ESL charged in the three to four months to June 2017 was low because insurance companies were gradually reducing the ESL in anticipation of its complete removal by 1 July 2017 in accordance with planned changes that did not occur.

At the direction of the NSW Government, insurance companies resumed charging ESL on property insurance policies. Many insurers were not able to resume charging the ESL until late August 2017 to early September 2017.

Therefore, clients with property insurance renewals due from now until up to September 2018 may notice that the ESL component of their renewal program has increased from that charged last year due to the re-introduction of ESL on property insurance premiums. This is because the ESL charged on last year’s premium was low or non-existent.

For further information please visit the ESL Insurance Monitor website.

Our aim is to continue to provide you with absolute peace of mind through expert advice and personalised service.

If you have any questions about the ESL or your insurance, simply email or call your Oxley Insurance Broker for advice.

Here is a flyer if you wish to print out this information.

The post Emergency Services Levy (ESL) Contributions appeared first on Oxley Insurance Broker.

Breaches of privacy from a cyber event can add enormous expense to a business.  Make sure you speak to one of our brokers today on 1300 799 422 to learn how Cyber Insurance can help protect your business.

Who does it apply to?

This new law will apply to all Australian Privacy Principal entities as defined by the Privacy Act 1988:

• Australian Government agencies
• Businesses with turnover over $3 million
• Not for profit organisations
• Health service providers
• Child care
• Education
• Businesses that sell or purchase personal information
• Organisations that handle health data
• Businesses and individuals who handle personal information.

What is a data breach?

• Unauthorised access to, or unauthorised disclosure of, personal information about one or more individuals (affected individuals), or
• Where personal information of affected individuals is lost in circumstances that may give rise to unauthorised access or unauthorised disclosure.

What are you required to do if you have a data breach?

• You must conduct an assessment
• Alert OAIC (Office of the Australian Information Commissioner) within 30 days
• Notify affected individuals.

What steps do you need to take to prepare yourself for the changes in law?

• Know what data you capture and hold in your organisation and where.

What current security processes do you have in place?

• Make sure you have an incident response plan ready for management of a data breach.

For more information in respect to these changes, visit the OAIC website.

Call us for information on our Cyber Insurance on 1300 799 422.

The post Do you know what to do with a Data Breach? appeared first on Oxley Insurance Broker.

The recall is for the Eaton Quicklag ELQ Earth Leakage Circuit Breaker, a popular component used in light commercial switchboards across Australia that was manufactured between 1 April 2004 and 15 December 2016. Each product has a serial number on the side, showing the date that it was manufactured.

There could be millions of these in use across Australia from schools through to offices and retail establishments. A non-compliant material may be the problem and when operating under short circuit conditions, the product may express ionised gases through the exhaust port, potentially resulting in a fire.

To avoid this risk, please check your electrical installations to see if any of these recalled products have been installed.  The affected models can be identified by the presence of a green test button. If they don’t have a test button, or if they do with a white or orange test button, then you will not be impacted by this recall.  Refer to ‘How to identify recalled product’.

If the recalled product is identified, please complete this online form on the Eaton website. Following registration and confirmation of the recalled product, Eaton will arrange for a qualified electrician to attend your client’s site and replace the recalled product with the compliant product at no charge.

Here is the product recall notice issued by Eaton. You can find further information on the Eaton website, or by contacting Eaton on 1800 870 851 between 9am to 5pm AEST.

The post Product Recall appeared first on Oxley Insurance Broker.

The post The changing ‘Workers Insurance World’ appeared first on Oxley Insurance Broker.

From 3 October 2017, HWI may only be distributed by a limited approved panel of Insurance Brokers. The continued service and advice to the construction industry on this often complex subject is important, therefore, we have partnered with HBW Wholesale who are one of the approved distributors to provide specialist advice solely on your HWI.

If you are a current builder client, you will have received updates from us regarding these changes and the actions necessary. Please call us on 1300 799 422 to speak to one of our friendly brokers if you have any further questions regarding HWI and the service transition.

We will continue to provide you with expert advice and service for all of your other insurance needs.

The post Builders Home Owners Warranty appeared first on Oxley Insurance Broker.

Our life expectancy is one-quarter genes, three-quarters lifestyle choices, according to a classic Danish study of twins. (1) So what lifestyle choices are most conducive to longevity? Dan Buettner, a National Geographic researcher, is on a mission to find out. He believes the answer lies within ‘Blue Zones’, areas where people live to 100 at 10 times the average rate. By examining Blue Zones around the world, he has developed a formula that could extend your life. (2)

Invisible exercise

Okinawa is one of these Blue Zones. An archipelago about 1,300 kilometres south of Tokyo, the island has been described by researchers as the ‘ground zero of longevity’. It has the longest disability-free life expectancy in the world and women live longer there than anywhere else on the planet. Dementia and heart disease, a leading cause of death in Australia, are essentially non-existent.

Blue Zone communities don’t devote a part of their day to exercise like we do (or attempt to), instead it is seamlessly woven into their lives.

Without grocery stores or machines, Okinawans are constantly exercising through activities such as walking and gardening.

Hara, Hatchi, Bu (and repeat)

Gardens don’t just provide Okinawans with exercise and peace of mind. They’re also the source of Okinawan’s plant-based diet, a diet shared by all Blue Zones.

Moderate drinking doesn’t go astray either. Buettner even recommends making ‘Wine at 5’ a key part of your lifestyle to increase longevity.

However, it’s not what you eat, but how you eat it. ‘No diet in the history of the world has ever worked for more than 2 percent of the population,’ says Buettner. So rather than going on the next fad diet, adopt a Blue Zone strategy for healthy eating. Hara, Hatchi, Bu is an ancient Okinawan phase, spoken before meals that reminds you to stop eating when your stomach is 80 percent full.  The Okinawans also put away food after serving instead of leaving out a buffet.

No man is an island on these islands

The Blue Zones all share a deep sense of community.  In Okinawa, you are born into a Moai, or a friendship circle, that provides financial and emotional support for life, creating a feeling of always being cared for.

The idea of finding the ‘right tribe’ is crucial to health and happiness. Your chance of being overweight dramatically increases if your friends are overweight too, according to 2007 study from Harvard and the University of California.

This suggests that choosing friends who are physically engaged, caring and healthy will make you healthier too.

Blue Zones also revere the elderly, who often live with their younger relatives. Living together produces beneficial effects for both parties, even lowering rates of mortality and disease in children (known as the Grandmother effect).

It seems the key to longevity is not made up of gym workouts and high-protein salads. Instead, according to Buettner’s research, Blue Zones across the world all seem to show the same thing: there is no pill or supplement. Just your friends and family, the right activities and eating your veggies.

1. Herskind, A. M., McGue, M., Holm, NV., Sørenson, T.I., Harvald, B. & Vaupel, J.W. Human Genetics. 1996, March. 97(3): 319–23.
2. Buettner, Dan. The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who’ve Lived the Longest. Washington, D.C.: National Geographic. 2009.

The information provided in this document, including any tax information, is general information only and does not constitute personal advice. It has been prepared without taking into account any of your individual objectives, financial situation or needs. Before acting on this information you should consider its appropriateness, having regard to your own objectives, financial situation and needs. You should read the relevant Product Disclosure Statements and seek personal advice from a qualified financial adviser.

Oxley Life Solutions is part of the Oxley Insurance Brokers group of companies and is a Corporate Authorised Representative Millennium3 Financial Services Pty Ltd ABN 61 094 529 987 AFSL 244252.

The post The secret to living longer appeared first on Oxley Insurance Broker.

How Does This Affect Your Business?

• From 1 March 2017 the placement of new Workers Compensation Insurance policies will be directly with iCare, as opposed to the scheme agents which has traditionally occurred. Our specialist advisors in our Workers Compensation team remain on hand to arrange policies on your behalf, should you require the right service and advice.
• iCare also recently announced the results of their tender review and the remaining ‘Claims Agents’ are EML, Allianz and GIO with QBE’s tender application unsuccessful. (CGU have recently withdrawn from the NSW Workers Compensation Scheme.) QBE and CGU will cease all involvement from 31 December 2017. The involvement of the three remaining claims agents are as follows:
  • EML will manage their existing portfolio and all new claims lodged after 1 January 2018.
  • Allianz and GIO will manage all existing portfolio of claims that they have and any new claims lodged until 1 January 2018 from their existing clients.
  • At this stage it hasn’t been confirmed by iCare, but it is our understanding that the CGU and QBE portfolio may transfer across to GIO on 31 December 2017.
• iCare will take over the credit control function and payments of premiums will need to be made directly to iCare.
• Clients with Workers Compensation policies due on or after 30 April 2017 will receive information on how to renew their policies with iCare, as opposed to dealing through one of the scheme agents. The adjustment of these policies will still remain the responsibility of the current Scheme Agent (Insurer).

Importantly, our Workers Compensation team remain on hand to assist employers with specialist Workers Compensation service and advice.

Claims will continue to be managed by your existing scheme agent, and once again, our team are on hand to assist with this process, should your business require advice.

If you need additional advice for your business, please contact Mark Shoesmith on 6588 7630.

The post Workers Compensation Changes appeared first on Oxley Insurance Broker.

A recent survey of nearly 500 small businesses, conducted by CGU, found that one in four businesses would not survive if they had to close their doors for three months. The survey found that a quarter of small businesses would have to shut down if they experienced a business disruption such as a major fire or storm and this figure jumped to 38 per cent if the shutdown happened during a busy period in the year for that business.

Perhaps the most striking finding was that one in seven businesses experienced a shortfall in income because of a business interruption in the past 12 months. Despite these findings, less than a quarter of business owners surveyed actually had business interruption insurance.

Business interruption insurance covers the shortfall in gross profits caused by the interruption to a business from insured events, helps pay ongoing costs and protects profit margins until the business is back on its feet and back at its profit level before the interruption.

Business interruption insurance can:

• Give you peace of mind. Business interruption insurance provides the safety net you and your family need should the unthinkable happen. With business interruption insurance you can rest easy.
• Keep you afloat while you wait for plans to be drawn up or council permits to be approved when rebuilding.
• Cover the costs of finding and fitting new premises, advertising to let your customers know you have moved and when you’re fully open for business again.
• Ensure you are able to continue to pay and retain key staff while the business gets back on its feet.
• Cover interruption costs to your business such as suppliers not supplying, key customers unable to purchase your goods or when power or gas outages limit your ability to do business.

Realistically, any business interruption could be a major setback for a small business, particularly in the current economic climate, where margins for many operators are already tight.

Contact one of our friendly advisers for more information on 1300 799 422.

The post Do you need Business Interruption cover? appeared first on Oxley Insurance Broker.

Did you know that driver fatigue related crashes are three times more likely to involve a fatality than crashes which are non-fatigue related (Williamson & Boufous, 2007).

The reason?  Driver loss of alertness which causes poor judgement, slower reaction times and decreased skill levels (Beaulieu, 2005).

Business owners and managers of people who employ people who drive for long distances should encourage their employees to look for the following signs:

• Trouble focusing
• Struggling to keep your eyes open
• Forgetting the last few minutes
• Slower reaction time
• ‘Zoning out’
• Daydreaming
• Constant yawning and rubbing your eyes
• Drifting in your lane

Tips to avoid driver fatigue:

• Get enough sleep.  Make sure you are well rested.
• Don’t travel at a time when you would normally be sleeping if possible.
• Don’t eat large meals – keep them small before you have to travel.
• Drink plenty of water.
• Try not to use your heater as it can make you feel drowsy.
• Listen to the radio or upbeat music to keep your mind alert.
• Avoid taking sedative drugs – always read the labels first.
• If you are starting to nod off or close your eyes then pull over to a safe area, stretch your legs and if possible, take a 15 to 30 minute power nap.
• If you have a passenger who is licensed and authorised to drive, then take turns driving, every two hours.

Source: Vero.com.au

The post How to manage driver fatigue appeared first on Oxley Insurance Broker.

You may have already read some of the articles that have been written over the past couple of years about ‘sitting being the new smoking’ and how some office environments have invested in sit/stand desks or standing cubicles.

This is all great new information and to some may just be another fad for us to worry about or to get on board and make some big changes.  How do we do this if we own or work for a small business, or have a number of employees? It may not be feasible to make those kinds of investments.

Well, we all should take charge of our own health.  The tips below really are quite achievable and easy to implement into your workday and workplace.

Stand up during meetings
It’s interesting that a lot of office cultures expect staff to sit for long periods of time during meetings, when in fact, it would be beneficial for staff to stand up and move around so as not to get sleepy and to pay attention!  By standing or moving you keep your blood circulating and if you aren’t slumped in a comfy chair, then you are more likely to actively listen.  You could be the first to instil a culture where it is okay to stand for 20 minutes here and there in a meeting – you’ll probably find that others also like to stand up and move around the room, as lots of people get backache or sleepy.

Walk and talk meetings
If you are meeting with one person and you don’t need to write notes or present, then this is an ideal way to get some fresh air during the day and to move whilst doing business.

Stand when you are on the phone
This is a great way to use the muscles in your legs, take a look around the office – especially if you work in open plan and need to take a break from sitting.  Even better, if you have cordless headphones you can walk and talk on the phone!

Do a stair walk during the day
If you have any stairs in your building, set yourself a time in the morning/afternoon where you literally just go up and down the stairs for two minutes.  Two minutes is not a lot of time out of your working day, but you can do a lot of steps in that time. Not only will your heart and lungs thank you, but you’ll strengthen your legs and you may even tighten your bottom muscles!  If you have wide stairs you could get a group of colleagues together to keep motivated on a daily basis.

Walk to a colleague’s desk
Instead of picking up the phone and dialling a colleague’s extension, walk to their desk – not only will you benefit from moving, but face to face conversations are always easier, plus you’ll also build on the relationship.

Sit/stand desk
If you are able to afford investing in a sit/stand desk, or your company is happy to purchase one for you, then make sure you stand for 20 minutes intermittently throughout the day – either set yourself an alarm or base it on how you are feeling.

Morning/lunchtime/evening activity
Today it seems that all the active enthusiasts get up at 5am to do a Bootcamp or run, but then sit all day at work and go home for dinner, then go to bed early to get up early again the next morning.  Although this would raise their heart rate and seem healthy – is it really?  Is it not more natural to also move around regularly throughout the day?  You may have a sedentary office job, but you can start making changes by exercising in the morning, taking a lunch break to be active (even if it’s 60% of your break spent on a small walk), then some kind of activity after work.  You’ll probably find your productivity increases and you are more alert at work.

Take the stairs
If there’s an option to take either the stairs, escalators or lift, then make sure you take the stairs.  This is nothing new – it may take a couple of seconds longer to get somewhere, but you’ll also have more energy, plus more oxygen going to your brain for extra focus.

All in all, it’s really a no-brainer – the more you move, the healthier and fitter you’ll be.  Your body is your vehicle and if you look after it well, it can take you places that you may not otherwise get to in the long term.  You’re the only one that can help prevent the sickness and diseases that can come about from a sedentary life style, so make some changes today and your body will thank you big time!

The post Tips to be more active if you sit all day appeared first on Oxley Insurance Broker.