Business Interruption cover is designed to operate following a loss at the business premises from a physical event, like a fire, flood, theft etc. So it will not provide cover following the recent forced closures by government. If your business is damaged by fire what would you do? Move, work from home, panic? Protect your business revenue If a crisis were to hit your business, would you be ready to survive and overcome it? Many well-run small businesses simply don’t have the resources needed to continue trading, and at some point have to sell up, or close. Business interruption insurance - also known as business income insurance - is there to help you through the rocky patches, getting you back on your feet and trading as usual.
Insurers will issue an employers liability certificate, but not a Public Liability certificate as it is not a legal requirement. Registered insurance brokers will on request issue a ‘To whom it may concern’ letter which clarifies what policies the business has in force. This is usually acceptable to any one requiring proof of cover. However, you may find that regulators require you to have certain types of insurance in order to operate. This effectively means that those insurances will be mandatory for particular professions. Solicitors, accountants and some healthcare professionals, for example, are required to have professional indemnity insurance. It’s also possible that you won’t be able to sign contracts without having certain types of insurance in place. Whenever you take on a piece of work you should see if your client has any requirements regarding insurance and check that you have that particular cover in place. Even if you find that there is no compulsory insurance for your particular business, it’s worth considering taking out a policy anyway. Insurance can cover you against mistakes, accidents, theft, damage and legal fees, making sure you can keep running even when things go wrong.
The only type of business insurance that is mandatory under UK law is employers’ liability cover, which is a legal requirement for most businesses that employ staff, even on a casual basis.
Professional indemnity insurance can cover your business for compensation claims made by a client because you’ve made a mistake in your work. The mistakes it covers could include: Professional negligence Unintentional breaches of copyright or confidentiality Loss of documents or data Defamation or libel This means that professional indemnity insurance is mainly useful for businesses that provide a professional service or offer advice. For example, if you accidentally forwarded confidential client information to a third party, or if your architecture firm made a mistake in plans and a building collapsed as a result, you could face a compensation claim. Professional indemnity insurance is a requirement of some membership bodies and regulators - if you’re a self-employed solicitor, financial adviser, accountant, or architect, for example.
Public liability insurance and professional indemnity insurance are both business insurance covers designed to cover compensation claims. However, the types of compensation claims they cover can be quite different. Public liability insurance can cover your business for: Injury compensation claims made against you Property damage compensation claims made against you Legal fees associated with injury or damage compensation claims Compensation claims covered by public liability insurance are those made by members of the public, which can include clients, customers, suppliers and passersby. For example, if you run a restaurant and a supplier slips on a newly-cleaned floor, or you run a consultancy business and you spill a cup of coffee over a client’s computer equipment, you could face a compensation claim. This means public liability insurance is useful for most businesses (as most businesses come into contact with the public), but it’s particularly important for shops, tradespeople and salons. Some client contracts will require you to have a certain level of public liability insurance.
Public liability insurance can cover compensation claims if you’re sued by a member of the public for injury or damage, while professional indemnity insurance can cover compensation claims if you’re sued by a client for a mistake that you make in your work.
Although most insurers will not cover those with terminal illnesses, there are some specialist insurers who will still provide full cover.
Generally you will be covered if you fall ill due to a condition that you are not aware of. However, if it is an undiagnosed condition that you are having investigated, you will not be covered. If you have pre-existing medical conditions, you must declare all conditions to the insurer who will then decide if they can provide the appropriate cover.
Yes, there are several ‘Long Stay’ policies available to suit various trip durations, whether it’s 3 months or 18 months.
This is dependent on each insurer. Some will automatically cover cruises, but others you may need to purchase a ‘Cruise Cover’ extension for an additional premium.
Generally this is an optional extension subject to an additional premium. However, some insurers may automatically provide cover for Winter Sports on an annual policy.
Yes, 2 or more friends who are going on holiday together can be covered on one Single Trip policy. The ‘lead insured’ will be the one who is arranging the insurance, and so it should be their address noted on the policy. Just be sure to give a copy of the policy documents to each insured person.
Yes, annual policies will cover each insured person travelling on their own, as well as when all insured persons travel together.
Only parents or a guardian with parental responsibility can open a Junior ISA for under 16s. Once a Junior ISA is open anyone can invest on behalf of the child. The maximum amount that can be invested in a Junior ISA for the tax year 2020/2021 is £9,000, this can be invested in cash or stocks and shares (or a mix of both)
If your spouse or civil partner dies you can inherit their ISA allowance. As well as your normal ISA allowance you can add a tax-free amount up to either, the value held in their ISA when they died or the value of their ISA when it’s closed.
No, you can withdraw from an ISA at any time and usually without penalty
You are permitted to have a cash ISA – including a Help to Buy ISA – a Stocks & Shares ISA, an innovative finance ISA, a Lifetime ISA or a mixture of all of them
You can save up to a maximum of £20,000 per year (for 2020/21), and this can be in a cash ISA – including a Help to Buy ISA – a stocks & shares ISA, an innovative finance ISA, a Lifetime ISA or a mixture of all of them
You can choose to leave your pension to whoever you like. If you chose income drawdown any unused fund can be paid as a lump sum, or your dependant can choose to use the remainder of the pot to buy a pension. If you have nominated beneficiary drawdown in the terms of your drawdown arrangement then your beneficiary can continue to draw down income from the pot or transfer to another arrangement. So long as the benefits are paid within two years of the scheme becoming aware of your death, if you die before the age of 75 then benefits are paid tax-free. On your death after age 75, benefits are taxed at the recipient’s marginal rate of income tax.
If you are over age 55 you can usually take cash from your pension pot whenever you need it. For each cash withdrawal normally the first 25% (quarter) will be tax-free, but the rest will be added to your other income and is taxable. There are other ways you can take withdrawals and it maybe that you require all of the tax free cash up front, all future withdrawals however will be added to your income and taxed accordingly.
If you have no earnings or earn less than £3,600 a year, you can still pay into a pension scheme and qualify to have tax relief added to your contributions up to a certain amount. The maximum you can pay is £2,880 a year. Tax relief is added to your contribution so if you pay £2,880, a total of £3,600 a year will be paid into your pension scheme.
If you take any income from any pension you will trigger the MPAA (Money Purchase Annual Allowance) and from then on be restricted to what you can contribute to a pension, for 2020/21 the maximum you will be able to pay into a pension will be reduced to £4,000 per annum.
You can contribute up to 100% of your earnings to your pension each year or up to the annual allowance of £40,000 (2020/21). This means the total sum of any personal contributions, employer contributions and government tax relief received, can't exceed the £40,000 annual pension allowance. Any contributions you make over this limit won’t attract tax relief and will be added to your other income and be subject to Income Tax at the rate(s) that applies to you. However, you can carry forward unused allowances from the previous three years, as long as you were a member of a pension scheme during those years.
You can usually start utilising your pension from the age of 55. This is before you can receive your State Pension. Whether you have a defined benefit or defined contribution pension scheme, you can usually start taking money from the age of 55. This is likely to change to 10 years before the date that you receive your state pension.
Living in a smaller property is likely to reduce ongoing costs, such as council tax and utility bills, and managing a smaller property maybe easier too. However, strong ties to the community will often mean you have no intentions of moving out of the area. You could choose to stay put in order to release capital for living expenses in retirement by using a lifetime mortgage. For those who do decide to downsize, the financial windfall can be significant. Lloyds Bank reported that, when downsizers move from a detached three bedroom house to a flat or bungalow, the average amount of equity released from the property sale is £109,656. Don’t rush into any hasty decisions, the best solutions will need some time to fully appreciate. Contact us and we will help you plan your later years.
Yes! Despite the importance of these legal documents, research found that 60% of adults don’t have a will in place. If you die without a valid will, you die ‘intestate’ and your financial assets are distributed in accordance to government rules, which is not necessarily in line with your own wishes. This can result in your money going to people you might not have wanted to receive it. It is not safe to assume that your partner will inherit your wealth when you die if you don’t have a will in place, especially if you cohabit; there’s a good chance they won’t receive a penny. You can also appoint guardians for your children in your will, so getting your will written is an opportunity to tick two important items off your death planning list in one go. If you haven’t already sorted out your will, now is the time.
Financial Planning involves identifying what is important to you, and then understanding why it is so. Once we understand your aspirations, we will produce your own Personal Financial Plan which will help you achieve that desired future lifestyle. Independent Financial Advice is where a particular product or investment from the whole of the market is recommended to help achieve the overall Financial Plan.
Quite simply, this is your chance to see whether we are right for each other. You will get the chance to see the firm, how we operate and how we have helped others in the past. We do not charge for this meeting (it is purely at our cost) and it should last no longer than 40 minutes.
Actually, if you are used to the commission model, you did pay a fee! When an IFA recommended a product in the past and you bought it, the product provider usually paid a commission to the adviser. This commission is an additional charge built into the product. So although you might not feel it to start with (because you didn’t physically write out a cheque), the commission will have a an effect; the charges will mean either a higher premium has to be paid (in the case of insurance products) or the initial investment amount is lower, or the investment growth rate is lower. From 1st January 2013 commission ceased to be paid on new investment and pension business. Now we charge a fee, similar to a solicitor or accountant. This is good news for most clients as the fees we charge now are less than the amount of commission that was available. As we are fee-based, you can be confident that our investment recommendations are completely impartial and are designed to meet your objectives rather than generate unnecessary commissions. And as our fees are lower, your investment growth will be higher.
Most people will find that they will struggle to live only on a state pension in later life. If you qualify for a full state pension, you receive an income of £9,110.40 in the tax year 2020/21. This compares to £26,572 a year for the average full-time employee in the UK (Nov 2019 ). Research has found that nearly one in five working adults believe the state pension will be their main source of retirement income, we don’t think that this will be enough for most people. If you’re thinking about your own retirement and want to make sure you have enough, please do get in touch. We can help you calculate which sources and levels of income you can expect to receive in later life, before advising on a strategy to maximise retirement income from all sources, so that you can live comfortably when you stop working.
By taking some risk and investing in the stock market, you can reach your financial goals sooner. Whether building up a deposit for a first home, paying school fees or saving for your retirement, for these long-term goals, the buying power of cash will typically be eroded by price inflation over time. Research shows that those who invested in a stocks and shares Individual Savings Account (ISA) 15 years ago could have enjoyed gains of almost double those experienced by individuals leaving money in cash over the same period. Investing money does involve risk and there may be periods when the value decreases. We will help you manage your expectations and will always advise that you leave a sensible amount in cash for short term and emergency needs.
We will always endeavour to ensure the products recommended are suitable for you. When we advise you on regulated products (including investments, insurance and some forms of mortgages) you have the protection of the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) and the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). If you are unhappy about the advice or service you have received you should firstly contact the firm that provided the advice or service. This gives them the chance to put things right and/or to provide their own version of events. Should you remain dissatisfied you may be entitled to refer your complaint to the FOS who will investigate the complaint independently and make a ruling. The FOS work with customers and financial advisers to resolve a complaint, and when they do have to make a ruling it is binding upon the firm. If you wish to register a complaint against our firm our contact details can be found on the contact us page of the website.
If you go to your high street bank you may be greeted by a financial adviser, but they could well be ‘tied’ to recommending and promoting the products of the bank, or a single insurance/investment company to which the bank has an allegiance. Independent advisers can select products for customers from the whole of market – that means they can potentially recommend any product from any company providing it suits the client’s needs and objectives. With such a wide choice of companies, investments and saving tools the you can be reassured that you are not simply being provided with a standard recommendation – and are getting personalised advice.
Rickard Lazenby Financial Services Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. If you use an adviser that is not approved by the FCA, you will not have access to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) or Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) if things go wrong. Our Retail Clients have access to the FOS and the FSCS.
