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Terms Of Business
RELATIONSHIP
As Independent Insurance Intermediaries we act as the agent of our client. We are subject to the law of agency, which imposes various duties on us. However, in certain circumstances we may act for and owe duties of care to other parties
GENERAL TERMS
MasterCover Insurance Services Limited are authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority. Our FSA register number is 309016.
Our permitted business is the advising on, arranging (bringing about) deals in , making arrangements with a view to transactions in, dealing as agent in and assisting in the administration and performance of non investment insurance contracts . You can check this on the FSA's Register by visiting their web-site www.fsa.gov.uk/register or by contacting the FSA on 0845 606 1234.
MasterCover Insurance Services Limited are a wholly owned (100%) subsidiary of Groupama Insurance Company Limited.
We offer products from a range of insurers for Private Motor, Commercial Vehicle and Household Insurance purposes based upon a fair analysis of the market. In addition we also offer specialist scheme products for motor, Public and Employers Liability, Goods In Transit, Commercial Property, Personal Accident and Sickness, Accident Breakdown, GAP cover and Healthcare from a single insurer or limited number of insurers. A list of the insurance companies that we select from is available upon request.
Our terms will apply to both retail clients and commercial customers unless otherwise stated. A commercial customer is any customer acting within their business, trade or profession.
POLICY DOCUMENTATION
Our policy documentation will be issued in a timely manner. This will normally be within 14 days of the contract of insurance being concluded.
Retail clients will be provided with renewal terms no less than 21 days before policy expiry, and Commercial clients (acting within their trade, business or profession) will receive their renewal terms in good time before the policy expiry. If in any event renewal is not invited you will be notified accordingly. Any changes to the terms of the policy will also be notified. Upon request at renewal we will issue a new policy document if required.
CLAIMS
You must notify us as soon as possible of a claim or circumstances which may give rise to a claim.
In the event of a claim you should contact us on 020 8441 0300, or the appropriate insurance company helpline. Details can also be found on our website at www.mastercover.com or your insurers policy booklet.
We will provide you with every assistance in submitting a claim and seeking to obtain indemnity/reimbursement for you. However, in the event that an insurer becomes insolvent or delays making settlement we do not accept liability for any unpaid amounts.
DUTY OF DISCLOSURE TO INSURERS
You must disclose to insurers, before the contract is concluded, any fact or circumstance which is known to you (or which ought to be known to you) in the ordinary course of your business and which is material to the risk. A fact or circumstance is material if it would influence the judgment of a prudent insurer in fixing the premium or determining whether they would accept the risk. Failure to disclose a material fact could result in your policy being voided from inception.
PREMIUM
You must provide the premium due in cleared funds in accordance with the amounts and payment dates specified in our debit note. Failure to meet the payment date may lead to us cancelling your policy.
REMUNERATION
Fees may be charged in accordance with our scale of charges as indicated. Anything which is not a premium is considered to be a fee. Our remuneration may be as a fee, or as commission , which is a percentage of the insurance premium and allowed by the insurer with whom the insurance is placed. Commission and fees are earned for the policy period and we will be entitled to retain all fees and commission in respect of the full policy period in relation to policies placed by us. Disclosure of our commission will be made in respect of commercial business related policies upon request.
In addition to clients fees and/or commission payments we may receive remuneration by way of administrative fees or commissions for services provided to underwriters.
SCALE OF CHARGES
Mid Term adjustments
£14
Duplicate Certificate
...£14
Cancellations
.£14 and 10% of the return premium
Unpaid Cheque / Direct Debit
..
.
£15
Renewal Fee
.....£15 (Up to a maximum of)
Post Dated Cheque facility
.
£20 (Up to a maximum of)
Please note that the charges may be increased at our discretion. However, you will be notified prior to any action being taken. In addition the charge will be confirmed in writing.
CLIENT MONEY
Client money is money of any currency that we receive and hold in the course of carrying on insurance mediation on behalf of our clients or which we treat as client money in accordance with the client money rules. A copy of these rules is available on request.
The client money we receive is held in a non statutory trust . The aim of the trust is to protect the client in the event of the failure of the firm, or the failure of the bank or a third party with whom the money may be held. In such a circumstance, the firm's general creditors should not be able to make claims on client money as it will not form part of this firms property.
The fact that we will hold money on trust gives rise to fiduciary duties which will be owed to you until the client money reaches the insurer or product provider. If the insurer has provided risk transfer under the terms of their agency agreement with ourselves, then any premium payment will instead be immediately classified as insurer money and as such held in trust for the Insurance Company.
We hold client money subject to a non statutory trust. This means that we are entitled to and may use client money held on behalf of one client to pay another client's premium before the premium is received from that other client, and to pay premium refunds to another client before we receive payment from the insurer. However, we are not entitled to use client money to pay commissions before we receive the relevant premium from the client.
We may transfer client money to another person, such as another broker or agent, for the purpose of effecting a transaction on your behalf through that person.
RIGHT TO CANCEL FOR RETAIL CLIENTS
Our agreement may be terminated by either party giving written notice within 14 days from the date the contract is concluded or the date the policy documentation is received, whichever is the later. In the event that our services are cancelled by you we will be entitled to receive any fees or administration charges for cancellation, in addition to any time on risk premium charge made by the insurer. This right does not apply to Commercial Clients.
Motor Insurance policies will not be cancelled until we have received in our office the current cover note and/or certificate of motor insurance. The insured will remain liable for insurance costs until the certificate is returned.
COMPLAINTS
We take all complaints seriously. If you wish to register a complaint then please contact our Operations Manager in writing at Master Cover Insurance, 17 Station Road, New Barnet, HERTS. EN5 1PJ or by telephone on 020 8441 0300.
We will acknowledge your complaint within 5 days of receipt.
If you are unable to settle your complaint with us, you may be entitled to refer it to the Financial Ombudsman Service who can be contacted on 020 7964 1400 or visit their web-site at www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk
A full copy of our complaints procedure is available upon request.
COMPENSATION
We are covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). You may be entitled to compensation from the FSCS if we cannot meet our obligations. This depends upon the type of business and the circumstances of the claim.
Insurance advising and arranging is covered for 100% of the first £2,000 and 90% of the remainder of the claim, without any upper limit.
For compulsory classes of insurance, insurance advising and arranging is covered for 100% of the claim, without any upper limit.
Further information about compensation scheme arrangements is available from the FSCS.
DATA PROTECTION
We are registered under the Data Protection Act 1998 and we undertake to comply with the Act in all our dealings with your personal data.
LAW & JURISDICTION
These terms of business shall be governed by and construed in accordance with English law. In relation to any legal action or proceedings arising out of or in connection with these terms of business we both irrevocably submit to the non exclusive jurisdiction of the English Courts.
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Master Cover Insurance Ltd. are authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority to conduct the sales and administration of General Insurance.
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