Client's Q&A: Hot on property

What kind of customer are you?
I live in Hampshire and was introduced to Higos Insurance Services by my financial advisor Richard Palmer, who works for Fareham-based Certus, which is one of Higos' 9,000 introducers across the country. Richard had previously provided financial advice for my son and daughter-in-law when arranging their mortgage. I had received an insurance renewal invitation from a large, well-known insurer and felt that the premium was too high and so my son introduced me to Richard. I went through Higos Somerton's business enterprise team over the phone and built up a rapport with a couple of the team members there.

Why did you choose Higos?
I was impressed with the competitive quotation and high level of service that Higos demonstrated: the company showed that it wanted my business.

What insurances did you choose?
My initial insurance requirements from Higos were for cover on a portfolio of nine properties based in Hampshire, a mixture of student-let accommodation and commercial leases. Insurances that I needed included flat and property owners', let property and residential home buildings and contents. After I'd placed the commercial insurances, I then went on to place my household insurance with Higos.

Have you had a claim?
Almost immediately after becoming a customer of Higos in January 2009, I needed to make a claim. One of my commercial units, a shop, was left empty because the previous tenant had gone bankrupt as a result of the economic downturn; a car had backed into the front of it, causing damage to the unit. I was very concerned because I was not sure where I stood in terms of making a claim; I had only just taken my policy out and, even more concerning, I knew my payment had not been taken by Higos at this stage. I then phoned the Somerton Higos claims department.

How did your broker deal with the claim?
Higos came up trumps. The staff were marvellous throughout the whole claims process, which was resolved incredibly quickly and in a satisfactory manner. Before using Higos, I wasn't sure how a broker could benefit me but I certainly know now.

I have moved my buildings and contents policy to Higos, on which I had to make another claim when I discovered a small leak in my bathroom in December 2009. The broker was fantastic when I needed help: I received a response within 24 hours and I felt informed throughout the whole process. The claim was settled very promptly by Aviva and the insurer responded to repair the leak.

I think it is important that everyone receives proper advice on their insurance requirements and, having experienced the level of service Higos offers, I made a point of passing their details to some friends who have since also become Higos clients.

If you have an interesting client experience you would like to share with PB to be covered in future editions, please contact the editor by email.

Source: PB – June 2010