Basil Gillett - At your service

Please tell us about your company.

Centre Island Hotels is a Liverpool-based hotel operating company that started trading in 1995 with the building and opening of its first hotel. The group now owns and operates eight internationally branded hotels with a total of 1,500 bedrooms and has recently signed a management contract to manage the new 228 bedroom Crowne Plaza hotel in Manchester. Total turnover is £34m and the group employs about 750 staff.

What insurances do you place and who do you place them with?

The group requires a wide range of insurance cover including employers' liability, public and products liability cover (for which worldwide jurisdiction cover is required), property and contents damage, business interruption, terrorism, loss of licence, money and assault and computer cover. We also have directors' and officers' liability cover. In addition, we require contract works insurance regularly for whenever we undertake any refurbishment or building works at our hotels. You name it, we need it.

Our broker is Daulby Read, based in Chester (see p.16-7). The majority of our cover is with Norwich Union and has been for some time. There are a limited number of insurance companies willing to quote for our type of business and Norwich Union has always been willing to look after us through the good and bad times.

Describe the relationship with your broker.

It is very strong and has looked after our insurance requirements since the group was established. A few years ago, we tried a different broker but after two years re-established our relationship with Daulby Read; we are not looking to change again. Our relationship is with the people and not the firm and the advice and support we receive is tremendous; they are always just a telephone call away and any problem or issue is dealt with immediately and efficiently.

Have you made a claim recently?

In this litigious age we receive a number of liability claims, which I am pleased to say we are able to defend successfully. Our broker acts as a liaison between us and our insurance company and keeps us advised as to the progress of any claim.

We have recently suffered a burst water pipe, which caused significant damage to a number of areas in one of our hotels. Our broker ensured that our insurance company took immediate action to review the damage and thereafter constantly kept in contact with the insurer to ensure that our claim was settled quickly. The staff there also assisted in the claim negotiations, thereby ensuring that we not only received a quick settlement but also a very fair one, as this not only involved property damage but also business interruption.

What would you like to see improve in the insurance industry in order to help your business?

We continue to live in a litigious society and, while I believe that people are entitled to fair compensation where there has been a genuine failure or act of negligence by a business or individual, all businesses, including ours, now receive a number of spurious claims that take a great deal of time and effort to defend. As it is in its own interest, the insurance industry must lobby and take strong action to ensure that the 'no win, no fee' firms are somehow better regulated. The insurance companies must also be prepared to fight claims when their clients are adamant that they are not at fault, irrespective of reasonable cost implications.

What are the main challenges in your sector?

We face many challenges including higher costs, which are beyond our direct control; these include annual over-inflation increases in the minimum wage, higher utility costs and an increase in insurance premium levels through, in the main, higher liability premiums.

As a service industry we are also faced with a slowdown of business as both individuals and businesses reduce their spending on what are considered luxury items, such as travel and hotels. However, the group and its hotels are well positioned to overcome any downturn in the economy.