December 2005 Newsletter
News Articles
- PAG joins Argyll
- Checkout our new website
- More cover, less cost
- Income Replacement
- Telematics - Saving Fleet costs
- DOC Docked
- Falling foul of he HSE
- New Investment Service for Trustees
More Newsletters
PAG joins Argyll
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Argyll Insurance Group has further strengthened its position as the leading independent Insurance Broker and Financial Advisor serving Kent and Sussex, with the acquisition of Maidstone based Palmar Avard and Galloway Limited. Argyll Group now has in excess of seventy staff across its three branches in Gillingham, Herne Bay and Worthing. Argyll Chairman Kevin Young comments “The acquisition of PAG is a perfect match for both businesses and this will be of significant benefit to all of our clients. On the one hand Argyll is committed to further expanding its presence in the Home Counties and on the other, PAG clients will benefit from the Group’s enhanced capacity and buying power”.
Trading for over 60 Years, PAG was originally formed after the Second World War, trading as D.C. Palmar (Maidstone) Ltd. The business\initially specialised in the Aviation Industry\but over the years has developed capability\across a varied range of industry sectors. As\the company diversified and grew, it went\through several changes including a management\buyout by Tony Avard and John Galloway,\when the business was renamed Palmar Avard and Galloway. In 1989 Martin Taylor joined PAG bringing his Insurance Brokerage and expertise to compliment the existing business.
For the next few weeks the former PAG team will operate from their existing Maidstone premises and will then relocate to Gillingham. Tony Avard commented “This is an exciting move for us as we will be merging with Argyll’s Gillingham team in December, thus benefiting from their modern office facilities. Not only will this create new career development opportunities for our staff it will also improve our efficiency. Additionally, it will also enable us all to provide even better service to the existing customer bases of both PAG and Argyll, as our combined skills and expertise are pooled”.
This is the fourth acquisition which Argyll has achieved in four years, increasing its Gross Written Premium to over £30m, a growth of over 250%. Kevin Young comments further “We are effectively composed of a number of thriving local businesses working together under the banner of Argyll. As we acquire businesses I strongly believe in maintaining their individual, personal and local service whilst supporting them with Argyll’s strong management team. We are delighted to welcome John, Tony, Martin and their team”.
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Checkout our new website
Argyll is pleased to announce the launch of a more comprehensive and updated website.
Argyll’s Chloe Wheal comments ‘The new site is designed to provide our clients with more comprehensive and up to date information. It includes useful links and online enquiries, including Argyll’s unique Home and Contents Insurance cover and downloadable documents and forms. We will also be editing and updating it on a rolling basis so that breaking industry and Argyll news will be easily viewed online. Another new feature of the site is the possibility of lodging a claim online. This does not affect our current claims service but it is an additional option available to our clients. We will be adding further content to the site over the next few months, including downloadable Health & Safety or Risk Management bulletins’.
If you have any comments regarding the new website or would like to suggest any improvements or additional content, please contact Chloe Wheal at: chloe.wheal@argyll-ins.co.uk
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More cover, less cost!
Thousands of Argyll’s clients are now benefiting from savings and additional benefits by insuring their Home Buildings and Contents through Argyll’s unique plan.
It is now 12 months since Argyll introduced a bespoke, household policy called the ‘Argyll Home Insurance Plan’ which is underwritten by Norwich Union, the UK’s largest Insurer. Since then, customers new & existing have benefited from the premium cost savings and the wider cover offered by this plan. This Argyll Home Insurance Plan currently offers enhanced cover such as automatically providing Family Legal Protection and Matching Pairs & Sets Cover without additional premium cost to our customers. Argyll is pleased to announce further additions have been made to this already enhanced cover. These extras include:
• Home & Garden Section - This additional Free cover provides for the cost of re-landscaping up to £2500
• Emergency Service Cover - is included for failure of your boiler or electricity supply. The emergency service provides up to three hours of labour charge, plus materials up to £100.
If you have not already taken advantage of the benefits of the Argyll Home Insurance Plan, whether your renewal is imminent or not, please contact your nearest Argyll branch and we can provide you with more information. alternatively visit our website and complete the home insurance enquiry form and we will be pleased to send you a quote a month before your existing cover runs out.
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Senior Executive Role offers
£3,975 pa
Fact: No one is going to apply for this position (might the earnings be a bit low?)
Fact: More than 2 million people are off work and have been claiming state benefits for 6 months or more and receive £3,975 per annum (source: National Statistics Online)
This advert is of course unlikely to ever work for any Business or Human Resources Manager, it is a job no one would want. However, this is how much you, or one of your staff or colleagues, might be expected to live on from the State in the event of an inability to work through ill health. That is assuming that you qualify for any benefit at all. The Incapacity Benefit Bill that was confirmed in the recent Queens Speech, if passed, will make claiming State assistance even more difficult. For significantly less than 2% of salary (according to age and occupation) you can protect your company and your staff against the risk and costs of ill health and absence whilst demonstrating your desire to be an ‘employer of choice’.
Income Replacement allows you to;
• provide selected, or all, employees with a replacement income until they are able to return to work, or until their planned retirement date
• have an objective and impartial tool to measure and control long term absence Insure employer pension, life assurance, national insurance contributions and salary in respect of an employee, freeing up resources to employ temporary staff
What is more, this type of protection is tax efficient. Argyll Financial Services can help you further investigate the benefits and indicative costs of Income Replacement cover for you or your business.For further information please contact your nearest Argyll branch.
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Telematics - Saving Fleet Costs
Cybit appoint Argyll as Fleet Telematics preferred Broker for the South East
In-car wireless technology is revolutionizing the way occupational road risks are managed, using telematics systems. Telematics is a generic term describing wireless technology capable of logging and transmitting vehicle data, including its location, by using a global positioning system (GPS) and computer networks. For fleet managers the technology is capable of offering streams of useful data to manage both efficiency and safety. Data identifying poor driver behaviour or fleet inefficiencies can be gathered, and further analysis can identify risks such as the most dangerous routes or times of day. Telematics systems can also help with post accident investigation.
Argyll has been appointed Cybit’s preferred Broker for the South East of England for Britain's only fleet insurance product, based on telematics systems. This revolutionary system from Norwich Union uses a combination of telematics data and insurance claims information to help fleets manage their occupational road risks and to potentially reduce premiums. Risk experts from Norwich Union Risk Services work with fleet managers to analyse telematics records, as well as their claims history, in order to agree a set of 'key performance indicators', which if achieved would result in a premium rebate. Fixed price insurance cover over two or three years, as well as "best practice guidance" on running a fleet of vehicles including compliance with safety and legal issues, also forms part of the Fleet Telematics package.
Dramatic impact
Cybit’s telematics systems have already provided many fleet managers with a quick win by helping them control driving time and fuel efficiency. This system is also extremely useful in identifying high risk drivers, unauthorised behaviour and situations where accidents are more likely to occur.
Example
An engineering company with 97 vehicles deployed 6 telematics units as a trial over 12 weeks. At the end of the pilot scheme the following savings were identified:
• Reduced fuel consumption by measuring speed and total mileage - saving £872
• Reduce overtime payments - saving £5,900
• Improved productivity by measuring fleet utilization - saving £15,000. Total savings in the 12 weeks were £21,772 or a total saving per vehicle per month of £1,210. This equates to an annual potential saving of £1,407,953 across the fleet.
Additionally…
Following the trial, the same engineering company deployed a further 72 telematics devices and now enjoy the support offered by Norwich Union Fleet Risk Advisers in addition to fixed premiums for three years. Insurance cost savings alone are likely to achieve a 16% insurance premium saving. There are also additional hidden savings on costs such as reduction in the time vehicles are off road due to accidents, orders lost due to vehicle availability, the cost of temporary vehicle hire and employee downtime due to accidents. Argyll’s Gareth Roberts comments “Telematics costs between £20 and £40 per vehicle per month so it is fairly obvious that there are significant savings to be made by fleet operators. It does not however stop there as this initiative can also deliver a safer working environment, improved productivity and enhanced customer service”. For further information please contact your Argyll Account Director or e-mail Gareth at gareth.roberts@argyll-ins.co.uk.
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DOC Docked...
If you drive a second car you should pay much closer attention to the small print of fully comprehensive cover before the year's out. Some insurance companies intend to eliminate the 'driving other cars' element of such policies.
Driving other cars (DOC) was originally conceived as a way of covering an emergency situation; the cover is only on a third-party basis. It's the totally aware uninsured drivers who have provided the impetus for this possible change in policy cover conditions. DOC removal was recommended in last year's Greenaway Report (instigated by the Government) for dealing with these cases.
In excess of 1 million motorists currently drive without insurance in the UK. According to research, these drivers are responsible for around £500 million-worth of accidents a year. They also undermine the basic insurance principle of 'pooled risk', adding around £30 to the annual premium for those drivers who do insure.
Tougher penalties are on the way. The police now have greater powers to identify and penalise the errant uninsured and untaxed. This autumn, automatic number plate recognition (via police cameras) will enable the cross-checking of insurance so that guilty vehicles can be seized and destroyed. Insurers are required by law to forward all vehicle policyholder details to a national database, set up as part of governmental measures. This database's reliability is undermined by the continued existence of DOC cover.
The 'My other car is a Ferrari' sticker on a Robin Reliant window could backfire with severe financial consequences.
At present it is not completely clear which insurers will remove DOC cover. However, whatever the outcome, it remains the fact that under the Road Traffic Act it is an offence to drive your car or allow others to drive it without insurance. If you require further information or advice regarding your particular policy or level of cover, please contact your Account Manager or your nearest Argyll Branch.
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Falling foul of the HSE
Whilst falls from height continue to be a major cause of death and major injury across all industry sectors, the agricultural sector has been identified as a particular problem. Over the last ten years HSE figures confirm that of the 489 fatalities in the agricultural sector in the last 10 years, 16% were attributable to falls from height. The Work at Height Regulations 2005 came into effect earlier this year and cover all industry sectors including agriculture. The Regulations place duties on employers, the self-employed, and any person who controls the work of others.
As part of the Regulations, duty holders must ensure:
• All work at height is properly planned and organised;
• Those involved in work at height are competent;
• The risks from work at height are assessed and appropriate work equipment is selected and used;
• The risks of falling through fragile surfaces are properly controlled;
• Equipment for work at height is properly inspected and maintained;
• Measures are taken to prevent items from falling where they may hit someone;
• Measures are taken to ensure that danger areas are identified and access restricted so that people are not struck if anything does fall.
The Regulations highlight a hierarchy to consider when planning work at height and assessing the risk, and to consider what equipment should be used. They also stipulate that there are requirements to make sure that erection and dismantling of any work equipment is carried out safely. Additionally there is a requirement to plan rescue in the event of a fall. Risk assessment should show such things as how rescue will be carried out, who will do this, what skills they will need, how long it will take, and what equipment will be required. Use of work-positioning and fall-arrest equipment such as ropes are also covered in the Regulations. Argyll can provide further information and assist with Risk Assessment and Management regimes to ensure that, whatever industry you work within, you do not fall foul of the legislation and that you minimise the risks to yourself and your employees. For further information, contact Stuart Rodway on 01903 205753 or stuart.rodway@argyll-ins.co.uk
A copy of the new regulation and a helpful datasheet offering specific advice for the agricultural industry can be obtained by visiting Argyll’s website and following the link to the HSE.
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New Investment Service for Trustees
Argyll has launched a new Trustee Investment Review Service to support Legal practices through the new tax treatment of trusts and trustee responsibilities. Following the advent of the Trustee Act 2000, trustees need to keep investment portfolios under review so that they cannot only vary investments when necessary, but also rest assured that they are properly discharging their obligations.
Argyll Trustee Investment Review Service will help Trustees meet their obligations by providing:
- Clearly documented and agreed Statements of Investment Policy.
- Half yearly valuations and full annual reviews, specific to the trust requirements.
- Benchmarked analysis of portfolio performance.
- Advice on suitability of investments within the portfolio.
If you would like further information please contact Argyll’s Head of Trustee Review Service Andy McQueen on 01903 205753 or by e-mail at andy.mcqueen@argyll-ins.co.uk.
