Oval squares up to rivals

David Wheatley, a divisional director at Oval West Midlands, told an audience of brokers in Birmingham about the success of Beddis & Partners, which is now part of Oval West Midlands.

Wheatley said Beddis' acquisition by Oval had given it many advantages. He said: "Scale has given us access to market, pricing and product advantages - when you have many accounts over £10m with many insurers, then they take you more seriously.

"Scale also allows us to develop expertise in niche areas. We had a successful commercial property company and have started to build a successful credit insurance operation. This is expanding quickly under Oval. Meanwhile, we are looking at accessing the Lloyd's market."

Despite these changes, Wheatley said: "Most of our staff have seen little difference since the acquisition.

"We have developed strongly in Birmingham's commercial and financial sector. In developing this business, there is no substitute for networking. We are active in Birmingham Forward and Birmingham Future, and also at the British Insurers Brokers' Association.

"Ninety per cent of our business comes from professional leads and existing client referrals. The balance of our new business comes from cross-selling such as risk management."

He continued: "The great thing about a soft market is, if you can save clients' money in one area, then they consider buying in others.

"We are seeing severe pressure on rates again. In order to level the playing field we want to move away from commission, and have been looking at fee structures. It delivers transparency and smoothes the problem of the cycle."

He added: "Our Financial Services Authority visit has added a great deal of value to our business. They were very helpful."

Commenting on succession planning, Wheatley said: "This is absolutely critical. We are trying to make sure as many people as possible who work for our organisation have shares in our organisation. We believe that is absolutely essential."