The Society of Licensed Conveyancers (SLC) has welcomed changes to the arrangements for insurers for the provision of Professional Indemnity Insurance (PII) for the Licensed Conveyancer profession.
From 2023, firms regulated by the Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC) will have to submit at least one application for PII two months ahead of the renewal deadline. Insurers receiving applications will then be required to respond no less than one month before the deadline, on 1 June, in a bid to reduce the risks involved when firms and insurers take renewal right up to the 30 June cut-off. This is intended to make the renewal process smoother than it has been, allowing practices time to seek alternative cover if needed and be able to plan for the outcome better.
The SLC stated that “the changes are very much in line with the Society’s response to a consultation on the issue held by the CLC earlier in the year”.
In addition to the requirement that practices submit at least one application for PII by the end of April each year, the changes also mean that in the event that a practice is unable to secure cover at renewal, the current insurer must provide an automatic 90-day extension to provide more time for a practice to secure terms or allow for alternative arrangements to be made such as acquisition or an orderly closure. The requirement for run-off cover to be integrated in every policy will remain in place.
Simon Law, SLC Chairperson commented:
“We are wholly supportive of the new PII arrangements that will come into force in 2023. The 2022 renewal round is nearly complete, but some practices are only receiving renewal proposals from insurers today. This is far too close to the 30th June deadline and allows little time to negotiate any variation to terms. The new arrangements should allow for a smoother and less stressful renewal process in 2023, and the extension arrangements for practices that are struggling to renew their policy are pragmatic and sensible. We also welcome the announcement that the CLC will entertain approaches from practices that wish to set higher excesses than the turnover formula dictates.”
The SLC policy is provided by Howden and all practices that had their existing policy with them have received renewal terms.
