Tuesday, October 17, 2006

Why use an Insurance Broker ?

An insurance broker can save you time, money and worry. Just like an accountant or lawyer who provides you with professional advice based on years of training and experience, a qualified broker can do the same with your insurance.

When arranging insurance, many people take shortcuts without seeking proper advice, understanding the fine print or considering whether they are getting value for money. Often they end up with cover they don't need and - even worse - without the cover they really do need.

Whether it's home, car, life or business insurance, brokers provide advice and assistance to make sure you are properly protected.

Brokers have access to lots of different policies because they deal with a wide range of insurance companies and sometimes other types of underwriters as well. A broker will be aware of the benefits, exclusions and costs of competing policies on the market. They will also help arrange and place the cover and can often provide advice on how to make the most of your insurance budget.

Using a broker doesn't necessarily cost more. Often it costs less because brokers have knowledge of the insurance market and the ability to negotiate competitive premiums on your behalf. A broker will also explain your policy and any special situations you need to watch out for. Furthermore, a broker is obliged to advise you of fees charged for services provided to you.
Many brokers employ Qualified Practising Insurance Brokers (QPIBs) who undertake continuing professional education. This ensures they are up to date with industry trends and changes so they can provide you, the insurance buyer, with quality advice.

Statewide Images

Statewide Images

Tuesday, October 03, 2006

D&O Liability - Part 2 - Claims & Underwriting

D&O Liability Insurance

Where do claims originate?
internal - company itself, shareholders and/or employees
external - customers, competitors and/or creditors
regulatory authorities - ACCC (TPA), Australian Taxation Office (GST), OH&S, Environmental Protection Agency, Crimes Act, ASIC


Historical claims information
Shareholders
Employees
Competitors
Customers
Government
Others
Source: 1996 Watson Wyatt D&O liability survey

Claims in Australia
· contracting parties
· employees
· breach of duties to company/shareholders
· Trade Practices Act
· breach of duties to third parties
· takeovers
· regulators


Underwriting D&O...
Key elements in underwriting:
-type of company - private company (Pty Limited) public (Ltd), publicly listed (ASX),

statutory authority
-length of time in business - must be more than two years
-size of assets
-financial performance reviewing balance sheet, profit and loss and cash flow
-occupation
-claims

Underwriting information required
-consolidated annual report including accountant's and director's statements (preferably audited otherwise prepared by an accountant)
-proposal form

Directors & Officers Liability

Directors & Officers Liability Insurance

D&O insurance protects the individual director/officer against legal costs and possible damages in defending allegations of Wrongful Acts in their capacity as a Director or Officer in the management of a company.

A Wrongful Act is usually defined as an error, mis-statement, misleading statement, conduct, omission, neglect or breach of duty.

Why do you need it?
Specific duties and responsibilities are imposed on directors as to the conduct in which they run a business. The responsibilities are imposed under contract conditions, common law and statutory legislation and in most circumstances, the individual director or officer will be held personally liable.


Duties of a director include:
-manage the company
-pay the company's expenses
-borrow money on the company's behalf and secure the repayment of that money
-act honestly
-be reasonable careful and diligent
-use information acquired through your office for the company's benefit
-use your position for the company's benefit
-disclose any interest in any contracts with the company
-state whether or not the company's profit and loss account and balance sheet give a true and fair view of the company's position
-report on and review the results of the company's operations during the relevant accounting period and any significant changes in the company's affairs during that period
-prevent the company from trading while it is insolvent
-disclose any errors or matters warranting disclosure in a prospectus
-take care to see that the company does not breach the provisions of the Trade Practices Act or Fair Trading Act; anti-discrimination legislation; occupational health & safety legislation; environmental legislation and legislation that relates to the specific industry or industries in which the company trades.

What constitutes a director or officer?
To be afforded the title of director, you occupy or act in such a position of the company regardless of how you or the company describe the position and whether or not you were validly appointed or authorised. Additionally, the company's management are accustomed to act in accordance with your directions or instructions.An officer can generally include company secretaries, executive officers and employees.

Who is covered?
Directors & Officers liability insurance covers the decisions made by people involved in managing and running an organisation. It is important to note that it covers the individuals not the company.
The people generally covered include:
past, present & future natural persons
a director, secretary or executive officer
an employee
a natural person as deemed by legislation
Coverage and/or reimbursement of costs is only available where the company has indemnified the individual/s.

What is covered?

damages
compensation
interest and costs
defence costs
Contact us for further information regarding D&O Insurance...











Chubb Insurance - Prestige Home Insurance

Chubb Insurance are market leaders in Prestige and High Value Home Insurance.
Please contact us at Statewide and we can advise and arrange on your specialty prestige home insurance needs.....
Some Chubb Benefits
Unsurpassed in coverage
Masterpiece offers much more than the typical householders insurance
policy. It not only provides unrivalled cover for valuable property, but
automatically includes a broad variety of personal insurance as well,
reducing the liabilities you face in everyday living.

Extended replacement cost coverage
This provides cover for the full cost to rebuild your house after a
covered loss. Therefore, if the costs exceed what your insurance covers,
we will pay the full amount. So it safeguards you from the chance of
under-insuring your home.

Replacement cost on contents
From clothing, carpets, linen and rare or antique items, Masterpiece
covers the full cost of replacing your contents after a covered loss, up
to your insured limit. And we won’t depreciate their value.

Cash settlement option
No matter what you lose or damage, Chubb won’t require you to
replace them. If it suits you better, you can choose to take cash up to
their insured value.

Additional living expenses cover
If you can’t live in your home due to a covered loss, Chubb will pay the
reasonable costs for your additional living expenses for up to 12 months
while your home is being rebuilt.

Personal liability cover
Masterpiece provides you and your family with personal liability cover
for a variety of circumstances where you are legally responsible. For
instance, if you lose your credit card or if a guest incurs an injury at
your home and takes legal action against you.

Worldwide cover
No matter where you go, with Masterpiece you have worldwide
coverage for the contents of your home, your personal property as well
as personal liability.

Identity fraud cover
Someone stealing from your bank or credit card accounts, taking out
loans or refinancing mortgages under your name are examples of one
of the fastest growing white-collar crimes in Australia.

Kidnap expense cover
The broadness of Masterpiece’s cover is accentuated by the fact it even
provides cover for expenses as a result of kidnap and ransom.

Expertise in valuing homes
Most insurance companies do not see the homes they insure until after
a loss occurs. As a specialist insurer of fine homes, we believe you need
to understand the true value of a home before you can offer insurance.
During a visit, we will carefully document the architectural details and
unique features of your home and determine the true value to rebuild
it. That way if you do suffer a loss, there’s no reason why we can’t
restore it as close as possible to its original condition.

Exceptional cover for valuables
It’s not uncommon for the valuable collections within a home to be
worth more than the house itself. So if you have expensive assets that
you would like to provide the ultimate protection for, we can offer even
greater cover with our Masterpiece Valuable Articles coverage.
Under Masterpiece Valuable Articles cover, you can itemise each article
and determine up front the value of each item to be listed.
Masterpiece Valuable Articles coverage also insures your possessions
wherever you go in the world. If you damage an item, you can choose
to repair or replace the item with your preferred supplier. And if
its market value suffers as a result of the damage then we’ll even
reimburse you for that amount. Or if it suits you better you can simply
take cash for a covered loss instead. The choice is yours.

Insurance Comparison Service - Domestic Insurance

Statewide's new Insurance Comparison Service has been launched, enabling full insurance comparisons and quotations across Home and Motor Insurance.

What do I Receive ?

Written Premium Quotation Sheet - up to 6 Insurers
Includes Premium Prices, Features Summary, Quick Comparison against each Insurer.

Policy Comparison Summary Sheet
Includes Your Current Policy, compared against quoted policies.

Side by side quick comparison of all policy sections.

Summary Recommendation Report
Includes Premium analysis, Cover analysis, Claims service advice, Our recommendations.

All at no charge and with full broker support services included.

How can i make use of this service?
Existing clients, Domestic or Business, should simply enquire with your regular account executive.
New clients...contact us and we will be happy to discuss further and avail you of our full comparison service, at no charge.