Tips on Renewing Your Social Care Insurance

1. Establish a relationship with your broker. You should be able to at least phone a dedicated adviser, but also have the option if preferred to meet face to face with a dedicated person who knows you with whom you can discuss your insurance requirements with.
2. If you don’t have a need to speak to your broker regularly, Towergate suggest getting in touch with them at least 90 days in advance of your renewal date, which is a good practice to undertake each year.
3. If you have any amendment needed to your policy ahead of renewal, such as changes to service users, income or turnover etc, make sure your broker is aware before acquiring new terms, as this means that they will be able to obtain the renewal quotation on the correct basis.
4. Make sure you understand what sort of additional information insurers may require from you, from details about your organisation and it’s day-to-day running such as updated wage roll, turnover, copies of the regulators action plans etc, to information on any CCJ's, bankruptcy, liquidations/voluntary arrangements etc.  it’s a good idea to know what evidence may be needed and to answer all the questions accurately and to the best of your knowledge and ability
5. Read your insurance policy wording and documentation thoroughly to fully understand the details of your sums insured, policy coverage and important policy conditions and exclusions.  You may also find that there are extra benefits included as part of the package, such as Legal Expenses and free stress helplines for you and your staff to use.
6. Understand what is covered within your policy; for example, what is the ‘business description’ actually defined as? You could find that this definition may not match up with the service you are offering, meaning you may not be covered.
7. Make sure your policies and procedures are robust in terms of being able to defend a potential claim; insurers will always expect that you are acting with reasonable care. For example, can you fully demonstrate you have undertaken necessary risk assessments, staff training and implemented care plans and that this is all suitably documented?
8. Report significant incidents when they happen. Reaching out to your broker to let them know of an incident is NOT you admitting wrongdoing but does mean that your broker can put your Insurer on notice so that they are aware and will be ready to act if a claim is made in the future.
9. As an organisation registered with the CQC or any other UK registered regulator, your publicly available report following your most recent inspection provides your broker and their insurers with a lot of useful information. If there were any requirements needed following the inspection, then a copy of the most up-to-date action plan with completed actions or dates when outstanding points will be completed by, will need to be sent to your broker, as insurers will require this.

About the author

Carolyn Baker-Mellor is a respected industry leader with over 35 years' experience within the care insurance sector. She works across a wide spectrum of insurance product and policy development, delivery and optimisation for care industry clients, including managing global corporate accounts, working closely with trade associations, and helping clients in protecting their businesses and personal assets.