Professional Documents
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Credit Insurance
Credit Insurance
INTRODUCTION
Credit:
Credit Insurance:
Trade credit insurance usually covers a portfolio of buyers and pays an agreed
percentage of an invoice or receivable that remains unpaid as a result of protracted default,
insolvency or bankruptcy. Policy holders must apply a credit limit on each of their buyers for
the sales to that buyer to be insured. The premium rate reflects the average credit risk of the
insured portfolio of buyers. In addition, credit insurance can also cover single transactions or
trade with only one buyer.
Credit insurance was born at the end of nineteenth century, but it was mostly
developed in Western Europe between the First and Second World Wars. Several companies
were founded in many countries; some of them also managed the political risks of export on
behalf of their state.
Credit insurance indemnifies the policyholder against loss resulting from the non-
receipt of payment in respect of a transaction approved by the credit insurer. Such transaction
must provide for the supply of goods or services on credit terms by the policyholder to a
buyer. The non-receipt of payment must be due to the buyer’s insolvency/liquidation or
protracted default or, where export transactions are involved can also be due to repudiation or
political causes of loss38. A simple example: A yarn manufacturer supplies his product to a
textile-mill on 120 days terms of credit. The credit insurer has insured the transaction. The
textile-mill goes insolvent. In terms of the credit insurance policy the Protracted default
means non-receipt of payment after a specified period from due date.
Investopedia Definition:
During the 1990s, a concentration of the trade credit insurance market took place and
three groups now account for over 85% of the global credit insurance market. These main
players focused on Western Europe, but rapidly expanded towards Eastern Europe, Asia and
the Americas
While trade credit insurance is often mostly known for protecting foreign or export
accounts receivable, there has always been a large segment of the market that uses Trade
Credit Insurance for domestic accounts receivable protection as well. Domestic trade credit
insurance provides companies with the protection they need as their customer base
consolidates creating larger receivables to fewer customers. This further creates a larger
exposure and greater risk if a customer does not pay their accounts. The additions of new
insurers in this area have increased the availability of domestic cover for companies.
Many businesses found that their insurers withdrew trade credit insurance during
the late-2000s financial crisis, foreseeing large losses if they continued to underwrite sales to
failing businesses. This led to accusations that the insurers were deepening and prolonging
the recession, as businesses could not afford the risk of making sales without the insurance,
and therefore contracted in size or had to close. Insurers countered these criticisms by
claiming that they were not the cause of the crisis, but were responding to economic reality
and ringing the alarm bells.
1. Captive Insurance:
2. Whole-turnover cover:
Key Account Cover: A multi-debtor structure that insures only the “largest”
customers, e.g., customers with credit exposures above $500,000, the top ten
customers, etc.
3. Catastrophic Cover:
which obligors are covered, these insurers may provide coverage with no (or low)
deductibles.
4. Excess-of-Loss Cover:
5. Multi-Insurer Syndication:
6. Global Programs:
foundation for strong and mutually beneficial relationships with insurers that will
withstand market downturns and significant claims activity.
7. Captive Insurance:
For sales within a business’ local market, domestic credit insurance covers
against bad debt losses caused by insolvency and/or protracted default for a single
buyer or entire portfolio of receivables (whole turnover). Policies are usually
structured with a first loss of £500-£1,000 and many underwriters are now offering
fixed premiums inclusive of credit limit charges as well as an integral collections
facility.
For businesses trading in the home market as well as exporting abroad. The
breadth of cover is similar to the Whole Turnover Domestic Credit Insurance Policy,
but designed to cover a combination of domestic and export receivables.
Cover designed for situations where goods are made to order. This type of
policy protects against the insolvency of the buyer and/or political default or political
frustration. May be offered as an independent policy or may be attached to a domestic
or export credit insurance policy.
12. Specific Account Credit Insurance is a policy designed to cover receivables for a
single customer:
Often the largest account the business has. Cover is often provided for
insolvency only and an “indemnity” can be specified on the credit limit granted -
typically 80-90%.
Credit insurance allows you to grow your business without worry. Whether
you are trying to expand credit lines with existing customers, or extend competitive
open credit terms to new accounts, using credit insurance to reduce or eliminate the
risk is a great way to safely grow your business.
3) Increased Borrowing:
Credit insurance can provide cost effective access to working capital that can
help you grow and avoid cash flow crunches. Your credit insurance policy can help
you maximize working capital availability from the receivables you pledge to your
lender. Most ineligible receivables (including concentration of receivables with a few
accounts and foreign receivables) can now be included in your borrowing base with
your lender.
Credit insurance will allow you to lower your bad debt reserve significantly
and manage write-offs with greater certainty. By reducing the bad debt reserve on this
scale, you will be able to take excess bad debt reserves back into income (by
provisioning significantly less) thus improving earnings, shareholder equity and
financial ratios etc. Credit Insurance premiums are tax deductible (whereas your bad
debt reserve is not).
For example, you would have to generate a significant amount of future sales
at $0 profit (beyond your normal sales) to make up for a credit loss.
Before actually going to the market for quotes, you would be best served by clearly
identifying what your interest in credit insurance is and how you think it will benefit your
company. As a custom tailored financial tool, there are many practical benefits to having this
type of coverage in place. That said, there are also some common misconceptions about what
this type of coverage can be used for.
At the most basic level, credit risk insurance is designed to protect you from
unexpected losses due to the insolvency or past due default on the part of your insured
customers. The limited number of underwriters who specialize in this unique coverage will in
most cases, conduct credit evaluations on the accounts you wish to insure and approve them
for specific credit limits based on your requests and the results of their research. Given this
active credit evaluation on the part of the insurer, credit insurance should not be approached
as a tool you can use to grant credit to companies that don't merit it. Likewise, it should not
be sought when you have an imminent loss that you are looking to shelter.
Credit risk insurance is a proactive management tool that best helps you in the
following specific areas:-
new accounts where you might have limited information and sales history. It is worth
pointing out that using your credit insurance policy to support additional sales you
would not have made otherwise will not only allow you to recapture the premium, it
will help you drop additional profit to your bottom line.
4. Borrowing enhancement:
If the company borrows against its receivables, credit risk insurance can
provide additional protection to the lender so they may be able to enhance the
borrowing arrangements. They do this by increasing the percentage they will advance
against insured accounts, and/or roping more accounts into the borrowing base- large
concentrations, slow payers, export customers, etc. This allows you to maximize the
amount of working capital available from the same pool of receivables. If you're in a
high growth mode and find yourself in need of more working capital, credit insurance
is a great way to resolve the problem.
6. Before you talk to a specialist in this field, you should take a look at your
business:
The customer base, credit practices, risk appetites, etc. and think about how
you want the policy to go to work for you and where it can bring value. With this
accomplished, you'll be better prepared to have a productive dialog with a specialist
who can help you find the ideal solution.
7. Put option:
A Put Option is an effective tool to help you continue to sell to a buyer(s)
representing significant credit risk concerns or deal with a concentration issue with an
investment grade customer. With the risk removed from your balance sheet, you are
able to continue with the relationship until the credit risk improves or it no longer
represents a concentration issue allowing you to realize your original revenue
projections and / or increase market-share. It can also help you maximize borrowing
availability under your existing bank line.
This program involves a non-cancellable contract whereby the option seller
agrees to buy qualifying accounts receivable at a pre-determined amount if your
protected customer(s) goes Insolvent during the contract period. The protection would
be provided by a financially strong counterparty.
Credit insurance is just that – insurance. Like any form of insurance, credit insurance
is there to protect the insured customers. And again, as with any insurance, there are limits to
what can be insured.
It would not be surprising if an auto insurer refused to insure an unlicensed driver, nor
would we blink an eye if coverage was pulled on a previously licensed driver who lost his
eyesight. The auto insurance company would simply be making prudent, common sense
cover decisions based on the risk profile of the potential drivers. These decisions would help
the customer avoid unacceptable risks. Even an increase in premiums would not change the
fact that the very high risk of an accident occurring should these drivers get behind the wheel
of a car makes these drivers are uninsurable.
This is essentially what credit insurers do on a regular basis. Analyse the risk that a
buyer will not pay for the purchases it makes on credit and guide its customers away from
those buyers that are likely to fall into this high risk category. In the current economic
climate however, they are finding it necessary to help their customers avoid unnecessary risks
by reducing cover on potential buyers more often.
In terms of total portfolio, the number of withdrawals of cover is very small – a single
figure percentage, and focused on an even smaller proportion of companies (that is to say, a
number of withdrawn limits will apply to a single risk). At radius has maintained cover on
the vast majority of risks, providing invaluable cover and a financial safety net in the current
economic downturn.
Just like the prudent motor insurer, credit insurers have a responsibility to guide their
customers away from unacceptable risks and not simply cover every transaction, however
perilous, as always, credit insurers are simply doing their job.
There are numerous examples of credit insurers maintaining cover for their
customers’ trade way beyond the early signs of a buyer’s impending demise. Credit insurers
withdraw cover on buyers only as a last resort.
What’s more, credit insurers are just that – insurers – and not finance houses. It isn’t
their role to shore up ailing or failing businesses: that may be the job of those businesses’
banks or investors, but not of a credit insurer whose customers have chosen to trade with
those businesses. The credit insurer is there to protect its customers balance sheets by
guiding the customer towards good risks and discouraging them from entering sales with
buyers considered to be bad risks. When the credit insurer does insure a transaction that ends
in default it reimburses its customer to the amount agreed upon in the terms of their insurance
contract.
And, if there is the risk of cover being withdrawn, buyers can help themselves by
keeping their lines of communication with credit insurers open.
While, in relatively benign economic times, credit insurers may be willing to make
some assumptions about a buyer’s financial status, in the current climate it has become
necessary to look more closely at a buyer’s books in order to assess the risk. A credit insurer
is unlikely to insure a risk it cannot analyse. While it is no guarantee of credit insurance
coverage, buyers can increase the likelihood of maintaining cover and favourable credit terms
from their suppliers by opening their books to credit insurers. Some buyers may perceive a
credit insurers request for up-to-date financial information as a hunt for reasons to pull cover.
To the contrary it is a search for reasons not to withdraw cover.
London’s pre-eminence as a world finance and trade centre has resulted in the
most sophisticated and competitive trade credit insurance market. All the underwriters
listed below continue to be rated by agencies such as Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s
at an investment grade level and provide a the range of credit insurance policies
outlined in this site to protect the seller against most of the risks that cause payments
to fail.
Market Structure:
The three biggest credit insurance companies in the world today account for a
hefty 85% of the total global insurance market. They are Atradius, Coface and Euler
Hermes:
o Euler Hermes is considered as the world's biggest credit insurer. It was formed
when Allianz SE of Germany was acquired by Assurance Generales de France
(AGF) in 2002. Euler Hermes has 53 subsidiaries around the world and
maintains its headquarters in Rue de Richelieu in Paris.
o Atradius is the second largest credit insurer and was formed when two leading
international credit insurance providers NCM and Gerling Credit Insurance
Group merged in 2001. The resulting company was renamed Atradius in 2004.
Core products include credit insurance, export credit insurance and installment
credit protection, among others.
However, UK Credit Insurance Ltd work with all the major credit insurance
providers as each have specialisms that may best match a business’ requirements. By
assessing the product offerings of all our underwriters, we are able to recommend the
best solution for clients’ needs.
Most policies from our underwriters are written on a whole turnover basis
covering all the debtors, however cover is available on a variety of different structures
and we will be happy to guide you through the options. We have highlighted areas
which we feel differentiate each of the listed underwriters, but we have not attempted
to list all the classes of risk they will cover. Click on the underwriter name below to
take you through to their specific page or contact us for a full appraisal of your
requirements
Credit Insurance is growing at a fast pace. There are various reasons for the boom of
this sector, but the main reasons are the financial help provided by banks and various other
financial agencies to exporters in their day to day business activities.
The two main products which actually encourage trade credit insurance are–
These are the financial help provided by banks and various other financial institutions
so that the exports are at an ease. This helps the exporters to carry out their exporting
function. To back these exports by a surety of return, many insurance company provide the
traders with Credit Insurance.
a. Pre-Shipment Credit:
Pre Shipment credit is issued by a financial institution when the seller wants
the payment of the goods before shipment. 'Pre-shipment' means any loan or advance
granted or any other credit provided by a bank to an exporter for financing the
purchase, processing, manufacturing or packing of goods prior to shipment, on the
basis of letter of credit opened in his favour or in favour of some other person, by an
overseas buyer or a confirmed and irrevocable order for the export of goods from
India or any other evidence of an order for export from India having been placed on
the exporter or some other person, unless lodgement of export orders or letter of credit
with the bank has been waived.
The main objectives behind pre-shipment credit or pre export finance are to
enable exporter to:
Packing Credit
1) Packing Credit:
The confirmed order received from the overseas buyer should reveal
the information about the full name and address of the overseas buyer,
description quantity and value of goods (FOB or CIF), destination port and the
last date of payment.
b. Post-Shipment Credit:
Export bills (Non L/C Bills) is used in terms of sale contract/ order
may be discounted or purchased by the banks. It is used in indisputable
international trade transactions and the proper limit has to be sanctioned to the
exporter for purchase of export bill facility.
The risk of payment is less under the LC, as the issuing bank makes
sure the payment. The risk is further reduced, if a bank guarantees the
payments by confirming the LC. Because of the inborn security available in
this method, banks often become ready to extend the finance against bills
under LC.
However, this arises two major risk factors for the banks:
The bank also faces the documentary risk where the issuing bank
refuses to honour its commitment. So, it is important for the
negotiating bank, and the lending bank to properly check all the
necessary documents before submission.
Bills can only be sent on collection basis, if the bills drawn under LC
have some discrepancies. Sometimes exporter requests the bill to be sent on
the collection basis, anticipating the strengthening of foreign currency.
However, in this case bank instructs the overseas bank to deliver the
document only against trust receipt /undertaking to deliver the sale proceeds
by specified date, which should be within the prescribed date even if
according to the practice in certain trades a bill for part of the estimated value
is drawn in advance against the exports.
After the shipment, the exporters lodge their claims, supported by the
relevant documents to the relevant government authorities. These claims are
processed and eligible amount is disbursed after making sure that the bank is
authorized to receive the claim amount directly from the concerned
government authorities.
Credit Insurance is important for many businesses, it might mean the difference
between your online business surviving a bad-debt, as well as joining that long listing of
names appearing in this Liquidator files.
There are various types of policy available which can be tailored to your individual
particular requirements. Whether you would like to Credit Insure your entire customer base
or perhaps require Credit Insurance coverage to provide information and security on your
own export debts, you're Credit rating Insurance adviser is friends and family placed to
negotiate a Trade Credit Insurance policies that is best for you.
Credit Insurance often lets you choose the companies you require to have cover
regarding. Will probably be starting a particularly substantial project and be investing all his
time, capital and risk into this, this means you will probably want to pay your business for
how much risk you are shown to your Specialist Broker are appropriate with you in collating
some details about previous bad debt history plus your customer profile. This is essential to
enable us to get to know your business as understanding your company issues and asking far
better questions will enable us to provide better answers from credit rating insurers.
The decisions made by a credit insurer influence the business of many parties. By
granting cover, credit transactions are made possible. By declining or withdrawing credit
insurance facilities, suppliers’ businesses are curtailed and buyers’ businesses may be forced
into liquidation. The wrong decision by the credit insurer may lead to overtrading or loss of
business with the concomitant negative effects on the micro and macro economy. Many
export transactions would not take place without credit insurance. Credit insurance helps in
channelling limited resources towards worthwhile and healthy enterprises; it promotes the
earning of foreign exchange and thereby effects job creation.
This class of business is presently available in 72 countries40 with between one and
three credit insurers per country. Most credit insurers writing domestic and short-term export
business (see below for a description of the credit insurance products) are privately owned,
some of the large European companies being listed. Government departments mainly conduct
medium-/long-term capital goods/services export credit insurance or this business is
supported via re-insurance facilities from government.
a) The long credit terms (up to and in excess of 10 years) for which it is often impossible
to obtain re-insurance in the private market.
This type of insurance provides cover against a loss caused by the non-receipt
of payment of amounts due and payable as a result of the sale of goods or services by
a seller (the policyholder) in one country to a buyer (the risk) situated in the same
country. The payment terms will usually not exceed 6 months and the insurance
normally incepts immediately after delivery.42 Non-receipt of payment must be due
to the buyer’s insolvency (or deemed insolvency) or protracted default.
credit risk and refinance himself. There are two methods that are internationally used
for this purpose:
a. Supplier’s credit, which means that the exporter obtains promissory notes
from the importer for the purchase price, which notes fall due in six monthly
instalments over the agreed credit period (usually not longer than 5 years). The
payment risk inherent in these promissory notes is credit insured and that
enables the exporter to sell the notes (together with the credit insurance cover)
to a bank on completion of the project and so receive cash for the export
project on final delivery.
b. Financial credit, which entails the importer entering into two contracts, the
export contract with the exporter and a loan agreement with a financial
institution. The importer will draw down the loan by instructing the financial
institution to pay the exporter in cash against completion certificates.
There are mainly 4 types of credit insurance, which are briefly discussed in the
following lines.
This insurance policy helps to pay the outstanding debt owed on your card at
the time of your death. However, the company creditor needs to be the beneficiary of
the policy.
It pays the minimum amount that is due on your account if you are downsized
or laid off for a specific period. Usually, there is a set time period for making the
payments. The insurance doesn’t include any additional purchases after you become
unemployed.
Usually this policy comes with your credit card or mortgage. It makes the
payment for any purchased item, which gets destroyed or stolen. You can claim this
insurance only if it satisfies the conditions for coverage that are listed by the insurance
company.
Credit insurance helps the debtor in many ways that are listed below:
Power of Suppliers:
Those who are supplying the capital are not that big a threat. For instance, if
someone as a very talented insurance underwriter is presently working for a small
insurance company, there exists a chance that any big player willing to enter the
insurance industry might entice that person off.
Power of Buyers:
No individual is a big threat to the insurance industry and big corporate houses
have a lot more negotiating capability with the insurance companies. Big corporate
clients like airlines and pharmaceutical companies pay millions of dollars every year
in premiums.
Availability of Substitutes:
There exist a lot of substitutes in the insurance industry. Majorly, the large
insurance companies provide similar kinds of services – be it auto, home, commercial,
health or life insurance.
The consumers as well as the investors should only focus on the insurer's financial
strength and capability to meet on-going responsibilities to its policyholders.
The fundamentals of the insurance company should be strong and should not indicate
a poor investment opportunity as this might also deter growth.
Financial institutions also buy credit insurance. These policies cover purchased or
factored receivables or notes, letter of credit confirmations, and structured accounts payable
or vendor finance facilities.
Obligors are underwritten for insured credit limits either by the insurer or under the
insured’s discretionary credit authority. Some insurers write limits on a non-cancellable basis
while others reserve the right to cancel or reduce coverage at any time. Because insurance is
intended to cover unexpected loss, distressed obligors are usually excluded. Certain other
risks are also excluded, notably disputed payment obligations and nuclear-related perils.
Structurally, credit insurance requires the insured to retain some portion of the risk
through co-insurance and/or deductible. Generally, higher risk retention yields lower
premiums and increases the incentive for underwriters to cover marginal credits. Some
insurers write single-debtor policies, but most insurers prefer to write portfolio (multi-debtor)
coverage where the enhanced spread of risk can help the insured reduce premium and obtain
protection on marginal credits. Other policy structure concepts include:
Select-risk cover
Whole-turnover cover
Catastrophic Cover
Excess-of-Loss Cover
Multi-Insurer Syndication
Global Programs
Payments for exports are open to risks even at the best of times. The risks have
assumed large proportions today due to the far-reaching political and economic changes that
are sweeping the world. An outbreak of war or civil war may block or delay payment for
goods exported. A coup or an insurrection may also bring about the same result. Economic
difficulties or balance of payment problems may lead a country to impose restrictions on
either import of certain goods or on transfer of payments for goods imported. In addition, the
exporters have to face commercial risks of insolvency or protracted default of buyers. The
commercial risks of a foreign buyer going bankrupt or losing his capacity to pay are
aggravated due to the political and economic uncertainties. Export credit insurance is
designed to protect exporters from the consequences of the payment risks, both political and
commercial, and to enable them to expand their overseas business without fear of loss.
Credit Insurance / Trade Credit Insurance policies are required by Companies to guard
themselves against the potentially disastrous effects of bad debts. However, a policy can also
guarantee a range of additional benefits rather than just bad debt insurance.
Credit Insurance / Trade Credit Insurance policies also offer you usage of unique,
continually updated, financial information on both new and existing customers, meaning you
are able to do business with Confidence.
Credit Insurance / Trade Credit Insurance is imperative for lots of businesses, it could
possibly mean the main difference between your company surviving a bad-debt, or joining
that long list of names appearing within the Liquidators files.
Credit Insurance (sometimes known as Trade Credit Insurance) provides a safety net
to ensure you know any time a customer goes into insolvency you can be covered for any
payments outstanding.
It truly is impossible to predict what’s going to happen towards your customers and
you do not know what situation other businesses you trade with are typically in. Credit
Insurance offers you protection for situations which are out of your hands but can have
actually a massive influence onto your company.
There are many varieties of policy available that may be tailored to all your own
particular requirements. Whether you intend to apply Credit Insurance / Trade Credit
Insurance to your whole customer base or merely need a Credit Insurance policy / Trade
Credit Insurance policy to produce information and security on your export debts, you’re
Credit Insurance adviser is ideally placed to negotiate a Credit Insurance / Trade Credit
Insurance policy that meets your needs.
Credit Insurance / Trade Credit Insurance often enable you to pick the companies that
you want to obtain cover for. You could just be starting a really large project and be investing
time, capital and risk with it, therefore you will probably want to cover your business for how
much risk you have to face.
If your company trades overseas or works with the export market you may make the
most of Credit Insurance / Trade Credit Insurance that covers your specific situation. For
example, you may need to secure Political Risk Insurance that will cover you when a
government changes a law that features a negative affect what you can do to trade.
It will cost you nothing, besides ten minutes of your time, to arrange a quote for
Credit Insurance / Trade Credit Insurance through your own broker, although the response of
so many Senior Directors / Business Owners is ” I do not possess 10 mins to spare”, you’ll
have considerably longer than that in case your business stopped trading because of a bad
debt!
Your Specialist Broker will work together with you in collating some details
associated with previous bad debt background and your customer profile. This action is
important allow us to begin to know your organisation as understanding your company issues
and asking better questions will enable us to supply better
Credit Insurance is truly essential for many businesses, it might mean the difference
between your corporation surviving a bad-debt, or even joining that long report on names
appearing in the Liquidators files.
There are lots of types of policy available that can be tailored to your individual
particular requirements. Whether you want to Credit Insure your entire customer base or to
require a Credit Insurance cover to provide information and security on your own export
debts, you're Credit history Insurance adviser is ideally placed to negotiate a Trade Credit
Insurance cover that is meets your needs.
Credit Insurance often allows you to choose the companies you require to have cover
intended for. There's a chance you're starting a particularly great project and be investing
major time, cash and risk into the item, therefore you will probably want for your business for
as much risk you are exposed to
Your Specialist Broker will continue to work with you in collating some details
concerning previous bad debt history whilst your customer profile. Using this method is
essential to enable us to get at know your business as understanding your business issues and
asking superior questions will enable us to produce better answers from credit history
insurers.
There's no extra cost in your business by going via an expert broker as they are paid
by the Insurance Company direct, and they also can often negotiate deals that you simply
would not be in a position to obtain by going direct.
Your Specialist broker can also be much more experienced in guiding you with the
claims process before you submit them to make certain everything runs smoothly.
So take your next step and arrange for your no-obligation quotation from the broker
today - staying "too busy" won't save your business - do the item today!
In our climate what survival guarantees does your small business have?
John Beddows is often a Trade Credit Insurance Specialized with Rycroft Associates -
"Advising Businesses throughout the U. K"
Credit insurance takes care of the risk of payment of the organizations and not of the
individuals. To get insured, the holders of the policy should have a credit limit on each of the
buyers. For Credit insurance, the rate of premium is kept low. It combines both Credit Life
Insurance and Trade Credit Insurance.
Credit insurance involves trade with a single buyer. The concept of this insurance was
first incepted in the nineteenth century. During the time of first and second World Wars, the
idea was conceived in the Western Europe. The various companies that were developed
during this time offered credit insurance to the individuals.
If the borrower of the loan dies or gets disabled then the insurance will pay the loan
off. Trade Credit Insurance covers the risk of the payment during the time of delivery of
services and goods. Private individuals are not provided with the facilities of this product.
Premium is charged monthly against the issuance of the credit insurance. This
insurance is a business driven by broker, who helps in the creation of market competition
among the policy holders for better premium and policy wordings.
Credit Insurance is the best way to manage credit risk in a cost effective way for any
organization. It provides financial assistance during the time of any credit risks and overdue
payments during domestic trade or exports. Before granting covers for the insurance various
terms and conditions need to be fulfilled.
Credit insurance is one of the important types of insurance that covers risk against the
following:
Trade Receivables
Portfolio
Business-to-Business Transactions
Credit insurance offers a number of benefits, which are available in the form of:
Risk Mitigation
The major Credit Insurance providers in India are ICICI Lombard and The New India
Assurance.
1. India has 52 billionaires in 2009 as the Forbes report. This is with all courtesy to the
improvement in the India company situation.
2. India has been stated as the world's fastest growing wealth creator, all thanks to a
vibrant stock market and higher earnings from the strata of Indian companies.
3. The number of top companies in India has outshone their performances in terms of net
profit in just six months of the start of the fiscal year. This depicts a fast growth in
corporate earnings.
Insurance company:
Is due to globalization, deregulation and also terrorist attacks; that the insurance
industry is undergoing a massive change and the metamorphosis has been noteworthy in the
last few decades.
Clearing basics:
Before we begin the analysis of Indian insurance industry, let us clear some
basics on insurance.
o In the words of a layman, insurance means managing risk. For instance, in life
insurance segment, the insurance company tries to manage mortality (death)
rates among the wide array of clients.
Shareholder ownership
Policyholder ownership
o Types of Insurance:
Introduction:
The Export Credit Guarantee Corporation of India Limited (ECGC) is a company wholly
owned by the Government of India based in Mumbai, Maharashtra. It provides export credit insurance
support to Indian exporters and is controlled by the Ministry of Commerce. Government of India had
initially set up Export Risks Insurance Corporation (ERIC) in July 1957. It was transformed into
Export Credit and Guarantee Corporation Limited (ECGC) in 1964 and to Export Credit Guarantee of
India in 1983.
History:
ECGC of India Ltd was established in July, 1957 to strengthen the export promotion
by covering the risk of exporting on credit. It functions under the administrative control of the
Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Department of Commerce, and Government of India. It is
managed by a Board of Directors comprising representatives of the Government, Reserve
Bank of India, banking, and insurance and exporting community.
ECGC is the fifth largest credit insurer of the world in terms of coverage of national
exports. The present paid-up capital of the company is Rs.900 crores and authorized capital
Rs.1000 crores.
Workings of ECGC:
Provides a range of credit risk insurance covers to exporters against loss in export of
goods and services.
c) Makes available information on different countries with its own credit ratings
It’s Need:
Payments for exports are open to risks even at the best of times. The risks have
assumed large proportions today due to the far-reaching political and economic changes that
are sweeping the world. An outbreak of war or civil war may block or delay payment for
goods exported. A coup or an insurrection may also bring about the same result. Economic
difficulties or balance of payment problems may lead a country to impose restrictions on
either import of certain goods or on transfer of payments for goods imported. In addition, the
exporters have to face commercial risks of insolvency or protracted default of buyers. The
commercial risks of a foreign buyer going bankrupt or losing his capacity to pay are
aggravated due to the political and economic uncertainties. Export credit insurance is
designed to protect exporters from the consequences of the payment risks, both political and
commercial, and to enable them to expand their overseas business without fear of loss.
Notable Records:
ECGC now offers various products for the exporters and bankers. If readymade
products are NOT suited to an exporter/banker then ECGC designs tailor made products.
ECGC Product:
a. Commercial Risks:
b. Political Risks:
Any other cause of loss occurring outside India not normally insured
by general insurers, and beyond the control of both the exporter and
the buyer.
In what respects is the Small Exporter's Policy different from the Standard Policy:
No claim bonus in the premium rate is granted every year at the rate of
5% (as against once in two years for Standard Policy at the rate of 10%).
Waiting period for claims: The normal waiting period of 4 months under the
Standard Policy has been halved in the case of claims arising under the Small
Exporter's Policy.
o Where the value of this bill is not more than Rs.3 lacs, conversion of
D/P bill into D/A bill is permitted even if credit limit on the buyer has
been obtained on D/P terms only, but only one claim can be considered
during the policy period on account of losses arising from such
conversions.
o A small exporter may, without the prior approval of ECGC extend the
due date of payment of a D/A bill provided that a credit limit on the
buyer on D/A terms is in force at the time of such extension.
In case all the shipments to the buyer in question have been permitted to be
excluded from the purview of the SCR Policy.
Buyer wise (insolvency & default of L/C opening bank and political risks)
Policy - short-term.
4. Service Policy:
The different types of Services Policy and what protections do they offer:
The Corporation would expect that the terms of payment for the services are in
line with customary practices in international trade in these lines. Contracts should
normally provide for an adequate advance payment and the balance should be payable
periodically based on the progress of work. The payments should be backed by
satisfactory security in the form of Letters of Credit or bank guarantees.
Services policies are designed to cover contracts under which only services are
to be rendered. Contracts under which the value of services to be rendered forms only
a small part of a contract involving supply of machinery or equipment will be covered
under an appropriate specific policy for supply contracts.
a. Exposure (Single Buyer) Policy – for covering the risks on a specified buyer
and
b. Exposure (Multi Buyer) Policy – for covering the risks on all buyers.
Turnover policy is a variation of the standard policy for the benefit of large
exporters who contribute not less than Rs. 10 lacs per annum towards premium.
Therefore all the exporters who will pay a premium of Rs. 10 lacs in a year are
entitled to avail of it.
The turnover policy envisages projection of the export turnover of the exporter
for a year and the initial determination of the premium payable on that basis,
subject to adjustment at the end of the year based on actuals. The policy
provides additional discount in premium with an added incentive for
increasing the exports beyond the projected turnover and also offers simplified
procedure for premium remittance and filing of shipment information. It also
provides for higher discretionary credit limits on overseas buyers, based on the
total premium paid by the exporter under the policy. The turnover policy is
issued with a validity period of one year. In most of the other respects the
provisions relating to standard policy will apply to turnover policy.
a. the contractor keeps raising bills periodically throughout the contract period
for the value of work done between one billing period and another;
c. that, unlike bills of exchange raised by suppliers of goods, The bills raised by
the contractor do not represent conclusive evidence of debt but are subject to
payment in terms of the contract which may provide, among other things, for
penalties or adjustments on various counts.
The scope for disputes is very large. Besides, the contract value itself may
only be an estimate of the work to be done, since the contract may provide for cost
escalation, variation contracts, additional contracts, etc. It is, therefore, important that
the contractor ensures that the contract is well drafted to provide clarity of the
obligations of the two parties and for resolution of disputes that may arise in the
course of execution of the contract. Contractors are well advised to use the Standard
Conditions of Contract (International) prepared by the Federation International Des
Ingenieurs Conseils (FIDIC) jointly with the Federation International du Batiment et
des Travaux Publics (FIBTP).
b. Failure of the employer to pay the amounts that become payable to the
contractor in terms of the contract, including any amount payable
under an arbitration award;
d. Failure of the contractor to receive any sum due and payable under the
contract by reason of war, civil war, rebellion, etc;
e. The failure of the contractor to receive any sum that is payable to him
on termination or frustration of the contract if such failure is due to its
having become impossible to ascertain the amount or its due date
because of war, civil war, rebellion etc;
The period of insurance cover will not normally exceed 15 years in case of
projects involving long construction period. The cover can be extended for a
period of 15 years from the date of completion of the project subject to a
maximum of 20 years from the date of commencement of investment. Amount
insured shall be reduced progressively in the last five years of the insurance
period.
ECGC introduced a Policy exclusively for the SME sector units in 4th July,
2008. The Policy is particularly provides the SME Sector easy administrative and
operational convenience.
d. Discretionary Limit No
e. Declarations No
f. Premium Rs.5000
j. Waiting period Two months from the due date or extended due date
This Policy can be issued to an exporter qualifying as per the MSMED Act,
2006. The exporter desirous of obtaining the Policy should furnish the certificate
issued by the designated authority. (District Industries Centres)
The International Credit Insurance & Surety Association (ICISA) was founded in
April 1928, forming the first trade credit insurance association.]The Association is registered
in Zurich (Switzerland) under Swiss Civil Code (article 60). The Secretariat is based in
Amsterdam.
The International Credit Insurance & Surety Association (ICISA) is the leading global
association representing trade credit insurers and surety companies. ICISA members form a
central role in facilitating trade, by insuring payment risks resulting from local sales as well
as exports, or by providing security for the performance of a contract. Members of ICISA
meet regularly and benefit from an open exchange of information and expertise. ICISA
promotes sustained technical excellence, industry innovation and product integrity. ICISA
has a proactive role as advocacy and media relations organisation on issues and topics that
are relevant for the members. Furthermore ICISA advises international and multinational
authorities on vital issues related to the trade credit insurance and surety bond industries.
The object of the Association is to study questions relating to Credit Insurance and
Surety, to provide opportunities for Members' employees to acquire knowledge of the theory
and practice of credit insurance and surety underwriting, to represent the Members’ interests
and to initiate means whereby the common action of the Members can be facilitated in order
to develop their mutual relations in the interest of their national and the international
economy, in the interest of their insured and in their own interest."
3. Reinsurance:
CASE STUDY
Situation:
Operating Facts:
Objective:
Outsource credit analysis function to provide expert advice, allowing our prospect the
ability to safely grow their business.
Solution:
Implemented a credit insurance program that provided credit risk assessment on their
medium and large accounts. The policy assumes the responsibility of continuous monitoring
on all covered accounts - no credit "due diligence" required by our client. The policy was
customized to provide immediate credit decisions for new medium sized accounts. Also,
marketing prospect lists were developed with names of accounts pre-approved under the
policy.
Results:
The program produced immediate results. Sales were made to new and existing
accounts on open credit terms that our client would have never entertained prior to the
adoption of the credit insurance program. Our client successfully grew their business by
200% during the initial policy period and is projecting to generate approximately $35 million
in revenue over the next year.
CONCLUSION
Credit insurance can provide cost effective access to working capital that can help you
grow and avoid cash flow crunches
Analyse the risk that a buyer will not pay for the purchases it makes on credit and
guide its customers away from those buyers that are likely to fall into this high risk
category.
Credit Insurance / Trade Credit Insurance policies are required by Companies to guard
themselves against the potentially disastrous effects of bad debts. However, a policy
can also guarantee a range of additional benefits rather than just bad debt insurance.
From 1990, the year Credit Insurance was established; it has been progressing at a
very high speed. As many companies running its day to day activities in credit, they
have come to know the importance of credit insurance.