Imagine you have just been offered a great premium for your practice’s group locum and you are just about to switch providers . Just before you do you notice something in the small print called a ‘pre-existing condition clause’. Most companies now cover themselves with a pre-existing condition clause. This usually means that regardless of who is covered if they have been off work for 5-10 days (varies on provider) for a ‘pre-existing condition’ then they are not covered for a set period of time. Now initially this doesn’t seem too bad (depending on time scales) but then let’s consider that recently a competitor has released a policy with a THREE year pre-existing condition clause! However what if you have a bunch of really healthy Doctors and Professionals who haven’t been off for the last 3 years? What does it matter then? Well it does, and it’s...

The Annual Allowance, set by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), is the maximum amount of pension savings you can receive tax relief on each year. HMRC reduced the Annual Allowance from £255,000 to £50,000 from 6 April 2011, with the result that the total tax-free growth in the value of your NHS benefits and other pension arrangements you may have is capped at £50,000. If the growth in your pension savings is more than the Annual Allowance then a tax charge may be payable on the amount over £50,000. This is the Annual Allowance charge. The Annual Allowance charge is worked out by calculating the difference between the value of your NHS benefits at the start of the pension input period (the opening value) compared with the value of your NHS benefits at the end of the pension input period (the closing value). To find the opening value we calculate your NHS benefits to the day before t...

Top 5 things to look for in a good Locum Insurance policy 1.) Premium. I thought I would put the most obvious one first! Yes it is important to have a competitive premium but this should not be at the expense of the quality of cover especially as there are some policies out there we would NOT recommend as an independent advice company. The best way to find out if your premium is competitive is to get several premiums from different companies or go to an Independent Financial Advisor like ourselves. 2.) Permanency of cover. Some policies claim to be ‘Permanent’ or claim to have ‘Continuation Options’. The main point here is there should be a clause within the agreement that states clearly that if a claim is made on the policy then that individual can still be insured at renewal. The terms and conditions for this vary from policy to policy so it is extremely i...

Having worked with practice managers for nearly 9 years in reducing insurance costs I have to admit that I am not envious of the challenges they face running or managing a modern medical practice. I am fortunate to have a good relationship with many who explain to me the different challenges they face, often to meet their budgets in an organisation where the ‘goal-posts’ are forever changing. One wonders whether this profession is becoming specialist in its own right and I wonder how long it will be before a University recognises this and creates a degree around the vocation? However the downside of paddling furiously in any organisation is often things that ‘roll over’ for another year are often the ‘small fish’ to slip through the net and this is where as a financial professional I am concerned. More often or not a review of Surgery and Locum In...

We are now offering clients the ability to spread the costs of their insurance payments and locum insurance with Premium Credit Limited (http://www.premium-credit.co.uk). For25 years Premium Credit Limited has helped businesses and individuals pay for their insurance by spreading the costs over regular instalments, instead of paying the whole premium upfront. Premium Credit Limited doesn’t just help businesses and individuals spread the cost of their insurance premiums, they also provide the finance to pay annual fees such as professional fees, membership subscriptions, commercial service charges and school fees. Premium Credit Limited has 2 million customers and has achieved advances of £3.7 billion in 2013, processing 25 million Direct Debits. We are delighted therefore to work with the No.1 Insurance Premium Finance Company in the UK and Ireland. Chris Dixon BSc (Hons) Dip PFS Dire...

Working in financial services you are aware that sometimes that we haven’t had the best of press with certain financial products! Endowments, with profits, PPI etc. It is therefore a real pleasure to be advising on a product, locum insurance, where it meets the needs of your clients and the market place. It is also a real sense of achievement to help medical practices save money on unecessary insurance costs; money that can be reinvested into patient care and essential staffing needs. Having advised on locum insurance for nearly 8 years I have seen massive changes within this niche industry. Changes I am glad to say have been for the better. 6 year ago I was working for a company who effectively held the monopoly for this type of cover across the UK. In my opinion the policy was insufficient in the level of cover it gave and its premiums were inflated and unfair. Fortuna...

As a medical professional, you are very aware of the plethora of the related expenses and intricacies of enlisting the services of a Locum Doctor to cover key absences in your Practice. Whether such absences involve GPs or Practice Managers, they can often be unexpected and unplanned for due to accidents, bereavements, or illnesses. Otherwise, anticipated absences such as adoptions, Jury Service and maternity and paternity leave allow you the time and resources to secure suitable absence cover, yet still entail hefty price tags.   Locum Insurance cover will typically include: Deferred period on accident claims reimbursed Jury Service Cover GP Suspension Cover Family Illness cover Maternity leave single benefit Adoption and paternity leave covered Worldwide Accident and Sickness Whatever your particular extenuating circumstances are, the show simply must go on in the medical ...

I read a recent article on the BBC website with great interest, particularly as one of the experts interviewed for his tips on house buying strongly recommended going to a independent financial advisor who can research the full range of financial products available. As I have been telling clients and potential customers for many years, the reasoning is simple. Any financial advisor worth is salt will make a fair and comprehensive analysis of the relevant products available and recommend a suitable one for you in the light of your circumstances and needs. Which means you get the best deal. Read more about this subject on the BBC Website ...

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