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< PreviousMEET THE BDMA EXECUTIVE BOARD BYAdam Waters, Managing Director at Terry Waters French Polishing Ltd BDMA executive Your background: Terry Waters French Polishing Ltd was established in 1979 by my father, Terry Waters. Initially, the main source of work came from banks, civic buildings and hotels. A part of the business was also operating at this time, offering high-end specialist decorating services. In the late 1980s, we found that we were operating in a very niche sector and decided to diversify our service from French Polishing. In view of the above, we began our journey into the damage management industry. We were initially approached by a damage management company to help with a claim; they liked our work so much that they introduced us to their entire franchise network to help us raise brand awareness. As we became better known in the industry, we continued to further diversify our services. We encourage a tenacious work ethic, if we can’t do it ourselves, we will find someone within the supply chain to support us. Some examples of niche work carried out, includes finding valves for a 1950s’ radio and restoring a penny-farthing bicycle after extensive fire damage. As well as the interesting items we’ve been able to restore, our work has taken us to some pretty impressive places to help with furniture restoration, such as: Windsor Castle after the fire in 1992, the Orient Express, Pullman carriages, St Paul’s Cathedral and the Sultan of Brunei’s Palace. As outlined above, we’ve travelled far and wide to deliver our specialist work and have also performed polishing in America, Europe, Jordan, Qatar and even Japan, where we assisted with some bulletproof doors! We are proud to have developed such an extensive depth of knowledge within our industry. We find that our knowledge and wealth of experience allows us to bring a quality service to the insurance sector. Although we have worked in many diverse fields, there is something incredibly special about the damage management industry. Many of the items we repair have sentimental value. We see how important these items are to their owners, and often find that these items hold more value to the policyholder than the property itself. We also prefer to carry out the work at the policyholder’s property, so they are a part of the process. We find that policyholders are blown away by what we do, which makes the job very worthwhile from our perspective. We really do find that when policyholders return home after damage has occurred, that whilst the house is important, it is the furniture that truly gives the house a sense of home. Your role & responsibilities: My role at Terry Waters French Polishing Ltd is as Managing Director taking over from my father when he retired in 2000. We are a family run business who has a policy of employing families into our business too. Over the years, we have seen many dynamic duos within our business, many fathers and sons, and even a husband and wife team. We are lucky to have a team who are so passionate about what they do. We have been involved with the BDMA for many years and were delighted to have been awarded one of the Specialist Restorer Awards at the BDMA Conference 2019 last year (which is now proudly displayed outside of my office!). We love what the BDMA does and enjoy supporting it in whatever way we can. As a company, we have found that the BDMA has such a wealth of experience and we are delighted to now be sitting on the Exec Board. We also particularly enjoy being able to collaborate with other members on the executive team. Adam Waters 10 BDMA executive11 Learning & development LEARNING & DEVELOPMENT Lockdown your learning with the BDMA e - Academy Working in the damage management industry means being constantly presented with challenges. Construction techniques continue to evolve, regulations change, and new working practices are adopted – as we are currently experiencing with many people working from home. Staying up to date is therefore essential, and that is why we have taken the decision to make a number of BDMA courses available at reduced rates or completely free for a limited period of time. We have also partnered with the ABI and CILA to deliver some of our discounted courses, to make sure we support our entire industry in these unprecedented times. Navigating the unfamiliar territory of isolation and lockdown is not easy. It can, however, be an opportunity to improve knowledge, ensure understanding of the latest developments and regulations, and be more confident than ever when normality returns. All of the courses are available via our BDMA e-Academy, our online training platform. It is available wherever you are, day or night, so you can work at your own pace; simply login from your computer or phone and pick up where you left off. Our free and discounted courses include: • An Introduction to the BDMA – This focuses on our mission, objectives and code of practice. This course is free of charge for BDMA members and non-members. • The BDMA Certificate in Site Health & Safety – The course focuses on general on-site health and safety, including PPE, working in confined spaces, and noise awareness. This course is free for all Claims Practitioners and Restoration Technicians. • Construction Techniques – This course explains construction techniques and building materials, so technicians can better deliver damage management solutions. This course is free of charge for BDMA members and non-members. • Supporting Children & Young People after Flooding – Based on research by Lancaster University, Save the Children and the Economic & Social Research Council, this course looks at how children lose their familiar surroundings, friendship networks and so much more, and how they can be better supported. This course is free of charge for members and non-members. • The BDMA Commercial Damage Management accreditation (ComTech) Recognising the skills and experience required in the commercial damage management sector, this course focuses on health and safety both on site generally and for commercial technicians specifically. The entire course and examination are held online. • Damage Management Training & Reference – This is a guide intended for damage management practitioners, featuring a range of learning material and industry practice information across a range of topics. This is free for accredited members and has been reduced to £25 + VAT for associate members. • The Health & Safety for Homeworkers course – This course empowers homeworkers to undertake assessments and decrease the risks and hazards of homeworking. This course is free for accredited members, costs £10 + VAT for associates and costs £15 + VAT for non-members. To enrol on any of the above courses, contact us on info@ bdma.org.uk or register here: https://bdmaacademy. learnupon.com12 guest feature According to statistics, one in four adults in England experiences mental health issues each year, while a further one in six reports mental ill-health symptoms without being diagnosed. Moreover, mental health issues are responsible for 70 million lost working days in the UK, costing the economy an estimated £70- £100 billion each year, according to the Chief Medical Officer in 2014. If we try to use those figures to get a sense of the issue in the UK’s general insurance workforce of 307,000, it equates to 852,776 lost days each year, at a cost of £655-£937 million. The human and financial costs are, clearly, monumental. So why do we let it go so easily? If these costs were caused by any other external factor, such as fraud, I believe we would be more vocal about finding a solution. It is important for me to point out that I am not a mental health expert. However, this should not be a barrier to recognising that the problem exists and looking for a solution; after all, we do not require a doctor’s licence in order to acknowledge an employee is physically unwell and should be at home resting. While I certainly would not suggest we try to make diagnoses, I am a huge advocate of providing people with access to the support they need and to make sure we all know how to identify and support a family member, friend or colleague who may be struggling. Certainly, improvements are happening at this very moment. In the first 25 years of my career, none of the companies I worked for talked about mental health and much less openly provided support. Support was provided on an individual basis when requested, but there is an argument to be made that keeping the issue behind closed doors like that, facilitates the stigma surrounding it. There were no programmes educating that mental health can change from time to time, there were no first aiders to provide support like we have for physical health, and there was very limited access to professional help. The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged everyone in some way, and my hope is that we collectively build on that and use this opportunity to take mental health more seriously; to talk about it more, raise awareness in our sector, and promote wellbeing programmes as routine. Otherwise, we run the very real risk that the challenge we face will only get worse. Like many others, I have spent the last two months in lockdown. That has meant a lot of extra time with my four teenagers, which has been both pleasant and valuable. But there is no denying their loss of purpose, particularly as three were due to sit their GCSEs. I have watched them struggle with not being able to see their friends, and their largest challenge has been understanding that sleep, fresh air, healthy eating, exercise and keeping busy are all key elements of feeling mentally strong. Nor are they alone. The Prince’s Trust 2019 Youth Index identifies that 65% of people aged 16-25 feel stressed or anxious “always” or “often”. Both anxiety and stress, as well as other emotional distress, can be materially affected by unexpected changes to routine – such as the circumstances brought about by COVID-19. #TIMETOTALK... ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH GUEST FEATURE Ian Sutcliffe By Ian Sutcliffe, Director - Valentis Advisory 13 guest feature GUEST FEATURE As leaders and employers, one of our responsibilities is to make sure our places of work offer guidance as well as practical help to ensure our people feel supported in the workplace, particularly as new generations start to enter the sector. A critical point is that while mental health issues are not necessarily caused at work (though, of course, they can be), it is not possible for someone to simply switch off from their issues as they enter the workplace. In addition to their own suffering, an employee not being on their game could impact other team members as well as customers directly. Doing nothing is no longer an option. As a 30-year veteran of the general insurance sector, I genuinely believe that we pride ourselves on being progressive and supportive to our employees and customers. So, we must acknowledge that now is the time to stand up for the mental health of our people by truly creating a culture of awareness and support. The UK Government has been debating legislation to introduce Mental Health First Aiders (MHFA) in the workplace. It is widely believed that this will go ahead, and as a certified MHFA I support the move. However, just like minimum wage legislation only offered a floor rather than a target. However, in my opinion, the mental health legislation simply does not go far enough if we are to make real change. Any progressive business should look to implement a structured and effective Employee Wellbeing Programme that includes a wellbeing strategy, mental health awareness training for all staff, mental health champions to promote awareness and wellbeing, certified mental health first aiders to talk, listen and support people suffering from mental ill-health, access to occupational health therapy where required, and employee assistance. The question being asked of the industry now is, will we allow our people to suffer, or support the general insurance sector in leading the way in promoting mental health awareness in the workplace? 1 https://mhfaengland.org/mhfa-centre/research-and-evaluation/mental-health-statistics/#perceptions 2 https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cmos-annual-report-employment-is-good-for-mental-health 3 https://www.abi.org.uk/globalassets/files/publications/public/key-facts/key_facts_2019_spread.pdf 4 https://www.princes-trust.org.uk/about-the-trust/research-policies-reports/youth-index-201914 Special Feature Our top nominee and winner of the £500 charity money to be donated to a frontline charity facing COVID-19 is David Gamble from DisasterCare NI! We were so impressed with the nominations; we have decided to showcase some other selected nominees: WINNER David Gamble – DisasterCare NI Our winner is David Gamble of DisasterCare Northern Ireland. David has been nominated for his work with a local community outreach charity, the J29 project in his local town of Bainbridge. This charity provides help and support to all youth initiatives that help keep young people off the streets. When the pandemic hit Northern Ireland, a quick change of strategy within the charity was needed in order to get food supplies to those in need. David stepped in to help with the logistics by collecting food donations from supporting businesses and providing food parcels to people in isolation or those that simply cannot afford food, due to a loss of income. Another service that David delivered, was providing a free delivery service for the local Eurospar supermarket. Hearing of his nomination, David commented: “It has been heart-breaking at times. When calling at doors and dropping off food parcels, I’ve seen small children who are aware that their parents are ill. Whilst this has been a sad experience, it has also been rewarding to know we have been able to assist in providing vital support to the local community”. Jason Head – Humidity Response Ltd Our next nominee is Jason Head of Humidity Response Ltd. Jason was nominated for a number of reasons, one being his exceptional service to his clients. A nominator stated that “Nothing is a problem, even when the work may not necessarily be within their usual scope of works”. Further reasons for nominating Jason include the unwavering service he has delivered during the pandemic, as he has still enabled businesses to maintain their level of service when floods and leaks occurred, regardless of the restrictions. Another quote stated that they could “confirm without hesitation that Jason always gives 100% to his clients”. Well done to Jason for his continued hard work, excellent work ethic and work within the damage management industry. Andrew Bartlett – DisasterCare Cotswolds Our next nominee is Andrew Bartlett of DisasterCare Cotswolds. For many years, Andrew has supported a community in Gambia and has been instrumental in building a health centre to help the community. This includes a maternity section for mothers (who would otherwise birth alone), toilet facilities and solar panels to enable generation of power for the sterilising unit. As soon as lockdown was announced across the world, Andrew knew this could be devastating for the community in Gambia and raised £2100 to supply rice to the neediest families in the local villages. Andy Cruickshank – SOS Leak Detection Our next nominee is Andy Cruickshank of SOS Leak Detection. Andy has been nominated for his fighting spirit during the pandemic; he has led his team of engineers throughout lockdown and has actively tried to give back to those less fortunate and in need. When realising that some vulnerable customers i.e. elderly customers living alone, were in need during the pandemic, Andy decided to go one step further to help them. He decided to offer help by implementing a new work programme to undertake leak repairs for free for the elderly, vulnerable and NHS frontline staff. He took this work programme one step further again, by offering an essential shopping service to the elderly, for those who lived alone; had no access to online shopping or were self-isolating and could not leave their homes to go to a shop. We thank Andy for his hard work helping those in need during the pandemic and for going the extra mile for his customers. Sandeep Mangat – Rainbow International Our next nominee is Sandeep Mangat of Rainbow International. Sandeep has been a key member of his local temple since lockdown and has been involved in a food project that has become rather large and has received some media attention also. The project started by making five meal bags a week for the local community but has now increased to 17,000+ a week. When finding out about his nomination, Sandeep commented: “We have been inspired by the efforts of everyone around the world, who during this time put the needs of others before themselves. We are grateful to have played a small part in the big story of humanity.” We thank Sandeep for his impressive charity work with the local community during this tough time. THE BDMA'S HEROES Special Feature Sponsored by: In this edition of The Standard, the BDMA will be featuring members from the damage management industry who have gone the extra mile for policyholders, clients and their local community during the pandemic. We were blown away by the response we had from our BDMA members and supporters and have dedicated this feature to some of our selected nominees. We thank DisasterCare Platinum, DASA and Realia Marketing for sponsoring this feature and also thank BioSweep UK for contributing a further £250 to our charity pot for the top nominee. The top nominee will be awarded £500 to donate to a frontline charity facing the pandemic.15 Special Feature Special Feature Steve Lounds – Disaster Care Midlands Our next nominee is Steve Lounds of DisasterCare Midlands. The nomination involves a claim from a hospice attached to the QE2 Hospital in Welwyn Garden City, which had suffered a kitchen fire. Using video conferencing, Steve spoke with the hospital representatives and established the safe areas that the team could use to enter and exit the kitchen. It was important that these exit routes were ascertained, as the hospital was treating COVID-19 patients. Utilising full PPE, Steve’s team ensured the entire kitchen was cleaned and decontaminated the day after the claim came through. We thank Steve for his creative problem solving with this claim, which allowed the hospice to become operational quickly. Angus Bishop – Davis French & Associates We now move onto our next nominee, Environmentalist Scientist, Angus Bishop of Davis French & Associates. Following the coronavirus outbreak, Davis French & Associates become involved with the COVID-19 Volunteer Testing Network, a philanthropic initiative started by Mike Fischer CBE. The network aims to supplement the main body of testing carried out by the Government, with a number of smaller laboratories, like Davis French & Associates who are then able to provide testing at a local level for frontline healthcare staff and GPs. Angus has been specifically nominated as he has been at the forefront of this work. Angus’s knowledge of the subject area helped the team to be able to convert efforts to testing in the first instance, and under the guidance of Managing Director Dr Greg French, and Laboratory Manager Olivia French, he has been instrumental in ensuring the entire laboratory team were prepared to aid these efforts. Angus has diligently dedicated himself to this work, and whilst this testing accounts for a tiny fraction of what is carried out nationally, he has made an enormous individual contribution to the local community. We thank Angus for his diligent efforts towards such an important initiative and for remaining enthusiastic, and overwhelmingly positive during the pandemic. Scott Dwyer – Ideal Response Our next nominee is Scott Dwyer of Ideal Response. Whilst Scott is a Key Account Manager, as of late, he has been dressed in a Tyvek, gloves and respirator on many jobs – which has certainly not been a part of his normal role. Scott can definitely be considered as someone who has fought COVID-19 on the frontline. Sadly, Scott did catch the virus and has been recovering at home for the last few weeks, but this was only after helping many organisations to protect people first. Our best wishes are with Scott in this difficult time, we thank him for his continued work in the industry. Jim McGonnagle, Stuart Smith and Ryan Cooper – Rainbow International Glasgow Rainbow International has nominated BDMA Technicians, Jim McGonnagle, Stuart Smith and Ryan Cooper, as they have recently received some positive feedback from the son of a policyholder, after the policyholder passed away subsequent to the work being carried out. Damage occurred at the property after the house was vandalised and a fire had taken place. After the policyholder was hospitalised for a fall following the vandalism, she returned home and was delighted to see the work the technicians had completed in her absence and even wanted to send them a small gift. Sadly, the policyholder passed away a couple of days after this. It speaks volumes that the policyholder’s son still wanted to pass on the good feedback, in a very difficult family time. We thank Jim, Stuart and Ryan for their work on this claim and for going over and beyond for the policyholder. ISS Restoration Team – Rainbow International Our last nomination is for the entire ISS Restoration team. They have been nominated for their sanitisation work with the NHS during the pandemic. This includes having a team of up to 20 men onsite completing sanitisation work at the Nightingale NHS; completing a sanitisation at a care home and several hygiene cleans performed at 999 call centres. We thank the entire ISS Restoration Team for their incredibly important work. 16 our industry in action CASE STUDY : Helping the local South Yorkshire community with COVID-19 testing Overview Davis French & Associates are specialist consultants working in the area of post-disaster contamination profiling and business recovery. They have spent the last two years building a laboratory and recruiting specialist scientists to be able to test for mould contamination using the very latest DNA extraction, q-PCR amplification and third generation DNA sequencing technology. Davis French & Associates were due to launch this initiative to the insurance industry when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and plans were put on-hold for the foreseeable future. Rather than wait for ‘normality’ to return, the Davis French & Associates team decided to see how they could put their laboratory to good use for the local community in South Yorkshire during the pandemic. Creating COVID-19 tests and the initial trial Within two weeks of the pandemic announcement, Davis French & Associates decided to create an actionable plan to carry out COVID-19 testing. They started the process by sourcing the necessary swabs, RNA extraction reagents and RT q-PCR test kits, which were to the same specification as the ones that Public Health England and the NHS were using. In order to be able to begin testing, they held an initial trial to test the effectiveness of the test methods. The trial involved swabbing the keypads on fifteen ATM cash machines; the results were conclusive as they disturbingly found six keypads (40%) that showed evidence of the COVID-19 virus. This was immediately reported to Public Health England, who were not interested in pursuing the idea for monitoring the presence of the virus in that environment. Joining the COVID-19 Volunteer Testing Network The Davis French & Associates team then got in touch with the COVID-19 Volunteer Testing Network, which is a network of independent laboratories who have volunteered to help carry out COVID-19 testing to supplement the Government’s ambition to carry out 100,000 tests a day. After joining the network, Davis French & Associates were able to send the first batch of swabs to their local GP medical centre. They were used for staff who were self-isolating due to showing symptoms or living with family members who were displaying symptoms. The next day, Davis French & Associates collected the swabs and completed an analysis of them within six hours. By 4.00pm, they were able to inform the medical centre of the results, which enabled a number of staff to return, as the tests had confirmed negative results for several staff members. The Davis French & Associates team has delivered swabs to a further three GP medical centres, a care home and a care in the community provider. They continue to try to provide as many testing kits as possible to the local community. Whilst Davis French & Associates are aware that this is a drop in a very large ocean, they know this testing has helped their local community and has made a difference for those dealing with the reality of COVID-19 on the frontline. The COVID-19 Volunteer Testing Network has been funded by Mike Fischer of SBL, who has offered to pay £1M for free tests to be carried out on frontline staff in GP medical centres, care homes and care providers. Mike will be paying for the reagents and test kits, whilst the laboratories are providing the lab facilities and staff costs for free. Find out more about the network here: www.covid19-testing.org our industry in action Greg French17 our industry in action our industry in action18 The mental health implications of COVID-19 in the Damage Management industry As the coronavirus pandemic has rapidly spread across the world, it has also induced a considerable degree of fear and worry in the population. In mental health terms, the main psychological impact to date has been elevated rates of stress and anxiety. When quarantine was introduced, this had a significant effect on many people’s usual routines and livelihoods, and levels of depression and loneliness soared as a result. Being furloughed Until recently, you may have not even heard the term furlough before, but coronavirus means it has become a reality for many workers, especially those in the damage management industry. Although having several weeks off with 80% pay sounds like a nice idea in principal - the novelty can wear off quickly. This undetermined period away from work can become a major source of anxiety, especially for those within the industry, like technicians, who are used to working in a fast-paced and ‘out and about’ environment. Even the term furlough can have an effect on our mental health, as being deemed ‘not essential enough’ to work will feel unfair and painful for many. Continuing work under new measures For those that have continued to work on emergency property damage claims and insurance claims during the pandemic, there has also been a heightened level of stress on how to carry out the work, as work now requires strict social distancing and extensive PPE. Also, if you’re continuing to work from home and haven’t been furloughed, you’ve also had to navigate an entirely new way of working. With the lines between home and work becoming increasingly blurred, this can also have a direct effect on your mental health. A new way of handling claims The damage management industry has always been innovative and has responded to catastrophes. Inevitably, we will bounce back from this extraordinary pandemic. With the industry’s work into the role of IoT and AI (as outlined in our last edition of The Standard), we wonder if technology will become an even more essential part of the claims process. This could mean an increase in the use of remote monitoring devices, allowing technicians to reduce the frequency of visits, as well as increasing video calls to assess claims. As insurers will also be inundated with business interruption claims and will need to devote a large chunk of time to this issue, we wonder if we will see a rise in cash settlements within smaller claims aswell. Continuing to adapt Whatever the future holds, we can be sure that the industry will continue to adapt. Our industry has always been resilient and will continue to be; this resilience has already been shown through our members’ continual process of adapting their services and developing solutions to meet public and industry demands. the standard insight the standard insight19 the standard insight the standard insightNext >