Sponsored content: Niall Moore, underwriting manager at Dual Social Care, discusses how proper risk assessment is vital to providing proper cover in the social care sector
The Care Quality Commission (CQC), the independent regulator of health and social care in England, has changed the way it assesses care homes, meaning its assessments have moved away from being snapshot based.
One of the effects of this is that it can take longer for ratings to change, with low ratings potentially leading to a cycle of decline for the care home.
The insurance picture
For many composite insurers, a rating of ‘requires improvement’ or ’inadequate’ is enough to decline cover outright.
At Dual, however, we review every risk on its individual merits. We know that, under the old inspection model, any care home could have a bad day that didn’t fairly represent the quality of care it provides day to day.
And, under the new framework, the delay in updating ratings means many providers are unfairly stuck with a label that doesn’t reflect the progress they’ve made.
That’s why, as long as a provider can show a clear action plan and evidence of improvement, we will consider offering terms. This approach means clients aren’t left without access to the types of cover that can make the difference between a care home business surviving or not.
We also offer a complete commercial combined package designed specifically for care homes. This includes property damage, business interruption, casualty and legal expenses, as well as specialist covers that reflect the realities of running a care business.
Some of the most important being malpractice and professional indemnity, defined abuse cover, loss of residents’ effects, deterioration of drugs and vaccines and loss of registration.
Guidance for brokers
For brokers supporting care home clients, I recommend working closely with clients to build a detailed, realistic action plan. Make sure this plan is treated as an ongoing process, not just a one off document.
Brokers should also gather evidence of improvements and share this informaiton with underwritiers, while informing clients that a poor CQC rating is not an automatic barrier to cover.
Looking ahead
The care sector is only going to face more pressure, including from an ageing population, increased demand, recruitment challenges, tighter local authority budgets and higher running costs.
At Dual, our focus is on looking at the individual merits of every risk, rather than relying on a single rating.
If you’re working with a care home client who has a CQC rating below ’good,’ please get in touch with our Social Care team. We’ll review the risk on its own merits and work to find a solution that keeps your client protected.
