Risk management strategy has historically focused on risks to assets appearing on a company’s balance sheet. However, increasingly chief financial officers and risk managers are seeking methods to provide protection against risks to earnings. Ultimately managing risk is about managing uncertainty. There are both positive and negative results from uncertainty, and risk management has tended to focus on the negative. However, risk strategies can play a major role in the identification of opportunities.

As companies often miss opportunities because they are over-cautious, we offer risk assessment tools that enable a company to truly identify the cost of risks and make informed decisions about whether to take them on.

Our services include:

• Business evaluation – identifying uncertainties around business operations and implementing improvement strategies.
• Process improvement – driving operational performance by identifying, assessing and reducing sources of process variation.
• Integration management – identifying and addressing the effects of implementing change on people, communication channels and information flows.
• Project management – improving confidence in achieving cost, time and quality targets via pre-contract appraisals and real-time project delivery processes.

Risk Management Services

Our risk management practice focuses on delivering first-class advice to multinational corporate clients, financial institutions, governments and public entities. We offer a range of consultancy services, including:

• Risk management
• Due diligence and contract reviews
• Major projects
• Overseas servicing
• Project finance

Captive management

An increasing number of companies are seeking outsourced risk management advice. Our services in this area are wide-ranging and we can provide whatever level of risk management support you need – from assisting existing risk management departments on ad hoc projects, to long-term risk management advice.

Due Diligence And Contract Reviews

In terms of due diligence, we offer a wide range of services. For example, we can review insurance programmes, manage broker tenders, report on the financial security of recommended insurers/reinsurers, advise on bespoke wordings, and review insurance programme documentation to ensure your broker has arranged optimum cover. We can also ensure that your cover fulfils your lender’s minimum insurance requirements. One key area we help clients with is mergers and acquisitions, carrying out pre-acquisition insurance and risk management due diligence.

Contract reviews

Before entering into a new insurance contract, how many companies actively consider the risks involved in the new venture? Companies need to fully weigh up the risks and opportunities involved in any new venture. This is partly because many contracts are negotiated by employees whose main responsibility is not to draft contracts. This may result in terms that are detrimental to the company and, at worst, could cost a great deal of money in the event of a dispute.

We offer an insurance contract review service to:

• Establish the level and nature of the risks being assumed
• Amend terms where appropriate
• Establish insurance provisions that are workable
• Verify suppliers’ and sub-contractors’ insurances

It is common for a contract term to become a deal-breaker during negotiations, but we help our clients to navigate such issues and devise insurance (or other risk financing) solutions to resolve such problems.

Project Finance

We provide due diligence advice to lending institutions on the insurance aspects of limited and non-recourse financing arrangements. We review the risks of a project and advise lenders on the insurance mechanisms required to access claims funds in the event of a serious loss. Typically, our work involves reviewing insurance documentation to check:

• Whether clauses have been included in the policy that protect the lender’s interests, e.g. non-vitiation
• The execution of assignments of insurance and/or reinsurance
• The financial rating strength of the insurers and/or reinsurers

With our in-depth knowledge of the insurance market, we are also able to advise lenders on changes to market terms and conditions that could affect the commercial availability of insurance cover required by the loan agreement.

We believe that how we handle our customers’ claims is the true test of our value as a broker.

We’ll already understand your business and we’ll know the products that cover you inside out. That’s why we believe claims should be managed in-house.

When we’re notified of a claim, our experienced claims department will, where appropriate, do the following:

• Notify the relevant insurer:
• Issue a claim form
• Help with collecting any extra information and documentation that might be necessary
• Notify your account handler
• Liaise with insurers and, where needed, loss adjusters.
• Provide the right documentation as requested
• Enter into negotiations on your behalf
• Keep you up to date on the status of your claim
• Document and report all claim related correspondence
• Issue your settlement cheque as quickly as possible

To make a claim or to discuss an existing claim, please contact your claims team on 0151 224 0650