Entry Advice
Entry Advice
Entry Advice
ENTRY PROCESS
All entries take the form of a 100 word "why we deserve to win..." declaration followed by four individual questions, specific to each category, that require an answer with a maximum of 250 words each.
For example, the Customer Care Award category entry form asks the following:
- Name of company being entered for the award
- Your 100 word "why we deserve to win..." declaration
- The issue(s) you addressed (max 250 words)
- The response (max 250 words)
- The results / impact of the response (max 250 words)
- Testimonials (max 250 words)
Supporting material is optional | THREE documents maximum | Limit for uploads is 2MB
Please remember if you are shortlisted for your category, you may be asked to present your award entry to the judging panel to help them pick a winner. Details will be provided to all who are shortlisted.
ENTRY FEES
An entry fee of £210 (+VAT) is applicable to most categories - certain exclusions apply, please refer to the category list for details.
All entry fees must be paid by credit card via our online system at the time of submission. Entry fees are non-refundable.
AWARD PRESENTATION DAYS
Following the initial shortlisting - which will be based on your initial submission - the firms who are successful here will be invited to present their entry to the judges and answer any questions the panel might have.
This will enable you to really bring your award submission to life and for the judges to get a better feel for the great work that your firm has done.
Please note that if you enter any of the categories below then, if you make the shortlist, you must be available to present during the allotted time:
- Customer Care Award
- Major Loss Award
- Insurance Broker of the Year
- Claims Initiative – Insurer Partner
- Digital Insurance Innovation of the Year
- Insurance Partner of the Year
- Best Newcomer
- Claims Initiative – Insurer
- Commercial Line Insurer of the Year
- Personal Lines Insurer of the Year
- General Insurer of the Year
If you have any questions regarding the entry process please do not hesitate to contact us.
Please note: The organisers reserve the right to change the order of presentation days. In the event that this should happen, all shortlisted entries will be contacted in advance.
ELIGIBILITY
You should read carefully the entry criteria for the categories you are interested in and ensure that you are entering the most appropriate categories.
Some are open to any company or organisation in the insurance industry, others are restricted to, say, intermediaries or insurers.
There are some categories that are open to individual or departmental nominations as well as corporate entries.
If you are entering one of these categories you should make it clear precisely who or what part of the company is being nominated.
You may enter more than one project or programme in a category. Joint entries are permitted and this should be clearly stated on the entry form. However, the judges reserve the right to assess if an entry really is a joint effort.
You may also enter the same project or programme into more than one category if it fits more than one criteria. But be warned the lazy duplication of entries without no or minimal changes may count against you. The multiple entries would need to be tailored to the relevant categories.
COVERING STATEMENT & EVIDENCE
Your 100 word "why we deserve to win..." declaration, and 4 x 250 word statements.
These can by all means refer to background material (see below) that has been included but remember the entry should be able to stand on its own, and that this material should merely support the submission.
As such the statement and evidence should first "whet the appetite" and then "tell a story" that backs this up. In recent years judges have seen declarations that fail to engage and statements that only really get to the point towards the end. This is one of the key reasons that this year the evidential part of the submission form is split into four easily defined areas to help respondents focus on the questions at hand.
Another drawback of some entries in previous years has been the failure to include clear evidence of achievement or explanation of why the achievement is significant or innovative. The judges are harsh on entries that do not include a clear statement of objectives and targets supported by evidence that these targets were reached.
Sometimes, for example with training, the targets may be to match externally set standards. If so, these should be stated with an indication of how achievement of those targets has been measured. In other categories, business growth may be the target: again, this should be clear and the achievement of it demonstrated in measurable terms.
When entering "of the year" categories, the judges are expecting to review projects that have come to fruition (i.e. with measurable results) over the previous 12-18 months.
All the information contained in the entries and marked confidential will remain so, and will not be released without the permission of the entrant.
One common mistake some companies have been guilty of in the past is entering projects and initiatives that are only just baring fruit and/or still in a pilot phase. If this is the case it may be too soon for these to be considered capable of winning a BIA and so they should be reconsidered for entry in the future, when the evidence of their success is stronger.
Finally, it is most important to stress that entries which exceed 100 words for the declaration and 250 words for the subsequent sections will be disqualified. As will entries which do not use the standard entry form and submit a designed PDF as a substitute or in lieu of it.
Supporting evidence - which may include designed PDFs - is certainly allowed (see below), but in name of fairness and equality all entries must initially stick to using the entry form, and include any supplementary information including charts, graphs, photos and info-boxes in the supporting material NOT the declaration or statement.
SUPPORTING MATERIAL
The judges like to have relevant supporting material. But the most important point to focus on when preparing any background material and supporting evidence is that it is quality and relevance that matter, not quantity.
So if a marketing campaign's success is being partially judged on the media coverage it achieved, include links to examples of that overage.
Research documents, customer brochures, staff newsletters and training manuals all help demonstrate to the judges in a practical way what the entrant has achieved and should be included where relevant.
The panel of judges will also review relevant websites so full addresses and access codes should be provided.
But superfluous documents and PDFs which add nothing will more than likely harm the chances of a submission, rather than support it, and are not advised.
Also in order to focus your mind on which supporting evidence is most relevant there is a limit of 2 attachments as a maximum to what can be included.