Month: August 2012

Many businesses choose to spread their insurance premiums across the year rather than paying a lump sum, and in many cases this is done via premium funding.

Premium funding is a way of financing your business insurance premiums over a period of time. Not all insurance companies offer monthly payments, and premium funding solves this problem.

Why Premium Funding?

Unlike the mainstream insurance companies such as Suncorp and NRMA, most business insurance providers do not offer pay by the month business insurance.

Rather than being forced to pay their premiums annually in a single lump sum, businesses have the option of spreading their insurance payments over a period of time by using premium funding.

There are various companies offering premium funding services in Australia, and in most cases your insurance broker will have a preferred supplier.

How Does It Work?

Premium funding basically involves borrowing the money for your premium and then repaying the amount over a fixed period of time no greater than twelve months.

When you use a premium funding service, the funding provider will pay the insurance premium on your behalf. If you cease making repayments the funding provider has the ability to cancel your insurance.

As with all forms of financing, there are fees and interest involved. Most premium funding companies charge an upfront credit fee of around $30 along with an annual interest rate.

The interest rates charged by the premium funding companies do vary, and generally the higher your premium amount the lower the interest rate will be.

Premium funding is available for a range of covers including public liability insurance and other forms of business cover. In some cases it is also available for personal insurance, however this is a less common use.

Advantages

The number one advantage of premium funding is that it allows you to spread your insurance costs across a longer period of time.

Instead of having large sums of money tied up in insurance premiums, you can be redirecting that money to other more productive areas of your business.

Premium funding is also very popular with new businesses and those which are sensitive to cashflow issues. Premium funding can allow you to obtain the insurance you need without taking a big bite out of your cashflow.

Disadvantages

It’s a fact that paying for your business insurance via premium funding will be more expensive. Generally you are looking at a small upfront fee as well as an ongoing interest rate.

Whilst paying monthly will be more expensive than paying upfront, many business owners find that the extra expense is worthwhile due to the cashflow benefits to their business.

More Information

If you are interested in paying your public liability or other business insurance types via premium funding, the best option is to speak with your insurance broker about a solution that will best suit you.

If your insurance broker or company does not allow monthly payments or premium funding, please contact us here at Public Liability Insurance Australia and we will put you in contact with an insurance broker or adviser who can assist you.

To obtain a quote on pay by the month business cover, please complete our public liability insurance online quote request form.

One of the most common questions that business owners ask is how much public liability insurance they need.

The answer to this question depends on a few different factors. In this guide we will take a look at some of those factors and how they could affect your needs.

How Much Cover Can I Get?

A public liability insurance policy will generally be available in amounts of $5, $10 and $20 million. Some insurers also offer cover of $15 million however this isn’t too common.

Whilst the cost of your public liability policy will increase if you need more cover, it does not increase proportionately with the amount of cover you need.

For example if you double you cover from $5 to $10 million, the premium will increase but it will not be double. The increase will generally be quite modest, which leads many business owners to take extra cover just to be safe.

How Much Cover Do I Need?

The amount of cover you need will often be decided upon by the other companies that you work with or for. In other cases the cover amount may be set by your licensing requirements.

If you are doing work for schools or government agencies often they will stipulate a minimum amount of $10 million for public liability.

If you are doing work in major shopping complexes or large commercial buildings you will often find that your contract stipulates a minimum of $10 or $20 million.

Some business types will have their minimum cover amount set by their state licensing authority. In most cases this is set at $5 million, which is the minimum amount of cover available anyway.

If the amount of public liability insurance you need has not been stipulated in any contracts or agreements, it is up to you to decide on the amount you need.

Many businesses in this case go with the minimum $5 million cover, but plenty also choose to bump it up to $10 million given that the premium doesn’t increase by a huge amount in most cases.

Generally speaking, if you are working in areas that are widely accessed by the public (such as shopping centres, railway stations and airports) you may need a higher amount of cover. The same goes for work which involves large infrastructure projects.

If you are working on smaller domestic and light commercial projects with limited public access you may be able to get away with less cover, but it’s still a good idea to speak with your insurance broker or adviser first before making any decisions.

I’m Still Unsure About My Needs

Getting your public liability insurance right is important, so if you are unsure about how much public liability insurance you need you should speak with a qualified insurance broker or adviser.

An insurance adviser will be able to assist you with deciding how much cover you should have along with quoting the public liability insurance cost for each different amount of cover.

For more information or to obtain quotes on your public liability insurance needs please contact us or complete our online quote request form.

Are you looking for quotes on your public liability insurance?

The cost of public liability cover can differ greatly from one insurance company to the next, so it is definitely worth checking and comparing quotes if you are considering taking out cover.

Generally there are four main events which will result in a business owner seeking quotes. The process will be quite similar regardless of your reasons, but they are still worth looking at individually.

Starting a New Business

When starting a new business there are plenty of things to do. Besides making sure you have a viable business plan and structure, you also need to ensure that you are protected financially.

Insurance is especially important for a new business due to its vulnerable state in the early days. Having a large insurance package may be unaffordable, but public liability is a must.

When looking for quotes for public liability insurance for a new business it is important to ensure that you get the right type of cover to suit all of the activities you plan to undertake.

It may be a good idea to seek advice from various public liability insurance brokersif you have never dealt with this type of cover before, as they will be able to give you professional advice and assistance.

Renewal of Existing Public Liability

The cost of public liability insurance does fluctuate from year to year and from insurer to insurer. Just because company A was cheapest last year does not mean they will be the cheapest this year.

Shopping around at renewal time is a great idea for any business looking to save a few dollars. It’s not uncommon to save a few hundred dollars just by shopping around, and for a larger company the savings can be even greater.

If you already have a good insurance broker or adviser they should be able to do the shopping around for you and obtain quotes for public liability insurance from various providers. If you choose not to use a broker you will have to do the running around yourself.

If you do decide to switch your public liability insurance to a different company it is vital to ensure you are still getting the same level of protection. Saving money by switching to an inferior policy may not be the best option.

Business Changes

Often a change in business structure or a change to the activities which your business undertakes can trigger the need to obtain new quotes for public liability insurance.

Many insurers have limitations and exclusions on the types of activities that your business undertakes. If your activities change, you may have to find a new insurance company.

When looking for public liability quotes after a change in business structure or business activities, it is important to ensure your overall level of protection remains the same.

Attitude Change

The final reason we will look at for seeking quotes on public liability cover is the simple change of mind or attitude.

Some business owners think that they don’t need insurance and can save some money each year by not taking out a policy.

This may be fine for a while, but often an incident in the business or in an associate’s business can trigger a sudden desire to get some protection in place.

The processing for seeking quotes in this case is very similar to if you were seeking public liability quotes for a brand new business. In many cases an insurance broker will be the best option for finding the right cover at the right price.

Public Liability Insurance Quotes

Obtaining quotes for public liability insurance is a relatively easy process for most small business types.

The traditional method is to have a face-to-face meeting with an insurance broker, but increasingly many small business owners are choosing to go online in search of suitable insurance cover.

Now you can obtain quotes and even buy public liability insurance online all from the comfort of your own home or office thanks to the internet.

Here at Public Liability Insurance Australia we can assist with quotes on public liability and other forms of business insurance. To obtain a quote simply complete our online quote request and we will get in contact with you.

Working as a sole trader has some great benefits, with one of the major drawcards being the simplicity of this structure.

Whilst running your business as a sole trader does have its advantages, there are some additional risks that need to be considered.

As a sole trader, you and your business are considered to be a single entity. This means that if your business is sued, your personal assets can also be on the chopping block.

Rather than potentially risking your family home and facing bankruptcy, a better idea is protect yourself with public liability insurance.

Insurance for Sole Traders

There are various forms of insurance that sole traders will either need or should at least consider.

One the most common forms of sole trader business insurance is public liability cover. This form of insurance protects business in the event of property damage or personal injury being caused to others.

Other forms of insurance for sole traders include property, glass, theft, business interruption, and for some business types professional indemnity insurance.

Here at Public Liability Insurance Australia we can help you with quotes on public liability along with a number of other forms of sole trader business insurance.

Public Liability Cost

The public liability insurance cost for a sole trader will depend on a range of factors. Two of the main factors will include the type of work you do and the size of your annual turnover.

Generally speaking, the higher risk your work is and the higher your turnover is, the more you will pay for your insurance.

Most insurance brokers and advisers will be able to assist you with a quote on your public liability and other forms of cover.

You will need to provide the broker with a range of information including your business type, your annual turnover and any information about special location you may work in such as airports, mine sites and other high risk locations.

Advice for Sole Traders

Getting your insurance right is absolutely vital for sole traders in Australia, especially considering your personal assets are on the line if things go wrong.

The best option for most sole traders is to use an insurance broker or adviser who specialises in business insurance.

A business insurance broker will be able to assess your needs and make recommendations on exactly what forms of cover you need. This may include public liability and other forms of business cover.

Your broker will not only be able to tell you what cover you need and how much you need, but they will also be able to tell you which policies will provide the most competitive premiums and value for money.

If you do not already have an insurance adviser, you can request a quote through our website and we will put in contact with an insurance broker or adviser who can assist with your business insurance needs.