A judge has ruled that a business that acted on behalf of a landlord to evict a tenant “crossed the line” in carrying out regulated legal services that only qualified solicitors are permitted to provide. Here’s a link to the full story which appeared on Litigation Future’s website: 

https://www.legalfutures.co.uk/latest-news/unregulated-eviction-service-crossed-line-into-litigation

It’s easy to see how landlords are tempted to use services such as “Remove a tenant” as an alternative to representing themselves, or paying for solicitor representation in legal proceedings. Not only did “Remove a tenant” break the law, the legal notice that they issued to repossess the property was faulty. The landlord had to go back to court to proceed with their claim using alternative grounds to repossess their property.

Legal expenses insurance for landlords provides a helpline to talk through correctly issuing a landlord’s notice to repossess and ARAG’s Landlord Legal Solutions policy allows your landlord clients to download the notices and a covering letter for free from our legal services website. If a tenant fails to leave on expiry of the notice, the policy pays legal costs for a regulated law firm to act for the insured.

According from their website “Remove a tenant” charge from £50 to issue a repossession notice, and the cost of preparing for a court hearing and representation is charged from £250 (+VAT) http://www.removeatenant.co.uk/legal-services/ - this is much more than the cost of Landlord’s Legal Solutions over the average term of a tenancy. Surely peace of mind and confidence that claims will be dealt with properly is surely an attractive prospect for customers who may be reluctant to opt in to legal expenses? I’ll leave you to guess the moral of this story...

Have you and your clients registered with our Business Legal services website to receive free monthly business law bulletins?

This month’s bulletin is out. Subscribers can read about “last straw” resignations – which can expose businesses to claims for unfair dismissal, get practical advice and brush up on disability discrimination law and there’s also an item on planning law.

To receive our monthly business law bulletins, you will need to opt-in when prompted at the time you register to use the site for the first time. Registration is simple and will give you/your clients access to the law guide and a comprehensive range of sophisticated legal documents which can be customised to meet circumstances. The result is far superior to using flat template documents that have to be amended to meet business needs and our documents can be relied upon in court without seeking further legal guidance.

If you’ve already registered to use the Business Legal Services web site but didn’t opt-in to receive our business bulletins, you can change your preferences by clicking through to “My Account”.

Care Providers & the National Minimum Wage

This blog is aimed at Care Provider Legal Solutions Policyholders and agents who specialise in the care sector. I would like to share with you a Government briefing document that summarises recent developments relating to payment of the national minimum wage for sleep-in care duties. Here is a link to the document and my summary is below. 

Back ground

The Royal Mencap Society v Tomlinson-Blake case considered whether sleeping during a shift should be deemed as “work” for the purpose of applying National Minimum Wage (NMW) regulations.

In April 2017 the Employment Appeal Tribunal handed down judgment which, held that, in some cases, carers who are required to be present throughout the night will be entitled to the NMW whether awake or asleep. The briefing document summarises this case and others. 

Consequences of breaching NMW

To obtain backdated wages if underpaid, an employee can take a claim to the employment tribunal or the country court. If a worker is successful in his NMW claim, he could be owed up to six years’ back pay. HMRC enforces the NMW on behalf of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS). If HMRC finds that an employer has underpaid worker(s), it will fine the employer, require it to provide back pay to affected workers, and name and shame them via a press release.

Relief for social care employers

Given the potential impact on the social care sector the HMRC has, until 31 March 2019, modified its approach to enforcement by launching the Social Care Compliance Scheme (SCCS). Subject to certain criteria, employers who have opted into the scheme can have financial penalties in relation to under payment of sleep-in shifts prior to 26 July 2017 waived and will escape “public naming and shaming”.  Details of the SCCS scheme are here. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tell-hmrc-if-youve-underpaid-national-minimum-wage-in-the-social-care-sector
Nothing in the scheme prevents individual workers taking their own legal action (whether in the Employment Tribunal or Court) to recover arrears owing to them.

Staying compliant

No single factor is determinative and the weight each factor carries (if any) will vary according to the facts of the particular case however a key point is that “where specific hours at a particular place are required, upon the pain of discipline if they are not spent at that place, and the worker is at the disposal of the employer during that period, it will normally constitute time work”.
The briefing note sets out potentially relevant factors in determining whether a person is working by being present. Full enforcement guidance is here.   https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/656568/nmw-enforcement-beis_-_policy_doc_-_full_vFINAL__3_.pdf

Unrepresented struggle with employment tribunals

I was surprised by the harsh line taken by the employment tribunal and employment appeal tribunal in a case summary prepared by James English of Hempson’s Solicitors and circulated by barrister Daniel Barnett in his excellent employment law bulletin.

The Claimant brought several claims, including constructive dismissal, against his former employer.

Perhaps he didn’t have legal expenses insurance because he initially contacted ACAS for Early Conciliation without any legal representation.  The claimant named a director of the business as the party he wished to make his claim against (the Respondent). It seems that in this case matters could not be resolved through ACAS Early Conciliation and the claimant instructed solicitors to prepare his Claim Form to pursue the matter at tribunal.

The solicitors correctly named the claimant’s ex-employer, 'SNA Transport Limited' as Respondent.  The employment tribunal rejected his claim as the Respondent had not been correctly identified on the Early Conciliation Certificate. His solicitors applied to the tribunal to reconsider that decision on the basis that the use of the director's name was a "minor error", which (under the rules) allows a tribunal to overlook it.

The employment tribunal rejected that application taking the view that confusing the director with the company was not a minor error, and it had been right to reject the claim. The Claimant appealed.

The Employment Appeal Tribunal, although sympathetic, rejected the Claimant's application. It said that a two stage test should be applied. Firstly, was it a minor error? If not, the claim would be rejected. Secondly, if it was, the tribunal should go on to consider whether or not it was in the interests of justice to allow the claim to proceed. Although in principle the distinction between a natural and a legal person could amount to a minor error, in this case it did not. Each case should be considered on its facts, and as there was no error in the tribunal's Judgment, the Claimant's appeal was dismissed.

I’m disappointed about this decision as it’s an easy mistake for someone who is acting without legal representation to make. The case does however underpin the value of legal expenses insurance for ACAS Early Conciliation.  Although the system was designed with the intention that employees should negotiate without legal assistance it is not free of obstacles. If this claimant had taken out LEI, the error in completing the ACAS form would have been avoided, allowing him to pursue his action at tribunal. Additionally, the insurance would have covered the Tribunal fees and legal costs incurred.

It’s been a busy couple of weeks for our ATE Sales team – Mike Knight, ATE Sales Manager

First up was AvMA’s Annual Clinical Negligence Conference followed, a week later, by the APIL Advanced Brain and Spinal Cord Conference. Both exhibitions are regularly in our events calendar as they provide an invaluable opportunity for us to connect with new prospects and re-connect with our current partners. 

Both events were extremely busy for us, so apologies to anyone who didn’t get the chance to speak to us on our stands, please do contact us below if you would like a chat! Even though each event has a different demographic of delegates, our message is always the same.

For more than a decade, ARAG has led the way in delivering innovative after-the-event insurance solutions to law firms throughout the country. Many will talk of ‘access to justice’, but ARAG is still driven by its founding principle, more than 80 years old, that “…every person should be able to assert their legal rights, not just those who can afford it.”

Nowhere is this principle more important than in our mission to ensure justice continues to be accessible to those who have sustained severe and sometimes catastrophic injuries. At a time when claimant firms and their clients have been confronted with successive challenges, seemingly perpetual reform and shifting regulatory and market conditions, ARAG has stood firm, developing and adapting products to satisfy increasingly demanding requirements, especially in the personal injury and clinical negligence sectors.

The design of our Recourse range of after-the-event solutions has always focused on simplicity. Products that a solicitor can easily explain and a client can readily understand; products free from complex underwriting mechanisms and onerous conditions; products, put simply, that work.

As a result, we are regularly shortlisted for a string of awards, from Personal Injury Insurance Provider of the Year to Legal Expenses Team of the Year, ARAG has been recognised as the outstanding provider of legal expenses insurance solutions for law firms and their clients.

I always enjoy attending events like those put on by AvMA and APIL as they offer a perfect mix of business and networking. Then again, maybe that’s why I have now decided to take on the challenge of Dry July!

The idea of going alcohol free during a summer month of BBQ’s, sporting events and corporate entertaining is not going to be easy but it is for a great cause and a charity close to our hearts at ARAG; FOCUS. The motivation to stay off the alcohol and enjoy a range of non-alcoholic beverages throughout the month comes from the knowledge that any donations received will enable the charity to invest in projects that make hospitals better. Their aim is to create a comfortable and positive environment for all their patients and staff, investing in improvements to buildings, state of the art equipment and extra care over and above that provided by the NHS. If you would like to show your support, please click here. 

Going forward, we are supporting the St John’s Chamber and AvMA Charity Dinner in Bristol on the 21^st September and exhibiting at the APIL Clinical Negligence Conference in Brighton on the 5^th and 6^th of October – I hope to see you there!

Contact details:

Mike Knight, ATE Account Manager

Email: mike.knight@arag.co.uk

Mail: 9 Whiteladies Road, Clifton, Bristol, BS8 1NN

Mobile: 07795 636391

Seeking advice?

Are your customers fully aware of the additional benefits ARAG’s before-the-event legal insurance policies offer? A free legal advice helpline accessible 24/7 and manned by experts and access to a wide variety of legal document templates via the legal services website which can be downloaded at any time are two really valuable extra benefits.

With the New Year in full swing, now is the time to emphasise to your customers how these services can empower them to protect their legal rights by providing valuable guidance when help with legal issues is needed.

For business customers statistics from 2012 examining the usage of the legal services website show that the most popular group of legal document templates downloaded were related to employment (62% of downloads). These included employment agreements, documents related to employee disciplinary matters and accessing the comprehensive employee handbook. This was followed by documents related to debt recovery and behind that the health and safety category also proved popular.

For individuals and consumers one of the most popular documents to download was the free will, demonstrating the desire for many to secure their future. As with all documents, the simple step-by-step approach for the will document creation was appealing.

Landlords also utilised the service, sourcing documents ranging from tenancy agreements to Section 8 notices.

A similar pattern emerged with calls made to the legal advice helpline. In 2012, 68% of the calls made to our legal advisors related to employment matters. Other popular reasons for customers to call for legal advice related to landlord and tenant disputes, commercial issues, property-related queries and consumer matters.

These resources are incorporated into ARAG landlord, business, motor and family policies as standard which provides you with a helpful sales tool.  The value for the customer lies in helping them to manage the risk of disputes escalating and provide a cost benefit to those policyholders who do not need to make a claim under their policy. The added value to brokers is that these services create an effective retention tool when it comes to influencing policy renewal.

For more information, visit our website – www.arag.co.uk

 

Create legal documents with an ARAG legal expenses policy

Most ARAG legal expenses insurance (LEI) products give customers access to an online document service where they can create personalised documents such as wills, tenancy agreements, job offer letters and many more.

The range of documents available is tailored to the policy that you sell, for instance with ARAG’s Landlords’ Legal Solutions your clients will have access to circa 160 legal documents, including Section 8 and 21 notices, as well as a comprehensive law guide.

The process of producing a document is simple. Using the Rapidocs system the user follows a series of step-by-step questions and their responses populate the required elements of the template to produce a tailored and personalised document to download.

The best thing is that many of the documents are free with ARAG policies, others will attract a reasonable fee but customers can always try before they buy.

The documents, letters and law guide are all written by solicitors and barristers and to ensure that they are current they are frequently reviewed and updated.

The latest updates, which will be rolled out in the coming months, include:

• Auto question scrolling: On pages with long lists of questions, users will no longer need to use a scroll bar; instead the next question appears in the middle of the page to ensure that they don’t miss anything
• Intelligent progress bar: Enabling easier navigation and includes a progress bar so users can see how far way they are from completing the form
• Online editing: In some cases customers will be able to directly edit the documents online if necessary and return the document for a final review 

To find out more about ARAG legal expenses insurance products and legal services online, either visit www.arag.co.uk or email enquiries@arag.com 

Keep up-to-date with legal services online

An ARAG Before-the-Event insurance policy comes with a host of additional benefits to sit alongside the core legal expenses cover. One of these extras is the legal document service that allows a policyholder to tailor and download a variety of legal documents as well as access the comprehensive law guide.

The documents, letters and law guide are all written by top solicitors and barristers. To ensure peace of mind for policyholders, all of the documents are frequently reviewed and updated.

One of the most recent updates to the law guide is a policy on the Bribery Act 2010. Providing an overview, the new policy will help ensure that a policyholder knows how to comply with the requirements of the Act and includes:

• Information and examples of unacceptable conduct for staff and stakeholders


• Guidance on the conduct expected of staff and stakeholders


• Guidance on how a business can prevent bribery and corruption


• Help with training staff and communicating the policy to staff and stakeholders

The downloadable documents themselves are split into topical sections depending on the type of ARAG policy you have. For example, with ARAG’s commercial LEI products the policyholder is able to access templates for legal documents relating to business-matters in the following areas:

• Business start-up


• Debts and debt recovery


• Ecommerce


• Employment


• Health and safety


• Intellectual property


• Property


• Purchase and sales agreements

Within each area is a list of legal document templates which are tailored to each client’s specific circumstances through a series of straightforward questions. The majority of the documents are available completely free-of-charge, with examples ranging from debt collection letters for unpaid invoices and a privacy policy for a website, to trademark licence agreements and employee discipline and dismissal packs.

Policyholders also have the choice to pay to have their documents reviewed either online or by a solicitor allowing for that extra security and an even more bespoke service.

To find out more about ARAG legal expenses insurance products and legal services online, either visit www.arag.co.uk or email enquiries@arag.com