Government Agency Could Ease Insurance Crisis: Liberals
The Age
Monday February 25, 2002
The Victorian Government's insurance agency should help cover some community events to combat prohibitive public liability costs, the opposition said yesterday.
Shadow treasurer Robert Clark called on the government's ``in-house" specialist insurance agency, the Victorian Managed Insurance Agency, to help provide insurance to business and community groups holding events on public land.
In order to access the pooled fund, an event must be an established and important part of local tourism or community activity, Mr Clark said. ``These arrangements would allow reputable businesses and organisations to lower their insurance costs through using their pooled responsibility, better risk information and management, and greater purchasing scale."
The government has already given support in principle to a pooled risk-management scheme, but Mr Clark said the issue needed to be handled with greater urgency before more policies expired.
Public liability premium increases of 300per cent, and up to 1000per cent for adventure tourism operators, have been recorded during the past year, largely due to a number of insurance underwriters dropping out of the market.
More than a quarter of the state's adventure tour operators have shut down or are planning to close because of a massive increase in insurance premiums.
A government spokeswoman said all of the issues raised by Mr Clark were being considered.
The Federal Government is expected to host a national ministerial meeting on the issue next month.
© 2002 The Age
Share This