A FAMILY insurance firm has shown that you don't need a flashy advertising campaign to survive and thrive against much larger competitors.
Mapps Mortgage and Insurance is run by brother and sister team Peter Mapp and Vivienne Page. Mr Mapp set up the company in their home town of Crook, County Durham in 1990. The business has served Crook, Bishop Auckland and the surrounding area for more than 20 years, with a focus on offering a friendly service and expert advice for local people.
Mr Mapp said: “We’ve been providing independent mortgage advice in Crook for more than 20 years and expanded to arrange all types of household, motor and commercial insurance cover 7 years ago.
“Competition in the insurance sector is tough. We’ve had to work hard to grow our reputation and customer base in the area in very challenging times. We’re now the only insurance broker left in Crook offering household and motor insurance as well as commercial cover after the only other full-service firm moved its personal lines business elsewhere.
“We’re a small, family business and have thrived by concentrating our efforts locally but that doesn’t mean we don’t offer the same range of competitive cover as national companies. As an independent broker we’re not tied to any big companies so are free to look for the best and cheapest cover. We check our prices against leading national insurers and regularly beat them.
“We might not have a huge marketing budget or any Meerkats to shout about but we provide a very personal service and are proud of our reputation for going the extra mile for our customers. If necessary we hand deliver policy documents and certificates, and if one of our clients makes a claim that merits a payment, we help them to complete the paperwork and through what can be a tricky claims procedure to ensure they get their money. That’s not the case with most insurance companies.
“Recently we helped negotiate a £19,500 increase on a commercial claim to almost £100,000 for a local business and also over-turned a decision to decline a claim for cancelled travel due to ill-health.”
Michael Curry, who has been working in insurance for 25 years in the town added: “We believe in a straight forward approach and know times are tough for local people and businesses. Our clients are usually looking for the cheapest insurance but like being able to come in and see us in person. People trust us, so if we can’t get the best price we say so and if they have a problem they know we’ll help.”