Director’s and officer’s insurance tailored for housing associations

We’ve been working with PIB Insurance Brokers (PIB) to negotiate an alternative director’s and officer’s (D&O) insurance offer at preferential rates for all members of the NHF.

Since we had to take the difficult decision to no longer offer D&O insurance as part of NHF membership, we know a number of our members have found it difficult to procure vital D&O insurance for their organisations at the right level and cost, and have felt a significant financial and operational impact.

PIB have investigated the marketplace and members’ needs, and have come up with a tailored offer for the sector, tiered to provide the right cover and price for all sizes of housing association. The offer is potentially 10-25% cheaper than current market rates for D&O insurance, based on 40 housing associations PIB already insure, and members will get an extra 20% discount on PIB’s broker commission.

The NHF will not benefit financially from this offer. While PIB is a trusted NHF partner who own Thistle Insurance Services, providing our existing My Home Contents Insurance product for our membership, we have no commercial relationship with PIB on D&O cover.

Why do you need D&O insurance?

• D&O insurance offers liability cover for board members and senior managers against claims arising from the decisions and actions (defined as ‘wrongful acts’) taken within the scope of their regular duties.
• A ‘wrongful act’ could be a breach of trust, breach of duty, neglect, error, misleading statement or wrongful trading, committed or attempted by a director or officer whilst acting in this capacity on behalf of the company.
• Directors and senior managers (in a managerial or supervisory capacity) can be held personally liable for the consequences of a wrongful act and their liability is unlimited. This means that, without adequate D&O liability insurance, their personal assets (for example their houses, pensions etc.) could be at risk.
• Even if the individual director is not personally liable, if they are named in an action then significant legal defence costs could be incurred in establishing a defence.
• A D&O liability policy can cover legal defence costs and compensation awards. Some organisations may find that having sufficient D&O cover helps to attract and retain board members and senior management. 

How the offer works

D&O insurance would be offered across three membership tiers based on turnover, and the products and insurers have been carefully planned and selected. While there are three tiers, PIB can work with members whose turnover may be just under or over the tier threshold to make sure they get an appropriate product.

In a volatile market where cover can be changed or withdrawn at short notice, we know reliability and assurance is really important. PIB will be working with four different insurers (AIG, Aviva, AXA or Dual) to increase your options if one insurer changes its approach. They will also offer advice and expertise on the complexities of D&O insurance to make sure you have the level of cover you need for your organisation.