The credit insurance protection scheme came under fire for its limited scope and consequential poor adoption rates, as well as for only including companies whose credit had been reduced, rather than those who had had credit removed completely.

Today, business secretary Lord Mandelson announced that eligibility for the scheme will be backdated to include suppliers that have had cover reduced since 1 October 2008.

It will also consider offering credit insurance where a company has had their cover withdrawn completely since 1 October, but has since had cover partially reinstated.

Under the terms of the scheme, if a credit limit is reduced, the company can purchase top-up cover through a broker or underwriter. The insurers will then run the scheme on the government’s behalf.

For more, see this week's PrintWeek