Direct Group expands further with EVS deal
27/05/2010 09:00:00 by Marketing
Insurance services provider Direct Group, backed by Lloyds Development Capital, has completed the acquisition of Evander Validation Services for an undisclosed sum.
Preston-based EVS is one of three companies in the Evander Group bought from Homeserve in an LDC-funded transaction last September.
Following the latest deal, EVS managing director Colin Jones will continue to lead the division, which provides contents validation and fulfilment services.
It is the latest step in Direct Group's continued expansion which, since it was backed by LDC in 2007, has seen it acquire businesses including Millennium Insurance, a provider of general insurance solutions to the mortgage broker and independent financial adviser market.
The acquisition of EVS also widens Direct Group's portfolio, which includes outsourced insurance administration, claims handling and fulfilment; with products and services spanning property, protection, motor and travel.
Derek Coles, Direct Group chief executive, said: "We have rapidly grown our property and travel claims propositions and the EVS model complements both these areas. This move marks another significant step towards Direct Group's core strategy of delivering wider insurance solutions to our partners."
Mr Jones added: "Direct Group has been actively seeking a route into EVS' space and it became clear that a deal would be a strong cultural and strategic fit for both businesses."
Jonathan Simpson-Dent, Evander Group CEO, concluded: "Direct Group is uniquely positioned to take EVS to the next level and I am confident that this move will be beneficial for our customers and employees."
http://www.postonline.co.uk/post/news/1650505/direct-group-expands-evs-deal
Claims staff transferred to Direct Group to process motor and commercial policies
27/05/2010 08:30:00 by Marketing
UK General Insurance (UKGI) has signed a deal with Direct Group to outsource its non-complex commercial and motor claims, resulting in a number of staff being transferred over.
UK General Claims staff who currently work in Manchester and are affected by the agreement will be offered new roles in Direct Group at Elland, Halifax, under TUPE regulations.
UKGI claims director Nicola Lightowler said the decision was part of an ongoing strategic review aimed at making UK General one of the UK’s leading niche and specialist insurers among independent brokers.
She said the agreement with Direct Group will deliver further efficiencies without compromising service. “Brokers have told us that rapid and efficient claims processing is a top priority for them, and we are confident Direct Group can help us achieve this for our commoditised claims.”
Lightowler said UK General will retain a small team of technical claims experts to deal with all liability and high value property and motor claims.
“Our technical claims experts will now be able to fully focus on these complex claims, which will further improve UK General’s service to brokers in this key area,” she said.
Direct Group chief executive Derek Coles said the agreement built on an earlier partnership deal (signed in February 2009) between his company and Longhawk before the merger in June last year between Longhawk and Primary General to form UK General Insurance.
He said: “We already administer UK General’s claims in the travel, liability, GAP, creditor and property markets, and we are delighted to extend the relationship further by adding non-complex motor and commercial property claims to our claims administration portfolio.”
He added: “It marks the continued development of our strategy to offer a leading multi-product outsourced claims and administration model across a number of markets.”
http://www.insurancetimes.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=13&storycode=384661
Direct Group Continues Rapid Expansion
26/05/2010 09:00:00 by Marketing
Direct Group, the fast-growing insurance services provider has completed the acquisition of Evander Validation Services Limited (EVS) for an undisclosed sum.
EVS is one of three companies in the Evander Group which were bought from HomeServe Plc in September 2009.
Following the deal, current EVS Managing Director Colin Jones will continue to lead the rapid growth of the division which has established itself as market leader in the provision of contents validation and fulfilment services.
The transaction is a strong strategic fit for both businesses and adds to the enlarged group’s portfolio which spans product development, sales and premium collection, policy administration, claims management, reporting and performance management.
It is the latest step in Direct Group’s continued expansion which has seen it acquire a number of businesses including Millennium Insurance, a
Combined with organic growth, these deals have seen revenues at Direct Group rise from £8 million in 2007 to around £13 million in the current financial year.
Direct Group is now a leading player in the outsourced insurance administration, claims handling, validation and fulfilment market with products and services spanning property, protection, motor and travel.
Derek Coles, CEO of Direct Group added: “This deal provides Direct Group with an opportunity to further strengthen and add scale to the company. We have rapidly grown our property and travel claims propositions recently and the EVS model complements both these areas. I am delighted Colin Jones will continue to lead EVS focusing on providing exceptional service lead solutions tailored to the needs of its different clients. This move marks another significant step towards Direct Groups core strategy of delivering wider insurance solutions to our partners.”
Colin Jones, Managing Director of EVS, said: “Direct Group has been actively seeking a route into EVS’ space and when they began talking to us, it was clear that a deal would be a strong cultural and strategic fit for both businesses. I’m looking forward to working with Derek and the wider team to take this enlarged and enhanced proposition to market.”
Jonathan Simpson-Dent CEO Evander Group commented: “EVS has been an important part of the Evander Group to date and the team has made excellent progress in rapidly developing the business. Direct Group is uniquely positioned to take EVS to the next level and I am confident that this move will be beneficial for our customers and employees.”
BIBA and Millennium Insurance join forces to launch new Committed Payments Protection scheme
13/05/2010 09:00:00 by Marketing
The British Insurance Brokers’ Association (BIBA) has appointed BIBA member Millennium Insurance, the distribution arm of Direct Group, as the exclusive provider of its new members’ scheme for protection insurance.
BIBA has worked closely with Millennium Insurance to develop a new protection product that it believes will help address the market’s concerns in relation to traditional payment protection insurance (PPI).
This new product takes a fresh approach to the traditional point of sale purchase which has generally been directly linked to loan provision. The PPI scheme product will be sold on a ‘standalone’ basis with or without a mortgage or loan. It will be flexible for customers to cover regular bill payments that they are committed to, in the event of unemployment or inability to work due to accident, unemployment or sickness
BIBA recognises the product’s launch, which coincides with significant economic and political change, is an important step in helping brokers to raise standards. The new Committed Payments Protection provides many extra features and benefits including:
- Payments Protection – ability to protect regular bill payments of £200 to £2,000 per month
- Life cover (optional extra) – the ability to cover a fixed sum insured of £2,400 to £24,000
- Back to Work – confidential and independent advice programme offering practical assistance
- Legal Protection – help in appealing or defending employment or contract disputed and negotiating a settlement for bodily injury or death
- Helpline – 24/7 confidential legal advice on personal tax matters, general health and medical issues
BIBA firmly believes that in the current economic environment this type of ‘standalone’ protection product provides a good opportunity for its’ members to extend their services, who as part of their day-to-day environment are used to providing advice and suitable products to their customers.
This product - a Committed Payments policy underwritten by Jubilee – will enable BIBA members to access Millennium Insurance online and quickly obtain quotes.
Derek Coles, CEO of Millenniums’ parent company Direct Group Limited added “I am delighted that with BIBA, we have developed this innovative solution for wider broker distribution at an economic point in time where customers need protection the most. Where understanding broker needs are concerned our underwriting partner (Jubilee) has a long established position in the Lloyd’s Market and Direct Group are pleased to work with them as insurer on this innovative solution.”
This new relationship with BIBA comes off the back of Millennium Insurance being recognised by the industry in gaining the CII’s Gold Standard for Chartered Insurance Brokers.
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ENDS For further information
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About Millennium Insurance
Millennium Insurance was acquired by Direct Group in June 2008. It has fast become Direct Groups’ distribution for personal lines products. Millennium Insurance focuses on delivery as a Third Party Administrator for brokers, corporate and affinity partners.
Millennium Insurance Brokers Ltd was established in 1996, and is a CII Chartered Insurance Broker and member of BIBA.
About Jubilee
Jubilee is a specialist personal lines insurer and has been providing PPI and Life Insurance in the Lloyd’s market for over 30 years.
Committed Payments Protection is underwritten by Jubilee’s Syndicates 5820 (PPI) and 779 (life option).
The British Insurance Brokers’ Association (BIBA) is the UK’s leading general insurance organisation representing the interests of insurance brokers, intermediaries and their customers.
BIBA membership includes 1700 regulated firms. Insurance brokers and intermediaries distribute nearly two-thirds of all UK general insurance. In 2007, insurance brokers and intermediaries generated £1.5 billion of invisible earnings and they introduce £22 billion of premium income into London’s insurance market each year.
BIBA is the voice of the industry, advising members, the regulators, the Government, consumer bodies and other stakeholders on key insurance issues. BIBA provides unique schemes and facilities, technical advice, guidance on regulation and business support and is helping to raise, and maintain, industry standards. BIBA works closely with the Chartered Insurance Institute to provide training to those working in the industry and actively participates in helping the industry and its customers deal with some of the major issues of the day.
Millennium Insurance Attains Gold Standard Achievement
11/04/2010 09:00:00 by Marketing
Millennium Insurance – the ‘noticeably different’ distribution arm to Direct Group has recently achieved a prestigious accolade.
Millennium Insurance has always stood for quality, where staff, processes and systems are concerned. This has now been recognised in the industry through gaining the CII’s Gold Standard for Chartered Insurance Brokers. The CII are dedicated to achieving high standards of competence and integrity and is aligned with Millennium’s core values and business ethics:
- Quality - Delivery of a defect free performance first and every time;
- Customer Service – always go the extra mile to delight the customer; and
- Integrity - develop and maintain a reputation as a fair and trustworthy organisation to do business with.
What the achievement means?
Millennium’s clients and customers have long since known that they offer a quality service and this latest recognition will provide the wider-industry with the knowledge of the high-level of service and expertise that Millennium can offer.
Millennium will continue to offer their expertise under delegated authority from a range of insurers specialising in Personal Lines particularly Household, providing a full range of insurance & protection services.
Steve Clowes (Director) commented, “Achieving Chartered Broker Status was not something we just did overnight, it has taken up time and effort and many years of study. As a management team we needed to commit resources over a number of years to raise and maintain those standards. We first set out the Core Values in 2002 and added the last one in 2005 as we entered the new regulated world. For our parent company Direct Group, it was important that staff worked in an ethical manner that placed clients’ interests at the heart of the advice and service they gave. Chartered Broker Status is evidence to the commitments made and still continuing to be made by all the team.”
What Millennium Insurance did to achieve this status?
All the senior executive management have always had a strong belief in adopting and delivering good business practices and were fully commitment to encourage all staff to study for professional qualifications which are aligned with the Financial Services Authority (FSA)’s focus on the importance of the fair treatment of customers, elements of which are reflected in the requirements of the CII Code of Ethics and Conduct. The Managing Director has been a Fellow of the Charter Insurance Institute (FCII) since 1995 a Chartered Insurance Broker and a member of the Faculty of Insurance Broking. Since 2002, Millennium encouraged all staff to join the CII and to maintain their professional studies, helping staff with the cost of fees, study materials and exam entrances.
Millennium made extensive use of the Broker ASSESS online education assessment and competency resource, and monitored all staff with various online (and manual) tests and training modules covering technical product topics, business knowledge and skills to apply that knowledge in their day to day activities. Millennium identified gaps for new learning purposes so that compliance with FSA Training and Competence requirements could be continuously reviewed and maintained. Millennium believed they met the criteria, so decided to apply in 2008 and have been very proud to have been granted this status, especially after learning that only 60 firms had achieved Chartered Broker Status.
NOTES ON RELEASE
Direct Group
Direct Group aims to be a leading insurance services provider to the UK financial services marketplace. This vision is based around a philosophy of “treating customers and partners as we would expect to be treated ourselves”. The high quality of service offered by Direct Group is supported by a scalable and robust business platform which not only provides Clients’ and Insurers’ with unparalleled quality of management information but also provides the basis for expansion into new products and new market sectors.
Direct Group currently operates on a business-to-business basis by offering products to financial institutions, corporates and affinities plus a range of services across the insurance industry. The services typically offered by Direct Group include product design, account development and training, policy administration, premium collection, claim handling, sales and service, insurer and captive reporting.
Direct Group Limited is authorised by the FSA no. 307332.
www.directgroup.co.uk
Millennium Insurance
Millennium Insurance was acquired by Direct Group in June 2008 as a high-quality distribution division and now as part of the wider group of companies now offers a full range of insurance & protection services for financial services companies, from product design and point of sale implementation to premium collection, policy administration and claims management.
Millennium is a CII Chartered Insurance Broker, and handles a number of GI schemes under delegated authority from a range of insurers specialising in Household and PPI. As the new distribution arm of Direct Group it can handle all kinds of non standard household risks, plus a range of personal and commercial lines business.
Millennium Core Values are:
- Teamwork - To generate a sense of belonging and working together for mutual benefit
- People matter - In a market determined to commoditise products, it’s the people you deal with that make the difference
- Quality - Delivery of a defect free performance first and every time
- Customer service - The aim is always to go the extra mile to delight the customer, remembering that Insurers and Business Partners are customers too!
- Communication - To be truly effective we have to have clear, open and honest communications with each other, and our customers
- Integrity - We must develop and maintain a reputation as a fair and trustworthy organisation to do business with; and
- Compliant - To uphold the FSA Principles in all our business activities
www.millenniuminsurance.co.uk
What is the CII
The CII is the premier professional organisation for those working in the insurance and financial services industry. It is dedicated to promoting higher standards of competence and integrity through the provision of relevant qualifications for employees at all levels and across all sectors of the industry. Success in CII qualifications is universally recognised as a sign of commitment and professionalism. With 90,000 members, the CII is the world’s largest professional body dedicated to the insurance, savings and financial services sector. Its broad portfolio of education and qualification services is continually expanding to meet the changing requirements of companies and individuals across the financial services community.
www.cii.co.uk
