ACLD0839C-A
Making claims clear
Public liability - Fire
precautions condition
AXA Insurance UK plc Registered in England and Wales No 78950. Registered Office: 5 Old Broad Street, London EC2N 1AD. A member
of the AXA Group of companies. AXA Insurance UK plc is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial
Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority. Telephone calls may be monitored and recorded.
Insurance is designed to protect you and your business when the worst happens
and your business suffers financially or physically from the unforeseen.
Example cont.
Although your AXA policy will provide you with a significant level of protection,
there will be certain events that are not normally covered by standard policies.
It is therefore important that you are aware of and understand these exclusions.
In addition, as a business owner you have certain responsibilities to ensure that
you do not breach any of the conditions of the policy. The advice below will help
you fulfil those responsibilities.
AXA is committed to paying all valid claims, so if you follow this practical
guidance and also that of your broker, we can get you back on your feet as soon
as possible.
Fire precautions
Your public liability policy will cover your legal liability to pay damages for things such as
accidental loss of or damage to property (see policy wording for full cover). However it is
important you are aware there are certain exclusions and conditions in place which could
result in a claim not being paid.
One of the reasons your public liability property damage claim may be declined is due to a
failure to comply with the fire precautions conditions.
This outlines specific precautions you should take when using blow lamps, blow torches, flame
guns, hot air guns, electric oxyacetylene, welding, cutting equipment or angle grinders. Some
of the fire precaution conditions are only relevant if the equipment is used away from your
premises. Therefore we would recommend you speak to your broker or check the conditions
yourself prior to undertaking any heat works.
How will we consider your claim?
If damage has occurred to third party property as a result of heat works, we will ask you how
the heat works were being carried out. We will ask for proof that all the relevant precautions
relating to the work were taken. Unfortunately, if any of the relevant fire precautions were not
complied with, we may not pay the claim as the policy conditions were breached.
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T he area in which work is to be carried out must be examined and combustible
material must be removed or covered with non-combustible materials. We would
ask for confirmation that the area was examined prior to work being undertaken.
We accept due to the nature of the area you were working in it may not be
possible to remove certain materials, but we would expect any combustible
materials to be covered where reasonably practical to do so.
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uitable fire extinguishing equipment must be available for immediate use at the
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point of work or as near as practical. We would expect a fire extinguisher to be
on the roof with you whilst work is being carried out.
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low torches must not be lit until they are required for use and must be put
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out as soon as they have been used. We will request confirmation that this was
complied with.
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L it blow torches must not be left unattended. We will require confirmation
that the blow torch was not left unattended when switched on.
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hen each period of work has been completed a thorough fire safety check must
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be carried out and continued regularly for a period of at least one hour after the
work has been completed. This would not be relevant in this instance as the
fire started whilst work was ongoing.
Did you know?
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We settle 20% of all property claims
within 24 hours.
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We settle 90% of our motor total loss
claims within 10 days.
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AXA CLPI settled nearly a quarter of a
million claims in 2013.
What next?
If you are unsure about any aspect of your policy and what will and won’t be covered in the
event of a claim, contact your insurance broker. They will be able to give you all the guidance
and reassurance you need.
Example
You are contracted to lay a layer of felt on a roof, which involves the use of a blow torch.
Whilst carrying out this work, you notice that flames are coming from the corner of the
roof you are working on. As a result, significant fire damage is caused to the premises.
Standard conditions regarding the use of blow torches normally state:
AXA Insurance is working in partnership
with BIBA on making claims clear for
brokers and policyholders
The British Insurance Broker Association (BIBA) and AXA share the same goal of making it clear why certain claim
events are not covered. Together we can explain how such losses can be avoided through better risk education to
help policyholders avoid damaging uninsured losses.