Business Insurance Claims

One of our consultants will discuss this with you when they receive your claim or when you call to make your claim.

Documents such as purchase receipts, credit card statements and owner's handbooks will help.

When you speak to a consultant, they'll let you know what you need to provide to help us process your claim.

Call our claims department on 131 846 and one of our friendly consultants will take you through the claims process.

If you have purchased business interruption insurance and you believe you have suffered a loss as defined by your policy, you can consider lodging a claim. Each claim will be reviewed subject to the criteria below before a claim can be paid:

• The details of your business interruption cover.
• Your ability to demonstrate a loss that falls within the cover provided.
• Evidence of the value of the claimed loss.
• If the loss does not fall within the scope of cover then the claim will not be paid.

If you believe your circumstances may entitle you to cover under your business interruption cover we encourage you to please consider and prepare the relevant information found within the below FAQ, then call us on 131 846.

There are currently legal proceedings underway to help determine what COVID-19 related loss of income or profit can be claimed under business interruption insurance cover.

While the High Court has ruled that insurers cannot rely on references to the Quarantine Act to deny liability for certain insurance, there are further aspects of business interruption cover that need to be resolved to establish whether customers will ultimately be covered. That is why insurers, including Allianz, and the Australian Finance Complaints Authority agreed to a second test case in the Federal Court of Australia, which has commenced and will be heard from early September 2021.

This second text case will determine the meaning of policy wordings around disease definition, COVID-19 outbreak proximity, the impact of government mandates, and other policy wording matters.

For further information about the business interruption test cases, please visit the Insurance Council of Australia website.

Each claim will be reviewed subject to your insurance policy and your ability to demonstrate a loss that falls within the scope of cover provided and evidence of the value of the loss being claimed before a claim can be paid.

Questions to Consider to help you prepare your claim

• Have the insured premises had a confirmed case at the premises, interfering, interrupting or requiring them to close?
  Please provide evidence. This can include:
  • Health authority advice
  • Emergency professional cleaning invoices
  • You will need to be able to identify where the COVID-19 case was in relation to your business, for example a hairdresser 12 kms away.


• Have the insured premises been closed because of a known COVID-19 case within the vicinity limit (as detailed in the PDS e.g. 20km) of the premises?
  Please provide evidence. This can include:
  • Health authority advice
  • Emergency professional cleaning invoices
  • You will need to be able to identify where the COVID-19 case was in relation to your business, for example a hairdresser 12 kms away.


• Has there been a confirmed COVID-19 outbreak in the vicinity of your business resulting in your businesses closure?
  Please provide evidence. This can include:
  • Health authority advice
  • Emergency professional cleaning invoices
  • You will need to be able to identify where the COVID-19 case was in relation to your business, for example a hairdresser 12 kms away.


• Was your business mandated by a competent public authority to close or partially close?
  For example, did the state or local government order your business to close?
  Examples of businesses mandated for closure include pubs, licenced clubs, gyms, indoor sporting venues, restaurants, cafes and beauticians.
  
  
• Have there been any changes to business operations in last 12 months? If yes, what were these changes?
  For example:
  • Did you change your trading hours?
  • Did you modify the business to allow you to trade under COVID-19 e.g. window only business or takeaway only?


• What is the operating rhythm of your business?
  Financial information to prepare includes:
  • Quarterly Business Activity Statements
  • Monthly/Annual Profit and Loss statements
  • Monthly payroll summary reports by employee
  • Supporting invoices for increased/additional costs incurred to mitigate loss or maintain business operations
  • Has your business received any government benefits? e.g. JobKeeper
  • Details of all rental relief provided by your landlord

The High Court’s decision in June 2021 means insurers cannot rely on references to the Quarantine Act 1908 (Cth) to deny liability in policies written in the same terms as the policies considered in the first test case. However, there are further interpretations of aspects of business interruption covers that need to be resolved through a second test case to establish whether policyholders will ultimately be covered.

TIO will respond to affected customers who have lodged business interruption claims on a case-by case basis, however the vast majority of claims will not be able to be finalised until further clarity is provided by the second test case.