BusinessCare will provide Finance Avenue’s SME clients with access to practical legal advice, information and document creation resources online and over the phone, 24/7, at the fraction of the cost of hiring a solicitor.
This survival kit for businesses will target the key areas of employment law, health and safety, debt and credit control and the complex area of employee health management. It is flexible and will suit each business type.
BusinessCare will be sold under the brand ABCover, part of Finance Avenue’s commercial mortgage offering. Finance Avenue has a strong SME client base ranging from start-ups to long running family businesses.
With statistics from Business Link showing that currently around 50% of smaller firms spend about £1.4bn on external advice, Nigel Robbins, head of sales at FirstAssist, believes that this is a ‘win-win’ product for the mortgage broking market: “This is a very exciting deal and is part of our ambitious plan to open up new distribution channels for the FirstAssist BusinessCare package.
“As the mortgage market slows and lending continues to fall, BusinessCare enables commercial mortgage brokers to offer customers a new and relevant product, and in so doing build sustainable partnerships that will ultimately maximise their revenue.”
Corin Holmess, a director of ABCover, said: “We are excited to be offering BusinessCare via FirstAssist, which we believe will set us apart from the competition. The innovative legal facilities offered by BusinessCare are entirely relevant for our clients’ needs and in an uncertain market gives them peace of mind should they experience an employee dispute or an incident such as debt recovery. We see BusinessCare as an opportunity to add to our portfolio of products, boost client retention and generate new revenues.”
