In a feature for Modern Insurance Magazine, Mike Wildy, Senior Business Developer, Allianz Legal Protection explains the advantages of 'Before the Event' (BTE) legal expenses insurance.
Before the Event (BTE) insurance is often purchased as an ‘add-on’ to a motor, home or commercial lines policy. It covers the legal costs associated with bringing or defending a legal action and can be a valuable addition to the primary insurance, saving customers time, money and unnecessary stress in the event of a legal dispute.
The BTE market is well established in the UK; however, there still appears to be a lack of wider public acknowledgement and understanding of the comprehensive range of covers and legal support that’s available to consumers and businesses.
This could largely be down to the add-on nature of the product, where the customer’s initial purchasing mindset is for the primary motor, home or business related insurance. However, with recent legislative changes including the Civil Liability Act 2018, BTE should at last be recognised by individuals and businesses alike as a cost effective product of choice to ensure access to justice.
Insurers and distributors of legal expenses insurance play an important role in ensuring that customers are adequately educated to understand the range of covers provided by legal expenses policies, as there are very different cover elements depending on whether the purchaser is a consumer or a business. This includes not only the indemnified sections of cover but also some of the additional services provided, such as legal advice helplines and online document support.
Through improved knowledge and education, BTE legal expenses may at last be able to rid itself as being seen as a low cost commodity add-on product. It should be appreciated as a real value added solution to protect customers against the uncertainty of costs (and legal expertise) when bringing a legal action independently.
This article was originally published in Modern Insurance Magazine (Issue 39). It may not be replicated in any other publications.
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