Sunday, February 19, 2012

Insurance For Staffing Companies

When starting a staffing company, it is important to note that before you send out your first temporary employee, you must have adequate business insurance in order to conduct business. At a bare minimum, you will have to purchase Worker's Compensation and General Liability Insurance. On top of those insurances, it would be a good idea to consider buying a G/L policy that will also include Professional Liability Coverage, as well as Errors & Omissions (E&O) coverages. The biggest challenge a staffing agency owner may face could be identifying an insurance company that truly understands the staffing industry.

Unless you are working with someone who understands your business, you will spin your wheels in trying to secure proper insurances. The challenge with underwriting an insurance policy for a staffing company is the fact that you are or will be sending out temps or contract employees to remote, 3rd party client sites, which can cause you to lose direct control over those employees. If those employees worked on-site every day at your office location, the risk would be easier to assess. However, in the staffing world, your direct employees work at client locations, which adds risk from an insurance company's perspective. Insurance companies have a larger underwriting task when taking into effect that your employees may be asked to perform certain tasks at a client location that you may not otherwise ask them to perform if they were on-site at your office.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Fire Insurance Under Indian Insurance Law

A contract of Insurance comes into being when a person seeking insurance protection enters into a contract with the insurer to indemnify him against loss of property by or incidental to fire and or lightening, explosion, etc. This is primarily a contract and hence as is governed by the general law of contract. However, it has certain special features as insurance transactions, such as utmost faith, insurable interest, indemnity, subrogation and contribution, etc. these principles are common in all insurance contracts and are governed by special principles of law.

FIRE INSURANCE:

According to S. 2(6A), "fire insurance business" means the business of effecting, otherwise than incidentally to some other class of insurance business, contracts of insurance against loss by or incidental to fire or other occurrence, customarily included among the risks insured against in fire insurance business.

According to Halsbury, it is a contract of insurance by which the insurer agrees for consideration to indemnify the assured up to a certain extent and subject to certain terms and conditions against loss or damage by fire, which may happen to the property of the assured during a specific period.
Thus, fire insurance is a contract whereby the person, seeking insurance protection, enters into a contract with the insurer to indemnify him against loss of property by or incidental to fire or lightning, explosion etc. This policy is designed to insure one's property and other items from loss occurring due to complete or partial damage by fire.

In its strict sense, a fire insurance contract is one:

1. Whose principle object is insurance against loss or damage occasioned by fire.

2. The extent of insurer's liability being limited by the sum assured and not necessarily by the extent of loss or damage sustained by the insured: and

3. The insurer having no interest in the safety or destruction of the insured property apart from the liability undertaken under the contract.

LAW GOVERNING FIRE INSURANCE

There is no statutory enactment governing fire insurance, as in the case of marine insurance which is regulated by the Indian Marine Insurance Act, 1963. the Indian Insurance Act, 1938 mainly dealt with regulation of insurance business as such and not with any general or special principles of the law relating fire of other insurance contracts. So also the General Insurance Business (Nationalization) Act, 1872. in the absence of any legislative enactment on the subject , the courts in India have in dealing with the topic of fire insurance have relied so far on judicial decisions of Courts and opinions of English Jurists.

In determining the value of property damaged or destroyed by fire for the purpose of indemnity under a policy of fire insurance, it was the value of the property to the insured, which was to be measured. Prima facie that value was measured by reference of the market value of the property before and after the loss. However such method of assessment was not applicable in cases where the market value did not represent the real value of the property to the insured, as where the property was used by the insured as a home or, for carrying business. In such cases, the measure of indemnity was the cost of reinstatement. In the case of Lucas v. New Zealand Insurance Co. Ltd.[1] where the insured property was purchased and held as an income-producing investment, and therefore the court held that the proper measure of indemnity for damage to the property by fire was the cost of reinstatement.

INSURABLE INTEREST

A person who is so interested in a property as to have benefit from its existence and prejudice by its destruction is said to have insurable interest in that property. Such a person can insure the property against fire.

The interest in the property must exist both at the inception as well as at the time of loss. If it does not exist at the commencement of the contract it cannot be the subject-matter of the insurance and if it does not exist at the time of the loss, he suffers no loss and needs no indemnity. Thus, where he sells the insured property and it is damaged by fire thereafter, he suffers no loss.

Saturday, January 7, 2012

Construction Safety in the Modern World - Your Responsibility as a Client

To begin with it's perhaps worth looking at what the CDM regulations are and put simply they have been introduced to ensure construction projects are safe to build, use and be maintained whilst delivery good value to the client. As well as this they have also been put into place to ensure through good health and safety planning projects are well managed and problems and unexpected costs are kept to minimum levels.

For some this may seem like yet more regulation and unnecessary paperwork and processes but in reality the CMD 2007 regulations have been introduced to ensure construction and building work is done by competent people who work safely and efficiently.

When it comes to requirements of clients (or the person having the work carried out) the regulations don't apply to domestic clients. A domestic client is defined as being someone who will or does live in the premises where the work is being carried out. The premises at which at work is being done must not also relate to any trade, business or other undertaking for the client to be deemed as domestic. So if you're a non domestic client under the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 you have to:

1. Appoint the right people - trade associations are a great way to find designers and contractors who are competent, have sufficient resources and will carry out work safely.

2. Allow enough time for your project - failing to allow for adequate time for the design, planning and construction is likely to mean more chance of it being unsafe or of a poor quality.

3. Information is vital - to ensure your project runs smoothly you have to ensure that your construction team is told what you want, how you will use it as well as details of the site, structures and hazards as this will allow them to plan, budget and work to your exact requirements.

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Globlization And Its Impact Of Insurance Industry In India

INTRODUCTION

The word "Fear" has only four alphabets like love but both of them have very different e meaning. Whatever man (malor female) does for the love of their families always starts with the background of fear. Generally so many times we have been asking our selves that, what will happen if we were not there, but we keep on asking rather then doing something for it. Time is precious, it never stops for any one and we are living in the world of uncertainty; the uncertainty of job, the uncertainty of money, the uncertainty of property and like this the story goes continuous for the whole life of a man.

A thriving insurance sector is of vital importance to every modern economy. Firstly because it encourages the habit of saving, secondly because it provides a safety net to rural and urban enterprises and productive individuals. And perhaps most importantly it generates long- term invisible funds for infrastructure building. The nature of the insurance business is such that the cash inflow of insurance companies is constant while the payout is deferred and contingency related.

This characteristic feature of their business makes insurance companies the biggest investors in long-gestation infrastructure development projects in all developed and aspiring nations. This is the most compelling reason why private sector (and foreign) companies, which will spread the insurance habit in the societal and consumer interest are urgently required in this vital sector of the economy. Opening up of insurance to private sector including foreign participation has resulted into various opportunities and challenges in India.

LIFE INSURANCE MARKET

The Life Insurance market in India is an underdeveloped market that was only tapped by the state owned LIC till the entry of private insurers. The penetration of life insurance products was 19 percent of the total 400 million of the insurable population. The state owned LIC sold insurance as a tax instrument, not as a product giving protection. Most customers were under- insured with no flexibility or transparency in the products. With the entry of the private insurers the rules of the game have changed.

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

CCTV Systems - Discover The Ultimate Protection For Your Home And Business

Today the price of modern security technology, like CCTV systems, is coming down so fast you'd be crazy not to have one of these systems installed at your home or business. Fortunately for you and I, over the last decade the price of technology like home computers and video cameras has fallen dramatically, which puts us in the driver's seat when it comes to protecting our loved ones at home and securing our business. CCTV stands for Closed-Circuit TeleVision and is one of the most economical and effective ways to increase your security and provide peace of mind for the whole family.

CCTV Systems to protect your home

Many local reports seem to indicate that crime is on the rise in all of our local communities. In one Sydney suburb last week there were 123 reported car break-ins and many of these could have been prevented with a major deterrent like a CCTV security system.

Technology now allows you to install a state-of-the-art CCTV camera at the front of your home, allowing you to record suspicious activities and deter criminals from any attempted break-ins. The modern CCTV systems can alert you via your mobile phone no matter where you are in the world. You can then login via your mobile phone and see exactly what is going on through your CCTV camera right then and there. This puts you in control should you need to contact authorities and protect your home. You can now monitor multiple areas of your home easily, have real-time displays on each monitor and receive crystal clear images recorded straight to your PC and phone.

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Non Profit Insurance - Directors and Officers Liability Coverage

Does your 501(c)3 Non Profit organization need Directors and Officers Liability Coverage? The simple and absolute answer is "Yes!" The risks to your organization are both real and significant.

Allegations of improper business practices are common as are Employment related issues such as Wrongful Termination, Discrimination and Harassment to name a few. The cost of an award can be disastrous, much less the always present Defense costs.

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Insure Sales With Promotional Products For Insurance Firms

Insurance agents and firms offer a valuable service. As an insurance professional, you're in competition with literally hundreds of other agents who are offering not only the same type of product that you offer, but the exact same lines from the exact same underwriters. It's important to make your firm stand out from the pack, and promotional products offer you a way to do just that. When you use promotional products as part of an overall marketing strategy, you'll see your business grow before your eyes.

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Employee Assistance Programs and Drug Addiction Treatment

Employee Assistance Programs offer people who are suffering from drug addiction or alcoholism opportunities to get the help they need, when they need it. These programs are offered by a great deal of US employers and can provide benefits and services related to drug treatment, among many other services. Also called Member Assistance Programs when offered through a union, these programs offer tools and resources that are specifically designed to help employees and members help themselves when dealing with a problem such as drug addiction or alcoholism. However, many employees are not aware that these programs exist or wouldn't dare use them even if they did. This is because there is a general misconception that if you use drugs and admit to it, you'll be fired. But this is exactly what employee assistance programs seek to prevent.

Employee assistance programs and member assistance programs do not penalize workers if they reach out for help for addiction in the appropriate way. In fact, many of these programs have rules and regulations in place that specifically prohibit any action from being taken against an employee or member who requests help. These types of programs were put in place to get people the help they need in a positive, encouraging and friendly environment that is free from fear of reprisals or punishments.

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

How To Choose The Best Car Insurance Deal

There are a lot of car owners all across the world. But the thing is, some of them do not really realize the value of having a car insurance. An auto insurance will provide you assistance in times of car accidents or any incident resulting to vehicle or property damage. It will also give you peace of mind. When you are searching for the best insurance deal for your car, read on and find out more.

Helpful Tips In Choosing Car Insurance

1. You need to choose the best deal when searching for an automobile insurance company. There are a lot of auto insurance companies you can find nowadays. But the greatest concern you might have is finding the best and suitable one for you. In order to do this, you can make a list of automobile insurance companies you can find. Check each company's profile in order to see how they have performed for the past years of their existence.

2. Another thing you can do is ask a friend or colleague if they know a reliable insurance company. With this, you can be ensured that you will make the right choice.