simply, to do otherwise wouldn’t have been considered as being ‘fair’.

Prevention Director, No-new business development manager etc etc. Terry Wellard: “From my somewhat dated experience, I found the regulators’ complete negatively-laced approach not exactly conducive to writing business. Their fear of any commitment was a bit like employing a claims man to do your underwriting – he

will see a claim in every risk, and not write any business. “Good luck to Ms McDermott at the FCA in her efforts to simplify the rules of engagement which will, hopefully, encourage a better use of our entrepreneurial skills than constantly having to comply with inflexible controls, some of which need to be more in line with today’s market conditions.”

Return to Norman Place y first ‘Return to Norman Place’ article – when I revisited Covéa Insurance in Reading back in June - featured head of small business Tim Grant who was leading a major review of their small business e-trade proposition.

In a recent catch-up Tim told me about the latest development which includes a re-launch of the Master Tradesman policy for small businesses and the selfemployed on the Acturis platform. “We’ve carried out a lot of research into the needs of small businesses,

and what brokers want to see in terms of product features and trading capability for this market sector. “In response, significant changes have been made to our small business liability product, which include a substantial increase in the number of trades covered; the addition of a new tailored wording to provide specific cover for professionals; and a raft of policy enhancements - 22 in total! “We’ve also rebranded the product to reflect the new occupations covered and

6 insurancepeople DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016

changed the name to Master Tradesman and Professionals.” This product is now trading on Acturis, with plans to launch on the Covéa Insurance extranet next year to enable access for other brokers who don’t use Acturis. The electronic product is supported by a guaranteed 30-minute referral response from the specialist small business trading team, which Tim introduced to make sure brokers receive fast underwriting decisions, acknowledging that, in Tim’s words, “Every small business has slightly different

Tim Grant

circumstances, and our process needed to accommodate this.” This level of service is also consistent with the service commitment provided by Sterling Insurance who, having joined forces with Covéa Insurance, will be trading as a single entity from the start of the new year.

cyber

Has the Cyber market forgotten about SME clients?

Do SMEs really need the same cyber cover protection as that on offer to the big international companies? Simon Calderbank highlights the need for policies designed to cover the key exposures of UK SME clients yber is a confusing place. Firstly the term ‘cyber’ has no standard meaning in an insurance context. Everyone is aware that it’s something to do with data, security, computers, the internet, but that tends to be the extent of knowledge for the masses.

Some lawyers complicate things further by adding cyber liability insurance as a requirement in some contracts. But what do they mean? 1st party costs? Notification costs? Business interruption? Extortion? Rectification costs? Or simply 3rd party liability?

‘Cyber’ as a term has no relevance to coverage or quality of the product. Those on offer vary hugely. Some markets offer standalone policies offering 1st and 3rd party exposures. Some offer cyber extensions and inner limits which are largely 3rd party liability only (which when added to PI any ‘civil liability’ wording effectively restricts the cover, and yet the client pays for the privilege). All this adds confusion to the broker and the client.

One can only presume that they are looking to protect their clients, so why confuse things with reference to something which is not standard, or defined, and which should be adequately covered elsewhere, including the insured’s PI policy? Do SMEs really need access to 24 hour call centres to deal with a potential issue which the vast majority of them have not knowingly ever needed?

Simon Calderbank SENIOR UNDERWRITER – IT HCC INTERNATIONAL

The real need for SMEs is a policy that provides real balance sheet protection whilst also protecting the interest of the insured's clients. 3rd party and 1st cover (business interruption, rectification costs, forensic investigation/legal support and extortion) should be where the focus is provided. Add to this a data backup facility which provides off-site storage and remote access to files and you suddenly have a policy that resonates with the needs of the client. That means, should the worst happen, lost data can quickly and efficiently be downloaded and the business can continue to trade. All in a policy with premiums starting at £500+IPT.

DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016 insurancepeople 7

In association with:

We now pronounce you...

Insurance wasn’t necessarily on the radar for everyone seeking this particular career path. But once on board, many of us not only survived the ordeal, but thrived on the opportunities. Result: A marriage for life. Wedded bliss. For better or worse. In association with Markerstudy Group, Insurance People presents a series of interviews featuring some of the insurance people happy to have pledged their troth to this industry

Phil Bunker Managing Director, LV= Broker Phil Bunker loves working in the broker market. He began his career as an accountant at PriceWaterhouse, and worked at Lloyd's for a few years before joining NIG in 1990 where he stayed for 14 years, eventually becoming MD. He joined LV in 2006 to help set up the LV broker business arm, alongside many of his former-NIG colleagues

AN: Since you joined LV in 2006, it seems that during those nine years both Markerstudy and LV= Broker have been on a fairly parallel path? PB: Yes, we have both been focused on growing our businesses. LV didn’t have a broker business at all nine years ago when I joined. We grew very well organically, but the real step forward was when we acquired Highway. The parallel was probably Markerstudy buying Zenith. And if you look at the culture of the

respective businesses, both Markerstudy and LV= Broker have a broker friendly start-up mentality. Markerstudy are also probably the closest to LV in terms of the way they deal with people. They come over as very caring and willing to share information. I tend to meet up with their employees at the “Best Companies To Work for” Awards and it’s good to see that the staffing side of the business is so important to them. In fact, they are one of the few

8 insurancepeople DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016

companies that we sometimes lose people to! The culture of having fun and caring is similar in both companies. AN: So how do the ‘people’ aspects affect the running of the business? PB: We have been carrying out staff engagement reviews for some time at LV=, and that gives us a good benchmark as to how happy our staff are about the various things that we do within the business. This is

handled by an independent outside source, so it’s not just us saying it there’s a very methodical and accurate way of measuring its value. We are able to then compare our results with data across other industries. That gives us a very good benchmark - and every year it gets better! Naturally we’re very proud of that. AN: So how did you go about setting up the infrastructure to do that? PB: Well, there are lots of things you can do. Loyalty schemes and things like that, but I think one of the best is simply getting out and talking to staff. Communication, both ways. To back up this traditional communication we have a very good intranet site which is organised into local units, so you can see what is going on locally. There are also a number of areas where you can get corporate messages out. But it’s not just about telling people what’s going on. It’s very much a listening site. There’s a very active ideas scheme. It’s very like a social media site, more than a normal insurer intranet, in that people can respond to anything that we post, so we get a lot of useful feedback and ideas. AN: And I would think a stable staff and management structure helps? PB: Our stability has been very important. Very few businesses have had the same team in place for nine years. That’s why we have been paying a lot of attention towards getting the succession right. The ABC team contract finishes at the end of this year. That’s been known for some time. So we have been very serious about our succession plans. In Broker I am delighted to have a

home-grown successor in Mike Crane who takes over from me early next year. I’ll be staying on next year to help where required in an advisory capacity, but that will be far from full time, and I won’t want to get in the way.

to still being involved, but not as fullon as I have been.

AN: Will you then be available to take up any non-exec roles?

PB: Yes, certainly on the insurer side, although that doesn’t occur as often as you might expect because they tend to be very niche with their various schemes, and our respective market sectors don’t clash that much.

PB: Not with other insurers, but I hope to be able to work with brokers and IT providers. I’m looking forward

AN: Going back to your involvement with the Markerstudy connection, do you sometimes find yourselves as competitors for some risks?

AN: So how and when did you first get to know Markerstudy? PB: I started dealing with Kevin Spencer in the late 1990s when he was at Edgar Hamilton & Wellard. I was MD at NIG at that time and provided some capacity for their schemes. Kevin would come over to our office in City Road, near Old Street. We would generally end up in Colonel Jaspers wine bar. It was difficult to keep Kevin on one subject at a time for more than a couple of minutes. I remember Kevin once drawing an outline of some of his plans on a table napkin. It was amazing just how many different ideas he had. I recall I actually took that napkin away with me from the restaurant. It’s a shame I haven’t still got it! In 2000 he explained his plan to me to set up Markerstudy in Gibraltar. To be honest, I thought he was completely barking mad to contemplate such a move at that time. But he went ahead, and it proved to be a great success. His timing was perfect. With a hardening market he was able to write business at the right price. One of his chosen niches was high risk motor, which turned out to be a very good book of business. One of the good things about Kevin is that he doesn’t take himself too seriously. He certainly has a sense of humour. I got to know Gary Humphreys later, particularly when we were trying to set up Iparc, a market-based Insurer Hosted Pricing hub. He was a fellow believer in the concept and I found him to be very supportive, sensible and capable. Given how much we are all spending on our various IHP solutions now, insurers really should kick themselves that they didn’t get behind the concept in the same way that Gary and Markerstudy did. Not getting that project off the ground is one of the few regrets I have, but then I might still be doing it now – so I shouldn’t complain!

DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016 insurancepeople 9

Terry Wellard

Loyalty first ecently I met up with the chairman of one of the larger UK wholesale brokers and the vexed question of loyalty was discussed over the best part of an enjoyable lunch.

Having been an agency broker, I understood where he was coming from, but surely when dealing with sub-agency business he should by now be resigned to being “used and abused” as it comes with the territory. We both agreed that most brokers would prefer not to use a third party when placing business, and only turned to specialists under sufferance. But he emphasised that with the changes in placing technology, and regulation such as ‘treating customers fairly’, his company has an even more important role than in the past.

“

Privileged placing arrangements supersede ‘touting’ round the market

”

He wished to dispel the myth that they merely ‘tout’ business round the open market, as this has been superseded by his privileged placing arrangements with selected underwriters who rely upon his specialist expertise and pricing capabilities when presenting the risk for acceptance. The protection of these facilities is sacrosanct in preserving his

company’s future, and they cannot afford to be influenced by the prospect of accommodating business at all costs, even though the premium may seem attractive. “What about splitting commission?”, I asked. The response was equally emphatic as they offer a standard commission in the same way as insurers, and will not allow this to be influenced in any way that adversely affects the policyholder. ack to his gripe – we all accept that the number of agencies a broker can realistically support will be determined by the volume of business he transacts, and naturally this number will grow as his business escalates.

Insurers in return are applying greater pressure for increased support and even promising to accept risks they have previously declined to help the broker achieve target volumes of income. This lends itself nicely to the clients’ broker suggesting to these insurers they may like to accommodate their sub-agency cases, conveniently forgetting the applied expertise of the wholesaler whose assistance was invaluable in securing the risk. In the event of a claim the new insurer’s actuaries and, more importantly, their reinsurers, will enquire as to why this obscure risk was written without the applied underwriting authority and knowledge, and which will

10 insurancepeople DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016

inevitably lead to the risk being declined. How can this be good for the customer, who at renewal will have to seek cover elsewhere and was better protected under the original cover with the wholesaler?

“

Commission arrangements should not adversely affect the policyholder

”

With less than a handful of UK wholesalers remaining, I am convinced they will continue to flourish and still provide an essential service to the broking community at large, even with the advent of MGAs who equally employ specialist underwriters to accommodate books of business that require individual attention, but in some instances they may insist upon a minimum level of support. Loyalty is, of course, a two-way trade, but I just wish that all sides of the equation would respect the fact all parties need to make money, and not cast aside the importance of each contributory part in securing the business. nvariably the souring or breakdown in relationships results from one element using a touch of avarice, or imposing their importance for a greater share of the rewards without any thought or

“

Brokers’ loyalty has been tested over recent years

“

Why ignore good old fashioned common sense?

”

consideration of the fact everyone is experiencing the same competitive pressures. I have to confess that brokers’ loyalty has been tested over recent years following the changes in management at certain major insurers with the appointment of new CEOs who decide on a different course of approach from their predecessor, which can leave a broker in the invidious position of seeking alternative arrangements for their clients, who may have been with that particular insurer for many years. How is that showing respect for loyal customers? One major insurer a few years back appointed a new CEO* from overseas, who proceeded to throw out business, or expected the customers to carry scathing increases to the point that the shareholders rebelled over the subsequent loss of income. Can you imagine the consternation this caused in the offices of brokers, who also had to contend with subsequent mergers and consolidation of insurers. I fully appreciate that brokers are vulnerable to these vagaries and changes in direction with insurers which, invariably, are caused by a poor experience in writing a book of business which seemed attractive at the time, but was at the wrong rates and purely for volume.

* Incidentally the CEO to

whom I alluded was relieved of that particular duty and the company in question is again writing most of the business he threw out.

”

Sometimes in this situation brokers cannot claim immunity as due to their own competitive pressures, the business may have been written uneconomically. ontinuing on the theme of loyalty, it seems the direct writers are a rule unto themselves, which I suppose was inevitable as they live in the ultra competitive world of personal lines, where the cheapest rate usually gets an order.

With the advent of comparison sites, what more could they expect? But it now appears that having accepted there is no loyalty in the business they attract, at renewal they invite at a rate they feel they can get away with, in the knowledge that a better rate (sometimes through themselves) may be available under another brand for the same risk. How many times do you hear of an existing customer being asked for more at renewal than he would pay as a new business enquiry. Or when they phone to remonstrate, are given a drastically reduced rate, or a promise to match the lower rate obtained elsewhere. Is it any wonder we are held by the public at large as a laughing stock, or viewed in a poor light when you must surely be giving your existing customers the preferred rate to encourage their loyalty? In this respect I suppose this is somewhat academic as if you live by the sword, then you can expect no more in return, particularly when your actions discourage any loyalty.

e are all driven by the never ending pressure which can only increase as the political pendulum has swung decisively towards far greater regulatory control, and whilst this appears good news for customers, the bad news is this will never stop abuses, and they now share the escalating administration costs of compliance.

With all the rules and regulations applying today and reliance upon very expensive experts in compliance and actuarial studies embracing historical data, I am of the opinion there is a great danger in ignoring the application of good old fashioned common sense. Many years ago I introduced a syndicate to a major supplier of motor insurance business, only to ascertain that behind my back the underwriter approached my introduction and suggested that he may like to deal direct without paying commission.

“

Hopefully, gentlemanly acts are not a thing of the past

”

The principal not only declined the offer, but stated categorically that he was surprised a Lloyd’s syndicate would behave this way, and terminated the proposed arrangement. Hopefully this gentlemanly act is not a thing of the past, as without integrity, trust and, above all, loyalty, we would not be a world leader.

There’s more from Terry Wellard this month on page 6 DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016 insurancepeople 11

Lest we forget

Christmas card is very appropriate at this festive time of year, but the closeness to Remembrance Day makes this 1918 example very poignant. In fact it’s probably the most thought provoking postcard in the entire Reg Brown Collection. The card was sent after the end of WW1 in December 1918 by Royal London Insurance to servicemen either already home, or still waiting abroad for their turn to do so. To modern eyes there are some peculiarities. Someone once said that the only good thing that ever came out of WW1 was The choice of a distinctly German-style typeface seems the reality check it bequeathed to successive generations. bizarre. As does the chosen image of the returning hero Take the card’s message:being escorted by two pink-gowned angels. This would have made little connection with the logistics of the men coming home in 1918. Perhaps it’s St George? But the Union Jack? The caption says it is in fact a depiction of St Simon, Duc de France, one Louis de Rouvroy (1675-1755) a soldier, diplomat, and a noted diarist akin to Samuel Pepys. He was by all accounts quite short, which would explain his apparent disproportion in the picture.

With hindsight created by today’s comprehensive library of WW1 experience, the tone of the message vividly conveys the gap that existed between the home front and the reality of the war for those doing the fighting. The formality of the message looks out-of-date to us today, even patronising, mirroring the innocence and times of 1914 when the war began, with the new reality four years later. 12 insurancepeople DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016

The verse is taken from the poem ‘England, my England’ by William Ernest Henley who died in 1903. It’s believed that the card was despatched to all returning servicemen in December 1918, and one wonders how this patriotic, yet jingoistic bias was received by the Scottish, Welsh, and Irish soldiers? But we have to accept the sincerity of the Royal London’s message in the context of the times in which it was written. A comforting reminder of better times ahead, and no doubt well received by all but the most cynical of soldiery – such as Capt Blackadder. “It’s soft, it’s strong, and thoroughly absorbent!” The Editor

asbestos

Asbestos - the hidden killer

The prospect of the accelerated removal of asbestos in all buildings, including domestic property, has been sparked by an All-Party Parliamentary Group. Mike Smith looks at the impact of this on constructors and the insurance market

Mike Smith

n All–Party Parliamentary Group on occupational safety and health is pushing for legislation for the accelerated planned removal of all asbestos still in place, and for a timetable to eradicate asbestos in the British workplace.

The recommendations include:

House surveys required before a sale can take place

It is also looking for all homebuyers’ surveys to include asbestos reports along with a national programme of asbestos surveys.

All refurbishment work where asbestos is present should include its removal by 2028

All asbestos to be removed by 2035

The latest numbers suggest that five thousand people die every year in the UK as a result of exposure to asbestos, and it is believed that half a million non-domestic and a million domestic buildings still have asbestos containing materials.

All rented domestic homes, commercial and public premises should register a survey with the H&SE by 2022

his proposal will have a real impact on what is expected of contractors in the future. Not only will they have to work closely with asbestos surveyors and the H&SE, but may also be asked to undertake

CEO INCORPORATED INSURANCE GROUP

the removal of low level asbestos materials. Therefore, it’s likely that brokers will receive increased demand from their contractor clients to include the removal of nonnotifiable asbestos in their coverage. Unfortunately, many insurers find this hard to accommodate, and that leads to a market need within the high risk contractors liability sector for ‘A’ rated capacity providers able to adapt to clients’ changing needs. Brokers active in this class of business have never had a stronger need for a flexible underwriting approach.

What are the odds of no business disruptions?

Through our specialty insurance and ﬂexible nce underwriting approach, we can tailor our insuran solutions to suit your clients needs. Ta to a specialist underwriter today about ourr Cyber Talk product for the SME market +44(0)20 7680 2910 HCC International mail@hccint.com or +4 4 (0)20 7 702 470 0

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A s u b s i d i a r y of H C C I n s u r a n c e H o l d i n g s , I n c . Specialty Insurance | Accident and Health

Commercial Property

Directors

DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016 insurancepeople 13

Alan Cleary

Bouquets & Bric This is the 21st manifestation of Alan Cleary’s B&B column, according to that most learned of scribes and trainee fine art forger, Brian Susman. The first one was penned for Brian in 1995 2015 “REVOLVING DOOR” AWARDS: The GallagherTowergate Mutual Admiration Society ROCK STAR CEOs OF THE YEAR: Chris Guillaume; David Ross MOST EFFECTIVE PROFESSIONAL OF THE YEAR: Malcolm Hyde INSURANCE FAT CATS OF LAST YEAR: The High Pay Centre published the following “CEO pay figures” for 2014: Tidjane Thiam (Prudential) - £11.8m; Paul Geddes (Direct Line) – £4.6m; Nigel Wilson (Legal & General) – £4.2m; Mark Wilson (Aviva) – £2.6m THE YEAR’S TOP “CELEBRITY” LOOKALIKES: “WORKER ANT” OF THE YEAR: Middle BABE MAGNET OF THE YEAR: Paul Wishman SMUG BRANDS OF THE YEAR: British Airways, the ABI bubble, The Guardian, Daily Mail, Private Eye, the Church of England, Aviva (“sounds like a Brazilian brothel” – Peter Wood), Waitrose WORST INCOMPETENTS OF 2015: Vodafone (couldn’t give a monkey’s), W H Smith (clueless and scruffy with it), BT (hopeless, couldn’t run a bath), Tesco (keeping the riffraff out of Waitrose), TalkTalk (appalling and shambolic) BAD JOKES OF THE YEAR: The Telephone Preference Service; the risible House of Lords; the craven CMA (specialists in the resigned shrug) REINCARNATION OF THE YEAR: The Amazing Flying Lyndon, human cannonball, fridge magnet and trapeze artist, now with The Innovation Group - from DAS to TIG with a single acronymic bound 2015 “POSH TOTTY” AWARDS: Sally Dunscombe and Mary Rogerson

14 insurancepeople DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016

Michael Fassbender – Andy Homer; Ricky Gervais – Sandy Scott; Willie Walsh – Barry Smith; Alex Salmond – Benedict Burke; Scarlett Johansson – Amanda Blanc; Jeremy Corbyn – Editor Andrew Newman (Editor’s note to self: Get rid of this beard!); James Corden – David Shaw; Daniel Craig – Ian Ritchie;

Kim Jong-un – John (Worldwide) Webb; Harry Hill – Reg Brown; Lord Lucan – Peter Staddon; Arnold Schwarzenegger – David Williams; David Mitchell – Nigel Phillips; John Prescott – Terry Wellard; Sean Connery – Grant Scott; Gabby Logan – Adrienne O’Sullivan; Tim Wonnacott – Gerald Williams

CAFFE LATTE LIBERALS OF THE YEAR: Mike Crane, Jonathan Davey and the remarkable Phil Hayes LATEST RECRUITS TO THE ROBERT KILROY-SILK “WHERE ARE THEY NOW?” SOCIETY: Andrew Moss; David Bland; Michael Bright; Mike Williams; Richard Gamble; Ed Balls

kbats – 2015 GROTESQUE TV AD CAMPAIGNS WITH THE GREATEST NATURAL APPEAL TO PLONKERS AND MORONS: A toss-up between Moneysupermarket.com and Direct Line LEAST CLIENT-FOCUSED COMPANY ENCOUNTERED IN 2015: Halifax - their problem is that they don’t listen. They just overwhelm you with their ruthless determination to sell, sell, sell their pedestrian products. I expect no improvement. The ethic of the slippery salesperson seems too ingrained BEST CUSTOMER SERVICE ENCOUNTERED IN 2015: John Lewis; LV; Hiscox MOST HIGHLY-ORGANISED PROFESSIONAL BODY/TRADE ASSOCIATION OF THE YEAR: C.I.L.A. MOST IRRITATING “SWITCHBOARD” RESPONSES OF THE YEAR: “Whom (!) shall I say is calling? (Aviva); “Will he know what it’s regarding?” (insurance brokers and loss adjusters everywhere) MOST ANNOYING EUPHEMISM OF THE YEAR: “Glitch” - the term used by bungling puffed-up dunces like RBS, HSBC and Carphone Warehouse to describe their catastrophic and very stupid IT failures. They may be “glitches” to these greedy so-and-sos but they’re flaming disasters to their long-suffering, short-changed customers AWARD FOR MISUSE OF WORDS BY DOPEY POLITICIANS, INSURANCE EXECUTIVES AND HACKS IN GENERAL (2015): hoi polloi to mean the elite; forego for forgo (I see this every day in the national press – and I’ve even seen forgoe); disinterested for uninterested (I’ve lost count); and worst of all - appraise for apprise (beloved of jumped-up insurance luminaries and magazine editors). I recently witnessed “keeping us appraised of the potential dangers” (uttered at an “educational” conference by a household name in insurance circles). God help us all. The comprehensives have a lot to answer for …. MOST LAUDABLE TRADE ASSOCIATION INITIATIVE OF THE YEAR: BIBA’s appointing a young ambassador to each of its 12 regions across the UK PLUG-PULLING TIME-WASTER OF THE YEAR: Zurich THE TRINNY AND SUSANNAH OF UK INSURANCE (2015): Janice Deakin and Inga Beale

GLOSSARY OF NEW TECHNICAL TERMS (2015): A corbyn - a very, very old trouser-press; a chilcot - an utterly unjustified delay; a miliband - a copper-bottomed loser; a boris - a distraction, nothing more

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT OF THE YEAR: The insurance profession’s abject failure to do anything about its serious problems - except pontificate, spout and sloganise. It fiddles while its reputation burns. When, oh when, will our so-called spokesmen begin to earn their keep and respond to the non-stop vicious assaults of the tabloids? AXA, to their great credit, appear to be one of the very few organisations currently doing this. See Engine Customer Service Experience Survey 2015 - approval ratings: retail 38%, banking 23%, air travel 20%, mobile 15%, public transport 14%, utilities 12%, insurance 11%

SLEEPY PROOF-READER AWARD OF THE YEAR: Missselling (Post Mag’s take on the oldest profession?) - see 30 April 2015 MOST PRIMITIVE LIFE-FORM (2015): Claims-chasing ghouls. Runners-up: spineless, sleazy “snouts in the trough” politicians; silent callers; parasitic personal injury lawyers; gurning TV cooks. Previous years’ winners include plankton, Royal Family spongers, procurement officers, oiks in baseball caps, Hampstead Marxists from the broadsheets and their bien-pensant drivel, dung beetles and pimps MYTH OF THE YEAR: The scandalous suggestion that CII honorary fellows don’t accept invitations to insurance institute dinners in case they have to socialise with people who know more about insurance than they do

THOUGHT FOR 2016 - People will forget what you wrote. They’ll certainly forget what you said. They’ll even forget what you did. But they’ll never forget how you made them feel.

Every best wish for a happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year. DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016 insurancepeople 15

Neil Williams

EXECUTIVE AND CAREER COACH AND BUSINESS MENTOR NVW SOLUTIONS

Conscious Capitalism Unlike most specialists’ radar - which has of necessity to focus on the immediate future Neil Williams’ role allows him to consider the bigger picture. He’s been listening to, and reading, Philip Kottler’s book called Confronting Capitalism. Could conscious capitalism be the way forward? n a world riven by mis-selling and other related scandals, could something called conscious capitalism prove to be the way forward?

I went to a marketing lecture recently via a video link to Chicago from renowned marketer Philip Kottler to discover he is also an esteemed economist. Now talking about capitalism sounds heavy stuff and somewhat political, which isn’t in my nature. But here’s some of my thoughts on this book which - maybe - might have an impact on you too? Have you heard of Winston Churchill’s famous defence of capitalism – “democracy is the worst form of government, except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time”. Could conscious capitalism be the way forward, and how might that be achieved? Kottler provides a few answers:l

Philip Kottler quotes that CEOs in the USA used to earn 40 times more income than the average employee; now it is 300 times! There’s a similar picture in the UK where distribution of wealth has deteriorated badly. Healthy capitalism or conscious capitalism should include:l

the creation of an economic system whose operation leads to a broad level of happiness and well-being of its citizens

the use of resources to permit all people to realise their potential and to obtain the basic necessities of life

marketing should create a healthy desire in its citizens for the acquisition of material goods beyond the basics of food, clothing, and shelter thereby creating demand and spreading wealth

Companies should embrace a higher purpose for their business, than just profits Companies should seek to benefit not only the investors, but all the involved stakeholders in shared prosperity

The company’s culture should place a strong value on trust, authenticity, caring, transparency, integrity, learning and empowerment. (Look what’s happened to the reputation of VW when a number of these values have been ignored!)

Company leaders need to be committed to the community responsibilities of their company

16 insurancepeople DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016

the ability for people to work hard to produce a liveable

income to acquire the goods they desire. The system should also include consistent responsible credit facilities l

capitalism should develop high quality and luxury products to encourage citizens to work hard to attain a ‘good life’. The affluent middle class keeps the economy going

The hope is that the rich and superrich will take on more responsibility to share their good fortune with those who are less fortunate. It sounds simple doesn’t it! How can India have such a high number of billionaires, yet have such extreme poverty that the UK send so much financial aid there? I have a feeling that the youth of today have a lot more social responsibility than in my day. When you are living in the “muck and bullets” of everyday life, providing for your family, you don’t normally have time to consider such topics. Maybe political parties, companies, and the youth of today are more aware and want to make a difference? There is no call to action today except perhaps read Confronting Capitalism by Philip Kottler, or look around you and see if there is somebody who could do with your help.

This item is based on the article written by Neil Williams to be found on www.nvwsolutions.co.uk There’s more from Neil Williams on page 3

“The ones that got away”

This series has often craftily extended its hook to those insurance people who were not necessarily headline grabbers during their career. Their later ‘fame’ came via their offspring making their mark in another profession altogether, who were never ‘captured’ in the first place, having vowed never to follow in their parent’s footsteps

John Cleese n his recent autobiography So Anyway, John Cleese reveals that one of his sole [sic] aims in life – there were four altogether – was never to work in finance as his father did.

Reginald Cheese (the change to Cleese came later) took a job in insurance from school with Guardian and later became an insurance representative selling life and storm cover to farmers. Business came his way via personal recommendation from Somerset bank managers and solicitors. The work was relatively relaxed since Cleese Snr never started out before 9.30am nor got back after 4.30pm. The young Cleese would sometimes accompany his father on his insurance trips around the West Country, but other than that was never pressured into an insurance career. Cleese describes his father as not an overly ambitious man, but after WW1 Cleese Snr was cajoled into “seeing the Empire” and found himself in Bombay with Union of Canton where he became a marine underwriter. He spent

three years in India before moving to Hong Kong and then to Canton in China itself, when his malaria contracted in India forced him to return to Somerset. Of his father’s time in China, Cleese relates how his very competent Chinese clerk failed to appear one morning. On learning that he had been arrested for ‘illegal politics’ he marched straight to the prison governor’s office demanding to know when he might get his clerk back, only to be told, very politely, that he was to be executed next morning!

Note to IP Artwor

k Department

afraid. With on this one, I’m No work for you hed his legal recently replenis the subject having to run into any , we don’t want war chest at O2 Ed copyright probs!

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www.hbc.co.uk 01268 696444 Fax: 01268 510087 Email: info@hbc.co.uk BRITISH VEHICLE SALVAGE FEDERATION

DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016 insurancepeople 17

customer communication

Sue Coffey DIRECTOR OF PERSONAL LINES DISTRIBUTION COVÉA INSURANCE

A new approach ‘Smart’ is the buzzword in today’s world of communication and Sue Coffey explains how Covéa Insurance are reacting to the need to get the right messages through to the customer he majority of insurance buyers of today live busy lifestyles. They find themselves bombarded by communication messages from every quarter, to the point where they are forced to ration their attention span towards the items that attract them, and which appear to be of the utmost value to them.

The first step towards a new approach to encourage customers when it comes to looking more closely at insurance communications and policy documents is to create more interest, and draw customers in with a more visual, user friendly style - but without veering too far towards over familiarity.

simultaneously getting across all the salient points that the insurer needs to make is another way of putting it.

Let’s be honest – an insurance communication is not usually perceived as reaching that level, is it? While say, a message relating to progress on an ongoing claim is likely to grab their eye, the arrival of the actual policy hardly registers.

Making the document more pleasing to the eye is key. The customer has paid a lot of money, often for a forced purchase, for a product that is intangible. It doesn’t ‘exist’, and cannot be handled in the same way as a new tablet, or item of designer fashion. The policy document and the communication that accompanies it is all there is to show! The entire value of the outlay for the insurance ‘promise’ from the buyer’s perspective is tied up in the moment the document is opened.

It’s true that customers don’t always understand the product they’re buying, but that’s no reason to believe we cannot change that over time. And this theme contains the prospect of the practical application that customer expectations can be raised with significant improvement in customer satisfaction and retention.

And there is good reason for that. Traditional policy wordings contain an awful lot of text and jargon. Customers find them difficult to read and understand. Basically there is little encouragement for customers to even open their policy document, let alone read it. Take a look at the typical insurance policy document. A bulky number of pages with no index, confusing layouts, minimal graphics, blocks of small print – all set out in a way that puts off even the most discerning reader. It’s no wonder that the majority of policyholders never bother to read their policy. They may say that they simply do not have the time to do so, but the underlying reason is that it can be hard work!

That crucial moment decides whether the policy attracts interest and acquires a value in the mind of the buyer, or goes straight in a drawer as a begrudged purchase. So, pleasing on the eye, no jargon, and easily understandable. Put simply, all communications should be presented in a consistent pattern written entirely from the buyer’s viewpoint. Placing yourself in the position of the reader, while

18 insurancepeople DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016

That means understanding your customer and communicating information to help them make decisions in a way that’s relevant and meaningful to them.

Addressing this issue of improving the way information is presented to customers is justified by the big difference it can make to customer satisfaction. And it becomes essential for those insurers for whom customer service is a 100% commitment. There’s a lot of science to back the theme of tempting customers into reading and understanding their policy documents. It may be a long, long road, but if you start from the point that customers are people just like us, and we want to communicate in a way that we’d appreciate too, then it really boils down to being fair, open, reasonable, and empathetic.

In association with

insurancepeople

News

Ageas UK net profit increase or the nine months to the end of September Ageas UK reports a net profit of £46.9 million, with the overall combined ratio improved from 99.3% to 98.3%. Total income was £1,483.0m (£1,544.2m), reflecting, says the company, “low market average premiums”. Andy Watson, chief executive of Ageas UK says, “I’m pleased to report that we’ve delivered another solid quarter’s performance in a

challenging market. When you look at our underlying result, we’ve remained stable year on year. “In terms of motor performance, we took deliberate pricing action in the first half of the year that’s starting to pay off. This is supported by the much needed upward trend in motor prices in response to more traffic on our roads and the increase in costs of third party damage claims as a result of more aggressive approaches to non fault

claims in the market. The home market remains very competitive with soft rates linked to the continued benign weather conditions. “Brokers and partners continue to choose Ageas as their preferred partner of choice, evidenced by the recently secured 10 year deal with Age UK, as well as the launch of a new home and motor proposition with Virgin Money. Our focus on new personal and commercial schemes continues to bring success,

Andy Watson

coupled with our longstanding reputation for excellent customer service.”

Close shave for Staddon n connection with the “Movember” charity push, members of the MGAA met in London and watched managing director Peter Staddon have his moustache shaved off, possibly for the first time since his teens, and EC3/Legal managing partner David Coupe attempting to grow a moustache, but not in one evening. Peter Staddon reports that the event has raised around £2,000 in aid of prostate cancer charities, but points out that there is still time to donate.

Cardinus wishes all readers a SAFE Christmas and a HEALTHY new year Cardinus Risk Management 4th Floor, East Grinstead House 3 Wood Street, East Grinstead West Sussex RH19 1UZ

Peter Staddon (left) and a somewhat more hirsute David Coupe, courtesy of Jacqui Bagshaw Photography.

T: 020 7469 0200 E: info@cardinus.com W: www.cardinus.com DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016 insurancepeople 19

insurancepeople

News

Covéa Insurance sponsors rower C ovéa Insurance is sponsoring British rower Charles Cousins as he pushes for selection for the Rio Olympics 2016. Carol Geldard, marketing & communications director comments, “We’re delighted to have the opportunity to support Charles with his preparations at such a critical time in his career and will be with him every step (or stroke!) of the way, as he prepares for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. We make significant investments in helping our employees achieve their potential, which has been recognised through our

Investors in People Gold accreditation; it’s fantastic to have the opportunity to support our local community in the same way and we’re really hoping that our support can help Charles secure gold too!” Charles Cousins (pictured right)is a member of the Leander Club in Henley-on-Thames, as well as the Reading University Boat Club. He has had a successful career to date, collecting medals in several World Championships and competing in the 2012 London Olympic Games, where his crew took fifth place in the men’s quadruple scull event.

Close premium finance available with Applied TAM pplied Systems has announced that Close Brothers premium finance products are now available through Applied TAM. Brokers will only have to enter client finance requirements and information into Applied TAM, eliminating the need to rekey information into multiple systems and automating the data exchange between the brokerage and Close Brothers Premium Finance. “Providing access to a full range of services via digital channels has

become critical in today’s insurance market place," says Sharon Bishop, chief executive officer, Close Brothers Premium Finance. "By integrating our premium finance products into Applied TAM, we can further simplify our broker partners’ workflows and improve ease of access to premium finance products. This in turn helps make insurance more affordable for customers by spreading the cost of their insurance premium.”

20 insurancepeople DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016

New cyber cover from HSB Engineering SB Engineering Insurance has announced the launch of a new Cyber Insurance product aimed at small to medium-sized businesses. HSB’s Cyber Insurance product provides computer, data and cyber risks cover in one policy. The new product will be sold through brokers and, although principally aimed at businesses with a turnover of up to £10m, the cover is also applicable for medium-sized firms with turnover up to £50m. With hardware (including portables) and data corruption cover included, HSB’s Cyber Insurance includes cover in four additional areas: data

breach expense; cyber crime; cyber liability; and cyber event – loss of business income. Stephen Morris, chief underwriting officer, at HSB comments, “Many cyber policies can appear complicated, expensive and targeted at large businesses. Currently it is easier to buy £20m of cyber cover in the London market than £100k. With 74% of small businesses having experienced a security breach in the last 12 months, we recognised that there was a gap in the market for comprehensive cover aimed specifically at the small to medium-sized business.”

In association with

Virgin Money goes live on CDL Strata V

irgin Money has gone live on CDL Strata, following the launch of the bank’s partnership with Ageas Retail. Ageas administers Virgin Money’s home and motor insurance on the Strata platform, enabling it to offer consumers access to its online self-service portal. One of the primary reasons for the deployment, says CDL, is to offer customers access to Strata’s online selfservice portal, which gives

customers the option to manage their policies online, including performing renewals and mid-term adjustments. It also enables Virgin Money to offer its customers access to its products on ComparetheMarket. Ant Middle, CEO of Ageas Retail, says, "Digital experience and selfservice functionality are key to ensuring a positive customer experience and we’re delighted to have brought Virgin Money on to the Strata solution. This

demonstrates our commitment to offering our customers the highest standard of service and competitive premiums on every channel." CDL commercial director, Nigel Phillips, adds, "CDL Strata offers an intuitive multi-channel experience that will bring a range of benefits to Virgin Money customers. Typically, over 95% of customers sign up to the CDL self-service portal where it is offered, demonstrating the high

Nigel Phillips

demand among digital consumers for greater control over their own policies."

FCA paves way for cloud computing n its “proposed new guidance on cloud and other IT outsourcing” the FCA has paved the way for banks, insurers and other financial services companies to take advantage of cloud computing services, says law firm Pinsent Masons. A partner and head of the financial services sector of the company, John Salmon, comments: “It is really positive for the FCA to recognise that the financial services sector can move ahead with plans to use cloud services as long as appropriate safeguards are put in place. This is consistent with the regulator’s efforts to promote innovation in the sector and should help more firms benefit from cloud solutions. “It is good to see the

FCA acknowledge that cloud services, while similar to traditional outsourcing arrangements, are unique in many respects. Leaving to one side some of the regulatory issues which remain to be debated through the consultation period, what the FCA has already provided in this document should provide firms with a good roadmap to implement cloud strategies that are effective in matching compliance rules written for traditional outsourcing arrangements to the cloud context. “The consultation period over the next few months will provide a good opportunity for businesses affected to set out clear views about how existing regulation can be addressed in a way that enables cloud products”

Season’s Greetings from Ageas

Your Partner in Insurance.

ageas.co.uk

DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016 insurancepeople 21

insurancepeople

News

Ageas expands flood education A

geas has expanded its flood education programme by launching a new film for brokers showcasing the insights the Ageas claims team gained by visiting the National Flood School. This new video complements the “Mr Ageas storm” video created for brokers to share with customers ahead of when severe storm and flood events are predicted. The National Flood School film was taken during one of the Ageas claims team’s training days and details what can happen during a flood or

escape of water incident. A model home is used to demonstrate the scale of damage that can be caused to furnishings by flood or mains water. The drying out process is also explained along with rationales for restoring or replacing furniture and fitted units. The key point is that flood or escape of water incidents do not have a ‘one size fits all’ solution. Rob Smale, claims director at Ageas said: “We sincerely hope we don’t have a repeat of the floods of a few years ago but it’s vital we are prepared so that we can best

support our brokers and customers when they need us most, responding to their individual predicaments and managing their expectations during what can be a very stressful time. “The specialist training has enabled our front line team to appreciate the impact of flooding and the practicalities of drying out properties, putting them in a better position to explain to the customer what will happen throughout the claim as we work together with our supply chain to get them back on their feet and their home put to rights.”

Rob Smale

“It’s important to share this insight with our brokers so that they too, are in the best position to offer help and advice if customers need to get in touch.”

MAPFRE premiums up 46% APFRE’s revenues totalled €1,339 million in the EMEA region in the first nine months of 2015, up 45.9% on the same period last year, driven by the significant growth in Turkey, up 22.8% to 512 million euros, the United Kingdom, up 23.7% to 218 million euros, and Malta, up 51.6 % to 188 million euros. The Direct Line operations in Italy and Germany have been consolidated since June, following MAPFRE’s acquisition of Direct Line in both countries.

Combined, they have contributed €207 million in premiums these past four months. MAPFRE posted nine-month premiums of €175 million in Italy and €88 million in Germany (including Global Risks and Assistance operations). MAPFRE EMEA includes 19 countries from Europe, Middle East and Africa. The region contributes 7.2 percent of MAPFRE’s global premiums. Pre-tax profit stood at €35 million through September.

30th anniversary for Carole Nash business otorcycle insurance broker Carole Nash recently celebrated its 30th birthday, launching a tribute video looking at how the company started in Carole Nash's own dining room and following its development to today's business employing 300-plus. At Manchester's Imperial War Museum, Carole Nash joined the company's 300 employees for a celebratory party, where a life-sized replica of a motorcycle, made entirely from cake and chocolate, was unveiled. Measuring two metres in length, the unique creation is modelled on the motorcycle that Carole Nash first insured in 1985 – an AJS 1927 – which is still insured through the company.

Cutting the cake are CEO David Newman (right), Carole Nash and Ivan Rhodes, owner of the AJS motorcycle. 22 insurancepeople DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016

In association with

Caravan Guard breaks charity record n the recent Great Yorkshire Bike Ride the Caravan Guard cycling team won the team award for raising the highest amount of sponsorship. Chairman, Peter Wilby, set a challenging £10k sponsorship target as he saddled up for his 21st gruelling 70-mile ride in June this year. His eightstrong team raised a record breaking £10,962, - earning the company the Highest Team Sponsorship Award and a new record team total for the event organisers. The proceeds from this year’s event currently stand at £144,175, and the running total of monies raised for charity is £2,606,084. The Great Yorkshire Bike Ride is an annual sponsored charity cycle ride taking in a 70 mile route from Wetherby to the coast at Filey. An entry of 2,000 cyclists of all ages and abilities take part in this great social ride, which is held in June each year.

Peter Wilby, Caravan Guard founder and chairman,is presented with the team award by Paul Jackson, facilities manager at Premier Farnell.

Novae reports GWP up to £619.5m n its trading update for the nine months to the end of September, Novae reports GWP up to £619.5 million (Q3, 2014 – £515.1m), “ … driven by investment in new underwriting teams”. Weighted average rates on renewals are reduced by 3.4%, and claims experience is stated to be in line with expectations. Group chief executive Matthew Fosh comments, “The group continues pro-actively to manage its underwriting portfolio, building on the strong underwriting performance in the first half of the year. Another benign period for catastrophe events leaves the business well positioned for the final quarter, despite a softening rating environment.”

Allianz GWP up 2.7% nnouncing third quarter results, Allianz reports GWP of £1,685 million, up 2.7% over the same period of 2014, with a combined operating ratio of 97.9% (96.9%). IFRS operating profit was £102.8m (£117.2m). Chief executive officer Jon Dye says that Allianz has maintained long-term delivery of profitable growth despite intensive competition in key markets. He continues: “Premium growth at 2.7% coupled with a combined operating ratio of 97.9%, is a steady level of performance. We are growing our business and to help support that strategy we have entered into a reinsurance quota share arrangement with our sister company Allianz Re. This has the effect of reducing our Q3 profit figure by £11.1m. “The absence of severe weather claims so far this year has increased the competitive intensity of the commercial market. Achieving GWP growth of

Jon Dye

2.3% and a COR of 94.3% in this environment demonstrates the disciplined and long-term approach to pricing shown by our underwriters.” Referring to retail business, he says, “Our retail business has grown by 2.9% compared to this time last year. As we reported in Q2, strong financial performances are being delivered by Petplan and by Allianz Legal Protection. We have taken corrective action in retail private car and increased premiums well ahead of claims inflation but it will be next year before the full effects of this measure show through in our results.”

We Wish You A Very

and thank you for all your Support www.arag.co.uk DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016 insurancepeople 23

In association with

insurancepeople

News

“Apprentice” winner teams with Call Wiser he winner of the BBC's “Apprentice” series in 2014, Mark Wright, has been working with Call Wiser, a trading brand of Be Wiser Insurance, to build a new website for the business. Be Wiser chairman and CEO Mark Bower-Dyke, says, “The Call Wiser website provides customer contact numbers on all of the main pages of the website, rather than hiding the details away, as has become market practice. The website is providing a first class customer service for its online customers and encourages all other companies to do the same.” He says the company understands the importance of speaking to customers. “We provide personal customer service and financial advice for everyone. Each client has different needs and requirements and we make sure we satisfy them.”

customers need help while they are comparing the market they have the option of live messaging an agent. * * * *

Mark Bower-Dyke

He said the website, and the work with Mark Wright, was against a backdrop of online shopping which has removed much of the personal interaction, and the spread of websites which often hide telephone contact details. “We feel this is unacceptable so we have already begun to make changes.” He says the primary focus is the customer and dealing with their insurance needs and not to view them as a credit card. If

Mark Wright (centre) with Be Wiser Apprentices & Staff 24 insurancepeople DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016

Courtesy of Be Wiser Insurance, year 11 business students at John Hanson Community School, Andover, recently heard a presentation by Mark Wright, who, since his “Apprentice” win, has launched his own digital marketing company, Climb Online, for which Be Wiser was the first major client. Crescens George, director of training & development at Be Wiser, says, “Be Wiser is pleased that through such initiatives we are able to engage with the local community and inspire young people. We look forward to organising similar events in 2016 to connect and inspire school and college students.”

Serious potential cost of IPT errors peaking recently at the FiscalReps Indirect Tax Academy, Mike Stalley, FCA, founder and chief executive of FiscalReps, set out the potential costs of an insurance premium tax error. He commented that, based on a typical IPT rate across Europe of 15%, and an average combined operating ratio of 95% across the majority of the UK insurance market, a 5% IPT error could reduce underwriting profit by 15%. Mike Stalley said: “The impact of an IPT error could cause a significant drop in underwriting profits. These costs would be in addition to the non financial costs that a company could suffer, including the effect on its reputation, statutory audit concerns and internal morale. Management time costs involved in rectifying the error also need to be considered, as well as the eligibility of some policies if taxes and levies remain unpaid.” He concluded: “There is a growing demand from clients for detailed knowledge of IPT in international markets. Businesses want to make sure that they are paying the right amounts to the right authorities so that all indirect costs and charges can be fully accounted for. This is a constantly evolving area that requires a detailed understanding to ensure that all compliance processes on a local, national and international level are effective.”

On the move Who’s going where? Barnett Waddingham

Sarah Powell

Keycare Keycare appoints Sarah Powell as business development manager who joins from Smart Insurance where she was new business manager. Previous employers include TL Dallas, Lookers Leasing and Broker Network.

Markel Markel International appoint Helena Zhang as business development director of the Markel underwriting division of Lloyd’s China, based in Shanghai. With over 20 years’ experience in the insurance industry in China she joins from Cooper Gay & Co in Shanghai where since 2005 she was chief representative and a member of Cooper Gay Asia executive production committee.

Helena Zhang

Principal Principal Insurance appoints Jess Smith to the newly created role of marketing co-ordinator. She joins from JLT, whom she joined three years ago as an account handler before being promoted to marketing assistant. Before joining JLT she was a veterinary nurse.

Actuaries and consultants Barnett Waddingham appoint David Gulland to its insurance consulting team to lead the strategic and transactional services to life insurers. He was most recently chief executive of Marine & General Mutual, having initially joined as chief risk officer. His previous roles include being managing director for RGA's UK and Irish business, and over 25 years as a consultant to the life industry. Tom Cannings will support David as well as strengthening the actuarial and risk management team. He has 15 years’ experience in the life insurance industry over a range of roles.

Insurance technology specialist RDT appoints Joe O’Connor as its new sales and marketing director. He has over 20 years’ experience and joins from Broadridge (formerly ADP Brokerage Services Group) whom he joined in 2001 and was most recently managing director of major account sales in EMEA. His career began as a business analyst with Dun and Bradstreet, and he has also worked with Global Telematics, Cognito and Infocheck. Mark Degenaar joins as head of architecture including digital strategies and platform transformations. He was previously chief architect at AXA PPP Healthcare, and before that worked as principal consultant in architecture and strategy for European consultancy firm Reply.

esure

DAS

Graham Hughes joins esure as head of claims. With 25 years’ experience he joins from RSA where he was commercial claims director for four years. Prior to that he was head of claims at Allianz.

LV= LV= appoints Steve Treloar as managing director, general insurance who is expected to join during Q2 2016. He joins from Aviva where he was most recently managing director of personal lines. Prior to that he held a number of senior roles at Aviva and RBS Insurance over a 19-year career.

Jess Smith

RDT

DAS UK appoints Kate Banks as group director of HR and legal services from Brightside Group. Following her Masters degree in HR management, her HR career began in 1994 with Tesco. She moved to AXA in 2001, rising to head of HR. Senior roles with rail firm Invensys and ING Direct followed before she joined Brightside in 2014 as HR director.

Websure Technology specialists Websure appoint Steve Perkins as head of implementation. His career began at Sedgwick Group in 1980. He has held senior IT roles including head of IT for Tokio Millennium (UK), IT manager at Cox Insurance, service assurance manager at COLT, programme

Steve Perkins

manager at Novae and most recently managing projects at Hiscox.

DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016 insurancepeople 25

On the move Who’s going where? TMK Paul MacMillan will be retiring as active underwriter at Tokio Marine Kiln’s aviation division within Syndicate 510 in January 2016. James Walker, currently deputy underwriter of the division, will succeed as active underwriter. He has 14 years’ experience in both the broking and underwriting and was promoted to deputy underwriter in 2013. Paul Hewitt steps down as chairman of Tokio Marine Kiln Syndicates having joined as a non-executive director in 2006. Richard Bennison succeeds Paul Hewitt as chairman and also

becomes chairman of Tokio Marine Kiln Insurance. He joined TMK as a non-executive director in 2013, chairing the audit, risk and compliance committee. A chartered accountant and financial services specialist, he has spent the majority of his 35-year career with KPMG, where he most recently was chief operating officer of KPMG Europe and CEO of KPMG in the UK. Richard Bucknall, chairman of Tokio Marine Kiln Insurance will remain as a non-executive director; and join the board of Tokio Marine Kiln Syndicates as a nonexecutive director.

Novae

Jade Bond

Bollington Bollington Insurance appoints Jade Bond as account manager covering the South East. Her 14 years’ experience includes six years at Stackhouse Poland as a senior account executive, and prior to that 8 years at Tysers as a commercial account executive/ handler.

Novae Group appoints Nik Lucking as unit head US D&F. He has 23 years’ broking and underwriting experience across the London, international and US markets and was most recently senior vice president and head of North American direct & facultative property portfolio at Montpelier in Bermuda. Prior to that he spent seven years with Willis in both London and Bermuda, latterly as head of the property team. He has also held broking roles with Guy Carpenter, PWS International and LPH Pitman.

26 insurancepeople DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016

Trevor Newbery

AJG Arthur J. Gallagher appoints Trevor Newbery as an independent nonexecutive director of Arthur J. Gallagher Holdings (UK) and also non-executive chairman of Pen Underwriting and chairman of the risk committee. He is currently a non-executive director of Argenta Syndicate Management, and was most recently a partner in Grant Thornton’s Financial Services Group, overseeing its general insurance regulatory and internal audit practice. The majority of his career

was with Heath Group, latterly as director of Heath Insurance Broking before leaving in 2000 to establish Ernst & Young LLP’s general insurance regulatory team. He has also held non-executive director roles with Hawkes Bay Holdings, Tyser & Co, and Aquila Underwriting LLP. David Jack joins the newly created technical advisory board. He has over 25 years’ software engineering and business transformation experience within the retail, insurance and gaming industries and is currently CIO of eCommerce delivery business MetaPack. He spent two years as the CIO of Hyperion Insurance Group and prior to this he was CIO for thetrainline.com, and has also held senior roles with Betfair and a number of large US software companies including Citrix.

Willis

Cunningham Lindsey

Willis Group Holdings appoints John Baudouin as chief executive officer of its retail business in Mexico. Having over 32 years’ industry experience, he started at Asesores Kennedy Agente de Seguros, later part of Alexander & Alexander, which in turn became part of Aon México, where he was CEO for Aon Risk Solutions and later Aon Consulting. In 2012, he joined Colemont Retail Brokers as CEO.

Cunningham Lindsey appoints Steve Gargano as broker business development director, covering the South and South East of the UK. He spent seven years in broking before entering loss adjusting. In 2009, he joined Cunningham Lindsey as a senior commercial adjuster from Crawford & Co and before that worked for Ashworth Mairs, and earlier in his career, CGS Insurance Brokers.

Fenchurch Law

Canada Life

Fenchurch Law appoints Jonathan Corman as a partner to expand its professional and financial risks capabilities, joining from Browne Jacobson where he was a partner. Before that he was a partner at Squire & Co.

After three years as group insurance sales director, Canada Life appoints Jon Ford as director of individual protection. He will also lead the transition of the servicing and development of the individual protection portfolio. Dan Crook (formerly head of sales, income protection proposition) is appointed as sales director for the full suite of products. Rob DeMott, interim managing director, returns to Canada and has been replaced by Tim Stoves who formerly held the position of scheme underwriting manager. Matt Pincott replaces Tim Stoves as scheme underwriting manager.

Jonathan Corman

Pen Underwriting Pen Underwriting appoints Phil Nichols as underwriting director for its e-solutions business. Bringing over 20 years’ industry experience, he joins from Canopius where he was head of affinity. Prior to that he was head of product management at Ageas having joined them in 2004, originally as household underwriting manager.

Allianz

Capsicum Re

Allianz Commercial appoints Ross McCallum as distribution manager at its Woking office having joined Allianz UK in 2004, before leaving a year later to work in Sydney with Allianz Australia as an account manager and distribution manager. Prior to joining Allianz UK, he worked for Zurich in Australia for 12 months as state distribution manager.

Capsicum Re appoints Maryam Abdullah as head of analytics and was most recently senior vice president for the capital advisory & structured reinsurance division at Beach & Associates, and before that senior vice president in Guy Carpenter’s capital solutions and business development division.

Hiscox

Ross McCallum

Hiscox London Market appoints Nick Waddell as general liability line underwriter. He joins from Catlin where he was senior class underwriter for general liability. Prior to that he worked at reinsurance broker RK Carvill, mainly on US casualty treaty placements and MGA business.

Ali Crossley

Junction BGL Group’s partnerships business Junction appoints Ali Crossley as customer director. She previously held the positions of executive director of McCarthy and Stone, chief operating officer of Saga Financial Services, and marketing director of Prudential. She is also currently a non-executive director at the Harpenden Building Society.

Price Forbes Price Forbes & Partners appoints Greg Ferguson as managing director of international, non-marine division. He has 20 years’ experience and joins from Howden Insurance Brokers whom he joined in 2007 as a producer of international liability business.

Greg Ferguson

Marsh Marsh appoints Maurits Quarles van Ufford as senior client executive in its global commodity trading platform (GCTP). Based in Geneva, he joins from Aon, where he managed multinational insurance programmes for international commodity trading firms, both in Switzerland and throughout Europe. DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016 insurancepeople 27

by Andrew Newman

On the Road takes a year-end break, with a flip through the archive

in association with:

Best Yuletide and New Year Wishes to all our readers Croydon 2011 riot victim Trevor Reeves (the arsonist got 12 years!) provided OTR with happier reportage about the time he took fastest lap round Monaco in a vintage Formula 1 Tyrrell in the Historic Grand Prix in 2002

The 1960s personnel manager of NEM turned out later to be a submarine war hero. Michael St John could lay claim to nearly braining the future king (Edward VIII) at golf, and firing a torpedo salvo at long range at the German pocket battleship Scheer Dartford Crossing: 1963 - 2 lanes – minor delays 1980 – 4 lanes – medium delays 1991 – 8 lanes – big delays 2014 – Toll booths removed – mega delays and thousands of erroneous non-payment notices

Special excitement on the road to Wembley for the Insurance People Brentford mafia

The eccentric actuary who stood in a puddle on a rain swept platform - minus one shoe and sock – watching two trains depart. His briefcase on one, next stop Victoria; his overcoat on the other on its way to London Bridge; while his missing footwear rested among the live rails having failed to mind the gap BIBA’s Steve White on the road during the Great Storm, and re-enacting the Hurricane Scene in Wizard of Oz complete with flying sheds

by Steve White

A wild fantasy about zapping uninsured drivers – a graphic that offered much comfort to the motor fraternity 28 insurancepeople DECEMBER 2015 / JANUARY 2016

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