H&R Insurance Services acts on behalf of insurance companies or Lloyd’s syndicates: the procedure that will apply depends on whose behalf we act. To identify which procedure applies to you, please refer to your policy wording.

If you have any doubt on which procedure applies to you, H&R Insurance Services will be happy to help.

Procedure applicable where the insurer is an insurance company

If you have any cause for complaint you may contact us either verbally, in writing or in person.  You may telephone 01224 848382 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..  You may write in the first instance to our Customer Relations Manager at:

H&R Insurance Services

H&R House

Woodburn Road

Blackburn

Aberdeen

AB21 0PS

We will not impose a charge for handling your complaint.

On receipt we will acknowledge your complaint within five business days, enclosing details of our internal complaints procedure.  If we cannot resolve your complaint within five business days we will either offer a final response or a detailed explanation of why your complaint is not resolved within four weeks.  If we cannot resolve your complaint within four weeks we will either offer a final response or a detailed explanation of why your complaint is not resolved within eight weeks.

The company is a member of a recognised independent dispute scheme that is administered by the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS).  The Financial Ombudsman Service applies to complaints from private individuals and also small businesses as long as they have an annual turnover of less than two million euros (or sterling equivalent) and fewer than ten employees.  It also applies to charities with an annual income of less than £1million and from trusts with a net asset value of less than £1million.

If you are not satisfied with the final outcome of your complaint you may contact the FOS, within six months from the date you receive our final response letter, at Exchange Tower, London, E14 9SR or telephone 0300 123 9 123.  Alternatively, you may email them at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or visit their website at www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk.

Procedure applicable where the insurer is a Lloyd’s syndicate

If you wish to ask Lloyd’s to investigate your complaint you may do so by contacting:

In writing:

Complaints Team
Lloyd’s
One Lime Street
London EC3M 7HA

By email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

By phone: +44 (0)20 7327 5693

By fax: +44 (0)20 7327 5225

Website: www.Lloyds.com/complaints

Details of Lloyd’s complaints procedures are set out in a leaflet “Your Complaint – How We Can Help” available at www.lloyds.com/complaints and are also available from the above address.

If you are not happy with the way we have handled your complaint, you can refer your case to the Financial Ombudsman Service. You can find information about the Financial Ombudsman Service at www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk.

You can contact them in one of the following ways:

In writing:

The Financial Ombudsman Service
Exchange Tower
London E14 9SR

By e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

By phone: 0800 023 4567 or 0300 123 9123

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Some businesses may be tempted not to engage with their insurance broker to get proper advice, but rather just opt for the cheapest insurance they can find themselves. As a consequence this could lead to an increased risk of underinsurance.

Underinsurance can result in inadequate claims settlement or no claims settlement at all and therefore can be damaging to any business. There are several things business insurance buyers should do to ensure they do not fall into this underinsurance trap.

Get Regular valuations

Regular professional valuations are the best way to ensure adequate sums are insured. There are many factors that can affect property valuations, business interruption calculations and the adequacy of indemnity periods. For example, availability of materials, fluctuating labour costs, changes to legislation and changes in the property market all have the potential to significantly change a final reinstatement cost.

The cost of engaging a valuation specialist will be minimal compared to any potential shortfall in claims should a business suffer a major loss.

Consider business interruption

Business interruption is a common problem area for underinsurance. Some confusion is due to the fact that insurance gross profit is calculated differently from the accountant’s version (e.g the former takes into account fixed costs). This is a key distinction and can be a source of underinsurance. A fundamental concept of business interruption insurance is the indemnity period. Indemnity periods are often inadequate. Many businesses choose a 12 month maximum, which is frequently insufficient.

When looking at indemnity periods, businesses need to consider:

• What length of time it would take to get a site where the damage has taken place cleared, plans drawn up and architects and contractors appointed? This will be time incurred before any remedial works could even start. Will planning or other permissions need to be agreed?
• Would they be able to sub-contract work so their customers are still looked after or would they maybe lose them to a competitor? If so, how long will it take to replace them?
• Would there be any delays or extra costs involved in sourcing damaged or lost specialist pieces of plant machinery?
• Could any seasonal trade, on which they are dependant, be affected?
• Have staff salaries been considered as part of the Gross Profit sum insured? Without maintaining salaries, staff may leave, adding to the problem of incurring additional costs in employing new staff.
• Do they have a well though out contingency plan in place?

According to the Chartered Institute of Loss Adjusters, 37-52% of business interruption policies are underinsured with an average shortfall of 45-63%.

If a business is unsure if their interruption cover is adequate, their broker can help them with their calculations.

Ensure business continuity planning is in place

Whilst insurance can play an invaluable role for any losses incurred, implementing preloss preventive measures are more important. An effective business continuity plan can make all the difference to the size of a loss and the ability of a business to continue trading and make a full recovery.

Business continuity planning can help a business understand what risks they are facing, how best to combat them, and to check their insurance cover is adequate in the event of a large range of scenarios. This puts the business in a better position to assess and plan for the probable consequences, thereby hopefully reducing the period over which they will be affected by a loss.

Get it right

There have been many cases where businesses have not been able to recover from a large loss due to the inadequacy of their insurance. Underinsurance can be a complex issue but by working through the above areas with their broker businesses can make sure they are affectively covered.

Directors of companies of all sizes can find themselves on the receiving end of the law. Here are a couple of recent construction cases, which illustrate when things can go very wrong.

The Fall

A construction company has been fined £60,000 plus costs after pleading guilty to safety failings after an employee fell through a skylight roof. The employee fell through the skylight on a London industrial estate, four and half meters onto a concrete floor, and suffered life changing injuries including a fractured back.

The judge described the accident as foreseeable as there was no protection to prevent a fall from or through the roof. She ruled that the company fell far short of the required standards for managing risks at work, as the supervisor was not trained and there was a complete lack of planning with no risk assessment, or method statement for the work.

Exposed to Asbestos

A builder has been jailed for exposing workers to asbestos whilst working at a commercial unit on a Welsh industrial estate. Three men were exposed to potentially deadly asbestos fibres while working in the unit, as well as the contractor who was given a 26 week custodial sentence.

The builder had been employed to remove asbestos from the building prior to sale. A Health and Safety Executive investigation found that he had removed a significant quantity of asbestos from the premises, despite not holding a licence to work with such material.

Please contact us to get a quotation for a change of vehicle. Providing the change is acceptable to your insurer it is often a cheaper option than cancelling your existing policy and starting a new one. If your change is not acceptable to your current insurer we will search our panel to find you our most competitive quote.

Please call us on 01224 848112.

In order to ensure that you are covered in the event of a claim it is essential that you keep your details up to date.

It is usually possible to add an additional driver to your policy, subject to the driver details. Please contact us on 01224 848112 to discuss your requirements. You will be required to complete a form, send a copy of the driver's licence and pay any amount due before the driver is added.

You will receive notification at least 14 days ahead of renewal date if your policy is being automatically renewed.

Renewal invitations are sent out around 21 days ahead of your renewal date. If you have not received your renewal invitation within 10 days of your renewal date please call us on 01224 848112.