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Latest blog and news articles from Russell Meers & Gill (Worcester) Ltd

Russell Meers & Gill (Worcester) Ltd Team

Russell Meers & Gill (Worcester) Ltd Team

Russell Meers & Gill (Worcester) Ltd have been trading since 1983. We are based in St Johns Worcester. We are insurance and mortgage brokers and we also provide an agency for Yorkshire Building Society.
September 02, 2022
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Ladies Day WCCC 2022 in aid of St Richard’s Hospice

Russell Meers & Gill were excited once again to be joint sponsors of Ladies Day at WCCC, New Road Worcester along with Anja Potze Fine Jewellery Ltd in aid of a fantastic charity, St Richard's Hospice.

July 30, 2020
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Top Tips for a Staycation!

Most of us are still a bit nervous about travelling and the risks it carries, so we’ve put together a list of tips to help you enjoy some time away while still staying safe during your staycation.

Keep washing those hands!

Wash your hands regularly with soap and water or make sure you have hand sanitiser for use where soap and water is not available.

Face Coverings and Sanitiser

Pop your mask and hand sanitiser in your bag wherever you are going just in case they are required.

Travel

Driving is the safest way to get to your holiday destination. This will reduce the number of people you come into contact with and limit the risk of catching the virus.

If you do use public transport, try and avoid travelling at peak times and remember to wear a face covering and sanitise your hands.

Avoid using cash where possible

Whether it’s paying the to use the toll road, or treating yourself to an ice-cream at the beach, try to avoid using cash where possible and instead make use of contactless cards or contactless payments on your phone.

If you must use cash or coins, always remember to thoroughly wash or sanitise your hands afterwards.

Book self-contained accommodation to stay in

Although hotels will have strict cleaning protocols, self-contained accommodations such as log cabins, caravans and Airbnb’s will offer to a lot more personal space and reduce the amount of contact you have with other people.

If you’re staying somewhere that will require you to use the accommodation’s utensils for cooking wash the equipment thoroughly before use. You could even bring your own, just to be on the safe side and you could always take your own supply of cleaning products and give the accommodation a once over when you arrive!

Prepare in advance

In order to limit the amount of queuing it’s wise to prepare in advance. Whether that’s booking your attraction tickets before you go to avoid long queues, or even bringing food shopping from home to your accommodation to reduce the number of times you need to pop to the shops.

By preparing in advance you can reduce the amount of contact you have with other people – you may even save a few pennies by being more aware of what your spending!

Protect your trip

We always recommend that if you are staying away from home even in the UK that you have the correct travel insurance.

Lastly,

Enjoy your staycation and eat lots of ice cream!

July 30, 2020
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Protect your bike

Since the outbreak of Coronavirus, more of us are cycling and buying new bikes, this in turn with the good weather is increasing the rate of bike thefts in the UK.

So what can you do to protect your bike?

Buy a good lock - Thieves are lazy and mostly target cheap locks.

Mark your bike - Marking your bike with a unique code ensures that the Police will be able to identify your bike if recovered. You can register your bike online at www.bikeregister.com; if stolen and recovered, the Police can return it to you. The Police often have bike-marking events but if you are marking your bike yourself ensure the security mark is clearly visible and apply a tamper-proof sticker to the frame, warning that the bike has been marked.

Insure it – A bike can cost as much as an item of jewellery, an antique or a painting so make sure you are well covered by insurance in case of theft.

Check whether your home contents insurance covers your bike. Make sure it covers you for thefts outside the home too. If your bicycle is particularly valuable, you may need to insure it separately or add it as a specified item.

Out and about - When leaving your bike try and do so in an area that has a low theft risk whenever possible, lock your bike in a busy public place that is well lit and avoid leaving your bike unattended overnight.

At home – Always lock your bike when it’s indoors too. If possible, store your bike in a locked shed or garage, keep it out of view and secure it to an immoveable object.

July 09, 2019
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Kid's Colouring Competition

Details regarding the children’s colouring competition are below.

Kid's Colouring Competition

Download Scooby the Dog print out here

Society marks ten years of mutuality in Worcester

Ten years ago the Black Eyed Peas were number one in the charts with I Gotta Feeling, the England cricket team beat Australia 2-1 to reclaim the Ashes and the Yorkshire Building Society opened its agency in Worcester.

To mark the milestone birthday, colleagues at the agency, at local Insurance Brokers, Russell Meers & Gill (Worcester) Ltd, on Malvern Road will be hosting a party on Wednesday, August 14.

Russell Meers & Gill (Worcester) Ltd, which has been in business for over 30 years at its Malvern Road offices, opened its Yorkshire Building Society Agency back in 2009.

Karen Gill, Director of Russell, Meers and Gill (Worcester) Ltd said “The world may have changed a lot since we first opened the Yorkshire Building Society Agency in 2009 but we’re still committed to helping our customers save for their futures and buy their own homes.

“We are inviting the local community to come together with us to celebrate our 10th Birthday. There will be refreshments, goody bags, raffle prizes, colouring/drawing competitions and much, much more, so pop down and see us and enjoy the celebrations.

For details regarding the children’s colouring competitions which are open to all ages please pop in and see us or visit:

Kid's Colouring Competition

March 11, 2019
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The value of a broker

The question we get asked time and time again is why should I use a Broker?

  • They provide professional and independent advice on all types of insurance;
  • Brokers are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to ensure they deal with customers competently and fairly;
  • They put the interests of their clients first;
  • By using your Broker’s experience, they make sure they ask the right questions so you get the right type and level of cover at a competitive price:
  • Brokers can secure exclusive deals that won’t be available on comparison sites.
  • Brokers save your time by searching the market;
  • If you are unfortunate enough to be involved in an accident or have a claim made against you they will deal with the claim on your behalf.

Although a Broker provides all the benefits listed above and more, the true value of using a Broker is never truly appreciated until something goes wrong!

Why should I use a Broker for my insurance when I can use a comparison site?

If you use a comparison site for your insurance you are responsible for making sure you answer all the questions correctly to ensure that you are suitably and correctly covered for your requirements. Should I protect my no claims discount? what excess should I choose? Do I really need a courtesy vehicle?? Legal Cover?? By using a Broker and their experience they can ensure that by discussing with you your requirements that any optional extras or cover not included is made clear and explained to you so you understand exactly the cover that you are purchasing.

For bespoke insurance requirements Brokers can find a specialist provider to again ensure that any essential items such as tools cover or personal sickness can be added to the policy.

Do I pay extra to use a Broker?

No, no additional fee will be charged. Brokers are paid a commission by the insurance provider for selling their products so you shouldn’t need to pay an additional fee on top of your premium.

Here at RMG Insurance not only can we give you the benefit of our combined experience of over 100 years when purchasing your insurance, we also give you the peace of mind that we are here at the end of the phone (we aim to answer within 3 rings, so no hold time!) should you have any queries or changes to make to your insurance. If you prefer to visit us in person and speak to one of our fully trained members of staff, we are open Monday to Friday 9-5 and also to make it more convenient for you we are open on a Saturday 9-12, not only that we also have customer parking!

RMG also has its own Claims Team and should you be unfortunate enough to be involved in an accident or any type of claim we are here to deal with it on your behalf. We can not only report the claim for you but can arrange repairers, hire/courtesy vehicles and we will fight your corner for you should there be any problems.

November 29, 2018
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Are you covered?

Christmas can be an expensive time of year for all of us but can be very cheap for thieves!

Thieves enjoy Christmas just like they rest of us and they know there are going to be more valuable items around the home during this festive period – easy Christmas shopping for them!

With Christmas only a few weeks away it’s a good idea to check the cover on your home contents insurance policy. With all that Christmas shopping have you got enough cover for those extra expensive gifts under the tree or waiting to be wrapped? After all your contents may have increased significantly and this will not have been taken into account when you took out the policy.

Most contents policies give an uplift in sums insured for the festive season of approximately 25% for those extra items you will have in your home that require protection but will this be sufficient? Check your contents policy to be on the safe side as its important to get it right.

Did you know most policies also give an uplift in sums insured for frozen food allowing for storage of all those Christmas goodies? Does your insurance provide this? How would you know?

We don’t expect you to know, we do it for you! Nobody wants the nightmare before Christmas so give us a call now to check your cover.

Don’t be caught out, enjoy your Christmas and don’t help the thieves enjoy theirs!

See our top 5 tips for keeping you safe from thieves over the festive period.

  • Remember to set your burglar alarm before going out.
  • Make sure all doors and windows are locked before leaving the house.
  • Make sure your car keys can’t be seen from outside the house and if you have a keyless fob make sure you store it away from windows and doors. Keeping your keyless fob out of sight is not enough – thieves only need to be near it to amplify its signal.
  • Don’t post on social media that you are going away
  • Dispose of gift packaging carefully, don’t advertise your new contents of your home to thieves!
October 23, 2018
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Stay safe over the coming months

Criminals look forward to the clocks going back.

Most of us don’t relish the thought of the weather growing colder and the nights drawing in. For thieves, it’s a different matter. Shorter days give them more time to work under the cover of darkness.

There is a significant increase in burglary between Halloween and Bonfire Night. Halloween also sees a rise in malicious damage claims to homes and Bonfire Night is often the worst night of the year for both home break-ins and car thefts. Burglars take advantage of people being out of the house at public displays or parties and use the noise of fireworks to cover up suspicious sounds, such as smashing glass.

Of course, all these incidents are covered by standard home and motor policies. But it’s always best to save yourself the worry and stress that comes with being a victim of crime. Many crimes are not pre-planned but are committed by opportunists. So, it's often the simple steps that can have the greatest effect.

  • Remove keys from locked doors and leave them somewhere out of sight.
  • Shut all windows when you go out.
  • If you’re heading out for the evening, try to make your house look occupied. Shut the curtains and think about leaving the radio or TV on – or even the odd light. You can connect these to timers that turn them on and off.
  • Never leave a spare key outside or hanging inside a letterbox – burglars know where to find them.
  • Move any garden ornaments, potted plants or bikes from the front or side of your house, so that they’re out of sight.
  • If you're enjoying a firework party in the garden, make sure your front doors and windows are shut and locked.
  • Lock sheds, garages and other outbuildings with robust locks. This protects your garden and DIY equipment. It also stops thieves accessing tools or ladders which could be used to break into your house.

Over the past 5 years alone, our reliance upon the internet and digital/social platforms has grown beyond belief but has our caution grown as quickly as our curiosity. Last year (2017) nearly 7 in 10 large businesses identified a cyber breach or attack to their system which had us questioning, what more could we be doing to ensure our, and your, cyber security? We also discussed that firms that hold sensitive or financial information are more susceptible to cyber-attack and targeting.

To show that we’re committed to maintaining our cyber security and in turn, your security we’re delighted to announce that we have successfully completed our Cyber Essentials Certification. This certification is part of a government backed scheme to encourage companies, like us, to demonstrate to their customers that they take cyber security seriously. The Cyber Essentials Certification is based upon 5 basic controls, which were chosen because, when properly implemented, they will help to protect against unskilled internet-based attacks using commodity capabilities, which are freely found on the internet.

Cyber security is a growing issue within our society and must be taken seriously by organisations and customers alike. If you’re looking to step up your security, or would just like to find out more about how we can help your to protect your and your customers personal data on digital platforms, give us a call on 01905 428848 and our team will be happy to give you a helping hand.

October 05, 2018
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RMG supports local businesses!

Nothing is more important to the modern high street than supporting local, independent businesses and that’s exactly what Karen and the team love to do! This time they ventured down to The Swan on New Street, Worcester for the unveiling of their new menu! The team, joined by a whole host of other local businesses, experienced a sampling of The Swan’s fine craft beers and items from the new small bites menu and toasted Cubanos sandwiches menu.

Russell Meers & Gill are proud partners with The Swan, organising and supplying their Retailers Insurance, meaning they can stay in action, even when things might not go their way! If you’re a new business opening, or are just in need of a new quote, RMG always supports local businesses and we’ll do everything we can to support you and your business, tailoring your Insurance to your exact business requirements.

If you’d like a quote, or even just a chat about Retailers Insurance, give our team a call on 01905 428848. Our positive and supportive team will be happy to talk you through what Insurance will best suit your business, ensuring you’re not wasting any unnecessary resources and can be used where they need to be.

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Russel Meers & Gill (Worcester) Ltd

Russell Meers & Gill (Worcester) Ltd have been trading since 1983. We are based in St. Johns, Worcester. We are insurance brokers and we also provide an agency for Yorkshire Building Society. We provide customer services for the society where information can be given on products and new saving accounts can be opened.

We also offer an excellent in house claims handling service to ensure your claim is handled quickly and fairly by the insurers involved... [read more]

Further Information

5 Malvern Road
St. Johns
Worcester
WR2 4YD.

Phone: 01905 428848
Fax: 01905 420311
Email: info@russellmeers.co.uk
Website: www.russellmeers.co.uk

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Russell Meers & Gill (Worcester) Ltd is Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA registration number: 940676).

Registered office: 31 St Johns, Worcester, WR2 5AG. Registered in England and Wales, Company Registration Number: 12491678.

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