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01223 324233A Trade Credit Insurance policy transfers the risk of bad debts away from your balance sheet to an insurer, in return for a premium.
Many businesses have up to 40% of their assets tied up in trade debtors (unpaid invoices) and yet this, arguably most important asset, often remains uninsured.
Consider the impact of a large customer becoming insolvent. This will have an adverse effect on your cash flow, could jeopardize your bank facilities and ultimately may result in your own insolvency.
Our Credit team have over 100 years’ collective experience in arranging such insurance programmes for our clients who range from SMEs to multi-national PLCs.
Cover is available for:
The S-Tech team comprises six very experienced individuals with over 100 years of collective industry knowledge. We have worked in both underwriting and broking so we have seen the market from both sides of the fence. This is important to our customers because they need a full explanation of the policy management to ensure they comply with the policy wording to make certain their claims are paid without quibble.
With access to all underwriters in the market, we are able to offer you a full broking service to find the best solution for your needs then help you get started, remaining on hand to provide advice and support throughout the policy period including a full claims management service.
In return for your premium you have access to the following benefits:
In return for your premium you have access to the following benefits:
If you are involved with the Construction Trade then you may be familiar with the above term or even had to obtain one.
A Performance Bond is a guarantee given by an underwriter to a Contractor on behalf of a sub-contractor. The underwriter guarantees to pay a sum of money (usually 10% of the contract value) to the Contractor in the event that the sub-contractor becomes insolvent during the the contract works period and is therefore unable to complete the work for which they were originally employed.
A sub-contractor may be able to obtain a bond or guarantee from their own bank. However, to do so may tie up the very valuable working capital necessary for successful completion of the works.
Underwriters will require a fully completed proposal form, the bond wording (if provided by the Contractor, otherwise a standard ABI wording will be used) and a sight of full, up-to-date financial information such as annual and/or management accounts. They may also require directors’ guarantees and, should group companies be involved, cross counter indemnities. There may also be other case-specific conditions imposed or with which to comply.
Many underwriters are prepared to put a bond facility in place for a sub-contractor to make the underwriting process more simple each time a bond is required. This is essentially a line of credit which can be accessed when required and without the need to gather vast amounts of information each time the sub-contractor needs a bond. The sub-contractor keeps the underwriter furnished with management and other accounting information on a regular basis together with bond details such as certificates of practical completion. In return, they have a line of credit already in place to use as and when required.
A large number of credit insurance policies are written on this basis, particularly in the SME and Mid-Market arenas. This means you provide the insurer with a forecast of your annual turnover but you can exclude customers where you get paid before the goods are despatched or the customer is not a credit risk such as government bodies
The purpose of a bond is to help the client meet the extra expenses to remedy the default and/or complete the contract. There are several types of bond that S-Tech can arrange.
This type of policy is suitable for a company that has a large or excessive exposure to a single company or group of companies. Specific account cover is protection that looks after one-off larger contracts, or the debt owed by one of a company’s largest customers.
Invoice Discounting is a type of Cash Flow Finance, releasing cash against a company’s sales ledger.
Cash is king for any business, regardless of its size. However, trading on credit terms and the ongoing troubles with late payment can lead to cash flow challenges and restrict the potential of even the most profitable of businesses.
Credit Insurance will protect against the insolvency of/refusal to pay by your customers. Our Scheme policy is aimed at companies in the agricultural and horticultural industries, including those trading in fresh produce, herbs, flowers, dairy products & livestock among others.
With trade customers holding the potential to both make and break a business, financial protection is top of the agenda for most business owners – and this is precisely the role of credit insurance.
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