As the year draws to a close, we reflect on the past year at HB Underwriting and share our Christmas opening hours with you.
Christmas Opening Hours
Please remember that our quote-and-buy platform is available 24/7. While you can self-serve at any time, our team is always here to assist you. For support, simply email us at enquiries@hbunderwriting.co.uk or call us during the hours below at 01653 609090:
Monday 23rd December – 9am-5pm
Tuesday 24th December – Closed
Wednesday 25th December – Closed
Thursday 26th December – Closed
Friday 27th December – Closed
Monday 30th December – 9am-5pm
Tuesday 31st December – 9am-2pm
Wednesday 1st January – Closed
Thursday 2nd January – 9am-5pm
For information about rradar’s contact details, opening hours, or how to access their digital services and crisis line, you can find more details here.
Round up of 2024
So, what happened at HB Underwriting this year?
- Rural Protect Rates and Cover Changes from January 2024 – In January, we announced that Rural Protect’s premiums decreased and cover increased in our blog post here—a nice surprise for the insurance market! With a competitive price point and robust cover, there is no reason not to recommend Rural Protect to a rural business customer.
- Claims Examples – We are pleased to offer a comprehensive booklet of real-life claims that we have handled, enabling you to effectively demonstrate Rural Protect’s cover to your customers. These examples, categorised by business type, make it even easier for you to extract the ones relevant to the customer you’re engaging with at the time. Take a look at our Rural Protect Claims Case Studies here.
- Quarterly Newsletters – Throughout the year, we’ve shared insights on legal and regulatory updates, Rural Protect enhancements, marketing materials, and more via our newsletters. To revisit these valuable resources, read our newsletters here, here and here.
- BBC Countryfile Feature – As part of the BBC’s Scam Safe Week, our very own Kyle Lomas appeared on Countryfile on Sunday 24th November, highlighting rural fraud prevention. The program also featured Rural Protect customer, Alan Steven, who recovered losses incurred due to fraud thanks to our policy’s cover. This is just one example of Rural Protect’s extensive benefits beyond legal and regulatory defence. If you missed the episode, you can catch up on BBC iPlayer > Countryfile > starting from 17:45.
- Partner Broker Testimonials – We have brought Rural Protect testimonials to life! Hear directly from our trusted broker partners as they share the many reasons why this cover is essential for your customers. Watch these insightful videos here.
We hope you and your team will find the videos informative as the stars of our videos discuss how Rural Protect can add value to your service proposition and provide helpful points to aid conversations around the protection it provides. To those offering Rural Protect already, we hope the videos also reinforce the message that you’re doing the right thing by your client, as many others also recognise the value of Rural Protect. - Rural Protect Marketing Materials for Brokers – We have developed a range of new leaflets, flyers, pull-up banners, blogs, and more. Be sure to review and utilise the most up-to-date materials, available in our Rural Protect Resource Hub here.
- Employer Protect Launch – Mid-year, we introduced Employer Protect, a direct-to-consumer product designed to cover Employers’ Liability for individuals employing Personal Assistants or Carers under personal healthcare or social care budgets. Find out more about Employer Protect here.
Looking Ahead to 2025
Exciting developments are on the horizon:
- Celebrating 10 Years of Rural Protect – In January 2025, Rural Protect will be celebrating its 10th anniversary! Rural Protect has grown stronger than ever over the past decade, and we look forward to marking this special milestone.
- Enhanced Cover and Rates – We will introduce new covers and adjust limits and rates in the first quarter of the year.
- Updated Product Literature – Our materials will be refined to better align with our shared Consumer Duty responsibilities.
- Portal Enhancements – We are improving the Rural Protect portal by integrating data from Companies House, streamlining the process and reducing the need for manual data entry.
- RABI Affiliation – We will incorporate details about The Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution (RABI) into our customer-facing materials. This will provide additional support for customers dealing with legal or regulatory issues, connecting them with RABI’s valuable services.
- Webinars – Our popular webinar series will continue into 2025, featuring refreshers on Rural Protect and timely updates on regulatory developments from rradar.
Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from all of us at HB Underwriting!
We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to our brokers and partners for their support and collaboration throughout 2024. Wishing you all a joyous Christmas and a prosperous, safe New Year.
P.S. Take a look back at our year in blogs! You can view them all here.
