British Insurance
Encyclopedia
British Insurance is an insurance
company based in Colchester
, Essex
, offering payment protection insurance
and home insurance
. The company is an online
-only broker which sells its policies independently of loan providers. It is a subsidiary of Towergate Partnership
, and had gross written premiums
of around £10 million as of 2008.
British Insurance was acquired
by Towergate in 2008 for an estimated £25 million. Existing staff, including the founders, were retained as part of the deal. Simon Burgess continued as managing director until 2010. Following his departure, Nel Mooy was appointed as managing director.
, Scotland
, against the possibility of a virgin birth. It had provided a £1 million policy to cover the cost of child-raising in the event of one of them giving birth to the Second Coming of Christ. The company told BBC News Online
that it had been donating the premiums of £100 per year to charity. It withdrew the policy in 2006 following complaints; Burgess said that the Catholic Church was "up in arms about what we've been doing". The company also insured a football fan for £1 million against suffering severe mental trauma if England
were knocked out of the 2006 World Cup
prematurely.
Insurance
In law and economics, insurance is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. An insurer is a company selling the...
company based in Colchester
Colchester
Colchester is an historic town and the largest settlement within the borough of Colchester in Essex, England.At the time of the census in 2001, it had a population of 104,390. However, the population is rapidly increasing, and has been named as one of Britain's fastest growing towns. As the...
, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
, offering payment protection insurance
Payment protection insurance
Payment protection insurance, is an insurance product that is often designed to cover a debt that is currently outstanding Payment protection insurance, (also known as PPI, credit protection insurance, loan repayment insurance, not to be confused with income protection or credit card cover) is an...
and home insurance
Home insurance
Home insurance, also commonly called hazard insurance or homeowner's insurance , is the type of property insurance that covers private homes...
. The company is an online
ONLINE
ONLINE is a magazine for information systems first published in 1977. The publisher Online, Inc. was founded the year before. In May 2002, Information Today, Inc. acquired the assets of Online Inc....
-only broker which sells its policies independently of loan providers. It is a subsidiary of Towergate Partnership
Towergate Partnership
Towergate Partnership was founded in 1997 and is Europes largest independently-owned insurance intermediary. Towergate operates through five main areas of operation: Broking , Underwriting , Networks for independent brokers, Towergate Financial and Paymentshield.Towergate's executive chairman,...
, and had gross written premiums
Gross premiums written
When a non-life insurance company closes a contract to provide insurance against loss, the revenues expected to be received over the life of the contract are called gross premiums written...
of around £10 million as of 2008.
History
The company was set up in 2003 by husband and wife Simon and Sara Burgess, under the name Burgesses. It changed its name to British Insurance in 2005, after gaining permission from the then Secretary of State for Industry to use the word ‘British’ in the company title.British Insurance was acquired
Mergers and acquisitions
Mergers and acquisitions refers to the aspect of corporate strategy, corporate finance and management dealing with the buying, selling, dividing and combining of different companies and similar entities that can help an enterprise grow rapidly in its sector or location of origin, or a new field or...
by Towergate in 2008 for an estimated £25 million. Existing staff, including the founders, were retained as part of the deal. Simon Burgess continued as managing director until 2010. Following his departure, Nel Mooy was appointed as managing director.
Controversies
In 2006 the company was reported to be insuring three sisters from InvernessInverness
Inverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, against the possibility of a virgin birth. It had provided a £1 million policy to cover the cost of child-raising in the event of one of them giving birth to the Second Coming of Christ. The company told BBC News Online
BBC News Online
BBC News Online is the website of BBC News, the division of the BBC responsible for newsgathering and production. The website is the most popular news website in the United Kingdom and forms a major part of BBC Online ....
that it had been donating the premiums of £100 per year to charity. It withdrew the policy in 2006 following complaints; Burgess said that the Catholic Church was "up in arms about what we've been doing". The company also insured a football fan for £1 million against suffering severe mental trauma if England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
were knocked out of the 2006 World Cup
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six...
prematurely.
2010
- Personal Finance: Outstanding Online Insurance Provider.
- Mortgage Finance Gazette: Best Overall Insurance Provider and Ambassador Award
2009
- Mortgage Finance Gazette: Excellence in Treating Customers Fairly (financial service product provider category)
- Investment International: Best Mortgage Payment Protection Insurance Provider
- What Mortgage: Best Online Insurance Provider
- Investment International: Best Overall Insurance Provider
- Global Business Excellence: Outstanding Consumer Champion (Simon Burgess)