Of all self-employed people in the Netherlands, more than a third have no provision for disability, representing more than 400,000 self-employed people. Since 2019, that number has fallen by 3 percent to 37 percent. To accelerate this trend, HR service provider HeadFirst Group is launching a unique, new disability product in collaboration with insurtech Alicia: Select iCommunity Crowdsurance (SiCC).
SiCC - a nod to sick - becomes part of the total package of services for entrepreneurs that HeadFirst Group has offered for years, including benefits such as accelerated payment of invoices, various insurances and unlimited online learning in the training environment Select Academy. Florine Onderwijzer, Managing Director of Professionals & Partners services at HeadFirst Group: "Our goal is to put together the most ideal package of services that professionals primarily need to be entrepreneurs and be able to fully focus on their core business. Through the collective purchasing advantage, a self-employed person gets attractive and flexible products at a lower price than when everything is purchased separately from different service providers. The introduction of SiCC is the next step toward our goal."
Self-employed people want to, but have nothing
Part of the self-employed deliberately chooses not to make provision for disability, according to the latest Self-Employed Labor Survey (2021) from CBS. For example, because they can bear the financial risk themselves (25.9 percent) and/or can rely on a partner's income (20.5 percent). Still, there is a large part that does want to make a provision, but does not think the costs outweigh the benefits (46.6 percent) and/or simply cannot afford it (30.7 percent). HeadFirst Group serves this group with its new product SiCC.
Onderwijzer continues: "In putting together our range of services, we explicitly listen to the needs of member professionals. With SiCC, we are filling the most important outstanding need. We are extremely proud to make disability provision so easily available."
On-demand and embedded solutions
In early 2022, HeadFirst Group and platform Select joined forces with Alicia. It offers embedded solutions for relevant insurance and services that are made available in an integrated way through connected platforms using APIs.
Marijn Moerman, CEO of Alicia: "Together with HeadFirst Group and crowdsurance specialist Tulpenfonds, we have developed an accessible and collective product for disability, as an alternative to individual insurance. A solution that can be purchased with one click in Select. This renewed product prevents professionals from being faced with a surprise in the form of a variable contribution. Furthermore, the e-wallet always provides insight into the benefit to which the self-employed person is entitled. With this, it fits perfectly with our belief that modern work need not be at odds with good provisions for the self-employed."
SiCC is an endowment-based provision. It is a net benefit for up to two years, consistent with the need for professionals to have an affordable, flexible solution that does not pay out until retirement age, but for a framed period of time.