Business owners are opting out of claiming damages through insurance to avoid spike in premium

CRIME affected business owners are shying away from claiming damages in a bid to avoid seeing their insurance premiums skyrocket

Jason Hanna says he rarely claims on his insurance policy, unless the damages are significant. Picture: Katrina Bridgeford.

BUSINESS owners repeatedly hit by thieves are shying away from claiming damages in a bid to avoid their insurance premiums skyrocketing.

Restaurateur Jason Hanna said he rarely claimed damages at his businesses to avoid an ­insurance premium spike.

Mr Hanna said the cost of the excess was about the same price of a new sheet of glass – about $500.

“We have insurance for many different reasons and we just don’t want to paint a picture of a war zone to insurance companies down south who will think ‘what the f--k is ­happening up there’,” Mr Hanna said.

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He said Biz Secure, an NT government-run program that provides funds to businesses for security upgrades, had helped to stop property crime and theft.

Hospitality NT chief executive Alex Bruce said the impact of break-and-enters and property damage affected the hip pocket of the business owner as well as customers.

“Ultimately, it affects their viability and potentially how much a customer has to pay when they come into these ­venues,” Mr Bruce said.

“We are all absorbing the cost of higher crime that’s going on right now.”

Chamber of Commerce chief executive Greg Ireland said he had heard anecdotally business making the conscious decision not to claim on damages to avoid an increase in insurance fees in the long term.

January 2021: Jason Hanna’s Lazy Susan's Eating House at Cavenagh St, Darwin, was broken into. Picture: Supplied

“What it indicates is the ­repetitive nature of the crime is driving up the insurance costs and businesses are taking a longer-term outlook by absorbing those costs so their premium doesn’t go up,” Mr Ireland said.

“It’s a side-effect of the increased crime activity and the obvious logical thing is to reduce the crime and business won’t be faced with the issues of crime.”

Mr Ireland said the issue of crime had been around for some time, but had got worse.

“There is an obvious feeling within the community that they are not feeling heard and justified,” he said.

Mr Ireland urged business owners not to cancel their insurance policy even during tough times.

“I know during pretty tough economic times insurance is something businesses consider not paying. We would strongly encourage all businesses to keep their insurance up to date – we understand increasing costs is a significant burden for businesses,” he said.

A Cazalys Palmerston Club and the Palmerston Golf and Country Club spokesman said that the two venues had been hit more than 20 times in three years.

‘”You just don’t bother (claiming) – the excess is too high and secondly it stings you next year in the fees,” he said.

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“The sad thing about our situation is we’re a not-for-profit, every time we are spending $2000-$3000 to fix something that’s $2000-$3000 not going to sporting clubs.”

Berry Springs Tavern owner Ian Sloan said that they had decided whether to claim insurance on a case-by-case basis.

Mr Sloan said the most recent hit on the rural tavern would be claimed through ­insurance.

Exotic North Indian Cuisine co-owner Rajwinder Singh told the NT News on Thursday he would not be making a claim on his insurance due to the fact it would push up his premium.

Follow @JudithAisthorpe