General Business FAQs
You’ll find many answers to the most common, general questions about business insurance here. If you can’t find what you’re looking for or have a specific question regarding your own policy, please contact us.
General
Who's covered under my policy?
Your business policy will cover your business as well as your employees, directors, business partners, and/or senior executives.
Does legal liability cover me in all parts of Australia?
Yes, it does! You're covered across Australia for the business activities noted on your policy schedule.
How long does it take to get Business Insurance?
Getting an online quote for your business takes only a few minutes. We’ll then need to ask a few more questions to create your business insurance policy, either online or over the phone. Once that’s done you’ll receive your policy immediately, via email. A printed copy will also be sent to you.
What occupations and businesses do you cover?
AAMI offer Business Insurance for a large range of industries, such as tradespeople, retailers, professionals, hospitality businesses and more. In some cases we may ask you to call us to complete your quote.
Why do I need business insurance?
Businesses obtain business insurance to protect their business activities and their business assets.
How do I get a tax invoice?
Once you’ve paid for your business insurance or began your monthly payments, your business insurance schedule will become your tax invoice. We can post or email your schedule to you if you need – get in contact with us to request it.
What is public liability insurance?
Public Liability is your protection if you are found to be legally responsible for personal injury to a third party or damage to their property. Learn more about Public Liability Insurance.
We (and other insurers) collect ESL to help pay for the NSW Emergency Services, including Fire and Rescue NSW, the NSW Rural Fire Services and the NSW State Emergency Services.
If you’re an AAMI customer, you may find your total premium is higher than last year. This may be due to the Emergency Services Levy (ESL). The levy is charged by other NSW insurers as well. The money contributed to the ESL by insurers is used to meet funding obligations to the NSW State Government. This funds vital NSW emergency services, including Fire and Rescue NSW, the NSW Rural Fire Services, and the NSW Emergency Services and the NSW State Government has increased what’s required to fund these services.
Your quote, new business or your renewal schedule will display the amount of ESL you are required to pay.
To learn more about how this levy might impact the cost of your insurance, please get in contact with us.
You can also learn more about the ESL in general, by:
- Visiting the NSW Government Emergency Services Property Levy website, or
- Visiting the NSW Government Revenue ESL information page
If you require any further information regarding ESL, please feel free to contact us on 13 22 44.
Does AAMI Business Insurance cover my business’ premises against flood?
Flood cover is automatically included (in the premium you pay) as part of the property damage section of your business insurance cover for new policies commencing or policies renewing on or after 7 December 2023.
However, we do not insure for flood in the first 72 hours of commencing a new policy or adding/changing the property damage section of your policy for the purposes of cover caused by flood. For more information on flood coverage and other exclusions, please review the SPDS.
Note: Cover for flood is optional for policies commenced or renewed prior to 7 December 2023. For more information, refer to the relevant PDS or contact us.
Is Workers Compensation included in AAMI Business Insurance policies?
No, AAMI Business Insurance is not Workers Compensation insurance. Workers' compensation is a compulsory insurance for all employers in every State and Territory in Australia and provides protection to workers if they suffer a work-related injury or disease. GIO offers Workers Compensation Insurance and you can find more information on the GIO website.
Are my employees covered if they suffer a work-related injury or disease under the AAMI Business Insurance policies?
No, AAMI Business Insurance is not Workers Compensation insurance. Workers' compensation is a compulsory insurance for all employers in every State and Territory in Australia and provides protection to workers if they suffer a work-related injury or disease. GIO offers Workers Compensation Insurance and you can find more information on the GIO website.
Does legal liability cover me in all parts of Australia?
Yes, it does! You’re covered across Australia for the business activities noted on your policy schedule.
Claims
How does the claims process work?
1. Event (Loss occurred)
When making a claim, please provide as much detail as possible to help us understand how we can best support you.
Online lodgement is the most efficient way to make a claim.
- Receive a claim number within minutes1
- Average non-event response time is 5 business hours2
- Track the progress of your claim online with regular status updates3
- A digital copy of your claim will be sent to your nominated email address
Disclaimers
- Instant claim number is available for all Commercial Property and Specialty (Business Insurance) claims. Home, Motor and Commercial Motor claims don't receive an instant claim number but can still be lodged online.
- Information is current as at 20/12/2022. Response times may increase during major events such as natural disasters.
- Status updates are available via the emailed link received upon lodgement for Commercial Property and Speciality claims only.
2. Review
We take it from here, assessing your claim to confirm it is covered by your policy.
From here your claim may result in:
3. Repairs
We arrange repairers, builders or assessors, as required. Our suppliers will contact you within 48 hours of our appointment – subject to change during event periods – and if you’re happy with their assessment, repairs can commence. The time it takes to finalise repairs will depend on the event, availability of our repairers and materials.
4. Settlement
If repairs aren’t applicable, or you want to arrange your own, we may cash settle the claim. The settlement amount is based on our repairer’s best quote, which has been carefully reviewed to ensure you’re receiving a fair and reasonable settlement.
What is an excess, how is it calculated and when do I pay it?
An excess is your contribution towards the cost of a claim and is a requisite policy condition. Effectively, the excess is the amount you self-insure. Your cover starts once insured loss or damage exceeds the excess. The excess will depend on the circumstances of the claim.
Some Additional Benefits and Optional Covers have their own excess, in addition to any other excess that may apply. When multiple excesses apply, you might have to pay more than one excess.
The amount and details of each applicable excess is shown on your Policy Schedule. Information on how and when an excess applies can also be found in the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS).
When you make a claim, and depending on the claim type, you can pay any appliable excesses in one of the following ways:
- All claim types – you pay directly to us.
- Repairs authorised - in some instances, and before repairs commence, you pay the appointed repairer or supplier.
- Cash settlement – the excess is deducted from the claim settlement amount.
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You can speak to someone in our claim centre anytime to check the progress of your claim.