It's goodbye for now.

In a world where we seem to be governed by bullet points and 140 characters on Twitter, the idea of putting a view across with arguments for and against said view seems almost a thing of the past

So either a blog is so slanted that you almost know what you’re going to read without the effort, or it goes on and on until you can’t remember what you are reading it for.

Unfortunately with Insurance it is nigh on impossible to shrink down what needs to compete with 140 characters and make a serious point. Just look at the length of your policy documents and the endless paper work you get each time you insure anything!!.

So we are leaving the blog alone for now to work on improving our 2 websites:

WWW.TRIDENTBUSINESSINSURANCE.CO.UK

WWW.TRIDENT-INSURANCE.CO.UK

But in the mean time if you have any questions please write in to us directly.

The new commercial website: WWW.TRIDENTBUSINESSINSURANCE.CO.UK  is taking up a lot of time and generating a lot of new business of all sizes of company, and with our government now realising that policies for growth count a lot more than words alone, we are finding a lot of start-ups and small/medium enterprises are now coming to us for help and to get good prices .

Our FLEET Insurance is growing strongly and so now is COURIER Insurance with some exclusive and very attractive rates  

Our interactive site WWW.TRIDENT-INSURANCE.CO.UK  is mainly for cars and homes and as always our rates are very competitive, but don’t just rely on the screen rates as we can always find improvements if you call us on 0800 038 9000. 

SO PLEASE KEEP IN TOUCH  FOR ALL YOUR INSURANCE NEEDS,

BE THEY FOR PERSONAL OR COMMERCIAL INSURANCE

You can take them on, and you CAN win.

The companies the tv programme mentions were Direct Line and LV and I think Axa, but I am not sure of the last one. 

All I know is that the losses on insurance are going up with claims and fraud ever increasing and if I was stuck with mounting losses and under performance of investments then I would have to look at ways to make money and I guess whilst I don’t defend their actions I would look at whatever was available to compensate for the losses as would anyone running a business

What is terribly hypocritical of Insurance companies is their suggestion that claims companies are pushing up the cost of insurance, when the self-same insurance companies are outsourcing their own claims to these companies to extract the maximum possible return. This begs the question who is kidding who and when transparency is ever increasing can you really trust Insurance companies any more than you can trust banks?

My view has always been there is no safety in the premise that big is beautiful. We have seen how the mighty have fallen and been bailed out by the taxpayer and those who were guilty have either walked away and been paid handsomely with no claw-back, or just left the scene altogether. 

To date no one in the UK has been jailed for financial misdemeanours relating to the banking crisis as distinct from the USA which begs the question has the UK got it right or wrong.

Slowly the UK is giving the regulator more powers, but the killer is that progress seems unduly slow and as we know, too many have walked away leaving as always the innocent to pick up the pieces.

Whilst trying not to deviate, where you have a highly competitive market and what can be easy pickings made by large firms on a captive market the need for independent opinions has never been greater. Unfortunately big money has a knack of overwhelming the small voices and no the voice of simple reason will be drowned out.

My view is there is nothing better than the independent voice to defend your position, because he or she is working for you and that is how it should be. So if you unfortunately are involved in an accident, follow exactly what your Insurance company is doing and keep notes and if you’re not satisfied please get off your couches and write in and complain. 

The days of palming you off with waffle have now gone , complaints procedures are universal  because the regulator wanted that so, and I have to say the Financial Ombudsman Service as the final arbiter is very effective, extremely impartial and does a fine job. 

In today’s world it’s all too easy to give up hope and think you can’t take on big insurance companies or banks.  But folks that’s not so, you can and win if you are not satisfied they have worked in your best interest. It’s something many talk about but don’t do and it’s called Treating Customers Fairly.  

BUT ABOVE ALL REMEMBER TRIDENT INSURANCE WORKS FOR YOU AND TELLS YOU HOW IT IS AND WOULD BE DELIGHTED TO HANDLE YOUR PERSONAL OR COMMERCIAL INSURANCE NEEDS.

PS. HAVE YOU SEEN OUR NEW COMMERCIAL WEBSITE? 

PLEASE TAKE A LOOK AT:  WWW.TRIDENTBUSINESSINSURANCE.CO.UK

Cheers and wishing you a great year ahead

Robert D Marshall FCSI      

Accident of the month:

I know someone who bought a new build detached house and was protected by an NHBC guarantee... or so they thought. 

When subsidence started to occur they didn’t realise and they thought the cracks in the wall were the result of plaster settling, as can happen. 

When the cracks got bigger, they called in the NHBC to look at things. Needless to say they didn't exactly jump to the rescue,  and instead offered to merely observe the problem. When the cracks migrated from the ground floor to the first floor the house owners decided to get their own assessor in to take a look,  because no one will know bull better than someone who may have been trained in writing it themselves!!!

In short if you have to claim don’t get upset, it gets you nowhere, just accept that it may speed things along hugely to get your own person in and start to make things happen. We go to a doctor to get healthy, we use electricians and plumbers for their expertise... don’t be your own assessor or claims handler. Always keep receipts and accept it's right to pay for your own assessor to work on your behalf. Yes it might cost but do not simply rely on your insurance company alone to come up with the goods. Many a time, they still need one massive great push to realise they are providing you with a service.

Why bother with Insurance?

With premiums going up almost at the same rate as exclusions from cover are it's hard to feel that you are getting any value for money.

Insurance companies will offer you say, £200k worth of cover for £150 a month. Bearing in mind that’s not the valuation of the building but the cost to simply rebuild it. Remember an awful lot of properties cost nothing like that to rebuild, or even then if the rebuild was £100k isn’t it worth the peace of mind to have that protection?

Well first of all it’s a no brainer, but where the issue comes in is where the insurer doesn't take into account any emotional distress cause by the whole claim process. Should that matter to you the buyer of that policy? Absolutely and you need to understand the nature of insurance to appreciate that what you see is not what you get.

Look at those who were flooded out in the flash floods of a few years back, some are still living in caravans!!

What I am trying to put across is that you shouldn't rely on your insurance company to respond quickly, you must assume they will seek to blame anything from an Act of God to anyone else except themselves for your problems, possibly even you!! You need to put in whatever protection you can after all it’s your property and you paid a lot of money for it. 

So for sure it’s right to buy buildings insurance, as it is with many other types or insurance that you may need; but please remember this: do so knowing you will incur an excess, always read the exemptions, and check with your friends what they have heard about the Insurance company, not just what the adverts show you on TV or in the press. Don’t just rely on comparison sites, they get paid each time you buy insurance by the provider or even quote for it. 

Nothing beats the recommendation of someone you know, and please don’t forget that service and price can’t be ignored in what to look for.

At Trident Insurance we are not an Insurance company, WE ARE YOUR BROKER and we care to make sure you are looked after and get the best deal on price and cover. You can trust us to tell you how it is, and not pussy foot about! 

Finally, please be sure you know what you are looking to cover, and don’t fall for add-ons that you don’t need. I’ve said it before, it’s your hard earned money and you deserve good value and service, we respect that and believe we give you the best there is. 

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy 2013 

Sincerely

Robert D Marshall FCSI – Chairman

Direct Line: 020 8911 1405 

E-mail robertmarshall@aic.uk.net

Who's trying it on?

The above was the heading on the monthly newsletter from the Financial Ombudsman Service, and it makes interesting reading. 

In short it was taking about the endless ads on TV and the irritating unsolicited phone calls and texts offering help with PPI claims. A policy type we never sold by the way! 

The Chief Executive and Chief Ombudsman (it's same person, Natalie Ceeney) gave some interesting figures that seem to dismiss all the hype about our society turning into a compensation culture.

Her view is that, 

“I’m not seeing much that suggests consumers are more likely to make a speculative claim now than in the past” 

All I can say is that if you feel aggravated please don’t fester on it, make your complaint, this is the only way we will speed up the process and make change happen. Most importantly if you are going to complain always write to the party you are complaining about first. The Ombudsman service will not do a thing except acknowledge your letter or e-mail until the party you are complaining to, is given the right of reply first.

On Insurance claims excluding the PPI ones in the last quarter the number of claims resolved in favour  of the consumer for contents was 25%, commercial property insurance 35%, buildings insurance 49%, car and motorcycle 48%. There are a load of other areas from debt counselling (63%) to spread betting (68%) all of which most of us didn’t think the Ombudsman was involved in. 

I am a big fan of the Ombudsman Service because it does take an objective view and helps the end consumer. If you would like to get in touch with them on any issue you can call them on 0845 080 1800 or find out more at www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk

Accident of the Month.

It’s not good form to laugh at someone's problems, but I suppose we all do it to make ourselves feel better.  Here's one example where we think it'g good to laugh. We recently received a call from a Client who said, no word of a lie,

“I’ve had a fatal accident!”

I’m not sure what the lady our end replied with, as the Client was clearly distressed, but to cut a long story short it appeared he had simply run over his cat!!

So please, we realise how distressing thinks like this can be, especially in the moment, but when you call to report an accident, please, try to have your sensible head on and stick to the facts as much as possible, it makes everything so much easier and less confusing all round.

Horror story of the month ...

We had a story where a client tapped his car into the back of the car in front, it can happen at any time as we know. The difference was that the lady driver of the car in front didn’t just get out of the car to check, she stormed out of the car effing and blinding and waving her hands hysterically to check for damage which was apparently not to be seen.

They both go their separate ways and our Client hears nothing more for 6 weeks when he receives a claim for whiplash. Both the driver and Trident pleaded to the Insurance company that this is fraud, but they won’t have it ,and they paid out £1,800 and upped his premium. They paid because it was cheaper to pay-out than fight the case which begs the question what’s the point of insurance when the very principals of protection are ignored because of legal fees!!

It’s a nightmare and can happen to anyone, and all I can say is having seen our guy’s just give up with the insurance company. If you find yourself in a similar situation, maybe take some pictures with your camera phone, to back up that you are clean and what the exact damage was. 

It’s a sad old world and fraud is getting worse, and whatever may appear to be clear between two people  can’t be taken for granted anymore. So please keep the camera to hand and start protecting yourself.