Terms & Conditions

As a valued client of Tom Fogarty Insurance Brokers it is important that you are fully up to date with consumer protection information regarding this brokerage and our commitment to deliver a a professional and excellent level of service to you. This document details the respective duties and responsibilities of both ourselves and you as our client in relation to the provision of such services. Do not hesitate to contact us with any questions or points that require clarification. Thank you for your support of a local business.

Central Bank of Ireland Authorised Status
Michael Fogarty trading as Tom Fogarty Insurance Brokers, 16 Bank Place, Tipperary Town. E34 H290 is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland under the Investment Intermediaries Act, 1995 (as amended), the Consumer Credit Act, 1995 and the European Communities Insurance Mediation Regulations, 2005. Copies of our Authorisations are available on request; alternatively the Central Bank of Ireland holds registers of regulated firms which can be viewed on their website www.centralbank.ie . Our authorisation number is 30137 and our contact details are (T) 062 51116 (F) 062 51816 (W) www.tfi.ie We are also authorised by the National Consumer Agency as a Credit Intermediary.

Statutory Codes
Tom Fogarty Insurance Brokers is subject to the Consumer Protection Code, the Minimum Competency Code and the Fitness and Probity Standards. These Codes offer protection to consumers and can be found on the Central Bank of Ireland website www.centralbank.ie

Our Services
As Insurance Intermediaries we provide advice in relation to General Insurance products and services. With the significant number of appointments we hold, we can offer our clients a choice of suitable products that best serve their needs and circumstances. We do not guarantee nor make representations in regard to, and expressly disclaim responsibility for the financial security of Insurance Companies and Product Producers with which we place business. Tom Fogarty Insurance Brokers are members of Brokers Ireland & Brokers Federation of Ireland (BFI).
We will offer advice on a fair analysis basis in relation to all classes of insurance policies. Fair analysis of the market means providing services on the basis of a sufficiently large number of contracts and product producers available on the market to enable the intermediary to make a recommendation, in accordance with professional criteria, regarding which contract would be adequate to meet the consumer’s needs

Product Producers
A list of our current product producers is available on request. We can accept no responsibility for the solvency of our product producers and cannot indemnify you in respect the failure or any insurer or product producer.

Remuneration Policy
Tom Fogarty Insurance Brokers are remunerated by a combination of commission and/or fees. Commission, if any, is received from Product Producers to whom orders are transmitted. Click here for details on commission. Some Product Producers pay NO commission. Fees are charged on all New Business, Renewals, Mid-term Cancellation, Adjustments, Endorsements & Duplicate documents by way of an administration charge of up 40% of the premium subject to a minimum charge of €30.00. We may also apply an administration fee of up to €150.00 for use of our resources to research the market available to us on your behalf regardless of our success in securing a quotation on the risk. These charges cover: Sourcing of Product/Product Scheme, Administration Costs, Risk Management, Claims Handling Assistance, Renewal Negotiation, Compliance Costs and Advice. We may on occasions source product through a Wholesale Broker. The Wholesale Broker may charge a fee for this service which will be reflected in the price of the product. Premium rebates are subject to an administration charge/rebate fee of no more than 10% of the rebate amount subject to a minimum charge of €30.00. We do reserve the right to offset premium rebates due to clients against any sums outstanding from that client to us and/or the client’s insurers. There is no VAT charge on any insurance transaction however stamp duty and/or government levies may apply.

Conflict of Interest
It is our policy to avoid any conflict of interest when providing business services to clients. However, where an unavoidable conflict may arise we will advise you of this in writing before providing any business service. If you have not been advised of any such conflict you may assume that none arises.

Complaints Procedure
We will acknowledge each complaint received in writing within 5 business days of the complaint being received. We will provide the complainant with the name of the Complaints Officer as the main point of contact in respect of their complaint until their complaint is resolved or cannot be processed any further. We will provide the complainant with a regular written update on the progress of the investigation of the complaint at intervals of not greater than 20 business days. We will attempt to investigate and resolve the complaint within 40 business days of having received the complaint. When the 40 days has elapsed, if the complaint is not resolved, we will inform the complainant of the anticipated timeframe within which we hope to resolve the complaint. At this point we will inform the complainant of their right to refer the matter to the Financial Services Ombudsman’s Bureau www.financialombudsman.ie. Where we resolve the complaint, we will advise the complainant in writing, within 5 business days of the completion of the investigation of the complaint, the outcome of the investigation and where applicable explain the terms of any offer or settlement being made. We will also inform the complainant of their right to refer the matter to the Financial Services Ombudsman’s Bureau.

Disclosure of Information
It is your responsibility to provide complete and accurate information for Insurers when arranging, effecting amendments or renewing an insurance policy and/or where a Statement of Fact is completed on your behalf. Failure to disclose any material information to your insurers could invalidate your insurance cover; all/or part of the claim may not be paid. If you are in any doubt as to what constitutes a material fact please inform/ask us in any event.

Claims
Your policy document will set out in detail what you should do in the circumstances of an accident or loss or event occurring which may give rise to a claim. It is important that your comply with the policy requirements or contact us so that we may forward the relevant information to the Product Producer (Insurer) on your behalf

Handling Clients Money
Tom Fogarty Insurance Brokers may accept payments in cash , cheques , cash /credit cards and bank / post office drafts in respect of all classes of insurance in the circumstances permitted under Section 25G of the Investment Intermediaries act , 1995. We are not authorised to accept cash or negotiable instruments in any other circumstances. A section 30 receipt is issued for all financial transactions with us, this is issued with your protection in mind and should be kept in a safe place . Payment in all cases other than cash is deemed to apply when the funds are cleared and paid by the relevant financial institution.

Where the Client fails to pay/ Default
Tom Fogarty Insurance Brokers will exercise its legal rights to receive payments due to it from clients for services provided. In particular, without limitation of the generality of the foregoing, the firm will seek reimbursement for all payments made to insurers on behalf of clients where the firm has acted in good faith in renewing a policy of insurance for the client. Insurers and other product producers may withdraw benefits or cover in the event of default on payments due under policies of insurance or other products arranged for you. We would refer you to policy documents or product terms for the details of such provisions . Insurers may charge a time on risk premium and we will charge an administration charge.

Cancellation
You can cancel your policy by notice in writing to us at any time, provided that all reasonable charges pertaining to costs incurred by Tom Fogarty Insurance Brokers have been paid and provided that no claim or adjustment has been made to the policy, or is intended to be made, or no incident has occurred which is likely to give rise to a claim. If your policy is written on the basis of minimum and deposit basis no return premium will be allowed and this will be stated on your policy schedule. It is not normally possible to request mid-term cancellation of Travel Insurance policies. For motor insurance the policy cannot be cancelled and the premium refunded until the Certificate of Insurance and Windscreen Disc have been returned and received by us. You will be entitled to a proportionate return of the premium for the un-expired period of insurance in accordance with the terms & conditions of your insurance policy. A cancellation fee may also apply. If you cancel during the first year (outside the Cooling Off period) short term rates apply in accordance with the terms & conditions of your insurance policy. Please note that our broker fee is not refundable. Product providers normally reserve the right to cancel policies at any time by giving appropriate notice to your last known address. Please refer to your policy terms and conditions.

Consumer Protection
Tom Fogarty Insurance Brokers are members of the Investor Compensation Scheme established by the Investor Compensation Act 1998 & administered by the ICCL. This legislation provides for the establishment of a compensation scheme and to the payment in certain circumstances, of compensation to clients of firms covered by the Act. However , you should be aware that a right to compensation will only arise where money or investment instruments held by this firm on your behalf cannot be returned either for the time being or for the foreseeable future and where the client falls within the definition of eligible investor as contained in that Act . In the event that a right to compensation is established the amount payable is the lesser of 90% of your loss which is recognised as being eligible for compensation or € 20,000. We are also bonded through the Irish Brokers Association for €200,000 with an inner limit of €65,000 per client . We also hold Professional Indemnity Insurance for errors & omissions.

Data Protection Act 1988 - GDPR 2018
As a ‘data user’ we are under a duty to take all necessary security measures to prevent the improper disclosure or loss of personal data held within computers and other equipment and we undertake to ensure that there is no improper disclosure or loss of data or abuse of computer passwords and otherwise complies with the provisions of the Data Protection Act 1988 & General Data Protection regulation . We may exchange data internally within the brokerage with our financial services division known as Fogarty Barlow Financial Services, we will not exchange such data on your written instructions.

Optional Additional Insurance Add Ons
At policy inception or renewal we may offer you optional insurance products or services – such as legal protection or personal accident insurance cover.
These are optional benefits and will be clearly indicated to you as such – the cost of these optional benefits will also be shown separately on our documentation. Please tick the box at the end of this sentence if you wish to be offered these optional extra benefits.

Other Issues
Please note we may record and store telephone calls, SMS texts, written correspondence and all forms of electronic communication to you and from you.

Governing Law and Language
The laws of Ireland form the basis for establishing relations between you and Tom Fogarty Insurance Brokers. All contracts, terms, conditions and communications relating to any policies you may arrange with this firm will be in English. The terms set out above apply to any service provided to you from 1st July 2013 and should the firm change its terms you will be notified in advance.
Failure to agree to these terms of business may mean issue of cover documents will be delayed and or you may be refused service

Client Acknowledgement
I acknowledge and confirm that I have been provided with a copy of the Terms of Business of Tom Fogarty Insurance Brokers and that I have read through and understand these terms and that we agree to accept the Terms of Business offered and agree to be bound by these terms in all our dealings.