Audit Trail to London

The ISO27001 (Information Security Standard) is managed by a small team, comprising of IT Management (Bob Moreton, Ben Clarkson) and six internal auditors drawn from various departments within the company. The Auditors have been instrumental in ARAG annually retaining this important certification for the last three years.

In recognition of the team doing it “for the love” (as they all have very busy day jobs) they were recently rewarded with a trip to London. First stop on this whistle-stop tour was a visit to the Lloyd’s building in the City of London, kindly arranged by our Underwriting partner Brit, where our team were educated on the history of the market’s roots in maritime insurance and shown around the famous boxes. Our team thought it was interesting to note that the visitor seats that the brokers sit on were shorter and more uncomfortable than the box seats, perhaps demonstrating a position of power and of time constraint!

This was followed by another tour, this time at Brit’s nearby offices in the fabulous Leadenhall Building, although some of the team weren’t so keen on being whizzed up in the glass sided, super-fast lift to the 40th Floor and feeling like it was only just clinging to the outside edge of the building.

Of course, there is no such thing as a free lunch so the team then carried out an audit of the ARAG London office (which opened in 2016) and falls within the scope of the ISO certification. The audit includes ensuring the physical security of the office by querying the visitor process with receptionists, and monitoring the server room which was suitably air conditioned, so the team were unsurprisingly quick in completing this audit - brrr!

To follow on from the earlier maritime theme, the team were rewarded with drinks at The Oyster Shed and dinner in Borough Market, followed by a sleepy train journey back to Bristol.

Many thanks to the whole team for a fantastic day and their hard work throughout the year!

The team includes:

• Ben Parkinson, Broker Account Handler
• David Caines, BTE Underwriter
• Fran Box, Learning & Development Coordinator
• Johanna Graham, CMU Team Leader
• Jordan Wall, Compliance Advisor
• Nigel Sobers, ATE Senior Claims Handler

Video Killed The Radio Star

We are always looking for new and helpful ways to communicate with our customers and a popular addition is a customer-focused animated video explaining what happens if someone has a claim.

Further animated videos are already in production so keep your eyes peeled for these in the new year.

More recent video uploads:

• Update on the clinical negligence market 

• Introducing a new ATE Account Manager 

• How ARAG’s legal advice helpline work

Carefully crafted as brief and incisive, yet informative, they are easy to locate: the latest are displayed on the ARAG website and all can be seen on our YouTube channel.

Better consumer information on the way

Whatever the final outcome of the Insurance Distribution Directive (IDD), end-users will be better informed on the insurance products they are buying.

Consultation may yet modify the FCA’s suggestions but the broad concepts will remain and apply from pre-purchase to after the end of the contract:

• know your customer
• know your target market
• facilitate product comparisons and avoid competitive distortions
• provide Insurance Product Information Document (IPID)
• protect customer’s money
• no conflicts of interest

Achieving all these objectives requires a holistic approach within the organisation and then again when the product is retailed, bundled or distributed. Point of sale is of course the most crucial aspect but IDD will impact on product design, sales, HR, data security and many other areas.

The consumer must first be presented with a clear choice that meets their needs and, second, be provided with something that lives up to their expectations.

The new IPID must be in a durable medium, such as on paper, and contain objective details of the product and exclusions. It must be available for renewals and bundled packages where more than one IPID may be needed. Though brief in content, it must give sufficient helpful information to inform the customer’s choice prior to them concluding the contract. It will be up to the retailer to decide the point at which the information is most appropriate to aid that choice. 

Get it wrong and it will of course count against you in ombudsman decisions.

From 0-100

Recent publication of our annual results reveals much about the past and hints towards the future. To amplify his financial summary, MD Tony Buss was interviewed in a video on the ARAG YouTube channel to explain how a decade of growth has firmly underpinned the company’s ambition for the next 10 years.

Successive years of pre-tax profit showed another rise to £2.4 million in 2016, with particularly strong growth in BTE and underlying growth in ATE. Headline figures are also impressive: combined income (including reinsurance business generated back into ARAG SE in Germany) increased by 19 % from £26.5 million to £31.5 million, generating a £4.2 million profit. BTE was up nearly 20% overall with commercial and assistance business accounting for much of this increase.

It took the full ten years to go from 0-100 in terms of staff but selecting the right calibre of personnel, then investing in their training and development has been a core strength in the company’s controlled expansion.

Throughout 2016, there was the familiar combination of regulatory and legal changes to contend with. FCA initiatives and the add-on investigations were ever-present while the heritage of LASPO will continue to colour the picture for some years to come.

Despite the challenges, and partly because of them, there are exciting opportunities ahead for new products, and ARAG is running at full speed, ready to provide more creative, innovative and flexible solutions.

More action on housing disrepair

Events in the news have focussed attention on the sometimes indifferent attitudes towards keeping rented properties in healthy and proper condition. We are working with a number of solicitors who are taking action on behalf of tenants against their landlords, specifically housing associations or local authorities themselves, in instances where properties fall short of the required standard.

The object is to remedy faults, and secure compensation where appropriate, for people who would previously only have had a small voice against big organisations.
ARAG has been helping grow this sector and it fi ts neatly with our aim to continually diversify in the aft er the event market.

Housing disrepair claims typically follow a pattern and because of this we are able to offer a fixed premium, deferred until the end of the case, with standard cover of typically £10,000 for all disbursements and adverse costs.

It is excellent news both for residents of dilapidated, unrepaired or damp dwellings and for those solicitors who have become specialised in this area. As firms become unsettled by negative developments that affect the flow of business in the ATE market, such claims will surely enjoy further interest.

ARAG’s Housing Disrepair cover can be used for either fast or multi-track claims.