Safety first

Tell us about your company

Quadriga Health & Safety is a high-quality health and safety consultancy offering strategic health and safety advice and support to a wide range of clients including Nuffield Health, Virgin Media, Burberry of London, Priory Healthcare, Informa, Lloyd's Register and Hospital Corporation of America.

We also undertake extensive work in the private finance initiative sector supporting special purpose vehicle companies that are responsible for hospitals, schools, courts, police headquarters, incinerators and light railways.

We provide a substantial amount of management and executive health and safety training and, more recently, high-level communication skills training for managers and directors. Our clients rely on us to assist them in minimising the risks to their employees and business, complying with health and safety and fire safety law and ensuring that their directors discharge their legal duties. We provide practical and pragmatic advice on complex health and safety legislation, as well as high-level audits on the standards being maintained in our client's businesses. The company was started 11 years ago, has 15 staff and a turnover of just over £1m.

What insurances do you need?

We need professional indemnity, public liability, employer's liability, motor, legal expenses, directors' and officers', office and business interruption insurances. We also hold key man, life, permanent health, private medical and personal accident insurances, as well as international travel insurance.

Where do you place your insurance?

We place all our risk insurances through Wokingham-based BJP Insurance Brokers, which we have found extremely efficient and understanding of our business needs. We have found that BJP has been able to source insurance cover in areas that have been difficult for anyone to obtain: this has applied, for example, in relation to asbestos and terrorist-related cover in professional indemnity insurance.

How do you work with your broker?

We have reviews for the key policies and are in regular contact regarding any changes we might need. We appreciate the broker's proactive involvement when key policies approach renewal.

Have you made any claims?

In 11 years of operation, we have made only minor motor claims. As a health and safety consultancy, we aim to operate to high standards of business protection and security and to provide professional, high-quality advice and guidance.

What would you like to see improved in insurance?

My main concern is insurers suddenly changing cover in policies such as professional indemnity, leaving an exposure for past work. Also, some in the industry fail to understand the nature of our business. For example, most insurers removed any liability relating to asbestos or fear of asbestos from policies, advising that one should not give advice on asbestos-related issues. As a health and safety consultancy, it would be negligent not to give such advice and impossible to operate on this basis; fortunately, BJP sourced appropriate cover on this for us.

In addition, I would like to see better discounts for fire and theft insurance. We have exemplary standards of protection in our offices, which have been commended by our insurers. Unfortunately, no premium discount is provided despite our presenting a much better risk for business interruption than many similar-sized businesses.