Resources
Checklists and tools you can actually use.
The things we find ourselves sending clients again and again. All of it is on the page — no email address required, no download that turns out to be a sales form.
Calculators
The two numbers people get wrong.
Under-insurance and a too-short indemnity period cause more disappointed claims than any exclusion. Both are decided at purchase, and both are checkable in about a minute.
Are you under-insured?
The average clause reduces every claim in proportion to how under-insured you are — not just total losses. This shows you by how much.
A rough indication, not a valuation. Policies differ, and some include tolerances that soften the effect. Ask us to check the actual wording.
Business interruption: a starting figure
The insurance definition of gross profit is not your accountant’s. Using the accounting figure under-insures most businesses before anything has even happened.
A starting point for a conversation, not a figure to insure on. The precise definition varies by policy wording — we will work it out properly with you.
Numbers look wrong? Send us the policy and we will tell you exactly where you stand.
Checklists
Print them, or work through them here.
Everyone
Before you renew any policy
Nine questions that turn a rubber-stamp renewal into a real review. Start four to six weeks before the renewal date.
- Is the sum insured still right for today's rebuild or replacement cost?
- What has changed since last year — vehicle, premises, staff, equipment, activity?
- What is the excess, and has the insurer quietly increased it?
- What exactly is excluded? Ask for it in plain language.
- Has the policy wording changed since the expiring version?
- Am I paying for anything I no longer own or do?
- Am I insured twice for the same thing anywhere?
- What would this policy not have paid for in my last claim?
- Has the market actually been re-quoted, or was this rolled over?
Everyone
The first 24 hours after a loss
What to do on the day, in order. Most claims that go badly go badly before an insurer is ever involved.
- People first — injuries before paperwork, always.
- Make the site safe and stop the loss getting worse.
- Photograph and video everything before you move or clear anything.
- Report to the police (theft, motor) or fire service (fire) and ask how to get the report.
- Do not admit liability to anyone, in speech or in writing.
- Keep receipts for anything you spend to limit the damage.
- Notify us the same day, even without the paperwork.
- Do not dispose of damaged property until it has been inspected.
Business
Starting a business: what to insure first
A defensible order of priority when the budget is finite. Insure catastrophe before inconvenience.
- Property and fire cover on premises, stock and equipment.
- Business interruption, with an indemnity period matched to a realistic rebuild.
- Public liability, if anyone comes onto your site or your work could injure someone.
- Motor or fleet cover for any vehicle used in the business.
- Goods-in-transit or marine, if you move stock at all.
- Machinery breakdown, if one machine failing would halt production.
- Professional indemnity, if you sell advice, design or expertise.
- Group life and health cover for staff, once the above are in place.
Individual
Buying motor insurance without regret
The questions to settle before you pay, especially if this is your first vehicle.
- Third-party, third-party fire and theft, or comprehensive — and do you know the difference?
- Is the sum insured the vehicle's actual current value?
- What is the excess on an own-damage claim?
- Is flood damage included? In Lagos this matters more than almost anything.
- Are you restricted to particular repairers?
- Who else is allowed to drive the vehicle under the policy?
- Is the vehicle used for business, hire or ride-hailing? Say so — this is a material fact.
- What is the no-claims discount worth, and at what claim size is it worth not claiming?
Everyone
Before you submit a claim
A short pre-flight check that prevents the most common reasons for delay and refusal.
- Have you notified us as early as possible, even without full details?
- Do you have photographs taken before anything was cleared or repaired?
- Do you have the official report — police, fire service, or carrier?
- Have you listed what was lost or damaged, with values?
- Have you found receipts, invoices or valuations where they exist?
- Have you avoided admitting liability to anyone?
- Have you kept damaged items rather than disposing of them?
- Is your claim worth more than the excess plus the no-claims discount you would lose?
Business
Reviewing cover for your staff
For employers arranging or reviewing group benefits.
- Is the group life sum insured a realistic multiple of salary?
- Does the health plan's hospital list actually cover where your staff live and work?
- What are the waiting periods, and do staff know about them?
- Are pre-existing conditions excluded, and for how long?
- Is personal accident cover included for staff in higher-risk roles?
- Are new joiners and leavers being reported to the insurer promptly?
- Do your staff know the benefits exist and how to use them?
- Is anyone whose absence would stall the business covered as a key person?
Would rather someone just checked for you?
Send us your policy. A licensed broker will read it and tell you plainly where the gaps are — free, and with no obligation to move your business.