Sheila Jones heads up our Risk Management department and having been with us for 19 years, is one of the longest-serving members of the C&C family. And even then, Sheila joined us having spent a number of years with AVIVA (and its previous incarnations), and the briefest of spells as a Lloyds broker.
It’s fair to say that Sheila’s seen more than a bit of change since she joined the insurance industry. Besides the seven Prime Ministers since joining C&C (to be fair, three have been in the last 15 months!), health and safety and risk management legislation has exploded exponentially – and continues to do so at a prolific rate.
Contrary to what the tabloids would have you believe, H&S legislation doesn’t just exist for the sake of it. Tighter risk management controls have seen fatal workplace injuries drop by approximately 90% since the mid-1980s and non-fatal by more than half. [HSE: Historical picture stats – Nov 2022] This is good news for everyone concerned, not least those exposed to the risks. But it’s also good news for everyone who pays insurance premiums, as ultimately, high levels of claims affect us all.
In addition to her health & safety qualifications and experience (and there are a lot of letters after her name), Sheila also has a law degree so has a thorough understanding of what is being asked of businesses. As such, she’s well qualified to act as the ‘competent person’ required by H&S law to be responsible for all things risk management related, including its legal obligations and H&S policies.
As a part of the competent person status, we can offer clients a full risk management service which includes: reviewing existing H&S policies, providing business-specific risk assessments, providing policies and written procedures appropriate for the client’s trade and activities, method statements, quarterly inspection visits, and fire awareness and marshal training, to name just some of the services provided.
At C&C we have clients ranging from life science operatives with laboratories working with, and storing hazardous substances; haulage firms with wagons, garages and office premises; down to home-based SMEs, all requiring tailored policies and procedures. But regardless of sector or type, H&S legislation still applies.
In the first instance, we can offer a free H&S health check with a recommendations report. Training and remedial measures can also be managed by Sheila. It’s not necessary to be a client, but clients will receive discounts.
This kind of service provision is very well received by insurers. By being able to demonstrate compliance and ever-increasing levels of risk management, inevitably clients are considered as being less risky to underwrite, which can be reflected in annual premiums.
Given the almost daily refinements of legislation; the breadth of business types it has to cover, and the depth of the risks it has to cover, it must be a challenge to keep on top of and to be alert to non-compliance.
Sheila says: “The knowledge required is considerable – not to mention recognising when something isn’t compliant. I just have a sense for some things now. Sometimes red flags and alarm bells can be very obvious But other times you just know if something needs exploring further. And as the consultant ‘competent person’ I have to explore to the Nth degree.”
Sheila’s partner in crime, Julie Smith, retired in April after a modest 28 years with us! The level of expertise held by Sheila and Julie is rare. Finding people capable of switching across industry types with fluidity means recruitment can be challenging. So, it was decided that to access the skill set required for C&C, it would be best to train someone to our specific needs.
So, in March Caitlin joined the Risk Management team and is already well on the way with her NEBOSH qualifications (National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health). Further down the line, she will take the Diploma to become a health and safety consultant, but in the meantime is gaining valuable real-world experience working with Sheila on C&C clients.
The C&C team and our clients are fortunate to have this in-house resource. Not only does it reinforce the legal and moral need to be vigilant over health and safety for the sake of all employees. It can also make financial sense by translating into more competitive premiums.
Now that sounds like a WIN-WIN for business!
