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Professional insurance updates: We have moved

Visit our News section on our new look website http://www.m-f-l.co.uk

Discover the latest professional insurance news on events, technical bulletins written by MFL staff and articles on our new look website m-f-l.co.uk.

Up to date information that’s tailored especially for professionals looking for professional insurance updates will be in our News section from now on.

Visit m-f-l.co.uk/news now for all the latest in professional insurance news.

Disclaimer: MFL is happy for articles to be used in reputable publications, websites and companies in a public domain. Third parties that haven’t directly received this article in the form of an electronic press release must receive express permission from MFL, the sole owners of all of this website’s marketing and PR content.

To receive permission or to make further enquiries, call or email MFL’s Marketing team.

Martin Jackson

Tel: 0161 237 7728

E-mail: martinj@m-f-l.co.uk

Karolyn Judge

Tel: 0161 237 7734

E-mail: karolynj@m-f-l.co.uk

Indemnity Accounts – August 2014 issue

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Professional Indemnity Insurance At Risk: Tax Mitigation Schemes

You may be aware that many Professional Indemnity Insurers are beginning to take a hard line with those practices who have been involved in tax avoidance or mitigation schemes, even those that have merely introduced their clients to a specialist tax product provider and given no “advice”.

Download a copy of our latest newsletter, which explains our approach in further detail.

Disclaimer: MFL is happy for articles to be used in reputable publications, websites and companies in a public domain. Third parties that haven’t directly received this article in the form of an electronic press release must receive express permission from MFL, the sole owners of all of this website’s marketing and PR content.

To receive permission or to make further enquiries, call or email MFL’s Marketing team.

Martin Jackson

Tel: 0161 237 7728

E-mail: martinj@m-f-l.co.uk

Karolyn Judge

Tel: 0161 237 7734

E-mail: karolynj@m-f-l.co.uk

McParland Finn Ltd presents local businessman and ecologist from Dorset one of Britain’s top professional ecology awards

Guest speaker, leading independent environmentalist Chris Baines, MFL Managing Director Kevin McParland, Will Bond of Alaska Environmental Contracting and ceremony host, comedienne and actress Helen Lederer (L-R)

Will Bond, Managing Director of environmental restoration and creation company Alaska Environmental Contracting was announced as the winner of a coveted award from the Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (CIEEM) at an exclusive luncheon at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens hosted by comedienne and Absolutely Fabulous actress Helen Lederer, with guest speaker, leading independent environmentalist Chris Baines.

CIEEM is the leading professional membership body representing and supporting ecologists and environmental managers in Britain and abroad. The CIEEM Awards celebrate excellence in the field, honouring individuals, organisations and projects that demonstrate exemplary and inspirational best practice in their industry, with previous winners including Sir David Attenborough.

Will Bond won the CIEEM Outstanding Professional Award sponsored by McParland Finn Ltd. The award recognises exceptional achievements of a CIEEM member that, throughout their career, has been committed to delivering consistently high standards of knowledge and skill sharing, and leadership in the field of ecology and environmental management.

As part of his nomination, Mr Bond was repeatedly praised for his overriding positivity in his application of environmental restoration projects, which are often faced with planning and budget constraints. His determination for the construction industry to recognise and collaborate with ecological contractors such as his company Alaska Environmental Contracting, has led to the involvement of ecological management and restoration processes on an historically large scale in high profile infrastructure projects such as Manchester Airport.

Broking Manager Joe Aspinall, Outstanding Professional Award winner Will Bond, Director Martin Jackson at the CIEEM Awards 2014 (L-R)

Across his career, Will Bond has been committed to using innovative methods of restoration processes that are tailored to individual projects, working with clients and professional experts to deliver optimum outcomes. In East Anglia his team scaled up the capacity of fen restoration by supplementing hand cutters with large amphibious machinery, reversing decades of fen loss and inhibiting scrub invasion. The scale and quality of river restoration processes undertaken by his team is also recognised, as setting a gold standard in the field.

Sally Hayns, Chief Executive of CIEEM says: “With more categories than ever before, this year’s awards ceremony is an opportunity for us to shine a light on individuals and organisations across the country who are leading and developing pioneering ecology projects and research, many of which have made a substantial impact in protecting and enhancing Britain’s biodiversity.”

Martin Jackson, Director at McParland Finn Ltd, who sponsored the CIEEM Outstanding Professional Award says: “We recognise the importance of consistently delivering high standards and combined with our long standing commitment to the Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management members. McParland Finn Ltd is delighted to be supporting the CIEEM Outstanding Professional Award category, in recognising this exceptional achievement.”

*Photo credit: Steve Burden

Disclaimer: MFL is happy for articles to be used in reputable publications, websites and companies in a public domain. Third parties that haven’t directly received this article in the form of an electronic press release must receive express permission from MFL, the sole owners of all of this website’s marketing and PR content.

To receive permission or to make further enquiries, call or email MFL’s Marketing team.

Martin Jackson

Tel: 0161 237 7728

E-mail: martinj@m-f-l.co.uk

Karolyn Judge

Tel: 0161 237 7734

E-mail: karolynj@m-f-l.co.uk

 

SRA proposal to amend the minimum terms

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The announcement by the SRA of changes to the Minimum Terms could not be more ill-timed. There should be no suggestion of adopting these revised terms at renewal in September 2014. Firms must take care to discuss the position with their advisers. Participants in the insurance market cannot assess the proposed terms and resolve their positions in time to introduce the changes at renewal this year. At best there will be some sort of knee jerk reaction and a last minute fight by smaller practices to obtain cover late in the day – again!

The outcome envisaged by the SRA will not materialise. The proposed limit of indemnity of £500,000 for smaller practices is where the majority of claims activity takes place. Therefore, there would be no reduction in claims activity, and no reduction in premium, but there would be many firms left exposed with too low a limit, which could adversely affect the financial stability of firms and their owners.

The cost of topping up the limit from a starting point of £500,000 as opposed to the current £2m will be significantly more expensive.

There is talk of major lenders demanding higher limits, failing which they will exclude small firms from their panels, along with firms’ bankers looking for more security, particularly if the £500,000 limit is in the annual aggregate rather than being available on an each and every claim basis.

The way to reduce premiums is to reduce the scope of the cover not the limit of indemnity, by allowing insurers to reject claims or policies where fraud or deception is involved. It is about time the SRA took this aspect more seriously, which they now appear to be doing, albeit many years too late.

An article we’ve prepared on the matter, which appears in the June issue of Manchester Law Society’s ‘The Messenger’, is available to download and read here.

Disclaimer: MFL is happy for articles to be used in reputable publications, websites and companies in a public domain. Third parties that haven’t directly received this article in the form of an electronic press release must receive express permission from MFL, the sole owners of all of this website’s marketing and PR content.

To receive permission or to make further enquiries, call or email MFL’s Marketing team.

Martin Jackson

Tel: 0161 237 7728

E-mail: martinj@m-f-l.co.uk

Karolyn Judge

Tel: 0161 237 7734

E-mail: karolynj@m-f-l.co.uk

MedInsure renewal and claims notification advice

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It has been over 12 months since many of you have moved from purchasing insurance via the defence unions/protection societies, to the commercial insurance market.

Whilst we have assisted throughout this period in order to make the transition as painless as possible, by providing claims instructions as part of our cover confirmations, and with guidance around individual claims notifications, we would like to take the opportunity to highlight some of the key areas which are particularly important when arranging cover with the insurance market.

Proposal Forms/Supplementary Information

When arranging a new policy or dealing with the renewal of an existing policy, it is important to ensure that Insurers are provided with all necessary information to allow them to consider and underwrite your practice in a timely fashion.

To assist in this process, we would recommend that completed proposal forms are provided to us at least 4 weeks prior to the expiry of current arrangements. This will allow sufficient time for us to assess the information, approach the insurance market and to deal with any subsequent questions that may be raised.

It is important to be aware that the Proposal Form is the basis of the insurance contract; it is therefore essential that the information provided on the form is complete and correct. If you have any questions or are unsure about any aspect of the form, please contact us and we will provide any advice and assistance that is required.

If the information provided is not complete or the form is returned late, this could result in delays in providing terms, higher premiums as a result of insurers having insufficient time to consider their terms, and in extreme cases, potentially leaving you with a gap in your cover.

In addition to the above, it is also important to remember that you are under an ongoing duty to disclose any material facts irrespective of whether or not they are covered by the questions on the proposal form. Again, if there is any doubt as to whether something should be disclosed to your Insurers, please contact us to discuss the situation further.

Claims & Complaints

Another key area that marks a shift in the way things are dealt with is the way in which claims are dealt with.

All insurance policies include terms and conditions and, in order to ensure that there are no issues should a claim arise, it is important to ensure that you comply with these terms and conditions.

For the purposes of claims, the two main areas to bear in mind are:

• Claims or any circumstances which may give rise to a claim should be notified as soon as possible and in any event within the Policy Period; and
• You should not enter into any correspondence with the Patient or their legal representatives; make any settlement offers or admissions of liability without the prior approval of Insurers.

If either of these conditions is breached, it is possible that this could result in the cover provided by the policy being restricted or the claim rejected entirely.

We accept that it is not always easy to establish if a complaint from a patient should be considered notifiable under the policy. As a result, we would always advise that you contact our Claims Department to discuss the matter. They will be able to provide advice and assistance in establishing if a complaint does amount to a claim, as well as helping you throughout the claims process.

We hope this brief overview of some of the key differences has been helpful, but if you have any questions or would like to discuss any of the issues raised, please contact us.

Download the PDF document

Disclaimer: MFL is happy for articles to be used in reputable publications, websites and companies in a public domain. Third parties that haven’t directly received this article in the form of an electronic press release must receive express permission from MFL, the sole owners of all of this website’s marketing and PR content.

To receive permission or to make further enquiries, call or email MFL’s Marketing team.

Martin Jackson

Tel: 0161 237 7728

E-mail: martinj@m-f-l.co.uk

Karolyn Judge

Tel: 0161 237 7734

E-mail: karolynj@m-f-l.co.uk

Cyber insurance news brief: What you need to know about the Heartbleed Bug

Right click on the image above to download the PDF version of this article

Making waves in the internet community is the discovery of the Heartbleed bug, a serious vulnerability that allows hackers to steal personal information that is normally protected by OpenSSL encryption.

OpenSSL provides security for Web applications, email, instant messaging and some and some virtual private networks.

According to Internet security services provider Netcraft, about half a million trusted websites are vulnerable to the bug…

To read on, download the PDF document here.

Contact the MFL Professional team to discuss Cyber Liability, on 0161 236 2532.

Disclaimer: MFL is happy for articles to be used in reputable publications, websites and companies in a public domain. Third parties that haven’t directly received this article in the form of an electronic press release must receive express permission from MFL, the sole owners of all of this website’s marketing and PR content.

To receive permission or to make further enquiries, call or email MFL’s Marketing team.

Martin Jackson

Tel: 0161 237 7728

E-mail: martinj@m-f-l.co.uk

Karolyn Judge

Tel: 0161 237 7734

E-mail: karolynj@m-f-l.co.uk

 

Cyber insurance news brief: What you need to know about the Heartbleed Bug

Right click on the image above to download the PDF version of this article

Making waves in the internet community is the discovery of the Heartbleed bug, a serious vulnerability that allows hackers to steal personal information that is normally protected by OpenSSL encryption.

OpenSSL provides security for Web applications, email, instant messaging and some and some virtual private networks.

According to Internet security services provider Netcraft, about half a million trusted websites are vulnerable to the bug…

To read on, download the PDF document here.

Contact the MFL Science & Technology team to discuss Cyber Liability, on 0113 336 2274.

Disclaimer: MFL is happy for articles to be used in reputable publications, websites and companies in a public domain. Third parties that haven’t directly received this article in the form of an electronic press release must receive express permission from MFL, the sole owners of all of this website’s marketing and PR content.

To receive permission or to make further enquiries, call or email MFL’s Marketing team.

Martin Jackson

Tel: 0161 237 7728

E-mail: martinj@m-f-l.co.uk

Karolyn Judge

Tel: 0161 237 7734

E-mail: karolynj@m-f-l.co.uk

Maintaining high standards at Manchester Legal Awards 2014

Managing Director Kevin McParland with award-winner Bill Jones, Managing Partner of JMW Solicitors and President of Manchester Law Society, David Joseph

MFL Professional sponsored the Medium Law Firm award at the sell-out Manchester Legal Awards for the second year in a row.

Our managing director Kevin McParland presented the prestigious prize to Bill Jones, Managing Partner of JMW Solicitors LLP. The city centre firm won in the same category in 2013.

MFL Professional is a long-standing insurance partner of Manchester Law Society and our commitment was displayed on the evening.

Kevin McParland reflected on how the awards gave MFL Professional the chance to develop its established relationship with legal businesses and professionals in Manchester:

“We’ve had close links for many years with the Manchester legal community and Manchester Law Society. Sponsoring the Legal Awards is an opportunity for MFL Professional to give something back.

“My congratulations to Bill and everyone at JMW.”

Contact us to discuss your PI insurance requirements on 0161 236 2532.

Disclaimer: MFL is happy for articles to be used in reputable publications, websites and companies in a public domain. Third parties that haven’t directly received this article in the form of an electronic press release must receive express permission from MFL, the sole owners of all of this website’s marketing and PR content.

To receive permission or to make further enquiries, call or email MFL’s Marketing and Development team.

Martin Jackson

Tel: 0161 237 7728

E-mail: martinj@m-f-l.co.uk

Karolyn Judge

Tel: 0161 237 7734

E-mail: karolynj@m-f-l.co.uk

Important Information For Medical Care Businesses – Changes To The RCN Indemnity Scheme

Right click on the image above to download the PDF version of this article

The Royal College of Nursing has sought to clarify its stance in relation to its employed members.

On 4th February 2014, its website published an announcement which confirmed: With effect from 1st July 2014, work undertaken by RCN members is excluded from their indemnity scheme.

The RCN stressed that it believes the onus to insure any potential liability attaching to employed nurses lies with their employer ie. the company.

This clarification further emphasises the need for medical care businesses to arrange corporate medical malpractice insurance which indemnifies those employees that do not benefit from individual insurance or indemnity protection.

In addition, the company may also be exposed to potential vicarious liability in relation to claims against doctors and other medical professionals.

For more information, click here to read MFL’s separate Vicarious Liability Technical Bulletin.

MFL is experienced in arranging medical malpractice insurance cover to protect businesses and should you wish to discuss how the RCN announcement affects your business please contact one of the team.

For the full announcement visit the RCN website.

Disclaimer: MFL is happy for articles to be used in reputable publications, websites and companies in a public domain. Third parties that haven’t directly received this article in the form of an electronic press release must receive express permission from MFL, the sole owners of all of this website’s marketing and PR content.

To receive permission or to make further enquiries, call or email MFL’s Marketing and Development team.

Martin Jackson

Tel: 0161 237 7728

E-mail: martinj@m-f-l.co.uk

Karolyn Judge

Tel: 0161 237 7734

E-mail: karolynj@m-f-l.co.uk