Businesses lose on cash payments

Insurance quoting hits tradies

A TOWNSVILLE business owner has criticised insurance companies for paying cash settlements.

Owner of Award Fencing Mark Spence said insurers were telling customers to get free quotes from fencing contractors and then paying cash settlements. Many individuals then spent the money elsewhere and not on the work which was quoted.

A TOWNSVILLE fencing business has challenged insurers over policies where contractors foot the bill for quoting for repairs from storm damage but no one wins the work.

But insurer Suncorp says the choice of how to rebuild is up to customers in cases where they have received a cash settlement for fence repairs.

The issue arises as State Minister for Housing and Pub- lic Works Mick de Brenni calls on local tradespeople to register on a Queensland Building and Construction Commission website for the opportunity to win work in the flood recovery.

Owner of Award Fencing Mark Spence said his company lodged 2000 quotes with little success in the wake of Cyclone Yasi in 2011, costing them $100,000, later finding that some of work on Townsville homes had not been done.

He said insurers were telling customers to get free quotes from fencing contrac- tors and paying cash settlements at the same time as paying assessors and others up to $200 per report.

“How is that fair?” Mr Spence asked.

A Suncorp spokesman said they were committed to supporting local businesses and encouraging the use of local tradespeople.

“Where possible, Suncorp will manage the rebuild process for customers affected by flooding, engaging local builders to complete the works, and providing customers with a quality lifetime guarantee,” the spokesman said.

“This is also the case for shared boundary fences where both properties are covered by Suncorp.”

In cases where only one property sharing a boundary fence was covered by Suncorp, they would cash settle for half the cost of repair.

“To establish the cost of repair, Suncorp seeks quotes from our panel builders and would pay a quote fee for this service,” the spokesman said.

“Where it is easier for the customer to obtain their own quote, or have a preferred company to use, they can source the quote.

“If the customer incurred a cost in sourcing a quote, we would reimburse any reasonable expense. The choice of how to rebuild is completely up to the customer.”

Mr de Brenni said there were about 8000 flood-affected people across North Queensland.

He said insurers would choose licensed North Queensland contractors on a QBCC Queensland Flood Register as their first point of call for flood recovery work.