Legal expenses and assistance provider ARAG has joined with Guardian Legal Services and Affiniti Finance to provide an after-the-event (ATE) legal expenses insurance and disbursement funding solution to law firms that handle only a modest number of clinical negligence and other personal injury claims.
The scheme offers a complete package, combining ATE cover (including cover for adverse costs and own disbursements) with competitive disbursement funding.
The package is only available to the clients of Solicitors Regulation Authority-regulated firms in England and Wales.
“There are numerous smaller firms which handle personal injury cases,” said head of personal injury and clinical negligence at Affiniti, Grant Cumbley, “which, until now, have found it difficult to fund disbursements and insure their clients’ cases, especially with a reliable, UK-based insurance provider.”
Guardian director Paul Nicholas-Gilbert added: “The new small firms solution that we have developed with ARAG and Affiniti responds to a clear market need that isn’t really being satisfied at the moment.”
“By partnering with Guardian, all of a firm’s clients can benefit from our single, specialist solution and avoid the need to apply on a case-by-case basis”
The policy includes Part 36 cover and the single-stage premiums are deferred and only payable on a successful conclusion of the case.
“Guardian and Affiniti share ARAG’s deep commitment to enabling access to justice,” said ARAG ATE sales manager Mike Knight. “A claimant’s decision to use a smaller firm shouldn’t prevent their case from being insured or preclude them from funding solutions.”
ARAG has also appointed two new account managers to its before-the-event sales team.
Paul Harvey takes on responsibility for building ARAG’s strong relationships with brokers and other insurance intermediaries in the North of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
He has more than 20 years of insurance industry experience, initially as an underwriter with Provident Insurance before moving into business development and account management roles with NFU Mutual, Iprism Underwriting Agency and, most recently, IIGL (Incorporated Insurance Group Limited).
Building on ARAG’s presence in the Southeast of England is Chris Clacy, who brings
with him more than a decade of experience in the insurance industry, including several years working with brokers to deliver commercial legal expenses insurance solutions to their clients.
Clacy also has account management experience to call on, having worked in such roles for both insurer and broker businesses. Starting his insurance career with A-Plan Insurance, he has since worked for Zurich, BJP Insurance Brokers, A-One Insurance Group and Covered Insurance Solutions.
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