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Last updated: 01-12-2023. From web page: Insurance and Risk Management – Money, motor, travel and engineering (for Catholic VA schools only).

Insurance & Risk Management Service Level Agreement – Package B (Applicable to Catholic VA Schools) – Money, Motor, Travel & Engineering Insurances

SLA 1 April 2024 - 31 March 2025

Note

Please read this document carefully and if you have any questions on either the cover or services provided then, in the first instance please contact insurance@southampton.gov.uk, noting that schools are required to confirm their intentions by no later than 31 January 2024.

Please also note Paragraph 2.10 which refers to the ‘Risk Protection Arrangement’ which is an alternative to conventional insurance that is available to maintained schools via the DfE.

Introduction

  1. This Service Level Agreement (SLA) describes the service available from the council’s Risk
    and Insurance Services to Catholic Voluntary Aided schools. This SLA should be read in
    conjunction with the SERVICE SPECIFICATION (Package A - Liability Insurances).
  2. The scope of cover provided under this SLA recognises that insurance in respect of property,
    contents, business interruption costs and contract works is arranged and provided via
    Catholic Church Insurance Association (“CCIA”). Schools should obtain evidence of the
    insurance policies and scope of cover direct from the CCIA together with information on
    claims reporting arrangements, etc. Copies of these document should be made available to
    the council on request. Any concerns regarding potential gaps in cover should be raised with
    the CCIA in the first instance.
  3. The scope of cover provided under this SLA is intended to reflect the residual elements of
    cover not provided via the CCIA. Schools will need to select both Insurance SLAs (Packages
    A & B) in order to benefit from the widest cover available under the council’s corporate
    insurance programme.
  4. The following services are provided by the council’s Risk and Insurance Services section in
    respect of the cover provided under this SLA:
    1. Access to an experienced in-house team who take pride in delivering a professional
      and approachable service that provides both helpful and pragmatic advice, support
      and guidance on all risk and insurance related matters;
    2. A responsive and reliable service that operates the following service standards:
      • General Claims Correspondence - within five working days;
      • New Claims - Set up and acknowledged - within two working days;
      • Telephone calls - returned within 1 working day.
    3. Access to a dedicated ‘Insurance for Schools’ intranet page that provides all relevant
      insurance information and including a suite of best practice ‘RMI Guides’ covering a
      range of risk and insurance issues specific to schools, such as: school journeys,
      volunteers, minibuses, money on school sites, hire of premises, etc. The information
      is also available via the Schools Extranet.
    4. Access to specialist technical risk and insurance information, advice and guidance
      through either insurers or the council’s insurance brokers
    5. Provision of a comprehensive and supportive insurance claims handling service in
      respect of claims that a school may need to make following loss or damage to
      property or claims in respect of other perils covered under the insurance
      programme.
    6. Co-ordination of the claims process on behalf of schools including communication
      with claims handlers, insurers, loss adjusters and other internal service areas.
    7. Appointment of external loss adjusters where required, which is provided at no
      additional cost and forms part of the overall claims handling service.
    8. Provision of an appropriate and cost effective insurance programme developed in
      consultation with the council’s appointed Risk and Insurance Advisors;
    9. Periodic tender of the insurance programme, in accordance with both EU
      procurement legislation and the council’s Contract Procedure Rules, in order to
      ensure that ‘best value’ is maintained.
    10. Placement of cover with external insurers including the negotiation of premium
      rates and policy terms together with completion of an annual insurance renewal
      declaration;
  5. The services specified are provided under the terms of and at the prices detailed in the
    Response Sheet.

Service options

  1. The delegated option applies in respect of the suite of insurance covers detailed in Table 1.
  2. Please note that there is no facility for school to select individual elements of the package.
  3. It is recognised however that not all schools operate a minibus and therefore a separate
    charge is made to those schools where motor insurance cover is required.
  4. Table 1 provides a summary of the delegated insurance option offered to schools under
    Package B. It does not include the full terms and conditions of the cover and any query
    regarding cover should be directed to the Risk and Insurance Services Section (see service
    contact details in paragraph 3).
  5. Table 1 reflects the cover currently provided under the 2023-24 insurance programme
    noting that noting that no changes in the scope of cover are expected, and that 2024-25 is
    the last year of the current contract with insurers.

    Table 1

    Cover provided Insurer What’s covered Notes and observations
    Money – Official School Funds Zurich Municipal Theft of cash, bank notes including crossed cheques, crossed money order. Cover includes damage to safes caused by theft or attempted theft and any incidental damage to clothing or personal effects of any employee up to a maximum of £500 any one employee Limit - various, including cash on premises or in transit
    Excess - £ nil
    Note: The ’insurance cash limit’ in respect of a safe is subject to basic security criteria being met. Cover for money held in other locked receptacles - up to £150 per location.
    Money – Unofficial School Funds Zurich Municipal Unofficial school funds including Book Tokens up to £500 Excess - £ nil (subject to monies being held in a safe as per the above and the lower limit applying in respect of other locked receptacles).
    Motor - School Minibuses Travelers Insurance Company

    Comprehensive insurance in respect of loss or damage caused by:

    • Accidental means including malicious damage;
    • Fire; and
    • Theft or attempted theft.
    Unlimited limit of indemnity in respect of death or injury to third parties and a limit of £5m in respect of damage to third party property.    		 Excess - £ nil (except in respect of own damage where a £100 excess applies). Note: Authorised persons driving the vehicle are expected to be MiDAS trained.
    Travel (UK & Overseas) AIG UK Limited
    • Medical and emergency travel expenses - Unlimited
    • Cancellation - £5k*
    • Money - £1k
    • Personal property/baggage - £2.5k
    • Personal accident - £30k
    • Personal liability £2m
    • Legal expenses £50k
    The cover applies in respect of pupils, teachers, volunteers and helpers who are registered members of an educational trip party in the UK or elsewhere in the world and including winter sports. Note: Trips within the UK not involving an overnight stay are not covered. st April 2021 cover in respect of cancellation of trips due to coronavirus or similar pandemics is now excluded under the policy.    		 Excess - £ nil
    Note: A summary of cover is available via the Risk & Insurance intranet site and the schools extranet site.
    Engineering Insurance Zurich Municipal Damage to surrounding plant or property as a result of sudden and unforeseen damage (including breakdown, explosion or collapse) in respect of plant or machinery that is included on schedule of plant and equipment that is subject to periodic statutory inspection (see below).

    Limit of Indemnity - £100k- Damage to own plant

    £2m-Damage to own surrounding property
    Statutory plant inspection services - Engineering Inspection Zurich Risk Engineering By law, statutory inspection of various plant and equipment must be undertaken on a periodic basis in order to comply with statutory and regulatory requirements. Type of plant and equipment requiring ‘statutory’ inspection includes boilers, lifts and lifting equipment, pressure plant, extraction systems (e.g. dust extraction systems and including fume cupboards) Inspections are undertaken by Engineering Surveyors who provide reports that advise on the continued safe operation of plant and equipment. RMI Services hold a list of the items of plant or equipment for each site (details of which are available upon request)
  6.  
  7. Schools are responsible for ensuring that all material facts are disclosed. A "material"
    fact is defined as one which would influence an underwriter when they were deciding
    whether to accept the risk. Non-disclosure of a material fact may give the insurer the
    right to cancel the cover. Please contact Risk and Insurance Services if you need
    advice as to whether something needs to be declared to insurers and/or whether it
    would constitute a material fact.
  8. Should a school request delegation of the insurance budget then they will be required
    to provide evidence of an insurance programme that is comparable to the cover
    provided under the council’s corporate insurance programme.
  9. Any insurance programme arranged by a school must also include appropriate
    wording or clauses such that it provides a full indemnity to the council in respect of
    any claims received. The school will be required to assume full responsibility for all
    claims that may arise irrespective of the circumstances and/or amount claimed.
    Schools would therefore be expected to obtain independent advice on the type and
    scope of cover required.
  10. It should be noted that an alternative scheme to insurance is available via the
    Department for Education (DfE). The Risk Protection Arrangement (RPA) is not an
    insurance scheme but is a mechanism through which the cost of risks are covered by
    government funds. Full details of the RPA Rules (cover) including the pricing and
    scheme details can be found on the RPA website. Please however note the following:
    • The RPA is not an insurance scheme but is a mechanism through which the cost of
      risks are covered by government funds noting that an insurance policy is a legally
      enforceable contract; under a risk transfer mechanism, payments are discretionary.
    • As per paragraph 1.2, insurance in respect of property, contents, business
      interruption costs and contract works is arranged and provided via the Catholic
      Church Insurance Association (“CCIA”). Any school considering opting into the RPA
      scheme will therefore also need to discuss any such proposal with the CCIA.
    • It should be noted that the core offering under the RPA scheme does not include
      cover in respect of ‘Motor - School Minibus’ nor ‘Statutory plant inspection services
      - Engineering Inspection‘.
    • Any questions regarding the scope of cover or operation of the RPA scheme will need
      to be referred directly to the DfE.
    • Any school choosing to opt into the RPA scheme will be required to manage their
      own insurance queries, risk management requirements and claims directly with the
      RPA.
    • As with any funded arrangement, the price may vary from year to year.
  11. Any school intending to opt into the RPA Scheme, or otherwise arrange its own
    insurance programme must, by no later than 31 January 2024, confirm their
    intentions and, if requested, submit full details of the proposed alternative insurance
    arrangements to Risk and Insurance Services.
  12. The council reserves the right to continue to arrange cover and charge a school for
    insurance under the council’s corporate insurance programme if satisfactory
    evidence of alternative cover is not provided in sufficient time and/or it is considered
    that the alternative arrangements proposed by a school are inadequate in any way.
  13. Should a school transfer to academy status during the period of this SLA then cover
    provided by the SLA will cease from the date of transfer and the Schools Finance
    Team will provide a premium rebate on a pro rata basis

Service contacts and performance review

  1. The key service contact is:
    Peter Rogers, Risk and Insurance Manager
    Tel: 023 8083 2835
    E-mail: peter.rogers@southampton.gov.uk
  2. In addition, any general insurance, risk and claims related enquiries or other comment relating to service may be sent to the following mailbox: insurance@southampton.gov.uk