FAQ

Insurance Brokers are qualified professionals with a thorough understanding of the Insurance market and as such are able to negotiate competitive premiums and coverage on your behalf. We understand the policy coverage and are able to best assess your insurance needs, saving you time and often money. As a Professional Broker we establish close working relationships with you, (our client), enabling us to gain a thorough understanding of your business and future plans, to best ensure you are adequately protected. We handle your insurance claims ensuring the best possible outcome.Most importantly, as your Broker we work for YOU, the Insured.

A disruption to the operation of a business following a major insured eventcan have serious consequences. Research shows that 43% of businesses who sustain a major loss do not resume trading. Of those who do not have some form of insurance, 28% fail within 3 years and only 29% survive.To avoid this risk to your business you need business interruption insurance. This insurance is designed to put your business back to the same financial position it would have enjoyed if the loss had not occurred. The cover starts from the date of the loss and extends to when your business turnover and profit levels are back to where they would have been but for the loss. There is a time cap set on this which is chosen by you when the policy is first taken, known as the Indemnity Period.
There are various different forms of business interruption insurance and policy wordings do vary. The BJS team of professional Insurance Brokers will assess your individual needs and utilise our access to a wide range of both Insurers and Insurance products, to tailor a comprehensive and competitive coverage that best protects YOU.

Interestingly enough, Insurance premiums do not always increase and in some instances may actually decrease. Insurance Companies, like any Public Company,have corporate responsibilities, one of which is to provide a return that is within shareholder expectation. The premiums charged by Insurers make up a large proportion of their income. Most Insurance Companies set a ‘market’ premium for an individual class of risk eg Farm, Combined Business, Household. Discounts and loadings are then applied to the ‘market’ premium depending on many factors such as security levels, fire hazard protection, building construction and the supply cost of repairs.Claims payouts are also an important factor. The bushfires and storms experienced in many Australian States over the past few years come to mind, however it is the ‘everyday’ occurrences such as building fires, car accidents and theft that also have a direct impact on the premiums Insurers must charge. Insurance fraud is another contributing factor.Your sums insured also impact your premium. If you have increased assets or the replacement value of your assets has increased then your premium is likely to increase. In addition to the premium you pay GST and Stamp Duty taxes which are a % of the base premium.Our aim is to effectively assess your insurance needs and search the market to obtain competitive premiums.

Being an Owner Builder can be very advantageous… being in control, building exactly what you want and the potential cost savings are all benefits of being an Owner Builder. One thing that can be overlooked is Insurance. There are 3 main insurance products to consider. Insurance of the Construction will provide cover for events such as fire, theft, storm, malicious damage and vandalism. Liability Insurance is crucial to cover your legal liability in the event of third party property damage or injury at the building site. You should also understand the Workers Compensation rules if you are considering paying wages to workers or ‘deemed worker’ contractors. BJS can walk you through the potential minefield of Insurance for the Owner Builder and provide you with the right advice for your circumstances.

This is a common clause contained in most Commercial Property Insurance Policies. These policies insure your property for ‘Replacement Value’. This means your policy is designed to replace claimed Property with new even though it may be a number of years old. For this reason it is extremely important that your sum insured reflects the cost of Replacement and not what you believe your Property is worth based on its age and what you paid for it.Policies can also include additional benefits such as the cost to remove debris, architects and surveyors fees to name a few. Some policies provide cover for these benefits in addition to the sum insured however some are only covered if your sum insured is sufficient to include these costs.The co-insurance or average clause is written into policies primarily to encourage clients to ensure they have a sum insured that is sufficient to obtain the maximum protection from the policy. Of course the greater the sum insured the higher the premium generally and because of this it can be tempting to reduce the sum insured to save on premium.Most policies allow a sum insured that is within 80% of the replacement value without the clause coming into effect. If the sum insured is below the 80% then it is then it is deemed the policy holder is underinsuring and ‘average’ is applied.The effect of this can be catastrophic to any business.Below are some simple examples of the effect of the clause on various claims:

Total Loss
The Actual Total Replacement Value (TRV) of property insured is $1,000,000 however the Declared Sum Insured is only $500,000. In this scenario only 50% of the property is actually insured.

In the event of a total loss, the Insurer pays the sum insured of $500,000 as expected. The end result of this is that the client is left to self fund the remaining $500,000 to replace the property

Partial Loss
Partial loss claims are the most common type of claim. Below are two examples which highlight the impact the clause has on the payout figure when insuring for less than 80% of the TRV.

Scenario A:
Actual Total Replacement Value (TRV) = $1,000,000
80% of TRV = $ 800,000
Declared Sum Insured $ 700,000
Loss $ 200,000

The Insurer would pay $700,000 ÷ $800,000 × $200,000 = $175,000 leaving a shortfall of $25,000

Scenario B:
Actual Total Replacement Value (TRV) = $1,000,000
80% of TRV = $ 800,000
Declared Sum Insured $ 400,000
Loss $ 200,000

The Insurer would pay $400,000 ÷ $800,000 x $200,000 = $100,000 leaving a shortfall of $100,000

If you own a business, it is likely that you need to consider taking Liability Insurance even though it is not normally compulsory. You may be found to be legally liable for property damage or injury to a third party. Being sued for negligence is often unpredictable and can be extremely costly to settle or defend – public liability insurance protects against the financial risk to your business of being found responsible for this type of loss.The BJS team of professional Insurance Brokers will assess your individual needs and utilise our access to a wide range of both Insurers and Insurance products, to tailor a comprehensive and competitive coverage that best protects YOU.

Yes it is. Product liability covers against claims of goods or products causing injury or property damage. If you sell, supply or deliver goods you could be sued for negligence and need to take Products Liability Insurance as well as Public Liability. Often these two types of insurance are combined into one Product which if often called Combined Liability.The BJS team of professional Insurance Brokers will assess your individual needs and utilise our access to a wide range of both Insurers and Insurance products, to tailor a comprehensive and competitive coverage that best protects YOU.

Yes you can. If you an electrician, carpenter, plumber, landscaper, labourer, builder, roofer or any other trade where your tools are invaluable, then you probably need Tools of Trade insurance. Many Insurers offer this type of policy which is designed to cover your tools and equipment for loss or damage from a range of insured events.The BJS team of professional Insurance Brokers will assess your individual needs and utilise our access to a wide range of both Insurers and Insurance products, to tailor a comprehensive and competitive coverage that best protects YOU.

We always strive to provide you with positive Insurance solutions and service. If you are ever dissatisfied with the service you have received, we are here to try and resolve the issue promptly and fairly.As a valued client, we want you to tell us if we have not met your expectations in any way.Click here to read more for more info…