‘Tis the season to be jolly…and safe

Hospitality is the third largest employer in the UK, with 3.5 million people working in the sector[1]. It plays a crucial role in providing jobs and supporting livelihoods across many supporting sectors. And showing the public a great time by serving up delicious food and wine, pouring perfect pints and creating cocktails that make Insta-worthy memories.

The season of goodwill can be a rewarding and lucrative time for the hospitality sector. Christmas, Mad Friday and the Christmas rush of work parties, friends celebrating and family get-togethers can be a lifeline for many hotels, leisure venues, restaurants and bars. In fact, takings in December can be equal to three months of trading.

But faced with rising running costs and staff shortages, making Christmas merry and bright is a challenge.

Festive cheers and fears

The hospitality sector has a moral and legal obligation to prioritise customer and employee safety and wellbeing. While there are health and safety risks all year round, some become more prominent during the busy festive season.

All businesses want to see increased footfall at Christmas, but this cannot compromise customer and staff safety. Here is some useful information about how the hospitality sector can manage and mitigate their liabilities through Christmas – into a prosperous and Happy New Year 2025.

Sparkle and shine

Of course, Christmas is a time to sparkle and dazzle with lights, candles and decorations but businesses should ensure that cables and connections are fit for purpose and comply with British Standard regulations. Make sure Christmas trees are secure and aren’t blocking fire escapes or access to fire extinguishers. Read more detailed HSE guidance about festive fire safety when decking the halls of hotels, bars and restaurants.

Keep customers in good spirits

Dealing with the general public goes hand-in-hand with a career in the hospitality sector. But too much Christmas spirit can often dampen the ‘cheer’ of some members of the public. Staff should be given training about how to handle physical and verbal abuse that often accompanies drunk, disorderly behaviour. If a venue becomes over busy, people could find it difficult to evacuate in the event of a fire so ensure that measures are in place to avoid overcrowding and never go over capacity limits.

Keep staff safe

Statistics by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) reveal that workplace injuries in the hospitality sector have risen more than 13% in the last two years. The survey estimates that there were 44,000 non-fatal incidents, leaving accommodation and food service workers the most at-risk across all industries.[2]

From slips, trips, knife injuries, burns, dermatitis and musculoskeletal problems to dealing with the general public, working in hospitality can be a risky business. Christmas can be more chaotic than ever with extra footfall, deliveries and temporary staff so it’s imperative that they are fully trained in health and safety procedures and policies – just like full time, permanent staff. More Christmas deliveries mean more manoeuvring and lifting heavy boxes of food and drink so make sure manual handling legislation is followed.

A less obvious risk is when someone is struggling with their mental health. Additional workload, zero hours contracts and longer hours are synonymous with the hospitality sector at Christmas, but it can take its toll. Be mindful that Christmas can be a lonely or difficult time for some resulting in work-related stress, depression or anxiety. Employees have a duty of care to take care of employee mental wellbeing as well as protecting their physical safety.

Staff aren’t just for Christmas so take care of them and they will be loyal and keep your diners and drinkers happy.

Spread comfort and joy (and safety) this Christmas!

Public or employee liability claims are always a concern for the hospitality sector. From an employee claiming unfair dismissal or harassment to a kitchen injury or customers slipping on spilt drinks, claims are a fact of life for hoteliers, restauranteurs, and pub landlords.

But having H&S procedures in place and employee and public liability insurance, hospitality owners have one less thing to worry about.  This allows them to focus to what they do best – giving everyone Christmas cheers to remember for all the right reasons.

Hospitality HSE compliance

Some things are meant to be together – like mulled wine and mince pies, turkey and cranberry, liability insurance and H&S reviews.

That’s why Irwell’s liability insurance includes SafeCheck, a health and safety assessment tailored to the unique risks of each business. We believe you shouldn’t have one without the other.

Read our guide to keeping food and drink businesses better protected.

Read HSE guidelines to ensure your hospitality business is HSE compliant.

December 2025

[1] https://www.ukhospitality.org.uk/media-centre/facts-and-stats/

[2] https://www.cateringinsight.com/hse-data-reveals-concerning-rise-in-hospitality-injuries/

Insurance by humans, for humans.

We get it. Liability Insurance is never going to be the top of anyone’s dinner party chat, school gate gossip or pub banter.

Until you realise your business isn’t covered in the event of a claim. When you realise you didn’t read the policy T&Cs or check the small print before you signed on the dotted line or e-signed your business away.

Then it would make headlines and gossip, for all the wrong reasons.

Insurance may be a grudge purchase but in the event of a claim it will come into its own. Think of it this way. You’re not buying insurance. You’re buying relief and peace of mind. You’re paying for stress-free days and no nail-biting nights.  

We also get that electronically traded platforms or cheaper premiums may seem appealing. Quick, convenient and budget-friendly. But when it comes to complex risks, we believe you get what you pay for. Online platforms do have a valuable place in the insurance market but be mindful that a human underwriter may not have even looked at the risk and the quote is computer generated based on standardised data entry.

So, if you run a niche, high risk, non-standard business you need the human touch. You need the reassurance that someone with years of experience in mitigating business risk has your back. You need common sense and pragmatic judgement that no computer programme can offer. Well, not yet anyway.

You need to know your underwriter knows his onions and his loss adjustments. You need a human who gets that no two businesses are alike, and neither are the risks they face day in, day out. Some higher risk or hazardous businesses need years of human underwriting expertise to ensure they are properly protected.

Get what you pay for

Whilst some online trading platforms might be cheap, if the standard policy wording contains exclusions on point 32.5, clause C-E that your specialism is not covered then it’ won’t be cheerful. Unless you have an endorsement confirming that this exclusion is not in force.

 In these circumstances, it is likely that in the event of a claim, your policy will be null and void. Not worth the paper it’s printed on. Nada. Leaving you up that creek without a paddle.

Then what you have is not cheap ‘n’ cheerful cover, but a very expensive piece of paper that will be worthless in the event of a claim.  The consequences could be devastating for your business.

Grandma was right. “Buy cheap, buy twice”.

That’s why we don’t do off-the-shelf, one-size-fits-all policies. Our underwriters get to know your business risks inside-out and upside down so they can provide the cover you need, not the cover you don’t.

So, what you get is an insurance policy that is as unique as your business. Plus, our liability insurance includes SafeCheck, a health and safety review that is tailored to the specific risks faced by your business and sector. We will highlight what you are doing well – and where there is room for improvement – to help keep employees safe and your business legal. Our clients also have access to a free legal helpline for the duration of their policy which can be a lifeline in the event of a claim.

As an added bonus, our human underwriting team are a nice bunch to do business with. Plus, online trading platforms will never offer you a round of golf followed by a few beers will they?

Cheers to doing business with humans!

“Mummy, what is insurance?”

Liability Insurance through the eyes of a 9-year-old.

A good question from my 9-year-old daughter trying to understand what I do for a living. And to avoid going to bed. Even a lesson in commercial liability insurance is better than dealing with the monotony of the bedtime routine apparently.

How do you answer that question in a succinct and stimulating way? It’s hard enough to excite and explain to a bunch of brokers at BIBA or Cii accredited clients and coverholders at an MGAA conference. But how do you make the complexities of compliance and the nuances of underwriting risk sound fascinating to a curious 9-year-old that you are desperate to impress!

How about using the Wikipedia definition?

Liability insurance is a part of the general insurance system of risk financing to protect the purchaser (the “insured”) from the risks of liabilities imposed by lawsuits and similar claims and protects the insured if the purchaser is sued for claims that come within the coverage of the insurance policy.

Bit heavy going maybe.

So how about Tara Foley’s explanation,“Insurance is the democratisation of risk – there’s nothing more purposeful than that.”

Bit showy-offy perhaps.

Plus, I didn’t think bedtime was the appropriate moment to quote the CEO of AXA UK & Ireland. So, this is how my lesson went…

Me: Liability Insurance helps protect people and businesses when things go wrong.

Daughter: So, a bit like a policeman or a superhero?

Me: (desperate to ‘yes’ to get some mum kudos!) Not quite. Insurance companies pay out money if something bad happens so that the company doesn’t go out of business. And it helps people if they get ill or injured at work.

Daughter: like a nurse?

This career advice was going badly.

Daughter: Can I get some insurance, so I don’t have to go to school?

Me: No, you can’t. Night night.

Daughter: Why not?  Lots of bad things happened at school today. Alice fell over and cut her knee playing tig. Well Joe pushed her, but nobody believed her. And I lost my favourite rubber. I need money to buy a new rubber.

Me: I’ll buy you one. You don’t need insurance.

Daughter: So, what’s the point if the insurance won’t get me a new rubber or Alice a plaster for her knee?

It’s a fair point. Maybe one to explain during tomorrow’s bedtime ritual.

Daughter: Do I have to do insurance when I’m older like you?

Me: No sweetheart. You can do whatever you want to do.

Daughter: Good. I’m still going to be an actress or a singer then. Insurance sounds boring. And pointless if you can’t even get a new rubber.

And just like that my 25-year career in insurance is diminished to being boring and pointless.


*Stops there, knowing this isn’t the time or the place for a masterclass in liability insurance*

Leaving her bedroom downhearted to reflect on my career choice, as I kiss her goodnight, I’m thrown a lifeline.

Daughter: Mummy, does Taylor Swift get insurance?

Me: Yes, she does. Everybody needs insurance. It’s very important because it contributes to…

Daughter interrupting and suddenly interested: Does Irwell give it to her free because she’s famous?

This is my one chance to rescue my career choice credibility…

The future is looking brown

‘We’ll get shovels in the ground, cranes in the sky and build the next generation of Labour new towns’

Under their manifesto mantra to ‘get Britain building again’ the Labour government has big plans for the construction industry. But will Labour’s plan to build 1.5 million new homes and boost brownfield funding cause construction claims to come crashing down on the insurance market?

Recent Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and the Labour Force Survey (LFS) research reveals that UK construction worker fatalities are 70% higher than 5 years ago with 51 deaths and 53,000 non-fatal injuries. A further 69,000 construction workers suffered with work-related ill health. This trajectory must be addressed by the sector which is poised to be pushed to its limits to fulfil Labour’s ambitious new home building targets.

H&S issues contribute to 2.6 million working days lost annually which underpins the need for enhanced safety standards as more brown and green sites are set to be bought, bulldozed and built on.

John Cowell, our Senior Class Underwriter examines the risks associated with brownfield development and satisfying the relentless housing market demand.

A £68 million funding boost has been issued to 54 councils to transform disused and neglected brownfield sites including derelict buildings, former car parks and industrial sites into new homes. The government is also considering redesignating greenbelt if needed to fill the deep housing shortfall.

The concern for the insurance industry stems from the regulation of construction site H&S procedures, policies and conditions, post-build construction defects and new-build warranties. The pressure on liability insurers is further compounded by the skills deficit, labour shortage and omnipresent regulatory and environmental concerns.

More risk exposure, more insurance claims.

Environmental factors pose a significant risk to brownfield developments, particularly if the sites harbor unknown contamination or ground conditions. From metal corrosion and material degradation to crumbling and cracking concrete, structural and foundation failures are a major risk factor.

Brownfield land is often located on former industrial sites where drainage systems have been removed which means they can become prone to flood risks. Similarly, developments on or near a flood plain in rural and urban areas could also result in a surge in flood related claims.

The UK’s labour skills shortage is another major issue. A 2024 report published by the Construction Industry Training Board found that the UK construction industry needs to attract 50,300 extra workers per year to meet expected demand over the next five years.

The concern is that less skilled tradesmen plug this gap resulting in inefficient and unsafe working conditions and substandard buildings which can lead to more claims and invalidated builder warranties. But who pays the price of this below-par workmanship?

Insurers may bear the brunt of having to pay for repairs if defects and damage fall under new home warranty policies.

Changes in legislation are having a significant impact on the construction industry. The Defective Premises Act (DPA) 1972 aims to ensure that new builds or refurbishments meet specified standards, and it allows homeowners or tenants to claim compensation if a building is deemed unfit for habitation.

The Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA) significantly increased the period in which a claim can be brought against a builder from 7 to 15 years. This new limitation period has extended the volume and scope of liability claims across the entire construction sector.

Will the risks be worth the reward of creating communities, building better homes and helping people get on the property ladder? The proof will be in the 1.5 million homes.

Stat sources: https://www.constructionnews.co.uk/health-and-safety/construction-fatalities-70-worse-than-five-years-ago-04-07-2024/ https://protecting.co.uk/construction-health-and-safety-statistics/

Construction Health and Safety Statistics

Budget day is looming. Are there scary times ahead?

Is there a subtle message hidden in the fact that that Labour is delivering its first budget in almost 15 years on the day before Halloween?

Prime Minster Keir Starmer has predicted of a ‘painful’ budget which will pull on the purse strings of many individuals and businesses to plug the “black hole” in the country’s finances, inherited from his predecessors.

What will be the impact on the working people of Britain, the rich and famous, businesses large and small and on the insurance sector?

Getting out of a big black hole

As well as ensuring the £22 billion black hole in public finances doesn’t get any deeper, the chancellor will be under pressure to boost economic growth, bolster housebuilding and address skills and staff shortages. These priorities will undoubtedly have knock-on implications for the insurance industry.

According to the Institute of Directors, the government could implement various labour market interventions that will help improve the number, availability and calibre of workers in the UK.

But behind every silver lining there is a cloud. According to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), workers are as likely to have an accident in their first six months at work as during the whole of the rest of their working life. This raises the concern that we may experience a spike in employers’ liability claims.

Biba calls time on taxing times ahead

Insurance premium tax (IPT), a tax on the price of an insurance product which functions as an indirect tax on consumers and businesses is collected by insurers and then paid to HMRC. The current rate of 12% is a considerable financial burden on households and businesses.

BIBA believes that this is a tax on the poor and vulnerable – and on businesses at a time when they should be investing more in risk management, not hidden insurance costs, so that they can take considered risks to ensure business growth.

In its submission to the Treasury, Biba called for the new government to cut the rate of IPT from 12% to 10% and to implement exemptions such as cyber insurance products to increase take-up from SMEs.

Biba has also reiterated the need for government to commit to long-term investment in flood defences and other climate related impacts to reduce the adverse effects of flooding on people, businesses, communities and insurance premiums.

In the broker space, the threat of an increase in capital gains tax could lead to an exodus in small and medium sized brokers looking to retreat from the sector before changes force them out.

Have you got broad shoulders?

Starmer has even warned that things will have to get worse before they get better. He also hinted that the biggest burden would be borne by those with the ‘broadest shoulders.’

But who do these shoulders belong to that should be afraid of Chancellor Rachel Reeves and her Halloween Budget?

Not the ‘working people’ of Britain. The government pledged not to increase taxes for this demographic suggesting that Income Tax and National Insurance are expected to remain unchanged.

Similarly, SMEs should be reassured by Labour’s commitment to providing stability and certainty over taxation policies with predications that corporation tax will be capped at 25% for the duration of the current Government’s term in office.

Reeves is also expected to introduce a business roadmap outlining changes to corporation tax reliefs and capital allowances for the next five years. This will help business owners make more informed decisions about investing in staff, training, NPD, premises and equipment.

But large corporates, non-doms and high earners who are rich in profits, property, shares and assets beware.

Your broad shoulders are likely to be burdened with hikes in capital gains tax, inheritance and dividend tax changes plus the possible elimination of business assets disposal relief.

 If you have children at private school, the blow will be even harder.

Are your terms and conditions fit for work?

Labour promised to make work pay. They promised to overhaul the employment legislative landscape to get better pay and conditions for the UK’s 33.09 million employed workforce.

They meant business.

Many of their planned reforms hit the headlines. From banning unpaid internships and zero hours contracts to employees having the right to request flexible working arrangements from day one. The latest radical plan to introduce a 4-day working week for full time employees is also big news.

But what other reforms can we expect in the last quarter of 2024 that haven’t quite made the front pages?

Irwell’s Senior Class Underwriter in Legal Expenses, Billi Cobley summarises seven changes employers should be prepared for to avoid exposing themselves to the risks of costly, stressful and time-consuming tribunals.

1. Stable and predictable contracts

    Workers with unpredictable working hours, or a fixed-term contract of less than 12 months, will have a right to request a more stable and predictable contract after 26 weeks of service.

    2. Fire and re-hire

    A new statutory code of practice will set out a procedure for employers to follow when considering dismissals for employees who do not agree to changes to their terms and conditions.

    3. Harassment and bullying

    A duty requiring employers to proactively prevent sexual harassment by taking “reasonable steps” will be introduced.

    The Bullying and Respect at Work Bill proposes a statutory definition of bullying and will allow employees to bring a standalone claim in a tribunal.

    4. Pensions

    Under proposed pension auto-enrolment rules, the lower earnings threshold will be removed and those aged under 22 will be in scope of the scheme.

    5. Gender pay gap

    Regulatory exemptions from gender pay gap reporting will be extended to businesses with fewer than 500 employees.

    6. Paternity leave

    Legislation will be introduced to allow employees to take paternity leave within the first year after the birth and also split the leave into two blocks as long as they give 4 weeks’ notice of the dates when they wish to take the leave.

    7. Neonatal care leave

    Under the Neonatal Care (Leave and Pay) Act 2023, parents of babies who are admitted to hospital before 28 days old for at least one week will get a maximum of 12 weeks paid statutory leave in addition to their maternity or paternity leave.

    Tribunals on the rise

    In 2023/24, employment tribunal receipts and disposals increased by 7% and 16% year-on-year. Meanwhile, open cases increased by 3% to 653,000 over the same period.

    This rise in cases underscores the need for an appreciation of employment legislation, having preventative measures and HR policies in place – and legal expenses protection that can ease the burden should a legal issue arise.

    Source

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tribunals-statistics-quarterly-january-to-march-2024/tribunal-statistics-quarterly-january-to-march-2024

    Reforming the UK’s rental market

    Irwell’s Senior Class Underwriter, Bill Cobley looks at what the new government’s initiatives mean for private tenants and landlords.

    The UK’s rental market is in crisis. Plagued by substandard housing standards, an imbalance between supply and demand, soaring costs, arrears on the rise along with the uncertainty of Section 21, the new Government has a lot to tackle to rebuild the rental market.

    Labour is selling itself as the party of “wealth creation”, vowing to improve living standards for working people. Within Labour’s legislative programme, two aspects stand out which will impact landlords and renters alike.

    Firstly, the Planning and Infrastructure Reform Proposal sets out to accelerate the quantity, and improve the quality, of the UK’s housing stock.

    Meanwhile The Renters’ Rights Bill will address the insecurity and injustice that many renters and landlords experience by fundamentally reforming the private rented sector and improving the quality of housing in it.

    Ending the bad housing pandemic

    Government statistics around bad housing make difficult reading.

    There are 3.5 million households in England that fail to meet the Decent Homes Standard.

    2.3 million households are living in a home with at least one Category 1 hazard.

    935,000 households are living in a home with damp problems.

    Almost one quarter of private rented households (23%) live in a home that fails to meet the Decent Homes Standard.

    The government’s ‘Decent Homes Standard is defined as homes that are overcrowded or housing which is damp, cold, infested or lacks modern facilities or is in need of substantial structural repairs.

    This unacceptable trajectory cannot continue and must be addressed by all stakeholders.

    How does the Government plan to improve substandard housing conditions?

    With one in six UK homes at risk of flooding and the UK 9% wetter than 50 years ago, the insurance sector has experienced a surge in unprecedented flood insurance claims in recent years.  Fuelled by the housing and climate crisis, Labour pledges to ‘Get Britain building’, as they seek to accelerate the delivery of high-quality homes and communities.

    The Planning and Infrastructure Reform Proposal aims to create 1.5m new homes in areas with minimal risk of flooding and will implement measures to tackle resilience to climate change by improving building standards.

    The proposal should result in properties that are fit for the future and can withstand flooding, extreme temperatures, high winds and subsidence, as well as improving fire safety and energy efficiency.

    How does the Government plan to improve the private rental market?

    The new Government is determined to transform the experience of private renting by levelling the playing field between landlord and tenant.

    The Renters’ Rights Bill will end Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions to give renters more rights and protections to stay in their homes for longer.

    Meanwhile fair landlords will enjoy robust grounds for possession where there is good reason to take their property back. 

    However, unscrupulous landlords take heed, the Bill will crack down on those who exploit, mistreat or discriminate against tenants with poor practices such as ‘bad housing’, unfair rent increases or bidding wars intended to force tenants out.

    This greater stability will allow renters to build lives in their local communities without the fear of eviction or homelessness and give landlords continuity of rental income.

    How can landlords better protect their business?

    Research by The National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) found that almost one fifth of UK homes are now privately rented resulting in over 4.6 million rented properties.  Demand for rental properties has more than tripled compared with the demand before the COVID pandemic.

    However, 12% of landlords said they sold property in the third quarter of 2023 and 28% of respondents said they plan to cut the number of properties they rent out over the next 12 months*.

    With this rental property shortfall, rent arrears on the rise and new legislation reforms imminent, it pays for private landlords to be prudent.

    If landlord-tenant disagreements arise, legal costs can quickly escalate, and some landlords may not have the resources to pursue potentially lengthy and expensive legal proceedings against a tenant. That’s where Irwell can help.

    Irwell’s landlord’s legal expenses protection allows clients to pursue or defend their legal rights and provides invaluable legal advice throughout proceedings. Likewise, if you become involved in a dispute with the tenant relating to the owning or letting of the property or if a tenant has damaged the property, our insurance covers the associated legal costs.

    For residential clients, our policy can extend to include rent guarantee for added reassurance, whilst the landlord is using the policy to obtain repossession of their property.

    *www.nrla.org.uk/news/monthly-bulletin/202312/rented-housing-demand-triples-say-landlords

    National Insurance Awareness Day.

    Yes, there is one. Really. Us insurers have our day on 28 June. The day after National Bingo Awareness Day.

    Insurance isn’t renowned for being a hot topic round the dinner party table or down the pub. It’s a grudge purchase. A necessary evil. Something most people and businesses try not to think about until the dreaded renewal day – or in the event of an unwelcome accident or incident.

    That’s when us insurers become the unsung heroes of the FS world. We’re there to save the day when the hammers come down.

    Insurance in the UK rose like a phoenix from the flames around the time of the Great Fire of London, where the devastation drove some canny cockney to conjure the idea of property insurance.

    From there sprang the many forms of insurance we know today – from home and motor to health, wealth and business liability to alien abduction, ghosts and body parts.

    Yes, you read that right.

    Insurance that’s out of this world.

    If you have ghosts haunting your business, who you gonna call? Maybe your insurer wouldn’t be your first port of call, but believe it or not, some UK business owners have insurance policies to protect their business and employees from the spooky supernatural.

    You may not believe in aliens, but it turns out that many do. One London company has sold more than 30,000 alien abduction policies throughout Europe.

    Meanwhile, back on planet earth, Julia Roberts has reportedly insured her smile for $30 million, Beckham’s legs are protected by a $195 million policy and Keith Richards hands have a $1 million price tag.

    National Insurance Awareness Day was created to remind people and businesses about the importance of their insurance plans and policies.

    We couldn’t agree more. With over 30 years’ liability experience, we’re an old hand in the insurance world. Or so we thought. 

    Insurance actually dates back to 3000-2000 BC and was even found inscribed on the Code of Hammurabi, the first written laws.

    Share that little known fascinating insurance fact at you next diner party or board meeting.

    #nationalinsuranceawarenessday