Employers drag heals on accident insurance

By Brian Fallow

WELLINGTON - Concerns are mounting that employers are cutting it fine in signing up with new workplace accident insurers.

The new contestable regime comes into effect on July 1. Employers who have not committed to a private sector insurer will default to the newly formed state-owned enterprise, @Work Insurance.

"There are a lot of quotes around, but I understand from @Work that less than 10 per cent have actually made a choice," said Wellington regional Chamber of Commerce chief executive Claire Johnstone.

ACC Minister Murray McCully said yesterday the Government was closely monitoring how things were moving and was satisfied that any problems which emerged were being dealt with. The tenor of the Government's advertising had moved from "time is running out" to "make your quote into a contract."

Labour leader Helen Clark yesterday released a copy of a letter from one of the private insurers, Fusion, to brokers. It quotes Mr McCully at a meeting with the industry on May 14 expressing concern at delays in placing business with insurers.

"The results of these delays, in the Minister's view, will be that insurers may not be able to process all accepted quotes leading up to June 25, resulting in business defaulting to @Work and brokers missing out on commissions," the Fusion letter said.

A survey of 350 employers about the same time, commissioned by the Government, found that 85 per cent had either asked an insurance broker, accountant or business adviser to get quotes and arrange their cover, or approached an insurance company themselves for a quote.

Among the 37 per cent who had actually received quotes, 9 per cent were expecting their premiums to be a lot higher, 16 per cent a bit higher, 28 per cent about the same, 21 per cent a bit lower and 20 per cent a low lower.

Mr McCully said yesterday that the anecdotal evidence, from insurers and employers alike, was that about 70 per cent of employers could expect lower premiums.

Claire Johnstone said that about a third of the calls being fielded by the BizInfo centres related to ACC, with many callers displaying very little understanding of the reforms. "Some are taking the view that they will do nothing and wait to see if the Government changes," she said. Labour has said it will repeal the changes.