Frequently Asked Questions

Insurance brokers charge a fee for their services and often receive a commission from the insurers. Commissions to insurance brokers can vary between insurers and policies, some insurers do not pay brokers a commission and therefore you may incur a larger fee.

Making a claim can often be a very stressful and upsetting time for individuals and businesses. Matrix Insurance are instrumental in the claims process. The first step is to simply contact us, generally a phone call is the best way to report a claim as one of our insurance brokers can check whether the policy will respond before submitting the claim and completing paperwork. After the claim has been initially reviewed we then report the claim to the insurer. Depending on your insurer and the type of loss which has occurred, the insurer may require a completed claim form, tax invoices and/or repair or replacement quotations to determine the amount of loss incurred. If the claim is approved by the insurer, they will make payment either by EFT to your nomited bank account or a cheque. In order to speed up the claims process, we have adopted a thorough claims follow up procedure in which we keep in constant contact with the insurer and our client throughout the duration of the claim, to ensure claims are paid as soon as possible.

For more information on making a claim please click on the link below; https://www.matrixinsurance.net.au/claims

Once we have submitted all the required claim information and documentation to the insurer, we aim to have your claim paid within 14 days. For large property claims, it is common for an insurance company to appoint an assessor to attend the damaged premises and carry out a assessment of the damage. Before large claims are approved we need to wait for the insurer to carry out their assessment and subsequent approval on the claim before payment is made.

There are many reasons why using an insurance broker is the best way to protect your business, here are 5 of the top reasons;

  1. Expertise – Insurance policies can be complex and there are often many differences in cover between policies from different insurers. An insurance broker can advise you of the differences in cover and give advice and recommendations to the best policy for your circumstances.
  2. Price – Good insurance brokers are often able to get a better price than customers can get direct with insurers. We have access to over 120 markets, meaning we have more choice of providers. Insurers can often discount rates one year and increase them the next. Having an insurance broker means that we can re-market to alternative insurers to ensure you continue to get the best possible deal.
  3. Ease – Not everyone loves insurance – but we do! We are dedicated to making the entire insurance process a simple and hassle free experience for our clients. We also help out with any paperwork and proposal forms, leaving you to focus your time and energy in running your business.
  4. Speed – We have access to many insurance company systems online, meaning that we can arrange insurance policies, print certificates quickly and be very responsive to your needs. In this day and age things are very fast paced and having a quick, efficient and responsive insurance broker is crucial for your business.
  5. Security – We keep all your documentation private and safe, backed up by off site servers meaning that your private information will always be kept confidential.

We have access to over 120 different underwriters and insurers. Many underwriters access the Lloyds of London market. Rest assured that all underwriters and insurers we deal with have strong financial backing and go through vigorous financial and compliance checks to ensure they are financially sound.

An FSG is a disclosure document that we are required to provide to you, outlining the services that we can offer. It is designed to assist you in deciding whether to use any of those services and contains important information including:

  • How we are paid
  • Any potential conflict of interest we may have
  • Our internal and external complaints resolution procedures
  • Our Privacy Policy

A product disclosure statement is commonly referred to as a PDS and it outlines important information about the policy. This information includes things like conditions on your insurance policy, cover exclusions, limitations, sub limits and details of exactly what you are and are not covered for. It is important to consider the PDS before buying an insurance policy and keep in mind you should always read your PDS in conjunction with your policy schedule, which will form part of the agreement between you and the insurer. You should carefully read the PDS prior to making a decision about purchasing an insurance policy.

Matrix Insurance is able to compare policies from multiple different insurers and is able to advise the best policy for you and your business.

Public liability covers you and your business against financial loss from third party bodily injury and property damage claims as a result of your negligence. For instance, you may operate a hotel and have a customer slip on a wet floor, causing injury. Given the business was negligent by not putting out a wet floor sign, the customer could seek compensation from the business. A public liability policy would respond and cover the medical costs for the injury sustained.

Nearly all public liability policies include products liability. This covers the business against financial loss from third parties as a result of a defective product. If the product it self is faulty and causes property damage or bodily injury to a third party then this would be a products liability claim. In fact, you don’t have to have been negligent to be held liable for damage or injury caused by defects in your products’ design or manufacture.

Product Liability Insurance is particularly valuable if you work in a potentially high-risk sector, such as the hospitality industry, childrens toys or manufacturing sector. You may need Product Liability Insurance even if your company did not manufacture the product because the Australian Trade Practices Act can make the supplier liable. In Australia, if you import the product from overseas you are deemed as the manufacturer.

Professional Indemnity Insurance, or Professional Liability Insurance, covers you against financial loss as a result of errors and omissions and/or breach of professional duty from bad advice or design that your business may have provided.

A professional indemnity insurance policy safeguards you and your business against such claims and can also extend to cover legal costs. If you or your business is involved in giving any advice or design whether it is verbal or written, then we recommend you consider this type of insurance.

Workers compensation coverage is different in each state and territory in Australia. If your business operates in multiple states then you must take out a workers compensation policy for each state or territory in which your workers perform their duties. Insurance brokers can only arrange workers compensation policies in Western Australia, Tasmania, Northern Territory and ACT. In New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Queensland you will need to contact Workcover in each of these states for a list of the insurers that are able to provide this cover.

In WA, Workcover WA review the rates for all occupations every year. New rates are published on June 30 every year across every occupation. Currently there are six different workers compensation insurers in WA and Matrix has access to them all. Insurers can either load or discount the rate set out by Workcover WA, this rate is the multipled by the total estimated annual wages you expect to pay your employees and a premium is generated.

For more information on rates please click on the link below; https://www.matrixinsurance.net.au/workers-compensation-insurance-perth

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