The IA Risky Business

    For our last memo of the year we're looking back at 2012 and the events that made news or meant something to us. Summer 11/12 was one of the mildest on record meaning low claims events around Australia. However as we were still mopping up after 2 years of catastrophes prior to this the impact on rates hit this year. We really should be thankful that nothing of significance occurred during the summer as insurer capacity would have been severely tested. Tropical Cyclone Heidi struck WA but did not cause major damage. Some flooding in Northwest NSW and QLD occurred late Summer which turned out to be the costliest part of the season for insurers   Whilst Australia was spared overseas in march we witnessed the Costa Concordia running aground and the bizarre aftermath with a captain disappearing. many passengers lost their lives and the survivors struggled with compensation through the parent company and also with an unexpected virus that struck them. Th...

    In the last of our Christmas feature memo's for the year we tackle Work Christmas Parties. Yes they are everywhere at the moment and local restaurants and clubs are cashing in while they can. We love it! It's a great chance to relax after a hard year and forget office politics for a night. However these same office politics put on hold can surface during the night........ Just add alcohol.   Alot of today's memo is lifted from an editorial I read in Employsure. It put the words I wanted into perspective so well I left them mostly as is. Whilst the focus is on the traditional boozy affair, we want to make sure you are aware - as employers - that your obligations under relevant workplace safety and employment acts doesn't end, even at a Christmas function. Think about every Christmas party you've been too. Normally it results in at least one member of staff becoming the brunt of all jokes over the coming year. Office romances are not uncommon eith...

Only 2 weeks till Christmas! Are you ready! From the volume of work that has come our way in the past weeks I would say..... not yet. As per last weeks memo we are focusing on some Christmas tips to help you protect your family and yourself this season. Last week we looked at your boat and why you should have it covered all year round and some of the additional benefits to be aware of. Today the focus is on your home. As you stock up on gifts and take advantage of the sales through Summer, it isn't difficult to figure out why the Christmas Holidays is one of the peak times for Home break in's. Traditionally there is a spike in incidents of domestic burglary through December and January as organised groups target well stocked residential properties. Homes are regularly left unattended for extended periods due to social events, extended holidays, even shopping trips. We also tend to relax more and with the weather being warmer we leave windows open or some form of opening ...

It's the 3rd day of Christmas! A crazy time of year in our industry as clients look to shore cover up prior to going away or check that cover is correct on certain personal items. For us it's the storm before the calm. In about a week or so the craziness will end and we can start to relax and enjoy family time. With Christmas now so close our next couple of memo's will focus on getting yourself ready for Christmas. It's such a hectic time of year and it's easy to overlook some things to help protect your family and belongings. Keeping it simple this week and focusing on the one item that we insure more than anything else at this time of year...... Boats! It's amazing how many people let their boat insurance lapse throughout the year and then magically dust it off in the garage and prepare it for the holiday season. I think I only have maybe a dozen clients who currently have boat insurance through us and I kid you not all bar 3 are due in November / Dec...

It's hard to think that only 20 years ago news breaking on the other side of the world took up to a day to reach our shores. Nowadays it can be instantly transmitted to your mobile device with graphic images and eye witness accounts. We are dipping into Twitter and find it fascinating that when you hash tag a word a whole new line of conversation opens up that may or may not be related. Friends are everywhere and available 24 / 7, when 20 years back the annual Christmas letter or twice a year letter to your 'Pen Pal' was about as close to Twitter as you could get. As our world becomes smaller in ways of transmitting data it has opened up new industry. The electronic data transfer industry is one of the faster growing on earth. Just look at how a young lad named Mark Zuckerberg went from a computer programmer to one of the richest men on earth after creating Facebook.  Insurance has always had to evolve to protect business from new risks. Starting in it's simple...

We're revisiting some of our earlier Blogs at the moment. Mainly because there are a number of new followers who haven't had the opportunity to read them. This blog on Business Interruption was first released on 12th November 2012 after a serious fire in QLD. The news remains relevant today and a timely reminder about getting your Business Interruption cover right. By way of update the building we discuss below was a tilt slab concrete build with tenants being Toy's R Us, Autobarn, Clark Rubber & Sam's Warehouse. The Fire Wall which separates Sam's Warehouse from the other 3 tenancies saved Sam's Warehouse from destruction and a plan was immediately implemented to fast track the relatively unaffected tenancy. Have a read below of a case which clearly shows why Business Interruption is a must for the protection of your business. Saturday we were faced with news of a fire ripping through a major shopping centre in Mackay QLD. The enormous fire,...

We welcomed a new family member on Friday. I made a promise during a weak moment late on New years eve last year that I would buy the girls a puppy this year. Figured 'this year' is long and maybe they'll cool on the idea as the months went on. No luck, I had to bow and keep the promise. Lily a cocker spaniel x poodle entered our lives and honestly it's like having a 3rd child. Sleep?? Whats that! Crying?? Too much of that!! Our pets are an important part of our family. It doesn't matter what age you are I'm sure you can remember your childhood pet. Lily will be the girls memory later in life. I remember when first starting in Insurance with GIO we 'upsold' a Pet cover extension. It basically covered an animal for accidental injury up to $500 and nothing more. This was a time when Pet Insurance was in it's infancy and the take up was minimal. Nowadays you can source pet insurance for just about any contingency, but be careful, like any Insura...

We spent the weekend going from party to party. Now 10 years ago that would have been club to pub, but with 2 beautiful daughters aged 7 & 4 it means cake to lollies back to cake, throw in some fairy bread then all fall down! Yes similar affect to the old club to pub days but it's the sugar doing the damage nowadays. One of the kids parties was at a local amusement style park. The girls had a ball on water slides and all kinds of things. Our youngest had finally built up enough courage to go with dad on the go karts. Now these go karts aren't powered mind you, a cable takes you to the top of the hill then you "Plummet" down riding the brake pedal all the way. Whilst walking to the Go karts we witnessed a frightening event. A young boy, maybe 10 - 12 years old had lost control of the kart at the very top of the hill and for whatever reason could not engage the brake pedal. There was only one outcome here and it involved a terrifying ride for the lad to the ...

In this weeks memo we want to focus on a real life story that has been in the news lately. It makes you ponder on where our priorities lie sometimes. Insurance - as many think - is really low on the priority list. Here is a story that may change your mind. In Brisbane just a few weeks back a single mum and her 7 children aged 2 to 13 were roused by their smoke alarm. A fire had started behind a rental Television in the wiring and was quickly engulfing the home. All 8 got out in time but after the fire was extinguished were left with nothing.                                           Great news that all are okay but the family was not insured for contents insurance. We want to focus on what contents insurance can do for. Doing a quick calculation through one insurer on...

  Most know of the story of William Wallace which was told on the big screen by Mel Gibson in 1995. Without going into a history lesson William had his young wife murdered by the invading English, then with his small band of men rallied all of Scotland to fight back and retake their home land. Many similar stories of the persecuted fighting back exist in history where someone or a small group did all they could to help their community. Reality is it still happens today. Just look at the news and what is happening in places like Syria. There is absolutely no way we are going to sit here and draw close parallels between any of the above actions and what we do! For starters Blue Face paint is a pain to get off! However, in our industry giving back to the community is the basis of what we do . When dealing with an insurance broker it is the only time you have someone working for you in regards to insurance. Unfortunately our community still doesnt understand...

Welcome to the 1st Monday Memo. Our own Blog about what is happening in the industry that may impact on your business. Whilst the 1st couple of blogs will be more of an introduction to us, as we go on we will be providing information that we hope assists in the running of your business. Our blog will not only be in this format but we will do some You Tube live sessions as it is sometimes better hearing the words than seeing them. Pretty exciting times in our business. We have our first birthday this Saturday 30th Sept 2012! Yes a year has passed since opening the doors. Our business plan for year one was very clear. Like all start up businesses, 'Survive!' Not only have we obviously achieved this we have thrived and grown more than expected. On pure numbers our realistic thought was to end our first 12 months on par with where we started, to know we will finish well ahead is a great confident boost going into our 2nd year. Many wouldnt know that this first 12 months w...