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We occasionally have clients approach us for help to secure funding having been let down by their own bank.

A recent example of this is a dentist who owned a 50% share in a dental practice and was seeking funding so he could buy out his business partner and take over full ownership of the practice.

In the first instance he approached his own bank but the request was declined with little or no explanation citing the request fell outside lending criteria.

The client then came to us for help and advice and we were able to prepare a business plan and forecast on their behalf and obtain three separate funding offers at 100% of the asking price!

The proposal has now completed with our client in full control and ownership of his business –  whereas some 3 months ago he was at his wits end and thought the only way out would be to sell the whole practice.

This is a prime example of why you should ALWAYS use a specialist independent adviser to work on your funding proposal.  By using a broker, you obtain a whole of market overview rather than the thoughts of just one lender.

If you’d like to speak to us about buying a dental practice, whatever your circumstances, please get in touch.

A strong mix of healthcare specialism and a flexible approach to funding, has allowed FTA Finance Ltd to broker a deal that gives their client the freedom to take ownership of their practice and control their repayments.

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In the past many dental professionals have opted to take indemnity cover with discretionary indemnity providers such as the DDU, Dental Protection and MDDUS which provide occurrence based indemnity rather than the traditional insurance markets which provide cover on a claims made basis.

The reason for dental professionals opting for the occurrence based indemnity is that as long as they had cover in place at the time when the treatment was provided then cover will always apply, irrespective of when the claim is made – which could be many years into the future!

The insurance market has until recent times provided claims made cover which means that cover is only in force whilst the policy is active. If a claim came in many years after the policy expires this could leave you without cover.

At FTA Finance we work alongside All Med Pro, a specialist insurance broker, who are challenging the status quo by providing contract certain claims occurrence indemnity insurance. The contract certainty of an insurance product ensures that you are not reliant on the discretionary nature of the likes of the DDU, Dental Protection and MDDUS. With discretionary cover there is no guarantee that a claim will be a paid and could leave you to personally cover legal costs and compensation if awarded.

What about service?
With the backing of one of the world’s leading insurers AXIS Insurance, All Med Pro have developed an indemnity solution that not only provides comprehensive cover but the support when you need it the most.  In the event of a claim you will be able to speak with another Dental Professional who fully understands your position. They will work with you to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the claim quickly and efficiently.

In the event of a successful claim being made against you, All Med Pro will continue to provide support and recommendations to ensure that the same claim doesn’t arise again.

Next steps…..
If you would like an immediate quote for your indemnity insurance please request it now.

If you have any questions and to find out more about the indemnity insurance on offer, please give our office a call on 0330 088 1157.  And if you’re still undecided, have a think about the following:

• Would you choose to cover your house or car with discretionary cover? 
• Has your indemnity subscription increased?
• Do you feel abandoned by your current indemnity provider?

If the answer to the above is yes, we certainly recommend you obtain a quotation.  The premium for a full time dentist starts from £1,680.00 per year and provides you with a contract certain indemnity product with a quality professional service.

James Yates from FTA Finance shares his thoughts on how much the banks will lend for a pharmacy business purchase.

If you’re looking to purchase a dental practice, then ensuring you’ve got the right funding in place is essential. David Brewer explains who the best banks are to approach for practice funding….

For a quick insight into the individuals that work in the FTA Finance team, here’s a 60 second interview with Jim Moran based in our Manchester office….

With over 36 years experience in banking, Jim has built an enviable reputation of providing quality service to the healthcare sector. Adept at securing flexible and competitive loan terms, Jim is known as the ‘go-to’ manager in the north of England for those looking for finance to purchase a new business or those simply looking to review existing funding arrangements.  We had the pleasure of asking Jim a few questions about his work at FTA Finance and life outside of the office…..

Q: Can you explain more about a typical day in the office?

Jim: I like to get into the office early and catch up with my emails and pick up on any phone calls with clients as quickly as possible.  Lots of our clients are busy working in practices so it’s generally more convenient to speak to them outside of the usual 9-5 time slot, something we’re more than happy to do here at FTA Finance.

And it’s not just clients that I spend time talking to.  My job role entails liaising with all parties involved in a transaction from the bank financing a loan to the accountants and even the lawyers handing the legal work.  The main goal is to keep any deal on track and get it across the finish line!

Q: What do you enjoy most about your job?

Jim: I genuinely enjoy helping our clients reach their goal of practice ownership, particularly the young associates who come to us for help and then a few months later find themselves proud practice owners.

Q: How long does it take you to drive to work?

Jim: On a good day, 15-20 minutes.  But on a bad day, up to an hour or more!

Q: What motivates you to get out of bed in the morning?

Jim: That’s simple….I actually like and enjoy my job.

Q: Describe yourself in a few words.

Jim: Honest, reliable, focused, tenacious, and trustworthy.

Q: When you’re not working, what do you enjoy doing?

Jim: Spending time with my wife and family, watching TV, going to the gym or swimming.

Q: What was the last book you read?

Jim: That would be ‘The Girl on a Train’ by Paula Hawkins. A good book and far better than the film.

Q: If you could choose any holiday destination in the world, where would you go?

Jim: Has to be the Maldives.  I’ve been twice before and I’m determined to go back again. It really is paradise and is as good as it looks in the photos.

Q: What’s the best thing about living and working in the Manchester area?

Jim: I’m probably biased as I was born and bred here, but in my opinion there’s nowhere better with great restaurants and social life in this vibrant city. I’m an avid Manchester United fan (and from Manchester) – what more could you want?

Q: Where would you recommend tourists visit if they were in the area?

Jim: That would have to be Lyme Park – a National Trust property.  It’s lovely for a stroll on a Sunday afternoon.

Q: Tell us something about yourself that others might not know?

Jim: I have run a marathon and finished in 3.5 hours!  I was running to raise money for the RNLI and successfully raised over £500 for them.  And before you ask if I’d ever do it again….never! I’ve done it once and that’s enough for me!

If you’d like to speak to Jim, he can be contacted on 0161 393 7107.

For the last 18 months’ we’ve seen numerous articles about the threat of cyber-attacks to the healthcare industry.  This is indeed one of the most targeted sectors in the UK and the risk to your dental practice is significant. This has further been highlighted by the events of the last few days where the NHS has suffered its biggest attack of this kind.

What is the risk to you?
No business is completely safe from the threat of cybercrime, no matter how many firewalls you have or virus scanners, it only reduces your risk by a small fraction. Over the last few years we have seen major companies and organisations such as Talk Talk and MI5 affected, organisations who invest heavily in the reliability of their IT systems are just as vulnerable and you and me.

So how does it work? Often, we see businesses that have their IT systems or software encrypted by the criminals. This means that the hackers take control of your systems and lock you out. They usually request payment in the form of Bitcoins in exchange for releasing your data back to you. In the past when this has happened clients have still had major problems with their software afterwards and have had to get professional companies in to reinstate the corrupted data. If you decide not to pay the ransom, then the cyber-criminals will often look to sell the data on the black-market and then it is lost forever.

What is your most valuable data?  
For any medical practice the value is in the patient medical records and appointment logs. This is the lifeblood of your business and without access to this the practice would struggle to continue, at least in the short term.

In the event that your patient records were sold on the black-market and got into the hands of other cyber-criminals your patients could be at significant risk. Your patients can sue you for compensation if their medical records became accessible to others. You could face a claim by every single person affected by the data breach and furthermore, you would become liable for their legal costs as well as your own if you required representation or defending from such claims. The Information Commissioners Office (ICO) can also get involved too. They are the statutory regulator when it comes to data security and they will investigate a breach of data to see if there are grounds for imposing statutory fines against you! These fines can start from tens of thousands of pounds and there is no real upper limit.

So what is the solution?    
It is very difficult to guarantee your business will not be affected by cybercrime although it is recommended that you review your IT security arrangements anyway and make upgrades where possible. Something that is within our control however, is what measures we have in place to protect our businesses should something catastrophic happen.

To do this, it is advisable to have Cyber Liability Insurance cover in place. As a basic cover, this will protect you against the claims that could be made against you, including legal costs and statutory fines. However, there is further cover that can be included within a policy such as:

• Damage to Hardware
• Data Corruption & Reinstatement
• Financial Crime i.e. money being fraudulently taken from your bank account
• Data-Breach Expenses including reputation protection
• Loss of Business Income

How much does a policy cost?
It all depends on a few variables:

• How many patient records do you hold?
• What is your gross annual revenue?
• What limit of indemnity do you require?

The last question above will be an area that your insurance adviser can guide you on. The larger the practice and the more records held, the greater the exposure to claims and statutory fines. Prices typically start from around £500 per year although it is possible in some case to save money on a main Practice Insurance policy if a Cyber Liability policy is also taken out.

For more details please contact the team at FTA Finance on 0330 088 11 57 or via email. 

FTA Finance, leading provider of solutions to funding and finance needs within the healthcare sector, has been named as the ‘London Healthcare Broker of the Year’ in the Lloyds Banking Group Business Development Professional Awards 2017.

The Business Development Professional Awards identify and reward excellence to those professional partners working within the healthcare sector.  The 2017 awards were presented at an evening celebration held by Lloyds Bank Group on Tuesday 9^th May at their offices in London.

Chun Ng joins the team as a Financial Planner and will work alongside colleagues in the FT&A Finance Hertfordshire office offering specialist expert advice to meet client financial requirements within the healthcare sector.

Chun has been working in the financial services industry since 1993, and has years of experience providing expert advice as a Financial Advisor. Throughout his career, Chun has worked in a number of financial sector roles. Originally starting at GAN, he has spent over 20 years as a Financial Advisor within the Lloyds Banking Group, working as part of the Retail, Corporate and Wealth Management Divisions, and more recently as an Advice Manager at Lloyds Private Banking.

With a wealth of experience, Chun has specialist knowledge of the Corporate and Wealth Management markets and also the healthcare sector, ensuring he is ideally placed to offer expert, face to face advice to clients.