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Can you Afford not to Have Public Liability Insurance?

Whenever a compensation claim is made against your business, you can be impacted in two crucial ways. First, there is the financial damage that may arise from claims as well as related legal expenses. Second, there is the potential risk that may be waged against your reputation. Although financial damages can certainly be expensive, the loss of your reputation in your industry can also be quite expensive and may even be impossible to calculate, given the possibility of future lost clients and profits.

The growth of the compensation culture throughout the last few years has now resulted in a significant threat to anyone who operates a business. Regardless of the type of business you operate or conduct, if you have any contact with the public at all you need to make certain you have adequate protection. Investing in public liability insurance and/or professional indemnity insurance can provide you with peace of mind and the protection your business needs from potential financial risks.

An increasing number of businesses have now recognized the tremendous benefits of business insurance and are now electing to purchase insurance as a way of protecting their businesses interests. If you have not yet thought about how your business would afford the expenses that might be incurred in the event a client or member of the public should launch a compensation claim against your business, it is certainly time to do so.

For many businesses, even the necessity of defending themselves against a compensation claim could be more of an expense than they are equipped to bear financially and could spell financial disaster. Consider for a moment whether your business would be prepared to respond in such a situation. What if your business were found to be liable for damages? Would your business be able to survive?

Liability insurance and indemnity insurance are two different types of business insurance policies that are designed to protect your business in the event damages should arise from different circumstances. Public liability insurance provides protection if a member of the public sustains any damage to their body or property while on your premises. Professional indemnity insurance provides protection if a client or customer brings a lawsuit against your business for making a mistake, negligence or error that has resulted in some type of damage. Both forms of insurance can be beneficial in different circumstances. Remember that mistakes and accidents can happen at any time. Make certain your business is protected.

Cheap Car Insurance For Young Drivers

Unfortunately, car insurance for drivers under 25 is very expensive. There are two reasons for this. Firstly, younger drivers are statistically more likely to make a claim than older, more experienced ones and insurance premiums are therefore higher to reflect the increased risk. Secondly, new drivers will not have built up a no-claims bonus and thus will be paying the full undiscounted premium.

At first glance, it would appear that finding cheap car insurance for a young driver is an impossible task. There are, however, a number of actions you can take to bring premiums down.

First of all, consider the vehicle you are planning to insure. Cars with bigger engines and sporty models scream ‘boy racer’ and carry inflated premiums to match. Resist the temptation to ‘trick up’ a small capacity car to make it more impressive to look at. Modifications will also hike up your premiums. As a general rule of thumb, steer clear of turbo models, keep the engine capacity below one litre and the vehicle value below £5,000.

Other premium busting actions you can take include; taking an advance driving course, for example Pass Plus, RoSPA, MaxDriver or IAM; opting for a limited mileage policy; owners’ clubs sometimes offer discounted insurance for their members which is worth bearing in mind.

If possible, garage your car or park it on a driveway as this will bring premiums down, as will fitting a Thatcham approved alarm, immobiliser or tracking device.

Choosing to pay annually will usually reduce premiums as insurers charge interest on monthly premiums. You could opt for a higher excess, (the amount you pay in the event of a claim), which can also bring the premium down.

The type of cover you select will also have a bearing on cost. Generally, fully comprehensive cover is more expensive than third party fire and theft although this does vary. A young driver could be included as a named driver on a parent’s policy which will attract a lower premium. In general this would preclude the named driver from building up their own no-claims bonus, although some companies have started to allow this. Bear in mind that the ‘named driver’ must not be the main user of the vehicle. This is called, ‘fronting’, and is in fact an offence.

It goes without saying that a careful driver who avoids collecting points on their licence will be viewed by insurance companies in a more favourable light than the irresponsible driver caught, for example, using a mobile phone or speeding. A driver’s history can have a significant impact on insurance premiums.

A good place to start hunting for the best deals would be one of the many price comparison websites. If your wheels of choice is a small van, you could check out a cheap van insurance website. There are some insurance companies who specialise in new and young drivers and it is definitely worth shopping around.

Cheap Classic Car Insurance from Comparison Sites

Having recently ventured into the world of classic car ownership I faced the problem of finding appropriate insurance. This was a potential minefield but I was greatly aided by the fact that it is possible to find cheap classic car insurance on comparison sites.

These sites make it easy to compare deals from a vast number of insurance companies at the same time. It avoids the time consuming leg work of making a large number of phone calls, or visiting the premises of different companies. As long as you have a computer and internet access the task can be done anywhere.

You will be faced with an array of sites to choose from and may not know where to start. One approach would be to go to the sites that are commonly advertised in magazines and on the television. If you do this, then be aware that the main area of work for many of these companies are standard vehicles, and although they offer insurance for classic cars , the cost may not be in the price bracket that you envisaged.

Another option is to target the insurers that specialise in classic car insurance. They will become apparent in your searches on the comparison sites, and many of them can meet your requirements at a reasonable price.

Whether the companies are specialist or not there are certain points to check out in respect of obtaining discounts:

• One advantage of classic cars over standard vehicles is that you can negotiate an agreed value with the insurance company. This means that the agreed amount will be paid if your vehicle is stolen or destroyed. This figure is better than if the market rate is paid.
• Discounts are often available if you are willing to agree to a condition putting a cap on the mileage that you will undertake in the vehicle. As classic cars are rarely used as day to day transport, this does not usually cause a problem.
• Discounts can also be found for classic motor club membership.
• Another source of discount is where the vehicle is to be off the road. This could be because you intend to keep the vehicle in a garage over the winter months, or to carry out restoration tasks on the vehicle.

There are a number of ways that savings can be made through discounts. These can easily be found by searching the comparison sites.

This guide was written by the editorial team at Classic Car Insurance. For more information – please visit our website at http://www.classic-car-insurance.co.uk

A motorhome insurance comparison

How does one perform a motorhome insurance comparison?

To some people, the answer to this is all too self-evident. You simply look at the prices advertised and select the lowest.

That might prove to be an excellent approach if your sole objective is to be able to proudly proclaim that you have found the lowest cost caravan cover around, however, you may wish to question the scenario that may potentially result.

If you are facing a huge repair or replacement bill and have just discovered that the circumstances are not covered by your caravan insurance policy, you may wish to ask yourself whether you will be at all consoled by the knowledge that the policy hasn’t cost you very much over the years you have held it.

If that sounds a little superficial and flippant then don’t be misled – this is a situation that may well arise if you have failed to ensure that your motorhome policy is going to provide you with the cover required.

In a sense, there are two forms of motorhome insurance comparison:

• comparing a candidate policy against your requirements to check its credibility;

• comparing a policy you have already assessed as being credible, against other credible policies, with a view to forming an opinion as to which is likely to be suitable for you in terms of offering the most cost-effective solution.

Both of these may be advisable bordering essential if you are to protect your interests and achieve a degree of peace of mind that you have appropriate cover in place.

Unfortunately, it may not be unknown for motorhome owners to sit down and seriously read their insurance policy for the first time, only in the event they need to make a claim. This may prove to be an extremely risky approach to adopt and given the value of your motorhome, not one that may result in you obtaining adequate financial protection for your precious asset.

So, it may pay you to get to grips with a motorhome insurance comparison sooner rather than later.

Protecting a Property Abroad

With the current state of the UK economy, many people are finding it incredibly difficult to secure a mortgage on a new home. With banks demanding a very high deposit rate and most people unable to save up large amounts of money, it is becoming increasingly difficult to buy a property in the UK.

Therefore, more and more people in the UK are looking into buying property abroad, especially around Europe and the Mediterranean. The house prices tend to be lower, they can bring in income through holiday letting and they can make for an excellent holiday or retirement home. However, there are risks with buying a property in a foreign country and it is crucial to stay protected.

Property Agent

The first thing you want to avoid is being caught out by property agents and ending up with a house that needs a lot of work or is in a bad area. To avoid this you should try and spend a decent amount of time out there and even see if you can spend the night in any perspective properties to find out how noise levels and how comfortable it is.

You should also work with both property agents in the UK and abroad to avoid any language barriers and to make sure you are not hit with a high conversion rate on the price. Securing a property is hard enough in your own country and it can be doubly difficult abroad.

Maintenance

You probably won’t be able to spend all year in your foreign property and so it is a good idea to try and find someone who can watch it whilst you are away. This could be a neighbour or a hired handy man who can make sure the property is well maintained and stays in prime condition.

Keeping your property properly maintained will help you generate more income from holiday renting and maintain a higher value when it comes to selling it on.

Insurance

Of course the main way to keep your foreign investment protected is to take our overseas property insurance which will protect you from any damage to the property in your absence. You can often find policies that will comprehensively cover the building, contents and even guests staying in the house when you are not there.

Hopefully your property abroad will give you a great place to have a holiday, lots of lovely memories and even some extra income, just make sure you are well protected and covered with a comprehensive insurance policy.