|  |  |  |  | |  | Resources RICS & Howden UK Launches New Asbestos Insurance Scheme17th January 2004Howden UK, the largest Lloyd’s broker specialising in professional indemnity insurance (PI), has joined forces with the RICS as its exclusive broker appointed to provide PI for asbestos inspectors.
Howden UK has successfully secured a unique scheme for asbestos cover by bringing together a panel of leading insurers to spread the risk.
Kevin Culliney, Executive Director of Howden UK, comments: “Asbestos is a dirty word in insurance, in the USA the reserve on the asbestos payout is four times the payout on the World Trade Centre. With approximately 800,000 non-domestic buildings in the UK which need surveying for asbestos, the blanket exclusion placed on any asbestos related claim by insurers looked to be an incurable headache for surveyors - potentially excluding them from capitalising on the estimated £8 billion worth* of surveying fees.
“Howden UK’s expertise in the construction arena, and the depth and strength of its market relationships made us the obvious choice for RICS, and we’re delighted that by working with a panel of leading underwriters, we have secured the broadest cover available to run alongside the new RICS asbestos inspectors’ training programme. Overcoming this huge problem had seemed hopeless for the construction industry – making the news of securing this cover quite a feat, and a testament to our market leading expertise.”
Once applicants have completed the RICS training programme, they can qualify for PI from Howden with varying limits of indemnity available depending on the type of work being carried out.
Howden UK focuses on developing specialist offerings for the construction industry, and has particular expertise creating bespoke wordings for those sectors exposed to hazardous risks. Howden has been the appointed broker to Scenta (the commercial arm of the Engineering Technical Boajavascript:document.forms.mainform.submit();rd) for over a decade, launching the insurancescenta scheme at the beginning of 2004. Howden provides expert advice and specialist PI insurance to individuals, SMEs, and some of the largest surveying, architectural and engineering firms in the UK and Ireland.
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