Volumes grow for employee benefit provider BHSF

ONE of Birmingham’s oldest employee benefits providers has announced strong growth in the volume of business being placed through its intermediary channel.

The BHSF Group, which can trace its origins back to the Birmingham Hospital Saturday Fund in 1873, is a supplier of health and employee benefits to more than 2,800 client companies including Cadbury’s, General Motors, Land Rover and Sainbury’s.

The group, which has a turnover of around £38m, said around 40% of the group’s new business was now written with intermediary-introduced clients.

The business comprises both employee benefits provision and the underwriting of personal accident and health cash plan benefits.

Brian Hall, sales & marketing director, said: “It has been an exciting area in which to operate and one that has required the development of new skills.

“Intermediaries are demanding clients with reputations and service standards to uphold and, therefore, it is important that you have all your ‘ducks in a row’ before seeking to service this important market.  

“We have been very fortunate, in that we have now been appointed as the preferred provider to three of the UK’s top broking firms.  We are also the preferred choice of a number of the regional broking houses and interest from others continues to promise further growth in the future”.

The growth in intermediary revenue has been matched with a corresponding growth in the group’s service team.

One of the recent converts to the BHSF approach has been Heath Lambert, which has placed a number of major clients with the group.  

Karen Gamble, director of health & wellbeing at Heath Lambert, said: “BHSF’s approach to business is one of ‘customer first’ and they are prepared to look for the solution rather than to offer a set product and try to sell their way to success.  It means we can be open and honest with both client and provider and the whole thing generally runs much more smoothly.”