Welcome to Hutt Professional
Our job is to talk with you to find out exactly what you need and then to act on your behalf. We use our experience to select the best value insurance products to match your needs.
It is the same approach Ron Hutt used right from the start of the business, back in 1962. More than fifty years on, we run two companies, making our expertise work for you in business.
If you want a tailored insurance solution, designed to be the right fit for your particular circumstances, call us.
“Good listening is the key to a lasting relationship”
Those words guided Ron Hutt’s approach right from the start of his business back in 1962. More than fifty years on the company runs that same principle. Having listened carefully to establish what objectives you wish to achieve we then apply the following principles.
Security for your assets: our first priority is to safeguard your interests.
Respect for your choices: our service is to help you make the right decision for you, not to force-fit a solution from us.
Attention to detail on your behalf: our job is to think through and follow through, to put the detail in place so you get exactly what you expect and need.
Appreciation of your trust: we exercise our experience, skills and knowledge to the full, to repay the trust you put in us.
Enabling you to get on with life: our services simply enable you to focus on running your life, now and in the future.
He didn’t just found a business – he established a set of values which underpin the success of the business to this day.
He has co-authored two books of guidance for insurance advisers, and has appeared in the media on behalf of the British Insurance Brokers’ Association.
Tel : 024 7684 6500
His specialist field is working with professional services firms to provide a level of knowledge and advice that businesses would not expect to find locally.
Tel : 024 7684 6500 | Mob : 07786 494 847
She has developed strong relationships with many clients through a dedication to deliver best value, both in terms of service level and insurance premium.
Tel : 024 7684 6500
She prides herself on attention to detail and is a vital asset to the dynamic team at Hutt Professional.
Tel : 024 7684 6500
Although R E Hutt & Co Ltd was established in April 1962, the story of the business and its founder, Ronald Earle Hutt, begins well before then.
Having served in World War II, Ron Hutt found himself, like many others, returning to England to start both a family and a career. From humble family beginnings in Nuneaton, Ron started his insurance career in Coventry having travelled via Venice, Gallipolli and Africa along the way.
After a number of years growing the account of a local insurance broker for little reward, Ron was encouraged by a number of his clients to consider setting up in business for himself. With the help of his first annual insurance premium payment from Ted Loades of Loades Plc (then Abbey Panels) Ron was up and running and R E Hutt & Co Ltd was founded. Such a gesture of advice and goodwill was something that Ron, and the company as it is today, will be forever grateful for. Needless to say, the bank manager was somewhat bemused when the start-up loan had been repaid in full after just four days !
Having ‘lived above the shop’ in Grosvenor Road for the early years of R E Hutt & Co Ltd, Ron’s two sons, Christopher and David, grew up ingrained in the values and expertise that remain the core of the company’s makeup today : integrity.
Christopher joined the family business in 1979 following a number of years working in the City of London and Lloyd’s as well as for local provincial Insurer, the Avon. During his time at Lloyd’s in particular, Chris learned that the key to best serving a client’s needs was to tailor insurance packages to suit the individual. Thus saving cost on unnecessary covers but also providing adequate cover in areas with a higher level of risk attached. As straightforward as this may sound today, in the late 70’s this approach to the provision of commercial insurance was bordering on revolutionary !
With this client-led approach to arranging insurance policies, Chris grew the commercial side of the account (particularly in the manufacturing sector) into the predominant client base it serves today. Not all were impressed however. On racing excitedly back to the office to share the news of his first sale, Chris was greeted with a short sharp response from Ron.
‘Well done Chris, you’ve now incurred your first debt’
Suffice to say that payment was received shortly after and that the policyholder remains a loyal client to this day.
David joined shortly after, in April 1980, having studied at Birmingham University specialising in financial and business management.
On one of his first client visits with Ron, David was taken to see a client whose premium was overdue and who had a track record of being a difficult customer. To David’s amazement, Ron’s decision was to advise his client that R E Hutt & Co Ltd would no longer be acting for the client due to his failure to pay premium for the insurance placed and service provided. Somewhat astounded, the (soon to be ex) client rushed to his chequebook to make out payment for the overdue account. It was too late, Ron’s decision had been made and the reputation of R E Hutt & Co Ltd was too important to make a compromise. Ron’s parting words to his client on leaving the premises were adapted from Shakespeare’s Othello.
‘Who steals my purse, steals trash, but he that filches from me my good name robs me of that which not enriches him and makes me poor indeed.’
Upon Ron’s retirement in 1986, the baton was passed to Christopher and David who continued to grow the business in their respective specialist fields. For Christopher this was Insurance & Risk Management, for David this was Financial Planning.
Under Chris’s stewardship, Hutt Professional Insurance & Risk Management grew steadily through organic growth and a number of acquisitions to become the largest independent commercial insurance broker in Coventry, employing 12 staff at its peak. In 2003, a management buy out by three senior staff saw the business reduce in size, both in terms of headcount and client base. It is testament to Chris’s determination and the loyalty earned from long standing clients that Hutt Professional Insurance & Risk Management survived this period and continues to prosper to this day. Without the wholehearted support of Commercial Account Handler, Sally Barrett and Personal Assistant, Christine Whalen this episode may have had a very different outcome.
In April 2010, Chris’s son Dominic joined Hutt Professional Insurance & Risk Management to become the third generation of the family owned business. Having worked in the City of London insurance market for five years previously, Dominic’s background in Professional Indemnity insurance has enabled the business to offer a first class level of expertise to office based businesses providing consultancy services.
March 2012 marked the 50th Anniversary of R E Hutt & Co Ltd being established. The occasion was celebrated with a drinks reception at The Herbert Art Gallery, opposite Coventry Cathedral and was well attended by clients, friends of the business and family. Sadly, Ron passed away a few months earlier. His widow, Ellen, gave a moving tribute which was met with smiles and tears by those who had the pleasure to know and work with Ron.
With half an eye on retirement, Chris moved to the Isle of Man in April 2012 and now concentrates on one key client on a day to day basis – conveniently domiciled in the Isle of Man too ! Since relocating however, Chris has found that he is ‘busier than ever’ both in business and socially in his new surroundings.
In January 2015, we relocated our main office site from Queens Road to Jobs Lane in Coventry. The move was prompted by property and infrastructure redevelopment plans to Coventry City Centre but also by the flexibility that technology brings in not requiring a centrally located or larger than necessary office space.
Today, Hutt Professional Insurance & Risk Management serves an almost exclusively commercial client base and has broadened its geographical focus far beyond Coventry & Warwickshire. We now operate satellite offices in the Isle of Man and also St Albans to service our expanding client base in London and the South East.
The first 52 years of R E Hutt & Co Ltd has been a fascinating story and we look forward to what the future holds whilst always remaining true to the values laid down by Ron Hutt in 1962.
DMH 20/04/2015
Testimonials
“We have no hesitation in recommending Hutt Professional. Throughout the past 30 years of changing markets and technology, they have reviewed our needs and given us sound, professional advice. The service has been excellent, managing some substantial and difficult claims, and our business is better off as a result.”
“Our business is the inspection and certification of food premises and food producers. When we go in to inspect a food production operation, we potentially have the power to shut them down completely, and if we get it wrong that’s a huge liability.Chris took the time and effort to understand our business, including our internal procedures and controls which ensure we never act without full consideration of the objective facts. He then used that understanding with his underwriters to get the cover we needed at half the cost we’d been quoted elsewhere.
Chris Hutt is someone I can trust and respect.”
“Hutt Professional’s main strength has been their immediate personal help during some material claim situations. It is invaluable to me to know that, when faced with a potentially damaging situation, I have immediate professional advice on hand.”
“We handle a wide variety of loads from exercise bikes to jet engines. It’s a world away from where we started out, but Hutt Professional have followed the changes and always made sure we’re properly covered.”
“Hutt Professional have given us outstanding service. Their team quickly came to terms with the special business conditions under which we operate and provided exactly the cover we needed in a timely manner – and all for a lower premium.”