Terms of Business for Clients

INTRODUCTION

This terms of business agreement (the Agreement) sets out the nature and scope of the services Premier Choice Group will be providing to you, and other information required by law.

By instructing us to act you will be deemed to have accepted this Agreement. This Agreement can only be varied by agreement in writing between us.

ABOUT THE PREMIER CHOICE GROUP (PCG)

PCG is not a registered entity, but its member companies (PREMIER CHOICE HEALTHCARE LTD, PREMIER CHOICE LIFECARE LTD & PREMIER CHOICE EMPLOYEE BENEFITS LTD) are Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) to provide advice on and the selling of General Insurance products. We will provide our services to you fairly, with integrity and with due skill, care and diligence.

WHOSE PRODUCTS DO WE OFFER?

We can offer products from a wide range of Insurers for the following range of products:-

1. Private Medical Insurance
2. Group Income Protection (P.H.I)
3. Life Assurance & Critical Illness
4. Travel Insurance
5. Dental Insurance
6. Income Protection (Individual)

We will tell you if an insurer is connected to PCG, or if there are any special arrangements existing between those two parties.

WHICH SERVICE WILL WE PROVIDE YOU WITH?

We will advise and make a recommendation for you after we have assessed your needs for:-
Private Medical Insurance
Group Income Protection
Life Assurance & Critical Illness
Travel Insurance
Dental Insurance
Income Protection

WHO REGULATES US?

Premier Choice Healthcare Ltd is Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Services Authority. Our FSA Register number is 312878.

Our permitted business is to sell and administer general insurance.

You can check this information on the FSA register by visiting the FSA's website www.fsa.gov.uk/register or by contacting the FSA on 0845 606 1234.

ARE WE COVERED BY THE FINANCIAL SERVICES COMPENSATION SCHEME (FSCS)?

We are covered by the FSCS. You may be entitled to compensation from the scheme 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 the first £2,000 and 90% of the remainder of the claim without any upper limit.

Further information about the compensation scheme is available from the FSCS

PCG is not a Limited Company, but a marketing or trading style, designed to encompass the distinct identities of its two constituent companies. These are, Premier Choice Healthcare Ltd, which is directly authorised by the FSA for the provision of advice on and the selling of General Insurance. Premier Choice Lifecare Ltd & Premier Choice Employee Benefits Ltd are both Appointed Representatives (of PREMIER CHOICE HEALTHCARE LTD) for the same purpose. We may place insurance via one or other of these companies from time to time. We will comply with any regulatory requirement to tell you whether we have provided, or will provide, advice or information:

(a) on the basis of a fair analysis of the market; we have access to; or
(b) from a limited number or panel of insurers; or
(c) From a single insurer.

WHO DO WE ACT FOR?

As an independent insurance intermediary we act as an agent of our clients. As such we put the duties we owe to you above our own interests.

We do not become involved in the claims process in any other way, and neither do we pay claims.

OUR SERVICES

Negotiation and Placing
Where you require a bespoke service, we will discuss your insurance requirements with you, including the scope of cover, limits sought and cost of cover.

We will provide you with the information you need to make a decision about insurance cover available.

Insurers
The decision regarding suitability of any insurer or market rests with you. If you have any concerns regarding any insurers chosen for your insurance requirements you must advise us as soon as possible and we will discuss them with you.

Quotations
All our quotations are subject to subsequent acceptance by insurers, unless otherwise stated. Generally all premiums quoted include a commission which is paid by the Insurer to us (unless stated otherwise). Where this does not apply, we shall discuss with you a fee for our services, which we will always advise in writing.

Servicing and Claims Handling (Please see who we act for, above)
We will send you your policy documentation confirming the basis of the cover (including Insurers Summary sheet), together with details of premium amounts and the date it is due.

We will forward the policy documentation and any amendments or endorsements to your policy as soon as reasonably practicable.

Where you ask us, we will provide advice and assistance on any claims matters. Claims, generally, are handled directly by Insurers.

OUR RESPECTIVE RESPONSIBILITIES

Proposal Forms
You may be required to complete a proposal form, questionnaire or similar document. We will provide guidance if needed but we are not able to complete the document for you. The only exception to this is where the Insurer includes a Third Party completion declaration on the Application Form

Disclosure of Information
You are responsible for providing us and insurers with the information we request from you to enable us to seek the cover you require. We will not be responsible for any consequences which may arise from any delay or failure by you to do so. We expand on this in your Statement of Demands and Needs

Please contact us immediately if you have any doubts about what is material or have any concerns that we may not be aware of material information.

Your Policy
We will use all reasonable endeavours to ensure that your policy documentation is forwarded in a timely manner. Your policy documentation will confirm the basis of the cover, give details of the insurers together with details of amounts and the date premium is due. You are responsible for reviewing the evidence of insurance cover and other related documents which may be sent to you from time to time to confirm that it accurately reflects the cover, conditions, limits and other terms that you require. Particular attention should be paid to any policy conditions as failure to comply may invalidate your coverage. If there are any discrepancies you should consult us immediately.

Claims Procedures
This is described in the Policy summary

Change in Circumstances
You must advise us as soon as reasonably practicable of any changes in your circumstances (including change of address) that may affect the services to be provided by us or the cover provided under your insurance policy. You should also notify to us any changes to the scheme membership (if relevant) We will advise you as soon as reasonably practicable of any resultant changes in premium or terms and conditions of your policy.

Renewals
Where relevant, you will be provided with renewal terms in accordance with applicable regulatory requirements. Retail Clients will receive Renewal documentation at least 21 days prior to the Renewal Date.

Payment of Premium
You must provide settlement with cleared funds of all monies due in good time, direct to an Insurer in accordance with the payment date(s) specified either in their Policy documentation, or other relevant payment documentation (“Payment Date”). Failure to pay by the Payment Date may lead to insurers cancelling your policy. Premiums will include insurance premium tax at the current rate.

CLIENT MONEY

We do not hold or handle Client Money in any way. We are not authorised to handle Client money. If you wish us to pass money on to your Insurer, this must be by way of a cheque made payable to that Insurer marked Account Payee only. We will not handle client money in any event.

OUR REMUNERATION

Our remuneration may be as a fee paid by you to us, or as a commission. Any commission which is due is payable out of premium paid by you and allowed by the insurer(s) with whom your cover is arranged. On occasions, we may be remunerated by both commission and a fee. Brokerage and fees are earned for the policy period and we are therefore entitled to retain all fees and brokerage in respect of the full policy period for cover placed by us.

OTHER REVENUE

Occasionally, we may receive additional payments for the volume or profitability of insurance business placed with a given insurer over a specific period.

It may be appropriate for us to use a member of the PCG group of companies or another intermediary to assist us in fulfilling your insurance requirements. These companies may receive remuneration for the services they provide, but any such payment will be included in our charges to you.

OUR REVENUE DISCLOSURE POLICY

At your request, we will disclose to you in writing the commission we (and any of our associates) received in respect of your policy together with any other remuneration we receive in connection with your policy. To the extent that such other remuneration cannot be indicated in cash terms, then we will explain the basis for its calculation.

CANCELLATION RIGHTS UNDER THE DISTANCE MARKETING DIRECTIVE

If you are a Retail Customer (that is an individual buying insurance for purposes wholly or partly outside your trade business or profession) you will have the right to cancel your insurance policy within 30 days (for pure protection, i.e. Term Life and Critical Illness) or 14 days (for general insurance, e.g. Private Medical Insurance) of:

• the day the policy is issued; or
• the day on which you receive the policy, and other information about claims handling and the compensation scheme.

You may be required to pay for the time on risk should you invoke cancellation, which would be at the discretion of the Insurer.

CANCELLATION BY INSURERS OR PCG

A cancellation clause may be inserted into your insurance contract. In the event that you fail to pay your premium by the due date the insurance may be cancelled forthwith by us or by insurers, giving notice of cancellation. Insurers may return pro rata premium to us from the date of notice or date of cancellation.

Usually no return of brokerage/our fee will be given once our remuneration has been earned if the insurance is later cancelled. Please refer to your specific policy documentation.

CANCELLATION OF THIS AGREEMENT

Our arrangement may be terminated upon the giving of notice in writing to the other party or as you may otherwise be advised. In the event our services are terminated by you we will be entitled to receive any and all fees or brokerage payable.

ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS

We may communicate with each other by electronic mail, sometimes attaching further electronic data. By consenting to this method of communication we and you accept the inherent risks (including the security risks of interception of or unauthorised access to such communications, the risks of corruption of such communications and the risks of viruses or other harmful devices). Notwithstanding that we have reasonable virus checking procedures on our system, you will be responsible for virus checking all electronic communications sent by us. You will also be responsible for checking that the messages received are complete. In the event of a dispute neither of us will challenge the legal evidential standing of an electronic document and the PCG system shall be deemed the definitive record of electronic communications and documentation.

CONFIDENTIALITY

We will treat any information in our possession which relates to your business as confidential. It will be necessary, however, for us to disclose information that you consider confidential to insurers or other parties, when acting on your behalf, where we reasonably consider such information to be material to the risks being covered, or for internal review and audit purposes. Likewise, we may disclose to third parties certain industry wide statistics or other information which may include information relating to you. Any sensitive information will be handled appropriately and information specific to you will not be identified without your consent.

It is our policy to retain documents for business effected on your behalf in electronic or paper format for a minimum of 3 years.

DATA PROTECTION

Personal Data – This section only applies to data for natural persons, i.e. Individuals and not Companies or Corporate entities.

Any personal information provided by you may be held by PCG and your insurer(s) in relation to your insurance cover. Premier Choice Healthcare Ltd is complies fully with the requirements of the Data Protection Regulations and a Certificate of this is available at our Head Office. Such information may be used by PCG or your insurers’ relevant staff in making a decision concerning your insurance and for the purpose of servicing your cover and administering claims. We also reserve the right to open certain correspondence marked Private and Confidential that is sent to our offices, in order for us to discharge the duties expected of us.

Under data protection legislation, you can ask us in writing for a copy of certain personal records held about you. A charge with a minimum value of £25-00 may be made for this service.

Use for Marketing Purposes
We (PCG) may use, analyse and assess information held about you to give you information about products and services from members of the Premier Choice Group, and those selected third parties which we think may interest you by phone, post or other means. We may pass this information to other members of the PCG so that they may do the same. We may also allow a Client, where requested, to have the ability to access our electronic on line filing and data base system in order that they may view your own files in real time, and also have the ability to download selected scanned documents.

If you do not wish to receive information concerning other PCG products and services, then please advise your usual PCG contact accordingly.

MONEY LAUNDERING

UK money laundering laws require us to obtain evidence of the identity of clients for whom we act at the start of a business relationship. This might, for example, be evidenced by sight of a current signed passport and two utility bills and/or bank statements. For companies (other than listed ones) evidence of identity will usually comprise a copy certificate of incorporation, a list of directors, a list of shareholders and the registered address.

We are obliged to report to the National Criminal Intelligence Service any evidence or suspicion of money laundering at the first opportunity and we are prohibited from disclosing any such report.

IF YOU ARE NOT HAPPY WITH OUR SERVICE

It is our intention to provide you at all times with a high level of customer service. However, if you have any reason to be unhappy with the arrangement or servicing of your insurance, please contact:-

Ann Daniels, Compliance Director
Premier Choice Healthcare Limited
The Old Coach House
1A Brackley Road
Towcester
Northants
NN12 6DH
Telephone: 01327 353911
Fax: 01327 352416
E-mail: anndaniels@pch.uk.com

Any complaint will be acknowledged within two business days of receipt. You will be advised of the person who will be dealing with your concerns and when you can expect to receive a response. We aim to provide you with a full written response within twenty business days to the matters you have raised, unless the complaint is particularly complicated or warrants further investigation. If this is the case, you will be advised in writing if more time is required to provide you with a satisfactory response.

Your custom is valuable to us and we want you to be entirely satisfied with the response and service we give. Our aim is to resolve all concerns internally. If you remain dissatisfied with the way in which we have dealt with your complaint and you are a Retail Customer (or a retail beneficiary under a corporate scheme) you may refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service. Their contact address is as follows:-

Financial Ombudsman Service
South Quay Plaza
183 Marsh Wall
London E14 9SR
0845 080 1800 www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk

INTRODUCER ARRANGEMENTS

We have an Introducer Arrangement in place with an Independent Financial Adviser (Regulated by the Financial Services Authority) for the purposes of making Introductions only for the advice on Investment Linked products or Whole of Life policies. The name of this firm is Prosperis Ltd. Where it is relevant, such introductions will be made with the client's agreement.

THIRD PARTY RIGHTS

Unless otherwise agreed between us in writing no term of this Agreement is enforceable under the Contracts (Right of Third Parties) Act 1999, except by a member of the PCG Group of companies.

GOVERNING LAW

This Agreement, which sets out the terms of our relationship with you, will be governed by and construed in accordance with English Law and any dispute arising under it shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts.

Premier Choice Group (Premier Choice Healthcare Ltd, Premier Choice Employee Benefits Ltd & Premier Choice Lifecare Ltd)
The Old Coach House
1 A Brackley Road
Towcester
Northants
NN12 6DH
Telephone: 01327 353911
Fax: 01327 352416