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SUFFOLK
INSURANCE CONSULTANTS LTD
TERMS OF BUSINESS
The Financial Services Authority (FSA)
The FSA is the independent watchdog that regulates financial
services. It requires us to give you this document.
Please use this document to decide if our services are
right for you.
Our Service
We act as an Independent Intermediary on your behalf
and our service includes advising you on your insurance
needs, arranging your insurance cover with insurers
to meet your requirements and helping you with any ongoing
changes you have to make.
Products we offer
We sell and advise on a wide range of both personal
and commercial insurance products and provide advice
or information on the basis of a fair analysis of the
market from a wide range of insurers. We only offer
products from a limited number of insurers for Travel
insurance. We will provide a list of these insurers
on request. For motor legal expenses insurance we deal
exclusively with Angel Assistance Ltd.
Our Charges
In addition to premiums charged by Insurers, we may,
at our discretion, make the following charges to cover
the administration of your insurances: Mid term adjustments
- £5.00 Replacement of lost certificates - £10.00 Mid
term cancellations - 10% of any refund due subject to
a maximum of £20. Credit arrangements - £10.00 for payment
by post-dated cheques, full details on request . For
some commercial insurances we will agree individual
fees with clients for New Business and Renewals. The
specific amount and purpose of any additional charges
will always be advised to you in advance.
Credit Terms
Unless special arrangements have been made, renewal
premiums must be paid to us prior to expiry of an existing
policy. Additional premiums due as a result of mid-term
changes must be paid within 14 days or immediately on
demand. We reserve the right to cancel policies or reduce
cover in the event of non payment of premiums.
Who regulates us?
Suffolk Insurance Consultants Limited is authorised
and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.
Our FSA registration number is 302531
Our permitted business is:
Advising customers on non-investment contracts
This includes recommending a specific insurance policy.
Arranging (bringing about) deals in non-investment insurance
contracts
This covers a range of activities including introducing
a customer to an insurer, helping a customer to complete
a proposal form and sending this to an insurer.
Making arrangements with a view to transactions in
non-investment insurance contracts
This includes helping a potential policyholder to complete
a proposal form or introducing a customer to another
intermediary, either for advice or to help arrange an
insurance policy.
Dealing as agent in non-investment insurance contracts
This includes entering into a contract of insurance
with a customer on behalf of an insurer (for example,
issuing a cover note).
Assisting in the administration and performance of
a non-investment insurance contract
This includes notifying an insurance claim to the insurer
and negotiating settlement on behalf of the customer.
You can check the above on FSA's register by visiting
their website www.fsa.gov.uk/register
or by contacting them on 0845 606 1234.
Complaints
It is our intention to provide you with a high level
of customer service at all times. However, if, at any
time you are dissatisfied with the service we provide,
we have a formal complaints procedure. You should, therefore,
take the following course of action:
In the first instance you should discuss your complaint
with the member of staff with whom you have been dealing.
If you remain dissatisfied, please write to or telephone
Mr G M Carter at the address and telephone number shown
overleaf. We will acknowledge your complaint within
5 working days and advise you who is conducting the
investigation into the matters which you have raised.
We will provide a formal response within 20 working
days from initial receipt of the complaint. If the complaint
cannot be resolved within this timescale we will explain
why and specify the likely timescale for resolution.
If we cannot settle your complaint, you may be entitled
to refer it to the Financial Ombudsman Service. We will
advise you if you are able to refer any complaint to
the Financial Ombudsman.
Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS)
We are covered by the FSCS. You may be entitled to compensation
from the scheme if we cannot meet our obligations. This
depends on the type of business and the circumstances
of the claim. Insurance advising and arranging is covered
for 100% of the first £2000 and 90% of the remainder
of the claim, without any upper limit. For compulsory
classes of insurance, insurance advising and arranging
is covered for 100% of the claim, without any upper
limit. Further information about compensation scheme
arrangements is available from the FSCS.
Disclosure of Information
It is your responsibility to provide complete and accurate
information to insurers when you take out your insurance
policy, throughout the life of your policy, and when
you renew your insurance. Failure to disclose information
pertaining to your insurance, or any inaccuracies in
information given, could result in your insurance being
invalid or cover not operating fully. It is important
you ensure that all statements you make on proposal
forms, claim forms and other documents are full and
accurate. If a form is completed on your behalf, you
should check that the answers shown to any questions
are true and accurate before signing the document. You
are reminded that it is an offence under the Road Traffic
Act to make any false statements or withhold any relevant
information to obtain an Insurance Certificate. You
are advised to keep copies of any correspondence you
send to us or direct to your insurer. If you are in
any doubt as to whether any information is material,
you should disclose it.
Completion of Proposal Forms
All answers on any proposal form and any other statements
made to us by you are your responsibility. Your attention
is particularly drawn to the importance of the declaration
and signature on Insurers' proposal forms. Any failure
to disclose facts material to the insurance or any inaccuracies
in your answers could invalidate policy cover. Please
consult us if you are in any doubt as to whether information
is material.
Awareness of Policy Terms
When a policy is issued to you, you are strongly recommended
to read it carefully as it is that document, the schedule
and any certificate of insurance which is the basis
of the cover you have purchased. If in any doubt over
any of the policy terms or conditions please seek our
advice urgently.
Premiums and Financial Aspects
We normally accept payment by guaranteed cheque, cash
or any of the major debit/credit cards. You may be able
to spread your payments through insurers' instalment
schemes or a credit scheme that we have arranged with
a third party finance provider. We will give you full
information about your payment options when we discuss
your insurance in detail.
For certain types of insurance we may ask you to sign
a form granting us authority to retain documents such
as Motor Certificates until full payment has been received.
In these circumstances we will provide you with any
documents that you are required to have by law.
We are the Agent of Insurers for the collection of certain
premiums.
Under the terms of the client bank account (which has
been set up in accordance with strict rules laid down
by the Financial Services Authority), we are required
to inform you that we may use your individual premium
to settle premiums due under other policies (including
those payable by other clients).
For some insurances we may place business with Insurers
through another FSA authorised intermediary and in these
circumstances premiums will be transferred to that intermediary.
You will be advised if this affects your own insurances.
Claims
It is essential that you notify us immediately of all
incidents which may result in a claim under your insurance
policy whether you believe you are liable or not. Any
letter or claim received by you must be passed to us
immediately.
When we receive notification of an incident that might
give rise to a claim under your policy, we will issue
you with a claim form if appropriate and inform your
insurers without delay.
We will advise you promptly of insurers' requirements
concerning claims, including the provision, as soon
as possible, of information required to establish the
nature and extent of loss.
You should not admit liability or agree to any course
of action, other than emergency measures to minimise
your loss, until you have agreement from your insurer.
We will forward any payments received from insurers,
in respect of any claim, to you without delay.
We will notify you of any request for information we
receive from your insurers.
Confidentiality
All personal information about our customers is treated
as Private and Confidential.
We will only use and disclose the information we have
about private individuals in the normal course of arranging
and administering their insurance and will not disclose
any information to any other parties without their written
consent unless required by law or public interest.
We may use the information we hold about our customers
to provide them with information about other products
and services which we feel may be appropriate to them.
Under the Data Protection Act 1988, private customers
have a right to see the personal information about them
that we hold in our records. If you wish to exercise
this right, or have any other related queries, you should
write to us at the above address.
Claims and Underwriting Exchange Register and Motor
Insurance Anti-Fraud Register
Insurers pass information to the Claims and Underwriting
Exchange Register operated by Database Services Ltd
and the Motor Insurance Anti-Fraud Register compiled
by the Association of British Insurers. The objective
is to check information provided and to prevent fraudulent
claims. Motor insurance details are also added to the
Motor insurance database operated by the Motor Insurers'
Information Centre (MIIC) which has been formed to help
identify uninsured drivers and may be accessed by the
Police to help confirm who is insured to drive. In the
event of an accident, this database may be used by Insurers,
MIIC and the Motor Insurance Bureau to identify relevant
policy information. Other insurance related databases
may also be added in the future.
Applicable Law
This Terms of Business is subject to English Law.
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info@suffolkinsurance.co.uk