on June 30 | in BUSINESSWISE, Featured, LIFEWISE, MONEYWISE | by admin | with No Comments

It’s that time of the year again, when South Africa finds itself in the grip of some very cold conditions. Winter brings rain, snow, wind and freezing cold temperatures in some parts of the country. From an insurance perspective, efforts to warm up homes and business premises bring about additional risks of damage to property and other assets. These include increased risk of fire due to faulty electrical appliances, gas appliances and open fires as well as burst geysers, and leaking or overflowing of water pipes as water freezes up. With load shedding a reality in South Africa, consumers should also be aware of the damage that can be caused by power surges.

Policyholders must keep in mind that insurance policies will not cover damage if it is caused by inadequate maintenance.

Steven Isaacs, Business Unit Manager for Retail: Gauteng at Lion of Africa Insurance, explains: “Insurance policies are not maintenance policies and they do not cover wear and tear. Policy contracts clearly state that policyholders must take all reasonable precautions to prevent loss or damage, bodily injury and accidents and should effect emergency repairs to property to prevent further damage.”

Consumers should also be aware that insurance policies do not cover loss, damage or bodily injury purposefully caused by you or any person acting in collusion with you. For example, the insurance policy will not cover damage by fire caused by a heater left on intentionally with the specific purpose of causing loss or damage to property. Therefore policyholders should take steps to prevent loss or damage to their assets, advises Isaacs.

These include:

• Fixing all leaking pipes and gutters, as the loss or damage as a result of bursting, leaking or overflowing of water devices, pipes or fixed oil-heating devices will be covered, but damage to the actual apparatus or pipes will not be covered.
• Inspecting roof tiles and fixing or repairing any loose tiles that can cause damage to your property in the event of severe weather conditions.
• Unplugging all electrical appliances not in use as this will prevent these appliances from being damaged by lightning.
• Making sure that all electrical wirings are securely insulated as exposed electrical wiring is dangerous and a severe fire hazard.

Appliances used to warm up homes – be they electrical or gas heaters, wooden fire places or electric blankets – present real fire hazards if home owners do not take proper care. Isaacs advises consumers to make sure that electric heaters are switched off and plugs are removed from the wall sockets when leaving home. If you use a gas heater, it should also be switched off and the gas bottle properly shut down or closed.

Fire places have open flames which could set combustible materials alight. To prevent house fires, make sure that there are no combustible materials in close proximity to such open flames. Most hardware shops sell protective fire covers that will prevent sparks from reaching other materials and potentially starting a fire. It is also important to make sure that all the coals and embers in open fire places are extinguished before going to bed. With load shedding a feature of South African life, we need to be aware of the risk of power surges which occur when the electrical charge is boosted at some point in the power lines. Surges can happen when the electricity is restored and can cause appliances, plant and equipment, alarm systems and other electronic devices to short-circuit, malfunction or even be destroyed – rendering them totally unusable.

Policyholders can protect their assets against these events by ensuring that their electrical appliances and electronic equipment are protected by power surge arrestors. Isaacs says that, up to a certain limit, most personal lines insurance policies cover refrigerator and deep freeze contents in the event that food is spoilt due to a breakdown or accidental damage to the unit, or a power failure.

However, most policies are very clear in stating that loss or damage as a result of intentional power-cuts by authorities or the deliberate withdrawals of power are not covered by these policies. “It is up to each individual policyholder to know what is stated in their specific policy contract, as contracts differ between insurers.”

Consumers should be aware of the effect of load shedding on alarm systems. If a burglary takes place because the alarm system was faulty or the back-up battery was flat, a claim for loss or damage as a result of this will most likely be rejected, says Isaacs.

Some important steps to prevent claims from being rejected as a result of a faulty alarm system can include:

-          Test the system regularly by activating the system on purpose or let your alarm company know that you will be testing the system.

-          Ask your alarm company to service the system on a twice yearly basis.

-          Switch the electricity off to see if the battery is in a working condition.

-          Secure your home: if the power goes out, ensure that your home or business is locked up and adequately secured, in order to reduce the risk of a burglary.

-          Have back-up batteries for fences and gates to ensure electric fencing and gates will still work during load shedding. It is important that backup batteries are installed and maintained in proper working order.

Policyholders must inform their insurance company or broker when they have generators installed, and it should be noted on their policy. Just as for gas installations, generators are required to be installed according to certain regulations. Policyholders must ensure that generator installations comply with the South African National Standard (SANS) 19142-1:2003.

A special warning regarding load shedding in winter is that policyholders should switch off and unplug all heating appliances during the power outages. This will ensure that, once power is restored, the heaters will not automatically be turned on in a potentially empty home.

Finally, motor vehicles are also exposed to winter conditions and due care should also be taken to protect vehicles from damage caused by electrical faults and open flames.

With proper maintenance, awareness and precautions, policyholders can ensure that they are well protected through the cold winter months, concludes Isaac.

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