Tsunami's & Insurance

http://www.aees.org.au/Proceedings/2005_Papers/05_Walker.pdf#search=%22tsunami%20insurance%22

Avian Flu, part 2

http://www.abc.net.au/insidebusiness/content/2006/s1621879.htm

Discussion from the ABC and Marsh Ltd...

Avian Flu & Insurance

http://www.marsh.com.au/pdf/Avian%20Flu%20Update%20FINAL.pdf#search=%22avian%20flu%20insurance%22

Report by Marsh Ltd, Avian Flu and insurance impacts...
Stay tuned for updates....

Lloyds Reports- Taking Risk on Board

http://www.lloyds.com/NR/rdonlyres/48FC5495-1313-4616-AD83-AA2C1BA5C952/0/Takingriskonboard.pdf

Lloyds Market Newsletter

http://www.lloyds.com/market/issue3-2006-en/lloydsMarket_2006_03_en.pdf

Issue 3, 2006

Professional Indemnity Insurance

CGU Professional Indemnity Information

Extent of Cover

Includes Breach of duty of confidentiality.

We cover both libel or slander by the insured, employees and
principals.

We cover documents owned by a third party in the physical
custody or control of the insured at the time of loss or damage.
We do not cover the employee or principal for these claims.

We cover the unintentional breach by the insured of any
patent, copyright, design or trademark.
We do not cover criminal liability.

We cover the legal costs and expenses of investigating,
defending or settling any claim which would be covered by
the policy.

We cover the legal costs and expenses for the insured’s
representation at any enquiry or hearing of a disciplinary
nature held before a legally constituted body, or for a coronial
enquiry.

We provide cover for known circumstances arising prior to the
period of insurance, as long as the insured was continuously
insured with us and was insured with us at the time he/she
became aware that a claim may be made, and in the normal
course, this claim would have been covered under both policies.

We cover the insured’s individual liability and, if informed
about the joint venture and we agree, we will cover both the
insured’s individual and joint liability.

We cover a claim or anything giving rise to a claim that arises
from anything done anywhere in the world.
■ Civil liability claims arising from the conduct
of the insured’s professional business practice
(Clause 3.2).
■ Breach of Duty (Clause 3.2(a)).
■ Defamation (Clause 3.2(b)).
■ Loss of or damage to documents (Clause 3.2(c)).
■ Dishonest, fraudulent, criminal or malicious acts by
an employee or principal of the insured (Clause 3.2(d)).
■ Infringement of any patent, copyright, design or
trademark (Clause 3.2(e)).
■ Trade Practices Act and Fair Trading Acts
(Clause 3.2(f)).
■ Claim investigation costs (Clause 3.4).
■ Cost of disciplinary proceedings or enquiries
(optional) (sub-Limit) (Clause 3.5).
■ Continuous cover (Clause 3.6).
■ Joint venture liabilities (Clause 4.4).
■ One automatic reinstatement of sum insured
(Clause 5.2).
■ Worldwide territorial (Clause 10.7).

For any professional indemnity matter, please ask us at Statewide.....

News - QBE Purpl Product

QBE launches PURPL, Australia’s first integrated product providing
Public Liability, Product Liability & Financial Loss Cover

QBE Insurance Australia has launched PURPL, a new packaged insurance product that provides public liability, product liability and financial loss cover to help protect businesses from a wider range of risks. QBE’s PURPL (Packaged Underwritten Risk and Professional Liability) product integrates six types of liability insurance into one policy to provide businesses with affordable, comprehensive cover:
1. Public Liability
2. Product Liability
3. Advertising Liability
4. Professional Services
5. Directors & Officers Liability
6. Employment Practices Liability.

“PURPL was developed in response to the changing business environment in which
companies face increasing risks and compliance demands,” said Michael Scala,
General Manager – Intermediary Distribution, QBE Insurance Australia. “In particular,
small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) need to protect themselves against
potentially expensive liability claims that can impact their financial health and reputation
significantly.”

PURPL is ideally suited to businesses that provide consulting or design services along
with their product sales; for example, companies in the retail, wholesale or
manufacturing industries. These companies may not be aware that their existing
liability insurance may not cover their designs or advice, leaving them exposed to
potential claims. For instance, a hardware store that provides advice on how to erect a
shed that it sold could face a claim if the customer follows that advice and the shed
collapses because it was erected incorrectly.

As all six types of liability cover are provided in one policy from one insurer, a PURPL
policy is quick and easy to purchase and maintain since there is one quote, one
application, one premium, one renewal and one claims process. This makes PURPL
more affordable and attractive for SMBs than purchasing each type of liability cover
separately.

More information about
PURPL can be found on the website: http://www.qbe.com/australia/prolib/purpl.html
Ends

** Please contact Statewide for further information, or to see if your business suits the Purpl product.

News - Stardex Launched

media report from Stardex:

New group brand launches with flash and panache
Australia’s largest, most diverse, specialist underwriting
agency group, Stardex Insurance Group Holdings Pty Ltd,
has been officially launched.

Stardex Insurance Group is Australia’s largest, most
diverse, privately owned specialist underwriting agency
group. It combines six underwriting agencies, Dexta
Corporation Pty Ltd, MB Insurance Group Pty Ltd,
Agricola Underwriting Management Pty Ltd, Pacific
Underwriting Pty Ltd, Macquarie Underwriting Pty Ltd,
and SLE Worldwide Australia Pty Ltd.

Mr Lee said all the Stardex companies were
specialists in their respective niche markets.
The group offered innovation, diversification
and interdependence. “Stardex will be a strong force in the
underwriting agencies market, delivering
high-quality products. Our governing values are
driven by commitment to customers, insurers,
reinsurers, shareholders and employees.
“As a combined group, we encourage new ideas,
embrace change and adhere to principles of
fairness, integrity and equal opportunity.”

Terrorism & Insurance

The Terrorism Insurance Act 2003

What does the legislation do?
The Terrorism Insurance Act 2003 establishes a scheme for replacement terrorism insurance coverage for commercial property and business interruption.
The legislation overrides terrorism exclusion clauses in eligible insurance contracts. Eligible insurance contracts have a starting point definition of insurance for loss of or damage to eligible property located in Australia, and associated business interruption and public liability cover. Eligible property is defined as buildings or other structures or works on, in or under land, or tangible property that is located in or on that property. **Commercial, not residential**

When does the scheme commence?
The scheme will commence on 1 July 2003.
Why has it been introduced?
The scheme is in response to calls for government intervention in an area of clear market failure as cover for terrorism insurance was withdrawn progressively by insurance and reinsurance companies in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks in the United States on 11 September 2001. Where cover has still been made available since that time, premiums have been at levels that exceed perceived cost of risk with large excesses and low maximum coverage.
Lack of terrorism insurance creates uncertainty for commercial property investors, lessees and financiers alike.

Coverage
The scheme covers insurance for loss of or damage to commercial property that is owned by the insured, insurance for business interruption arising from loss of or damage to or inability to use eligible property, and insurance for liability of the insured arising from ownership or occupation of eligible property.

Private residential property is not included in the scheme.
Risk cover is for any declared terrorist incident, except events involving damage from nuclear causes . Coverage will be available for Commonwealth and State business enterprises as well as Commonwealth-owned airports leased commercially. Farms will benefit from cover for terrorism risk if they hold insurance against business interruption.
The Regulations also exclude certain other types of insurance coverage, including: marine insurance, aviation insurance, motor vehicle insurance, life insurance, health insurance, private mortgage insurance, medical indemnity insurance, and professional indemnity insurance.


(as taken from Australian Reinsurance Pool Commission.)
For complete information on terrorism and how it relates to Insurance, pls refer to full summary at http://www.arpc.treasury.gov.au/content/faqs.asp?NavID=5#q6

Statewide Images

Statewide Images

Insuring your Home & Contents

http://app01.ica.com.au/help/ICA_Home_Contents.PDF

Please read the ICA guide on how to correctly insure your Home and Contents....
includes Calculators......

Cyclone Larry Claims Settled

Insurance Council of Australia - Media Release
As reported on www.ica.com.au

Almost half of cyclone Larry insurance claims settled

Date: 31/07/2006
Goto PDF Version
Region: National
Category: Cyclone

Almost half the home building claims made in relation to Cyclone Larry have been settled the Insurance Council of Australia said today."While the process of lodging a claim, having it assessed and gaining approval for building and repair work inevitably takes time, insurers are giving high priority to expediting the process", Insurance Council of Australia Chief Executive Kerrie Kelly said today."In addition to the large number of claims which have been settled, repair work has been authorised on 70 percent of the remaining houses for which claims have been made. This represents a 36 percent increase since June."The insurance industry is working closely with the Cyclone Larry Operation Recovery Taskforce to help rebuild the homes and lives of those affected as quickly as possible."Insurers are also meeting regularly with the Queensland Government's Building Coordination Centre, based in Innisfail, to identify and resolve issues."This includes taking action to waterproof all homes before the next wet season and to prioritise, where possible, those homes in need of re-roofing."Insurers will continue to work with people in the cyclone-affected areas to ensure that outstanding claims are finalised as quickly as possible", Ms Kelly added.Customers affected by Cyclone Larry who have insurance-related questions should, in the first instance, contact their insurer, broker, assessor or, if necessary the local representative of the Insurance Ombudsman Service (IOS) (Vince Wass 0412 989303) or the IOS head office (1300780808). More Information:
Catherine Byrne
02 9253 5160
0402 152 585

End release.

APRA Insight Insurance Statistics

http://www.apra.gov.au/Insight/Home.cfm

Claims Made Wordings

What on earth is a Claims Made Wording ???

A term used in liability, professional indemnity and or directors and officers insurance policies.
It refers to the policy condition under which the policy will respond to provide indemnity for a claim.
In Explanation: Claims may arise many years after the occurrence of an event. This creates problems for insurers both in terms of rating adequacy and claims reserving. These problems gave rise to the development of “claims made” wordings.
A claims made policy wording requires the claim to be notified to the insurer during the period of insurance, even though the event giving rise to the claim may have occcurred before the inception of the insurance policy.
At the time of taking out the insurance, the prospective insured makes any necessary enquiries to enable them to make a declaration to the insurer, that at the time of policy inception, they are not aware of any present claims, pending claims or incidents which have previously occurred which may give rise to a future claim. Once the insurer is satisfied with insured's declaration, a policy is issued which will indemnify the insured for claims notified during the period of insurance. If an incident occurs during the period of insurance but is not advised to the insured and or the insurer before the expiry of the policy, such event does not find indemnity under the scope of cover of a "Claims Made" policy. If the claim was advised and lodged in a subsequent period, the claim would be made against the policy in force at that time. This type of policy is generally not renewed, but rather replaced each year with a new policy.

For further discussion or advice on claims made and professional advice....pls contact and we can happily arrange.

Certificates of Currency

Certificate of Insurance or Certificate of Currency (C of C)

C of C is simply confirmation that an Insurance contract is current and in force.
It is a written document evidencing that an insurance contract is in force.
Brief details such as the name of the insurer and the insured and any interested parties, the effective dates of the insurance as well as a description of the items being insured and the level of cover provided. A C of C may or may not declared the premium for insuring the item/s noted.
Often required by your financier, or those employing your business services.

If you require one, please ask and we will supply you.