Home repairs will help fix your portfolio

RICHARD Harpin founded Home

serve in 1993 when he was just 28 years old. This month the company entered the FTSE 100 index of Britain’s hundred largest listed firms, valued at almost £4.5 billion.

Harpin is still at the helm and is the largest shareholder, owning 12 per cent of the home emergency and repairs company. Many bosses with that kind of wealth behind them would be considering spending more time on the golf course.

Not Harpin. A dyed-in-the-wool entrepreneur, he is more enthusiastic than ever about Homeserve’s prospects and determined to play a role in the its continuing success.

Results for the year to March 31, 2020, showed 12 per cent growth in underlying profits to £181 million and, crucially, a 10 per cent increase in the dividend to 23.6p. Looking ahead, Harpin i s particularly excited about America, which now accounts for more than half the group’s customers – 4.4 million compared to 8.3 million in total.

Harpin expects that figure to reach around 6.5 million over the next few years, which could more than double US profits to $230 mill i on (£ 180 million). Over ti me, Harpin wants to expand to other countries too. A joint venture has recently been announced in Japan and talks elsewhere are ongoing.

The company is moving to a clever way of dealing with calls, using automated software that will find out what a customer’s emergency is, their name and postcode, and then use GPS software to find nearby engineers.

Customers will then be connected directly with the engineer who can reach them fastest, saving time for the customer and money for Homeserve. The process has already been trialled in the UK for nine months and will be rolled out later this year, moving to America, France and Spain next year.

Checkatrade is doing well too. The business operates as an online platform, where all tradespeople are vetted, so homeowners looking for plumbers, electricians and other tradespeople can be reassured that they are bona fide. Turnover grew 30 per cent last year to £39 million and further strong gains are expected both in the UK and in similar businesses overseas.Demand has surged in recent weeks as people spend more time at home and notice all the little jobs that need doing.

Customers on emergency repair contracts are largely sticking with them too, perhaps keener than ever to make sure their homes are in order. Harpin is even considering suggesting that employers offer their staff home emergency cover, as working from home becomes a regular feature of office life.

The Covid-19 outbreak has had some impact on business but the group has made no redundancies, furloughed no staff and received no Government handout. Harpin also provided £ 1 million of free repairs to NHS staff and carers.