Plastering contractor has credit insurance pulled on Christmas Eve

West Yorkshire plastering company MJ Hester was left in the lurch when insurer Atradius pulled their provision of insurance cover on Christmas Eve. There was “with no warning or discussions with myself”, according to boss Joe Hester.

Hester took over the family business in 1980 after his father had started it up nine years earlier. Based in Leeds, annual turnover has risen to £5m and the company has 100 employees.

“It’s an absolute disgrace that they can act in this way,” said Hester, “leaving good contractors like my company high and dry.

“We’d paid them £5,000 for a 12-month cover period and suddenly they pull it part-way through. There’s not even any rebate.

“The real issue is that we have a contract and that states that it would run for 12 months and so they should honour it. You’d expect your car insurer to do the same.”

The cover was removed from the work being done by Hester for six main contractors and nine house builders. In all they account for 80% of Hester’s annual turnover.

“They are all good companies to work with and we’ve got on with each of them.

“What do I do next? Well I just have to keep on trading. The line you get from the main contractor is that they and us are all in a paid-when-paid system, which means we are left at risk.

“For us the banks are not an issue as we have a strong balance-sheet.

“Why can’t the government underwrite our insurances in the same way they look after the major banks? Surely we, as good employers, should be afforded the same dignity and respect as other institutions, but no-one is talking for us.”

A spokeswoman for Atradius declined to comment.