We've got you covered
We make it easy for you to get the right insurance, with market-leading insurance coverage to give you peace of mind.
Our team of building and construction insurance experts can also help builders and tradies with advice and cover options for:
- Commercial Motor and Trailer insurance
- Business or Office Package insurance
- Cyber Insurance
- Management Liability Insurance
- Surety Bonds
- Trade Credit Insurance
- Transit Insurance.
Commercial Motor and Trailer Insurance
We know how important it is to keep your business moving. Master Builders Insurance Services offers a range of solutions to cover your work cars, utes, trucks, trailers, plant and machinery. Commercial Motor policies can cover you for loss and/or damage, hire costs, downtime, and dry and wet hire of equipment.
Request a quote or call our specialist team to assist you in finding a cover to suit you.
Business/Office Package
Business/Office Package insurance protects businesses key risks and can be tailored to include cover for:
- Property damage at your business/office location
- Public and Product Liability
- Theft of money or property, including dishonesty by employees
- Damage to glass and specified property
- Business interruption
- Machinery or electronic equipment breakdown
- Legal action by employees (Employment Practices) and government (Statutory Liability)
- Tax audit by government.
Cyber Insurance
Cyber crime is happening right now in Queensland, is your business exposed?Cyber crime is skyrocketing and is a major risk. You might be surprised of the numerous ways it can happen, and how fraudulent emails and invoices can look like the real deal. High-tech criminals are disrupting businesses both large and small. The cost and disruption to your business from a cyber attack or data breach can be significant, however cyber insurance can help you get back up and running, plus cover the costs to your business.
To safeguard your business, make sure your cyber insurance policy includes 'criminal cyber attacks' such as the 'BEC scam' and covers you for Criminal Financial Loss.
Examples of cyber attacks:
- Socially engineered theft
- Cyber espionage, extortion and theft
- Crimeware
- Payment card skimming
- Hacking
- Web app attacks
- Denial of services and distributed denial of services
- Point of sale intrusion
- Phone phreaking perpetrated against insured.
Why you need cyber insurance
Cyber insurance helps to fortify your business against:
- Losses to your business, such as the impact on business costs, cyber theft and damage to tangible property
- Losses to others, such as legal expenses, settlements or awards, damages, civil fines and penalties, and regulatory investigations (notifiable data breaches)
- Response costs associated with extortion, data restoration, customer notification and public relations.
Chat with our experts to get the right cover today.
Management Liability Insurance
When you’re running a business, you may be personally liable for any actual or alleged breaches of the Corporations Act. And it’s not just large companies that are exposed – small and medium business owners and officers could be at risk as well.
Management liability insurance covers the costs of defending directors, managers and employees against any claims that are the result of their actions or decisions.
If you’re faced with unexpected liability costs, management liability insurance can protect your business and personal assets, such as your home, from being sold to cover the cost of paying claims.
What it can cover
Management liability insurance policies vary in the benefits they provide. To give you an idea, here’s the type of cover that your policy may include:
| Type of cover | Potential benefits |
|---|---|
| Employment practice liability | Covers payouts for claims of employment breaches, such as wrongful dismissal, bullying or discrimination. |
| Directors’ and officers’ liability | Protects your proprietary limited company’s past, present and future directors, officers and managers against claims of wrongful acts, such as misrepresentation or breach of duty (subject to business size). |
| Crime | Protects your business against claims such as employee or third party fraud (not all criminal activity is covered). |
| Corporate liability | Covers costs that your business would incur if you need to defend and settle claims from outside parties alleging wrongful conduct, as well as investigation into the affairs of the company. |
| Statutory liability | Covers the cost of defence, fines and penalties under some statutes e.g. Work Health and Safety (fines under Work Health and Safety cannot be covered by insurance in NSW, VIC & WA). |
| Government Inquiry costs | Covers you for the cost of representation at government inquiries. |
| Defence costs | Covers your legal costs if your business ends up in court. This cover only operates when the underlying claim is covered by the policy. |
Surety Bonds
Free up your capital. Surety bonds are an effective alternative to bank guarantees and retention monies, with many benefits for building contractors.
Building contractors are increasingly turning to surety bonds as a financing option alternative to bank guarantees and retention monies. The purchase of surety bonds from a bond provider (usually an insurance company) can deliver many benefits for business operations, such as cash flow advantages and freeing up working capital.
Surety bond facilities are available for a broad range of project types and are an accepted form of security by most contract principals including local, state and federal government departments.
What are surety bonds?
Surety bonds protect the contract principal against default by the contractor. A bond is an undertaking by the bond provider to the principal that the contractor will perform in accordance with the terms and conditions of the contract.
The bond is issued in favour of the principal and the contractor pays the premium applicable to the bond provider. Once a surety bond is issued it is irrevocable by the bond provider, who is then committed to pay should the contractor default. In the event of a claim being paid under a surety bond, the bond provider will seek recovery from the contractor through a deed of indemnity.
In essence, bond providers undertake the credit risk of being unable to recover funds paid out by them under the bond from the contractor.
Why use them?
Surety bonds can be a valuable alternative to bank guarantees or cash retentions and an effective way of increasing a contractor’s capital base. Unlike bank guarantees that are supported by collateral and tie up valuable working capital or other assets, surety bond providers evaluate the performance risk of the contractor and the contractor’s ability to complete the works.
A premium is paid by the contractor to the bond provider on the amount of the bond issued, instead of the contractor incurring alternative costs, such as those associated with bank overdraft facilities.
Bond and contract types
There are a number of different types of bonds available, depending on the particular requirements of the contract conditions. The type of bond could be in the form of:
- Performance
- Maintenance
- Bid
- Retention
- Advance payment.
Advantages of using bonds
Some of the advantages of using surety bonds, compared to traditional bank guarantees and cash retentions or deposits, include:
- No tangible security or collateral required, thereby freeing up assets for other purposes (such as business growth or procurement of additional working capital)
- Improved liquidity
- Bonds enhance working capital by not having to use established credit lines for contingent liability purposes
- A bond facility will allow the contractor freedom to submit tenders, without the restrictions or limits imposed by banks
- Contractors only pay for the bond limits used, not the whole facility
- Bids may be viewed more favourably, as the contractor’s financial status has been independently assessed by a third party (the bond provider) who is willing to issue to the principal a written unconditional guarantee of the contractor’s ability to perform the contract.
General minimum underwriting criteria
- The company must turn over at least $50 million per annum
- The company must have a minimum net tangible worth of $5 million
- The company must have positive cash flow/positive working capital
- The company must have at least three years of continuous trading profitability.
Cost comparison
In addition to the operational benefits of surety bonds, the premium payable in most cases is more competitive than bank guarantees when the total cost is taken into account.
Trade Credit Insurance
Protect your business against bad debts.
If you’re selling goods or services on credit terms as a commercial trade contractor, you’re vulnerable to bad debt.
You’ve invested endless hours and hard-earned cash into your business. It’s your livelihood and we understand that no matter how small or large your business – the risks can be great and you need assurance to know you’ll be paid for your work.
Trade credit insurance protects your cash flow and business – giving you peace of mind that you’re covered if commercial customers fail to pay (the minimum requirement is a court judgment or insolvency).
Trade credit insurance* through Master Builders Insurance Services provides:
- Protection of your cash flow against commercial non-payment
- Independent assessment of your key debtors
- Early warning of non-payment risk, plus more.
Transit Insurance
We offer customisable insurance solutions for the transport of building relating cargo, accidental damage during transit, including loading/unloading, theft/non-delivery, fire, explosion, collision and overturning, plus more.
Ask us for a quote tailored to your needs.
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