Terms of Engagement

Pet Business Insurance is pleased to outline the terms of our engagement as your insurance broker. This page sets out how we may assist in managing your insurance needs and the basis on which our services are provided.

We subscribe to and are bound by the Insurance Brokers Code of Practice, a full copy of which is available from the National Insurance Brokers Association (NIBA) website, www.niba.com.au.

We are authorised to advise you about and arrange general insurance products. If we are unable to advise you or act on your behalf due to a conflict of interest which cannot be managed, we will notify you immediately.

More information about our services is available in our Financial Services Guide (FSG), available on our website.

In return for the services we provide, we will receive a commission usually between 0% and 26.5% of the premium paid (excluding relevant taxes, charges and levies), which is paid to us by the insurer.

A fee may be charged in addition to or in lieu of commission. This fee will be presented to you prior to placement.

We will manage your nominated insurance policies, and our brokerage services will extend to any future insurance needs you may require.

As your insurance broker, we will provide the following services:

Pre-placement services

• Help you identify and assess your risks and develop a proposal to submit to a potential insurer or insurers.
• Provide advice on risk mitigation and management strategies.

Insurance placement and premium financing

• Seek insurance quotes. We seek quotes from the broader general insurance market before making a recommendation, and we have arrangements with a range of insurers and underwriters that help us find the right insurance product for you.
• Negotiate policy coverage and policy renewal annually or as otherwise agreed with you.
• Seek to bind coverage where you have authorised us to do so (except in urgent circumstances where, unless you instruct otherwise, we may bind insurance on your behalf if we consider it is in your best interests).
• Obtain and provide a quotation for premium funding.

Post-placement services

• Prepare and manage claims if an insured event occurs.
• Advocate on your behalf during the claims process.
• Facilitate policy changes and/or cancellations as per your instructions.

We will take reasonable steps to contact you at least fourteen (14) days prior to your insurance cover expiry date to discuss the next steps before your policy expires. We will take appropriate, professional and timely steps to seek insurance cover terms and conditions and advise you of the available options (if any) for your consideration.

Many commercial or business contracts contain clauses relating to your liability, including indemnities or hold-harmless clauses. These clauses may entitle your insurer to reduce cover, or in some cases refuse to indemnify you at all. Please inform us of any clauses of this nature before signing and accepting such contracts. We may recommend that you seek legal advice.

We can also advise on risk management strategies apart from insurance.

We are a privately owned insurance broking firm. More information about any relationships or associations with the insurers who issue the insurance policies, or any other material relationships, is available in our Financial Services Guide (FSG), available on our website.

It is important that you provide us with complete and accurate information about the risk to be insured, otherwise the advice we give you may not be appropriate for your needs. We rely on you to provide complete and accurate information.

Before you enter into an insurance contract with an insurer, you have a duty under the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth) to disclose information to the insurer. This Duty of Disclosure applies until the insurer agrees to either insure you or renew your insurance, and it also applies before you extend, vary or reinstate your insurance.

If you are applying for or renewing insurance in relation to consumer insurance products (such as motor vehicle, home building and/or contents, residential strata, travel, personal accident or sickness, and/or consumer credit products), you must answer the specific questions asked by the insurer truthfully and accurately. In answering those questions, you must tell the insurer all information known to you that a reasonable person would be expected to provide in answer to those questions. Not doing so may be considered a breach of your duty to take reasonable care not to make a misrepresentation, and may affect the validity of your insurance policy and/or a claim.

At renewal, the insurer may either ask you to advise of any changes to information you have previously disclosed, or may give you a copy of the information you previously disclosed and ask you to advise them of any changes. If you do not tell the insurer about a change, you will be taken to have told the insurer there is no change.

If you are applying for or renewing any other insurance, you must tell the insurer all information that is known to you that a reasonable person could be expected to know, or that is relevant to the insurer’s decision to insure you and on what terms. You do not need to tell the insurer anything that: reduces the risk it insures you for; is common knowledge; the insurer knows or should know; or which the insurer has waived your duty to tell it about.

Non-disclosure

If you fail to comply with your Duty of Disclosure, the insurer may cancel your contract of insurance, reduce the amount it will pay you if you make a claim, or both. If your failure to comply with the Duty of Disclosure is fraudulent, the insurer may refuse to pay a claim and treat the contract of insurance as if it never existed.

If you are in doubt about whether a particular matter should be disclosed, please contact your Account Executive.

You must make sure you explain the Duty of Disclosure to any person you represent when we arrange insurance cover for you. Alternatively, you may ask that person to contact us and we will explain their Duty of Disclosure to them directly.

If your circumstances change, our recommendations may no longer be appropriate. Please tell us about any changes in your circumstances so we can confirm your insurance continues to be suitable for your needs.

It is important that you maintain continuity of cover. Accordingly, if a contract of insurance falls due and we are unable to contact you, we will automatically arrange for the policy to be held covered (or renewed if necessary). If you do not require the cover, please tell us as soon as possible. A short-term premium may apply. Please tell us if you do not wish us to provide this service.

We can only cancel or alter a contract of insurance on the written instructions of a person authorised to represent each of the parties named as insureds. We cannot cancel any contract of insurance that is subject to the Marine Insurance Act 1909.

If there is a refund or reduction of your premium as a result of a cancellation or alteration to a policy, or based on a term of your policy such as a premium adjustment provision, we will retain any fee that you have been charged. We will also retain commission depending on the arrangements with the insurer, or charge you a cancellation fee equal to the reduction in the commission payable. A broker fee may be charged to process the cancellation.

Premium funding products enable you to pay your premiums by instalments. Premium funders charge interest and take a power of attorney over your insurance policy, as they pay the premium to the insurer in advance, in full, at the beginning of the policy period.

We can arrange premium funding on your behalf if you require it. We may receive a commission based on a percentage of the premium from the premium funder for doing so. We will tell you the basis and amount of any such payment before or at the time the premium funding is arranged.

We will invoice you for the premium, statutory charges (e.g. stamp duty and fire services levy) and any fees we charge for arranging your insurance. You must pay us by the date noted on your invoice, or in the case of a renewal, before the expiry date of the contract of insurance.

If you do not pay the premium on time, the insurer may cancel the contract of insurance and you will not be insured. The insurer may also charge a short-term penalty premium for the time on risk.

If you pay by credit card, we may charge a non-refundable credit card fee. This fee will be shown on your invoice and reimburses us for bank interest, extra charges and costs, and time incurred by us in providing credit card facilities.

Unless we agree otherwise, our appointment commences on the date you first engage our services and is ongoing. This appointment may be cancelled at any time with written confirmation.

We look forward to working with you and to a long and mutually satisfactory relationship. Please contact your Account Executive at any time if you have questions about our services or your insurance.

RIB Co Pty Ltd (ABN 91 681 019 009) T/A Pet Business Insurance
Authorised Representative (AR No. 001311726) of
SMS Insurance Pty Ltd T/A repX (ABN 32 361 928 456, AFSL 425573)

Level 8, 171 La Trobe Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
1300 766 445 | team@petbusinessinsurance.com.au