Mining Insurance
Perth, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane & Canberra

Mining insurance discussions should identify your role before listing policies. An owner, exploration company, processing operator and maintenance contractor may work at the same location while controlling different risks. Describe the stage of the project, extraction or processing activities, site access and the equipment under your control. Include work performed for others and activities conducted outside the main tenement area. Explain whether plant is owned, hired or supplied by a principal, and who employs or directs the people operating it. A clear responsibility map helps the broker distinguish your operation from the wider site in which it sits.

Remote work creates practical questions that an asset value alone does not answer. Identify where specialist technicians, replacement components, lifting equipment and suitable transport would come from. Explain site communications, accommodation and access restrictions that could affect response or repair. Describe fuel storage, water management and waste handling relevant to your activities without implying that a broad liability label addresses every environmental event. Ask how the proposed program treats mobile plant, processing equipment, underground or surface work where applicable, and work under hire or service contracts. The declared activities should match what the team actually does on shift.

Bring principal and subcontractor agreements, hire terms and relevant site requirements to the review. Identify clauses dealing with equipment damage, recovery costs, indemnities, insurance limits and responsibilities for delays. A principal’s requested certificate may be only one part of the contractual position. Keep any agreed departures or amendments with the final contract so the broker sees the terms your business actually accepted. Where several parties share a plant item or work area, document the handover arrangements and the point at which operational control changes. Seek legal guidance if a contract’s allocation of risk is unclear.

For physical assets, prepare schedules that distinguish replacement equipment from delivery, installation and commissioning work. Record serial numbers, major modifications, maintenance history and the location of critical spares. Operational information such as throughput records and planned shutdowns may help explain the effect of an interruption. Include relevant environmental approvals, management plans and incident history when requested, accurately identifying the part of the site for which your business is responsible. Do not treat a permit, inspection record or contractor certificate as proof of insurance coverage. Each document provides a different part of the factual picture used to assess the proposal.

When a site incident occurs, follow the site’s emergency arrangements and obtain appropriate specialist support. Record the affected location, equipment and operations, together with the time and sequence of significant actions. Preserve relevant telemetry, photographs, work orders and contractor communications when it is safe to do so. Discuss insurance notification and assessment requirements promptly. If plant must be moved to restore safe access, retain evidence of its original position and the reasons for movement. Keep investigation material factual and avoid assigning blame through informal summaries before the information has been examined by the appropriate people.

Before renewal, check whether the scope has expanded, the operating location has changed or new equipment has altered the dependency on a single process. Review the practicality of the interruption period against current lead times and the work required to resume operations. Ask how the program distinguishes property loss, breakdown, environmental allegations and contractual liabilities. Update contracts and asset schedules rather than carrying forward assumptions from a previous site. A considered recovery plan can identify issues beyond insurance, such as access to replacement operators or a temporary processing arrangement, while the broker assesses the cover that may be available under specific terms.