PEACOCK INSURANCE SERVICES
OUR TERMS OF BUSINESS WITH YOU

If you have taken out a policy with us, we look forward to providing you with exceptional customer service at competitive prices. Our hope is that you will be so satisfied with our service and products we offer that you will need to look no further than Peacock for all of your personal and business insurance requirements.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)

The Financial Conduct Authority is the independent watchdog that regulates financial services. The following document provides some of the regulatory information we are required to disclose to you. Included are details about our services and responsibilities we have to each other. You must read this document and advise us immediately if there is anything you are unable to understand or comply with.

Who We Are

Peacock Insurance Services Limited is an independent insurance intermediary (Broker). Our address is 1410 Spring Place, Herald Avenue, Coventry Business Park, Coventry, CV5 6UB. Registered address: Leofric House, Binley Road, Coventry, CV3 1JN Registered in England and Wales No: 08557985. Construction Warranty & Guarantee, Regulated Risks, Just Construction, Bouncy Castle Insurance Services, Compare Crazy, Commercial Warranty Group, Hippo Insurance Services, Let Portal and Just Property Insurance are trading styles of Peacock Insurance Services Limited.. 

Who Regulates Us?

Peacock Insurance Services Limited is Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Our Firm Reference Number is 603863. Our permitted business is arranging, advising on and helping in the administration of general insurance contracts. You can check this on the FCA’s Register by Visiting the FCA’s website https://register.fca.org.uk/s/or by contacting the FCA on 0800 111 678. 

The Products and Policies We Offer

We sell a variety of insurance products to cover both personal and commercial requirements. We offer policies from a limited number of Insurers. In some circumstances, we offer the policies of a single Insurer for certain lines of business, however we are not contractually bound to do business in this way. Where we deal with more than one Insurer, we will provide details on the selection of policies available to you so you can choose which one is right for you. You will not receive advice or a recommendation from us. We will ask questions to identify your specific needs to then match them to the products we provide details on. If your policy is placed with Ark Insurance Group Ltd. you should be aware that this company shares a common ownership with Peacock Insurance Services Ltd. however both are separate legal entities, each with their own FCA regulatory obligations. A list of our Insurers is included in our welcome pack. We receive payment of your premium from you as agent for the relevant Insurer. Any claims money or refund of premium we receive from the Insurer in respect of your insurance is also received by us as agent of the Insurer. When you pay your premium to Peacock insurance Services, it is held in a ‘non-statutory trust’ client money account. Any interest that may be applicable on these funds will be retained as revenue to Peacock Insurance Services. If a policy is taken out with Peacock Insurance Services, you are consenting to us holding your money in this way.

Quotations 

All quotations are subject to change in respect of the amount of premium indicated and/or the Terms and Conditions that are applied.

What You Must Tell Us

Commercial customers are customers who are acting for the purposes relating to their trade, business or profession. You have a duty to disclose all material facts that is known or ought to be known by the policyholder’s senior management, or those responsible for arranging the insurance. This allows us to provide the Insurer with a fair presentation of all material circumstances so that they can determine whether to take the risk and, if so, on what terms.

It is your responsibility to provide complete and accurate information to us and Insurers when you take out an insurance policy, throughout the life of the policy and when you renew, vary or amend your insurance.  Failure to do so, or any inaccuracies in information given, could result in your insurance being invalid or cover not operating fully.    If a form is completed on your behalf, you should check that the answers shown to all questions are true and accurate. You are advised to keep copies of any correspondence you send to us or direct to your Insurer.

Any changes in information supplied will be accepted either verbally or in writing. For motor cases, it is an offence under the Road Traffic Act to make any false statement or withhold any relevant information for the purposes of obtaining a Certificate of Motor Insurance.  We will send you a copy of your Proposal Form or Statement of Fact that shows the information you have supplied. Information declared on a Statement of Fact proposal form constitutes the basis of your contract, and will be submitted by us to your Insurer and to the agents appointed to handle claims on their behalf. If you do not agree with any of the information on a Statement of Fact, you should disclose it to us immediately. Any changes may require the Insurer to charge an additional premium, quote special terms, or decline your proposal.  Remember, you should always tell us about any change immediately – please do not wait until your renewal. Should your premium be increased due to inaccurate information given at inception, and you are paying by Direct Debit, we will add the additional premium charged, automatically to your Direct Debit agreement. We reserve the right to request the submission of additional documents such as proof of your vehicle security arrangements, a current MOT certificate, proof of No Claims Bonus (NCB) and any relevant driving licences at any time. You must provide written evidence of your NCB within 14 days of the inception of your policy. Failure to provide evidence of your NCB will result in the Insurers issuing the policy at the gross premium (i.e. without benefit of discount) or cancelling the policy. You will be immediately responsible for the balance of premium payable and any subsequent cancellation will be calculated on the gross premium and subject to short period rates and the charges detailed in ‘Our Service Charges’ below.  If a claim is reported, any documentation that has been requested by us or the insurance company but not received by us or the Insurer must be submitted immediately to enable the claim to be progressed.

Insurers share information with each other via the Claims and Underwriting Exchange register and the Motor Insurers Antifraud and Theft Register, to aid the prevention of fraudulent claims.  In the event of a claim, the information you supply on the claim form, together with any other information relating to the claim will be put on the registers.

Insurers are legally required to provide details of Motor Insurance policies to the MIIC.  The information describing your insurance cover will be added to the Motor Insurance Database (MID), to which the police and other government agencies have access.  This helps the pursuance of claims following accidents and aids detection of those who are in contravention of the law by not taking out insurance.

Awareness of Policy Terms

You should read your policy carefully. The policy document, schedule and any certificate of insurance are the basis of the cover you have purchased.  Please make sure that you understand them and are able to follow their requirements. Breach of any terms, conditions or warranties may enable your Insurer to terminate your policy or repudiate a claim under your policy. 

Your Right to Cancel Your Insurance 

You have a right to cancel any insurance you buy through us and to recover any payment made (except as stated below). You can do this by providing a signed written notice to us within 14 days of your receipt of the new business paperwork to Peacock Insurance Services, 1410 Spring Place, Herald Avenue, Coventry Business Park, Coventry, CV5 6UB. If you do exercise this right to cancel your insurance, you will be charged by the Insurer for the service provided up to the point of cancellation, if a claim is reported it is unlikely any refunds will be made until the full extent of the costs of the claim are known. We will also make a cancellation charge of £35.  Additionally, you will not be entitled to a refund of any service charges made by us for arranging/administering your insurance.  If you exercise this right, any Legal Protection policies that accompany your policy will also be cancelled and a charge made by the Insurer for the period of cover.  If you do not exercise this right to cancel within this 14-day period, any remaining cancellation rights will be as set out in the policy document and charges listed below.  If the policy is incepted on a minimum and deposit basis and cancelled mid -term there is no refund issued against the policy. 

How You Can Deal With Us

The language we do business in is English. The laws govern us are those of England and Wales and any dispute arising out of those Laws shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English Courts.If you arrange your insurance through our offices, website or over the phone, you can deal with us in relation to that insurance either face-to-face, over the phone, email or by post.If you have provided your email address, you should be aware that we do send important information by this means. The email and contents will hold the same legal ramification as if it were sent by post. By providing your email address, you are consenting for us to communicate with you in this way. If this is not the case, please advise us immediately. Please note that we cannot accept email instructions from an email address that is not held on your records. Nothing in this document affects your normal statutory rights.

Receipt of Instructions

We do not consider instructions to arrange or change cover sent to us by post, electronic mail, or facsimile or left on answering equipment to have been received until they reach the relevant personnel in our offices. We do not accept responsibility for instructions which do not reach us due to failures in postal, electronic or telecommunication systems. 

Commission Withdrawal

Insurers pay us a percentage of the annual premium as a commission. If you would like to know the commission we receive in respect of your insurance contract, this information is available on request. We shall only withdraw commission after we have received the premium from you, and in accordance with FCA regulations and agreements we hold with Insurers.

Other Taxes & Costs

Other taxes or costs, or both, may exist in relation to the products and services offered by us which are not paid through, or imposed by us.

Earning Interest on Customer Premiums

We hold premiums that you pay to us in a Client Money Bank Account. Under FCA Regulation we have to inform you that we may earn interest from the money held in our client account which may exceed £20 for any one transaction that you make with us. Our policy for the payment of interest is not to calculate and repay to customers the interest that we have received on the premium held prior to settlement with the Insurers. By accepting these Terms of Business, you are giving your consent for us to act in the manner described in this section.

How to Make a Claim

Instructions on how to make a claim are included in your policy booklet and policy summary. You will find the insurance company’s address, telephone number or other point of initial contact. Additionally, you will find the information which you must provide when notifying a claim (if this is not the case please use your policy/certificate number in all communications). You may also find in your paperwork, contact for a third party claims handling company who provide an additional claims service for clients. All claims need to be reported as soon as reasonably possible. If any documents or keys relating to a claim need to be submitted to us or the Insurer by post, they need to be sent recorded delivery. All outstanding premiums must be paid before any claim payment can be made.

Conflicts of Interest

Conflicts of interest may arise where we or one of our clients or product providers will have a potential conflict of interest with business being transacted for you. If this happens and we become aware that a potential conflict exists, we will write to you and obtain your consent before we carry out your instructions, and detail the steps we will take to ensure fair treatment.

Insurer Security

Whilst we monitor the financial strength of the Insurers, with whom we place business it should be noted that the claims-paying ability of even the strongest Insurers could be affected by adverse business conditions. We cannot therefore guarantee the solvency of any Insurer or underwriter. A liability for the premium, whether in full or pro rata, may arise under policies where a participating Insurer becomes insolvent. 

Transferred Business 

If we take over the servicing of insurance policies which were originally arranged through another broker or intermediary, or directly with an Insurer, we do not accept liability for any claim arising out of the advice given by that broker, intermediary or Insurer, nor for any errors omissions or gaps in your current insurance protection. We would ask you to contact us without delay should any aspect of a policy which has been transferred to us cause you concern or if you need an immediate review. Otherwise we will endeavour to review all transferred policies as they fall due for renewal. 

Financial Services Compensation Scheme

We are covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) and therefore you may be entitled to compensation from the FSCS if we cannot meet our obligations. This depends on the type of business and the circumstances of the claim. Insurance advising and arranging is covered for 90% of the claim, without any upper limit. For compulsory classes of insurance, insurance advising and arranging is covered for 100% of the claim, without any upper limit.

Where the claim is in respect of a relevant omission on a Professional Indemnity Policy, then 100% of the claim is covered. A relevant omission is where the firm has not passed the premium on to the Insurer or passed claim payments onto the policyholder or otherwise not taken steps and caused a contract not to be incepted by the Insurer. Further information about compensation scheme arrangements is available from the FSCS, 10th Floor, Beaufort House, 15 St Botolph Street, London EC3A 7QU, United Kingdom, telephone: 0800 678 1100, website www.fscs.org.uk.

How to Make a Complaint

We strive to ensure that the service we offer is amongst the best in the industry. Consequently, if you have a complaint about Peacock Insurance staff or its services please follow the following steps below so we may attempt to remedy the situation and prevent any future recurrences. If you have a complaint against your Insurer, please refer to the policy booklet for details of your Insurer’s complaints procedure.

· Step 1 – Please write to the ‘Compliance Officer’ at Peacock Insurance Services, 1410 Spring Place, Herald Avenue, Coventry Business Park, Coventry, CV5 6UB, or contact us on 02476 437600 detailing your dissatisfaction and if possible, the member of staff you have been dealing with. We expect the majority of complaints will be quickly and satisfactorily resolved at this stage, but if you are not satisfied, you can take the issue further.

· Step 2 – Please write directly to the Managing Director at the above address.

· Step 3 – If you remain dissatisfied with our response to your complaint, you may be able to refer the matter to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) www.financialombudsman.org.uk. The FOS will independently investigate your complaint without charge to you. You will not be able to refer any complaint to the FOS unless you are:

(a) Individuals acting for purposes outside of their trade, business or profession;

(b) A charity which has an annual income of less than £6.5 million at the time the complaint is made

(c) A trustee of a trust which has a net asset value of less than £5 million at the time the complaint is made;

(d) Professional clients and eligible counterparties, where the person is an individual acting for purposes outside his trade, business, craft or profession.

(e) Micro-enterprises which are smaller businesses with less than 10 employees and an annual turnover of less than €2 million if the event leading to your complaint took place before 1st April 2019; or if the event leading to your complaint took place from 1st April 2019, small businesses with an annual turnover of less than £6.5 million (or its equivalent in any other currency) and either:

· a balance sheet total of less than £5 million (or its equivalent in any other currency); or

· fewer than 50 employees.

(F) A guarantor

Following the above complaints procedure will not affect your legal rights. Please provide your policy details in all correspondence.

Premium and Financial Aspects

In order to be able to offer you credit facilities, we hold the necessary credit broking permission under the FCA. We accept payments by cheque, BACs, debit or credit card. You may however be able to spread your payments through an instalment scheme, Insurers instalment scheme or take out a credit arrangement through a third party finance provider. If you choose to spread your payments through one of these methods we may receive additional earnings for the setting up and administering of such arrangements. We will give you full information about your payment options when we discuss your insurance in detail.

Should you choose to take out a credit arrangement through a third party finance provider you will be provided with a Consumer Credit Agreement, which may require to be signed and returned. This agreement will be with an external finance company and sets out the amount and number of your direct debit payments including any interest charges.  If you default on these payments, the total outstanding balance will become due. If the policy is cancelled mid-term, these payments must still be made until any return premium is notified to you.  Any return premium is notified to us by an Insurer. This refund will be returned to the finance company to go towards any outstanding balances on your credit agreement. Any remaining balance will be returned to you. If the return premium does not cover the outstanding balance on your credit agreement, you will be liable for the remaining balance. All of our direct debit arrangements require a deposit to be paid on inception of your policy. Policy inception is followed by 6 or 10 monthly direct debit payments (depending on the type of policy.) 

We my keep certain documents, such as your insurance policy documents, certificate or proof of No Claims Bonus whilst we are awaiting full payment of premiums or debt. In these circumstances, we will ensure you receive full details of the insurance cover and provide you with any documents that you are required to have by law.

Return Premiums and Refunds

Return premiums usually arise if an insurance risk is reduced or the policy is cancelled. On a return premium we repay the commission amount to your Insurers and this will be deducted from the final amount due to you. If a policy is cancelled, we will refund any return premium due (after deduction of the commission and our cancellation charge). Where the full payment has been made by credit/debit card, we will, wherever possible, make the refund to that card. All other refunds by cheque will be made to the policyholder, unless specifically authorised otherwise by the policyholder.

Our Right to Cancel Your Insurance

If you choose to pay by monthly direct debit or under our instalment scheme, you will be provided with our Consumer Credit Agreement or Instalment Agreement to sign. You are authorising us, as your agent, to instruct the insurers to cancel your insurance, if any monthly direct debit, instalment payment, or any other amount due under those agreements, is in arrears and not paid by the due date. 

Our Service Charges

You will be charged a fee for our services when your policy commences and at renewal – this will be 50% of the annual insurance premium. We will charge a maximum of £15.00 to rectify any inaccuracies to the information given by yourself providing we agree to correct it. You will be charged a £100.00 administration fee for mis-representation of the risk. We may also make an additional charge of £35 to cover our administration costs in the following circumstances; mid- term adjustments, cancellations, or duplicate documents.  Fees are also charged for instalments paid directly to Peacock Insurance which will be an additional £20 per instalment. Quotations are free of charge. In instances of dual insurance, a charge of £15.00 will be made, per policy, per year. If the policy is voided a £50 administration charge will be made. We reserve the right to change our fees from time to time.  

It is not economic or practical to issue refund cheques of very small amounts. Accordingly, where a transaction would result in a refund to you from us of less than £2, this nominal amount will be retained by us as an additional service charge. Where a transaction results in a premium credit, any refund to you will be reduced by any service charge and any other sums owing in respect of the policy. These charges are in addition to any insurer charges. We reserve the right to take any debt owed to us directly from any credit card/debit card used through the duration of the policy. Should there be a debt on the policy, we reserve the right to charge interest at 8% plus the Bank of England Base Rates, Legal Fees of £595 and administration fees of £100 should a third-party agency be employed.

Credit Checks

As part of our process, we may carry out checks with credit reference and fraud prevention agencies in order to verify your identity, assess your application for a quotation or credit.  The checks may be against both public data (such as information from the electoral roll) and private data (such as your credit history).  A record of the search will appear on your credit report.  As part of the quote process the Insurers we pass your details onto may exchange information with various industry databases in order to verify the information that you have provided such as the Claims and Underwriting Exchange (CUE), the Hunter Database, the Motor Insurance Anti-Fraud and Theft Register or the No Claims Discount Database.  We may also carry out checks against data that we already hold on you such as data from existing products or account data.  We may use this data to help us assess and rate your application for a quote and to determine your premiums.

Confidentiality & Data Protection

We take protecting our customers data very seriously and abide by the rules of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Please refer to our Privacy Notice for information on how we hold and process your data.

Insurers share information with each other via the Claims and Underwriting Exchange Register and the Motor Insurers Antifraud and Theft Register, to aid the prevention of fraudulent claims.  In the event of a claim, the information you supply on the claim form, together with any other information relating to the claim will be put on these registers.

Insurers are legally required to provide details of Motor Insurance policies to the Motor Insurance Information Centre (MIIC).  The information describing your insurance cover will be added to the Motor Insurance Database (MID), to which the police and other government agencies have access.  This helps the pursuance of claims following accidents and aids detection of those who are in contravention of the law by not taking out insurance.

Bribery Act

Both the firm and its customers must not offer or receive any form of bribe from the other party. This includes the offering, promising or giving of any financial or other advantage that could lead to a breach of the law. As such, the firm ensures it and any associated persons, including third parties, are not involved in the receipt or offering of any form of bribe. To enforce this policy the firm maintains on an ongoing basis its own anti-corruption/bribery policies and procedures, including but not limited to adequate procedures under the Bribery Act 2010.

Means of Providing Information

All information we provide will be made clear and accessible to you. You will also be given the choice to receive the information in paper format, free of charge. If you would like a paper copy at any time then please let us know. At renewal we will rely on your existing choice.

Version 2.0 24/07/2023