The Business Insurance Bureau

Commercial Combined

One policy, many covers...

Introduction

The Commercial Combined Insurance Package is a combined selection of insurance coverages which can cover a business from all day to day operational running factors from the people to the buildings and contents, vehicles and everything in between.

By using the commercial combined elements to form a package you can truly have granular control over your insurances and what risks you are comfortable accepting and more so to what level.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is commercial combined insurance?

Insurance for warehouses, wholesalers, manufacturers, workshops, factories, importers and hundreds of commercial properties and businesses is also known as commercial combined insurance.

What does commercial combined insurance cover? (List the essentials and optional policy features).

It covers a variety of risks including commercial liability insurance and business insurance cover and is tailored for each client to build a package which suits the needs of your business.

My business has previous claims, how can you help me?

Business insurance is not as simple as home insurance or car insurance. When a commercial insurance policy is put together, your business will be assed for potential risk on a case by case basis.

Having a previous claims on your business insurance means that a potential risk caused an incident of some kind, and what brokers and insurers want to know is what was done to minimise that risk to avoid it happening again. In some cases, if we can show the lesson was learnt and the risk is subsequently now lower, this can help you avoid any rises in premium.

Do I need to include contractors in our insurance?

Possibly not if they have their own insurance. However we do offer contingent liability for bona fide sub-contractors. All contractors should have at least the same level of public liability cover as you. Speak to one of our advisors to discuss your circumstances.

If I employ staff within my business is it required by law to have employers liability as part of my package?

In most cases UK businesses with any amount of staff, whether they are full time, part time, volunteers, interns or freelance staff will need employers’ liability insurance as a legal requirement. One of our advisors will be able to add this to your quote or to your policy at any time you take on a member of staff.

Do I need to tell my employees that I have employers' liability insurance?

When you take out or renew a policy including employers’ liability insurance with us we will provide you with a certificate of employers’ liability insurance that will state the companies covered by the policy. This must be displayed where your employees can read it. You may display your certificate electronically but if you choose to do so you must ensure that your employees know how and where to find it and have reasonable access.

Let's make it cheaper, by doing it right

Working With Us

A Fair Presentation of the Risk
At the heart of insurance contracts is an obvious truth: you have an enormous advantage over the insurer. You know all about your business, its history, processes, people and management, but the insurer knows nothing – other than what you tell them.

Your Duties
You have a statutory duty to make a fair presentation of the risk. You must tell the insurer:
• Every material circumstance which you know or ought to know and/or
• Sufficient information that would cause the insurer to make further enquiries, if neccessary, to review those material circumstances

Your Knowledge
• You are deemed to have the knowledge of the company’s senior management.
• You are deemed to have the knowledge of the person arranging the insurance (who is deemed to be a senior manager under statute).
• Anything that can be discovered by a reasonable search.

A failure to make a fair presentation of the risk gives the insurer various remedies, depending upon the nature of the failure, from avoiding the contract and not paying claims to modifying the basis of settlement.

Examples of Misrepresentation
It is often easier to demonstrate the consequences of risk presentation failure by example rather than theory. Here are some real life examples of typically forgotten or unrevealed material facts which later caused huge problems and repudiated claims:

Bob the broker

Fire

Theft

Water

Liability

Motor

General

A reprocessing plant did not reveal a series of small fires during their insurance year.

Following repeated false alarms, a retailer didn’t reveal that Police Response had been withdrawn.

A restaurant omitted to reveal repeated minor floods from an upstairs nightclub.

A construction company didn’t reveal potential employee claims recorded in their accident book.

A company failed to reveal written warnings to an employee over repeated dangerous driving.

A company failed to reveal that it had been ‘struck off’ by Companies House and was trading as a new legal entity under a different designation.

Compiling the Risk Presentation: an ongoing process

The compilation of risk information for presentation to an insurer might be thought to be simply contained in a proposal or risk presentation form, however, such forms are not exhaustive and cannot take account of circumstances which change beyond their
compilation. Moreover, merely referring insurers to your website or dumping data is not making a fair presentation of the risk. ’Fairness’ is a subjective test but it would certainly involve simplicity, clarity and relevant selection.

Ongoing communication is vital, because the duty to disclose material circumstances is ongoing throughout the insurance year and at renewal of the insurances.

It’s important…

It is not possible to overstate the importance of researched, adequate risk presentation – there have been countless legal disputes, repudiated claims, ruined businesses and lives arising from the simple failure to reveal all the facts to an insurer. A failure to present risk adequately is a bigger risk than the risk you present.

It doesn’t matter that the failure is innocent, something overlooked, forgotten or discounted as unimportant – it might be important to the insurer, in which case it must be revealed.

Should there be anything not yet disclosed, or that you are unsure would influence your insurers about this insurance tell your broker/insurer immediately. 

Don't take our word for it! Here's what our clients have to say...

Previous
Next

Working With Us

The Business Insurance Bureau conducts both client and market research to identify solutions to the needs of an almost exclusively business clientele. We will make a recommendation once we have assessed your demands and needs.

All premiums due to insurers must normally be paid by you on or before the date that cover commences. Where alternative methods of payment are available these will be discussed with you so that arrangements can be put in place by the due date.

We are registered with the Data Protection Registrar. We will ensure that any information obtained from you is treated by us and anyone else involved in arranging, considering to arrange or managing your insurance, as Strictly Private and Confidential. We will not provide your information to anyone else unless we:
have your permission to do so, or -are required to by the FCA, or -are required to do so by law, or -are required to do so in the normal course of arranging or negotiating and maintaining, or renewing financial services products which we may from time to time approve.We take appropriate steps to ensure the security of any money, documents, other property or information handled or held on your behalf.

All information in any form, with the exception of policy documents and certificates issued on behalf of insurers and supplied by us, to you, should be treated as Strictly Private and Confidential and not be released directly or indirectly to any other party, without our explicit consent.

Note: in transacting your insurances with The Business Insurance Bureau, you are deemed to have accepted our Terms of Business. Your accepting of these Terms of Business does not affect your statutory rights.

You must notify us as soon as possible of a claim and circumstances which may give rise to a claim. In the event of a claim you should contact this office and we will promptly advise you and if appropriate, issue you with a claim form and pass all details to your insurer. You should not admit liability or agree to any course of action, other than emergency measures carried out to minimise the loss, until you have an agreement from your insurer. We will remit claims payments to you as soon as possible after they have been received on your behalf. In the event that an insurer becomes insolvent or delays making settlement we do not accept liability for any unpaid amounts.

You would have the right to cancel a policy within 14 days of its inception or upon receipt of the policy documentation whichever is the later. You would as a Consumer and without providing a reason, cancel the policy by confirming this is in writing to the address of our office through which your policy was placed. Any policy documentation and in particular any legal document, i.e. Certificate of Motor Insurance, Employers Liability Certificate, MUST be returned with your instruction to cancel. By exercising your right to cancel the policy, you are withdrawing from the contract of insurance.

Our services may be terminated without cause or penalty by giving one months’ notice in writing. In the event that our services are terminated by you other than at the expiry of the policy we will be entitled to retain any fees and all of the brokerage payable. The responsibility for handling claims reported after the date of termination shall in the absence of an express agreement be the responsibility of the party taking over the role.