Small Business Insurance Discussion Area

Savvy_Sue

grai wrote: »

anyone know where the "start a new thread" button is? Or how to start a new thread?

(this site needs a serious design overhaul - I've been on here 15 minutes and resorted to typing this into random threads - the overall design is like sensory overload - it needs to be simplified to make it easier to use - rant over - any intructions on how to start a thread would be good)

Try going to the Board level, eg here for Small Biz and use the New Thread button.

There's an A-Z here, and you might find the New Moneysavers section helpful.

System

I used this company before for insurance when working as a consultant, has anyone else used them and are there any other firms which might be competitive.
http://www.dallaskirkland.co.uk/

brownbabygirl

I now have a building for the engineering college. now need the incurance. where to start?

Lad_Amok

Hi MSE's.

I am having an issue with my company insurers.

Unfortunately, a staff member partially broke an essential machine in our factory.
The staff member had been in employment for around 6 months, had been using this machine in his job function daily without incident.

The machine is a bespoke heated cooking vessel.

The staff member did not locate the stirring arm into it's slot, resulting in the large 220 litre stainless steel "pan" being warped.
The machine still works, however, the stirrer needed to be shortened considerably (an inch) or else it would glance (and wear) the warp of the pan.
It has gotten to the stage that I am concerned the stirrer will wear right through the base of the pan.

The last I heard from our broker, the "Property Claims Specialist, Loss Adjuster" was considering not paying out as a result of "staff negligence".

It was apparent when the loss adjuster came to see me, that she did not grasp the full technical implications of this piece of kit.
We had several suggestions to get the machine fixed locally (it was bespoke manufactured fort us, in Italy). This is not an option for me, if the machine is to be fixed it must be fixed by the manufacturers to keep the machine "standard".

Also, we had the suggestion to send the machine back to Italy - this option would be fine for us, however, we cannot afford the downtime - this machine is one of two that we have and they're working almost to capacity - it would not be possible to fulfil our orders with 1 machine.

So, the insurance company have given us the following options

1. Get machine fixed locally (I am extremely uneasy about this option for the aforementioned).
2. Send the machine to Italy for fixing. (not possible, no machines available to hire from the manufacturer, no equivalent machine available in the market & we cannot afford the down time, I should add that we are insured for loss of earnings, however, we are not insured against the loss of a contract that we are guaranteed to lose as a result of not being able to fulfil contractual orders).
3. Whistle.

I seems to be stuck between a rock and a hard place. I'm seriously considering taking the insurance company to court to resolve the matter.
I should add that the machine is valued at around £22,000 and we pay £5,000 (combined; 1 vehicle, public liabilities, buildings & contents) insurance per year and have never claimed.

My ideal scenario is that the insurance replace the machine with a new one. Suffering us no down time and no loss of contracts.

Does anyone have any ideas on what to do

Savvy_Sue

Can you demonstrate that it was NOT staff negligence? Are there checks which should have been carried out to ensure that it was assembled correctly, and is there a record that they were in fact carried out?

Does the manufacturer have any comments on the fairness of blaming it on negligence?

I'm only suggesting the obvious remedies here, have no idea about the legal liabilities.

Lad_Amok

Hi Sue,

Thanks for the reply.

The staff have been trained in the operation of such machines, and, have signed off to say that they have been trained.

The part that was not inserted correctly before the machine was switched on was the stirring arm, this piece of the machine is removed and cleaned between batches, no less than 12 times each day. It's a mater of course for production.
Also, the arm itself is very simple, it has a stopped housing joint at the top, there it connects to the drive arm, and at the bottom, there is merely a nipple to be located into an eyelet, the staff member did not locate the nipple into the eyelet, switched the machine on and warped the pan.

I have no documented tick box that states "arm correctly inserted in eyelet" - I would judge that to be micromanagement in the extreme and unworkable within a production environment. I would draw a comparison with a driver being told to tick a box each time they indicate.

I should add that I am not averse to processes and procedures and am externally audited and accredited for food and staff safety issues.

The manufacturer is unwilling to give any sort of opinion on the damage before they see it, in their own factory, in Italy.
I can and will however, ask them on their opinion as to this being a case of neglect, or genuine operator error.

bobbyvegas

Hi

I'm about to move to a unit where I will supply and distribute goods for the licensed trade. I will not be employing anyone. I do not manufacture anything, I am simply the middle man. Members of the public will not be allowed into the business premises.

I'm going to need contents insurance, do I need public liability?

saving-mad

i run a small business from home and do about 30 miles a week in the car, i have class 1 business use car insurance for this, if i were to set up a completely unrelated business and do 100 miles a week for that would i need extra insurance on the car for that?

Does it differ with different companies?

I have tried to ring the insurance company but as its in my husbands name they wont discuss anything with me

Savvy_Sue

saving-mad wrote: »

i run a small business from home and do about 30 miles a week in the car, i have class 1 business use car insurance for this, if i were to set up a completely unrelated business and do 100 miles a week for that would i need extra insurance on the car for that?

Does it differ with different companies?

I have tried to ring the insurance company but as its in my husbands name they wont discuss anything with me

It probably does differ with different companies, and the nature of the business. I think you need more insurance if you are carrying stock for work, for example.

freelancemermaid

Please can anyone recommend a reliable provider of professional liability insurance?

Thank you