Credit insurer increases construction cover

Construction companies will be the main beneficiaries of an increase in trade credit insurance by Atradius.

The company has confirmed increased credit insurance capacity on 13,000 companies across all sectors following a review of its risk underwriting strategy.

The company said all trade sectors will see an increase but "there has been a particular improvement for companies who operate in the construction and engineering sectors."

A lack of trade credit cover has caused a host of problems for contractors as up to £10bn in cover was pulled from the market last year.

The increase in capacity has come about following improvements in the sourcing of up-to-date financials enabling Atradius to identify those companies which are performing well within their trade sector despite the economic downturn and continued slump in bank lending.

Atradius plans to contact all customers and alert them to credit risks where increased capacity will be of specific interest to them, for example, where previous applications were unsuccessful.

Shaun Purrington, Director, Atradius UK and Ireland, said: "For some time we have stated that cover would increase if we could to see improvements in the sharing of information by businesses. We are delighted to have seen a significant shift in business practices to this effect. This will be a welcome boost for our customers as they grapple with credit risks in an uncertain environment."