News

There's lots of debate at the moment about the existence of zero hour contracts. However, most vending operators are probably more concerned about their exposure to a minefield of legal changes covering a wide range of issues. It’s tough enough trying to make a profit and stay in business and made harder if you have issues dealing with employment problems with a member of your workforce.
 
Keeping pace with developments to employment law is now a full-time job. However, the majority of vending operators are unlikely to have an in-house legal or human resources department, or the available funds to cover legal disputes as they arise. So, unless a company has in house legal expertise it can be very expensive to ensure compliance on all issues and can place considerable strain on the resources of a small business.

In 2014, CLEAR launched the Pauline Uludag Employee of the Year Award in memory of our well-loved Claims Manager Pauline Uludag, who lost her fight with illness in December 2012 and passed away. Pauline was known for her exemplary standards, cheerful and considerate demeanour and genuine warmth towards clients, colleagues and insurers. The award was set up to recognise those of our staff who go the extra mile like Pauline did.

We had several staff nominations for our award and we were delighted to announce at our recent staff party that the winner of the 2016 award was Kerry Thompson. There were also two runner up awards; Tracy Holding-Director of the Year and Nisa Leach-Young Achiever of the Year.

CLEAR’s CEO Howard Lickens recently wrote an article for Post Online in which he discussed his views on buying a business for the long term, and here they are:

Please note that CLEAR will be moving email services on the weekend of 13th-16th January 2017.

 
All emails sent to us will continue to be received and forwarded, but there could be a sluggish response to some services and our access to emails may be restricted/delayed.

We are delighted to announce that the third quarter winners of our Pauline Uludag Employee of the Year Award are Fran Foster and Gary Watkins. Here's a little bit about our quarter 3 winners , and the reason why our staff voted for them:

Christmas is nearly here and as 2016 comes to an end we would like to take a moment to thank you for your valued support. Sending you yuletide greetings and the best of luck for a prosperous 2017!

Here are our Christmas opening hours incase you need to contact us:

RBS and Natwest have alerted us to the Bogus Boss scam which has already cost UK businesses millions of pounds.

Please take note of these guidelines, so you don’t get caught out:

Congratulations to Laura Miller, Trainee Account Handler in CLEAR's Commercial department, for being selected as an Apprenticeships Live finalist having recently attended their regional event.

The objective of the events, hosted by the Insurance Times and CII, is to help recognise and develop the insurance industry’s brightest and best apprentices.

The judging panel were extremely impressed with the quality of input from everyone on the day and Laura was selected – unanimously – as one of the finalists for their London event, which was held on Monday.

Aviva run a great campaign every year to support local causes promoted by brokers, offering the chance for community projects to win funding.

Oliver Webb, who works in our Leamington Spa Office, put forward a fantastic cause and is promoting the Birmingham Children’s Hospital Transplant Games Team. It’s a great event which the families love and raises the profile of organ donorship.

The weak pound may be good news for UK exporters but for firms that use parts, equipment and raw materials from abroad to make their products – business is getting much tougher. What’s more, the government’s caginess about what the terms of ‘Brexit’ will be may cause the value of sterling to sink further in the coming months.

One effect of this downward trend is that firms that bought parts or materials from overseas when the pound was stronger will find it more costly to replace them if, say, they’re damaged or stolen.

Despite increased regulation and more stringent internal controls, fraud, theft and dishonesty are still major threats to organisations.

In a fraud barometer report, conducted by a leading auditor earlier this year, it was highlighted that the total cost (£732 million) of fraudulent activity in the UK remains worryingly high, up from £717 million in 2014.

If your organisation is looking to minimise potential losses from fraud, theft or dishonesty, insurance can offer valuable protection. Here are our 7 reasons to buy crime cover:

First launched in 2012, the annual Cockpit Arts / CLEAR Insurance Award aims to support professional craftspeople by providing them with match funded studio space and business development support for one year. Matthew moved in to Cockpit Arts, Deptford in January 2016 and we recently caught up with him to ask about his progress winning the award.

We are pleased to share some Q&As about Matt’s progress:

We are delighted to announce that the second quarter winners of our Pauline Uludag Employee of the Year Award are Gill Dockerty, Mark Heyes and Vanessa Richardson. Here's a little bit about our quarter 2 winners , and the reason why our staff voted for them:

On Thursday 8th September, we hosted our annual Golf Day to thank clients, insurers and associates for their custom and assistance during the past 12 months.

Once again we were blessed with fantastic weather and great golf playing and we were able to raise nearly £900 for our Charity of the Year, Cancer Research UK on the day. 

There are now more digitally connected devices than there are people on the planet. This vast interconnected system of devices, vehicles and even entire buildings are all part of the Internet of Things (IoT).

Despite the potential benefits of utilising the IoT to support your company, there are some associated hazards. But with the proper knowledge and preparation, you can effectively mitigate those risks while securely strengthening your company and reaping the benefits.

Published in April of this year, the Panama Papers—a collection of 11.5 million documents with information on the identities of shareholders and directors for more than 214,000 offshore companies—represent the largest data breach in history (dwarfing the data released by the Wikileaks organisation in 2010) . The information contained in these documents is concerning, since the files reportedly show how several corporations were able to launder money, dodge sanctions and avoid tax. The breach not only highlighted the importance and value of a robust cyber security system, but it also highlighted how cyber criminals are accessing more than just financial information.

The Insurance Act 2015 (Act) is here, replacing the 110-year-old Marine Insurance Act 1906, which until now, governed contracts between businesses and insurers. Many industry insiders are hailing the Act as the most significant change to UK insurance contract law in more than a century.

On Thursday 14th July we held a Cheese and Wine raffle event for Insurers and staff to raise money for our Charity of Choice for 2016, Cancer Research UK.

Our staff voted to support Cancer Research UK in 2016, as they need our support to fund clinical trials, the running of labs and all those working tirelessly to beat cancer.

We are delighted to announce that Leah Jensen is the winner of this year’s Cockpit Arts/ CLEAR Insurance Award. The award, which specifically aims to support professional designer-makers, was very competitive and Leah was chosen due to her innovative techniques in process.

Leah has been awarded a match funded place at Cockpit Arts Holborn for one year, worth £2,500. including; Studio space for one year, business and professional development services and an insurance package from CLEAR.

Back in May, we asked you if you’d take part in our email survey as we wanted to better understand what our customers need from us and how we can improve our service.

Firstly, a big thanks to all of you who took part.

We received some excellent feedback around improving our communication, documentation and online services and are currently looking at ways in which we can implement as many of your suggestions as possible.