Meet the new faces at Abbotts

We are delighted to welcome two new staff members to the Abbott team: Melissa Davenport joined us in March as Broker Assistant to Stuart Speirs. Melissa has a number of years experience in the insurance industry. She also has wide and varied skills from a Bachelor of Business Management, a scholarship to study business practices…

Heart attack at 39 – thank goodness for Trauma Insurance

Christchurch Abbott Group client Craig Cowles is a strong advocate for Trauma Insurance. After suffering a heart attack aged just 39 and with two preschoolers to support, Craig faced the prospect of 3-4 months off work to recover. This kind of unexpected major health event can place families under huge financial pressure. But fortunately Craig…

Is any business ‘too big to fail’?

2016 started with a ‘bang’ with the insolvency of Dick Smith Electronics. Listed on the Australian Stock Exchange only two years ago, the demise of a so-called blue chip business confirms that major companies are open to failure due to underlying invisible factors that may be brewing behind the scenes. From a trade credit perspective,…

Trade Payment Guarantee Insurance – what is it?

If you are a sub-contractor working for a main contractor or developer, have you wondered how you would get paid if the main contractor collapses financially? The Mainzeal collapse in 2013 highlighted the dangers that small businesses face when a main contractor gets into financial difficulty as hundreds of sub-contractors were left with significant monies…

Five Minutes With….Sarah Cochrane

In this new feature, an Abbott Group staff member spends five minutes in the hot seat answering the important, and not-so-important questions. This month – Sarah Cochrane, Domestic Consultant at the Abbott Group. What’s your role at the Abbott Group? I’m responsible for the management of our domestic portfolio.  This sees me in close contact…

Christmas Tree Meringues

Make your family smile with these light and delicious meringues. Meringues are easy to make with an electric beater or cake mixer, and everyone likes them. You don’t need to use a piping bag – for the meringues in the photo I used a plastic ziplock bag with one corner snipped off.   Preparation: 15…