Insurance Council Backs Live Music Venues
The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) has backed live music venues and has called on the federal government to prioritise insurance reform.
The ICA released the Advancing Australia’s Resilience policy recommendations report saying:
“Rising claims costs continue to increase the cost of public liability insurance premiums, particularly for small businesses and not-for-profit organisations, threatening their ongoing financial viability…[research and statistics]… have identified social inflation (higher plaintiff demands for compensation) and increasing prevalence of claims seeking compensation for psychological injury, as a significant cause of increasing claims costs.
Insurers have had to significantly increase insurance premiums and reduce the amount of insurance they offer in the market to address these increasing claims costs which have led to multiple years of unsustainable losses.
Consequently, many small businesses and not-for-profit organisations operating in the amusement, tourism, leisure, live music, and hospitality sectors have experienced two- to four-fold increases in the cost of their public liability insurance.
As a result, some operators in these sectors continue to struggle to obtain cover which is threatening their ongoing viability.
The inability to source public liability insurance has contributed to the pressures on some tourism operators and live music venues.
It is forecast that these sectors will continue to experience further premium increases and limited coverage appetite from insurers, adding to pressures on these businesses and sectors.
Tort reform remains a powerful policy tool available to government that can directly impact insurance underwriting risk and the availability of public liability insurance.
Tort reform was previously undertaken in 2001–02 and was immediately successful in addressing the insurance availability problems at that time.
To address the current public liability insurance constraints, a review of and, where necessary, reform to current civil liability settings is required to ensure they remain fit-for-purpose and support a sustainable public liability insurance market in Australia.”
The ALMBC understands that Tort Reform is about bringing federal and all state governments together to agree on changes that are required to ensure the sustainability of the industry and we have been advocating tirelessly in support of systemic change to:
- lower premiums
- increase the number of insurers and underwriters
- provide training and support for small businesses to lower risk
- minimise the potential for predatory behaviour by reducing time limits between an accident and a claim being made
- outlaw or minimise the negative influence of no win no fee law firms
- follow the New Zealand model to provide simplicity and clarity around claim value limits
These changes are all possible, but they take courage and energy to make happen – we are certainly hoping you are with us on the journey and we thank the ICA for their support.
