The cost of your insurance policy depends on your risk, the lower your risk, the lower your premium will generally be. It also depends on the value of what you are insuring, because things with a higher value will generally cost more to repair or replace. Your annual premium is also based on an previous claims.

A significant portion of your premium is made up of relevant local state and territory government stamp duties and levies, as well as the GST.

An insurance contract is a contract of ‘utmost good faith’ which requires both parties to act honestly towards each other.This is defined in the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 which also stipulates an insured party also has a duty of disclosure.

Before a person enters into a contract of general insurance with an Insurer, they have a duty to answer questions honestly andif required by the insurer in their policy conditions. Failure to comply with the duty of disclosure may void the policy or deny orreduce a claim.

Obviously the first thing to do when you suffer a loss is to deal with the immediate threat or problem. In a fire, burglary, accident or injury call the relevant emergency service and make sure everyone involved is okay.

The next thing to do is to gather any relevant information surrounding the event, contact details of witnesses (if applicable) and any police report numbers or incident numbers.Be sure to write it all down, don’t trust your memory during such a potentially stressful time!

Finally call us, your insurance broker. One of our skilled claims advisors will talk through the incident with you, advise you of your options and guide you through the process. Every insurance company, policies and claims are different so please feel free to ask any questions.

Remember, our goal is to settle your claim quickly and to help you get your business back on its feet.