The issuer of the mutual products described in this website is Taxi Care Club Limited, ABN 90 006 637 789 AFS Licence No. 292888. Taxicare Australia is authorised under its Australian Financial Services (AFS) Licence to:
(a) provide financial product advice for general insurance products and mutual risk products to retail and wholesale clients; and
(b) deal in a financial product by:
(i) issuing, applying for, acquiring, varying or disposing of a mutual risk product; and
(ii) applying for, acquiring, varying or disposing of a financial product on behalf of another person in respect of general insurance products and mutual risk products.
The mutual risk protection offered by Taxicare Australia is not insurance.
Taxicare Australia is not an insurer and is not authorised by the Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority or governed by the Insurance Act 1973. For this reason it is not subject to the provisions of the Insurance Act, which establishes the system of financial supervision for general insurers in Australia. Membership and discretionary protections are available on application to the issuer, Taxicare Australia.
See below for details of the procedures Taxicare Australia has in place to estimate its future liabilities and ensure that it has adequate financial resources.
If you decide to apply for membership of Taxicare Australia or have any questions on the covers that are available, please contact us. If your application is accepted and you apply for any of our covers, the cost of the cover we offer to you will be set out in your certificate of membership/invoice. Your invoice will include any government charges that apply. The types of costs, fees and charges that you might have to pay are all explained in the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS).
Information on this website may be subject to change from time to time. Where the change is not materially adverse, you will be able to find out the new information by phoning our local office in your State or by visiting this website. Any updated information will be given to you on request. If it becomes necessary, we will issue a supplementary or replacement PDS.
ASIC Regulation and Supervision
Taxicare Australia is regulated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and is subject to its supervision, the conditions of its AFS licence and the financial services laws in relation to the provision of its financial services.
Taxicare Australia holds a licence issued by ASIC (effective 7 November 2005) authorising it to issue, advise and deal as a financial services provider of mutual risk products. To obtain this AFS licence, Taxicare Australia had to undertake an extensive assessment process and supply proofs detailing its compliance arrangements and supply financial accounts to ASIC demonstrating that Taxicare Australia has sufficient financial resources.
One of Taxicare Australia's key licence conditions is to always have assets that exceed its liabilities which means that Taxicare Australia is required to lodge its annual audited accounts with ASIC and to report to ASIC if at any time it is unable to meet its ongoing licence conditions. Because Taxicare Australia is an AFS licensee with a retail client base the financial services laws require it to supply its members with certain disclosure documents (PDS/FSG). Please check that you have received a copy of these important documents.
Licence Condition 19 – Mutual Risk Products
Taxicare Australia's licence conditions require the Mutual to always have adequate financial resources to discharge its future liabilities or make payments to the holders of its product.
Under the Conditions forming part of AFS Licence No. 292888, Taxi Care Club Limited is required to inform a person applying for Membership and Protections at the time it makes an offer or issues a mutual risk product that:
(i) Taxi Care Club Limited is not authorised under the Insurance Act 1973 to conduct insurance business in; and
(ii) Taxi Care Club Limited and the product:
(A) are not subject to the provisions of the Insurance Act 1973, which establishes a system of financial supervision of general insurers in Australia; and
(B) are not regulated by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA).
Estimating future liabilities or future payments to members
When Taxicare Australia applied for its AFS licence it lodged with ASIC a set of financial projections detailing the likely income from contributions, claims costs, operational expenses and investments. These financial projections were in accordance with ASIC’s financial requirements for AFS licensees.
Taxicare Australia has developed a structured financial model which it will use to calculate:
(i) income to be received by Taxicare Australia from:
a. contributions;
b. commission or fees earned for arranging other financial products; and
c. interest on investments.
(ii) the outgoings to be paid by Taxicare Australia for:
a. fixed management costs;
b. the number of claims lodged each year;
c. the types of claims lodged for specific risks;
d. the delay in lodging claims; and
e. the cost of an average claim.
This structured financial model is based on Taxicare Australia being a fully funded mutual which sets aside funds each financial year to be used to pay future claims that may be made by members.
When calculating members' contributions it is assumed that in any financial year Taxicare Australia will not receive or pay all claims that members may be entitled to make in that financial year. The contribution of each member includes an amount that Taxicare Australia will put aside to meet these claims.
The Rules include provisions relevant to the day-to-day running of Taxicare Australia including provisions on how Members join Taxicare Australia, how Contributions are to be applied by Taxicare Australia and how and in respect of what risks, the Members may apply for protection.
The Rules also set out how the Board of Taxicare Australia deals with the financial aspects of Taxicare Australia including potential surpluses and potential deficits.
Will Additional Contributions Ever be Required?
In the event of a deficit, setting aside funds may draw on its reserves or may levy an Additional Contribution from Members in proportion to their respective Contributions. Any Additional Contribution payable by a Member in any financial will be limited to a maximum of 5% of the Contribution paid by that Member in the relevant financial year.
Taxicare Australia assesses its risk exposures each year and uses actuarial modelling to calculate the level of contribution levied on Members and closely monitors the model's predictions for claims incurred but not notified, as against claims notified and approved by the Board.
Strategies to Ensure Adequate Financial Resources to Meet Future Payments
Taxicare Australia will use its best endeavours to ensure that it has adequate financial resources to discharge future liabilities, or make future payments, to holders of the product. By:
(i) calculating Member Contributions in each financial year with the intention of recovering the budgeted cost projections (including claim costs) plus a budgeted surplus;
(ii) projecting financial years claims costs with the assistance of its consulting actuary;
(iii) purchasing appropriate insurance coverage via an APRA insurer, in protection of its contingent liabilities after striking the best balance between insurance and risk retention;
(iv) transferring from time to time (at the discretion of the Board) an agreed percentage of any surpluses to a general reserve;
(v) maintaining a conservative investment strategy; and by
(vi) preparing cash flow budgets on a monthly basis and monitoring actual against budget.
To reduce the risk of a call for Additional Contributions being made, Taxicare Australia has entered into indemnity arrangements with QBE Insurance (Australia) Limited to indemnify Taxicare Australia for any payments it may make to members that are in excess of Taxicare Australia 's self retention level of $15,000. In addition we hold Professional Indemnity Insurance.
Dated 15 August 2006
|
