News

We’ve previously written about why the insurance market is getting harder, however as the issue remains complex, we wanted to pay particular attention to the key issues in a hard market for Financial Lines.

Read the following article to learn more — and don’t hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions, our contact details can be found at the bottom of this article.

Many of us have felt the effects that COVID-19 has had on the education sector with school closures and university lockdowns. On top of these pandemic effects, educational institutions are also having to struggle with coping with cyber crime.

We are excited to announce that we have partnered with Sparqa Legal to offer our clients a cost-effective online legal platform to help answer legal questions and create documents without the help of a lawyer.

We’re excited to announce the winner of this quarter's Pauline Uludag Employee of the Year Award. Our award was set up in memory of Pauline Uludag who worked in the Claims department for us and sadly passed away unexpectedly in 2013. Pauline was known for her outstanding performance and was always positive and considerate to everyone she worked with.  The aim of the award is to recognise those who make a great contribution in any aspect of CLEAR’s business just as Pauline did.  

We are delighted to announce our acquisition of Brokerbility Holdings Ltd comprising its broking, network and technology businesses. The deal sees Clear Group (CLEAR) acquire Brokerbility Holdings, the parent company of BHIB Insurance Brokers Ltd and Churchill Insurance Consultants Ltd; the Brokerbility Network, Brokertech and Brokerbility Information Gateway (BIG), the software solutions provider and IT platform, which distribute wholesale products across the Brokerbility network.

The High Court's ruling on the FCA's test case, which sought legal clarity on business interruption insurance, provides some clarification on issues that were a source of confusion and concern for small business policyholders affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The English High Court judgment on a case brought by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on business interruption (BI) insurance coverage is expected on 15 September at 10:30am. 

We’re excited to announce the shortlist for his quarter's Pauline Uludag Employee of the Year Award. To recognise the achievement, the 6 worthy nominees below have each been rewarded, while the overall winner is set to receive an even bigger reward at the end of the month.

The annual Cockpit Arts/CLEAR Insurance Award supports professional designer-makers who have been in business for less than three years and have aspirations to develop their craft trade.

The winner of the award receives a match funded studio space at Cockpit arts worth £2,500* — plus a specialist insurance package tailored for their needs from us at CLEAR.

2019’s winner, ceramic artist Ula Saniawa, recently completed her full year at Cockpit Arts. In the interview below she reflects on the impact the award has had across her work and life:

Melanie Barker is our new Head of Learning and Development, a role created earlier this year. We chatted with her about all things Learning and Development, as well as what it means for the company, our staff, and our clients. Find out how Melanie is helping us affect positive change:

We've already written about a 'hardening' insurance market and how, until recently, this was primarily confined to the supply of professional indemnity insurance (PII).  However, conditions across the whole insurance sector are now becoming more challenging as insurers are forced to increase premiums, reduce their presence in specific markets or withdraw from them altogether because they are no longer financially viable. 

At CLEAR, we are delighted to announce an exciting new partnership with Future Frontiers. 

Future Frontiers is an award-winning charity that exists to ensure 16 to 18-year olds  from disadvantaged backgrounds with limited opportunities fulfill their potential - at school and when transitioning to education, employment or training.

The advent of Covid-19 has given the property sector much to think about. While attention is focused on finding solutions to multiple challenges, from the economic fallout from lockdown to ensuring spaces comply with social distancing, there are several insurance issues which should not be overlooked. In many respects, risk has changed – for better or worse – and action may need to be taken accordingly in order to satisfy any relevant policy conditions, ensure cover is adequate and to avoid paying unnecessarily inflated premiums. Our property specialist, James King, recently caught up with Estates Gazette to discuss this in more depth:

During the lockdown, many insurers extended or relaxed their policy conditions for unoccupied properties. This situation has changed, potentially affecting anyone who owns or rents a property that currently remains unoccupied.

If you think this may include you, please continue reading.

With the majority of businesses now working remotely, laptops have replaced desktops for many.

This change in equipment presents additional risks for data security that may harm your business.

We have outlined how to identify and reduce the likelihood of data loss via laptop thefts in this 3-step guide:

This week, we announced that MPW Insurance Brokers, an organisation with more than 30 years of experience in arranging specialist insurance for the construction industry, has made some changes to reflect its close relationship with the CLEAR Group.

This exciting integration brings a new trading name - CLEAR MPW - and a new logo, making it more obvious that the business’s clients are benefitting from CLEAR’s resources and infrastructure, receiving a faster, more efficient service from the same MPW team that they’re already familiar with. This is an exciting stepping stone towards a full trading name change to Clear Insurance Management at a later date.

To discuss the integration and what it means for the newly minted CLEAR MPW, their team, and their clients, we sat down with founder and Managing Director Andy Webb.

There has been much confusion over the COVID-19 crisis and the response from insurers. In an attempt to gain greater clarity over policy cover the FCA has started a High Court action against a number of insurers. We have had a number of queries from our customers regarding the test case and what it means for commercial policyholders; we hope this note will help you to understand the process and how it might affect you.

Businesses across the UK are now returning to the workplace, meaning many workers will now be commuting again for the first time since March.

As with ensuring offices and other work environments are as safe as possible, proactivity is the key to supporting staff safety as they commute. It’s worth considering adjusting your working practices, as well as your rules and guidance for staff, to help ensure they’re as safe as possible.

Here, we’ve compiled 5 key factors to consider as you do this:

CLEAR is here to help you throughout the crisis and lockdown. So, we've created a hub of useful COVID-19 information including business guides and useful downloads and the frequently asked questions (FAQs) we've been receiving about insurance cover and payments.

So, now you can find all of the important and useful guidance you need in one place. Click here to visit our COVID-19 hub.

Many businesses across the UK will be preparing to reopen and allow staff to return to work as lockdown restrictions ease. However, employers, the self-employed, and landlords must take steps to identify and control the risk of Legionella before employees and the public re-enter their premises.