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Policies
The General Insurance Code of Practice
Since 1 January 2022, our insurer HDI Global Specialty SE - Australia (ABN 58 129 395 544, AFSL 458776) is a signatory to the General Insurance Code of Practice (Code). The Code outlines the standards that insurers need to deliver. It lets you know what you should expect from your insurance company.
Introduced by the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA), the Code sets out the standards that general insurers must meet when providing services to their customers. It also sets out timeframes for general insurers to respond to claims, complaints and requests for information from customers.
The objectives of the Code are:
to commit us to high standards of service;
to promote better, more informed relations between us and you;
to maintain and promote trust and confidence in the General Insurance industry;
to provide fair and effective mechanisms for the resolution of complaints and disputes you make about us; and
to promote continuous improvement of the General Insurance industry through education and training.
The Code Governance Committee is an independent body that monitors and enforces insurers’ compliance with the Code as well as identifying areas for improvement of insurance practices and helping the general insurance industry understand and comply with the Code.
Anyone can report alleged breaches of the Code to the Code Governance Committee at any time.
Further information about the Code or the Code Governance Committee and your rights under it is available at https://insurancecouncil.com.au/cop/
This Privacy Policy (this Privacy Policy) sets out how ARAG Services Australia Pty Ltd ACN 627 823 198 (‘we’, ‘our’ or ‘us’) handles personal information in accordance with the principles of the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (Privacy Act).
By accessing and using the website at www.arag.com.au (“our Website”) or providing us with your personal information by any other means, you consent to us collecting, holding, using and/or disclosing any of your personal information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.
This Privacy Policy may change over time in light of changes to privacy laws, technology and business practices. If you use our Website regularly or enter into communication with us that involves the collection of your personal information, it is important that you check this Privacy Policy to ensure that you are aware of the extent of any consent, authorisation or permission you might give.
We collect personal information, including sensitive information, where we consider it to be reasonably necessary for one or more of our business functions or activities, and will do so in accordance with the Privacy Act.
'Personal Information' means information or opinion about an identified individual, or an individual who is reasonably identifiable.
‘Sensitive information’ is personal information and includes information about an individual’s health, genetics, race, political opinion or membership, religion, philosophical beliefs, union membership, sexual orientation and criminal record.
Examples of the types of personal information which we collect may include but are not limited to: name, address and contact details, date of birth, gender, professional qualifications, licences held, financial information, health information, employment history, residency status, insurance and claims history, residency status, criminal records and driving records.
We collect personal information, including sensitive information, relating to insurance policies quoted, issued, varied and renewed, claims made on insurance policies, users of our Website and document centre (including creation of an account) and when you participate in a promotion or survey. We collect personal information for the purpose of assessing applications for insurance, administering insurance policies, including any claims and providing you access to our document centre.
Your personal information is collected by us with your consent, which is generally obtained directly from you:
during the application and/or renewal of your insurance cover;
during any claims process;
when you log in for and use services offered through our Document Centre including when creating a user account for this service;
when you call us, email us or contact us by any other means (or when we contact you by any means);
when you participate in competitions, surveys or promotions; and
as otherwise permitted by law.
Sometimes, we may collect information through third parties, including:
our third-party service providers (including marketing agencies, credit reporting agencies, public sources, or promotional partners or distributors or brokers of our products and services);
we may collect information from another person on the policy (for example, the person setting up the policy under which you are insured);
if you are a group customer or your premiums are paid via a payroll deduction, we may collect information from your employer or insurance broker, as the case may be;
if you have transferred to us from another legal expense insurer, we may collect information from that legal expense insurer; and
by using tracking technologies such as cookies, web beacons and other web analytics software or services.
There is also information about your computer hardware and software that is automatically collected by us. This information can include: your IP address, browser type, domain names, access times and referring website addresses. This information is used by us for the operation of our service, to maintain quality of the service, and to provide general statistics regarding use of our Website.
If you have provided us with information about another person who is covered by the legal expense policy, then you must obtain that person’s consent to do so and tell them that you have given their personal information and data to us, that they have a right to access their information and to refer them to this Privacy Policy for further details on how we handle their personal information and data. If you are a named insured, we assume that you have consented to providing us with all information required to process a claim when a policyholder lodges a claim on your behalf.
You can refuse to provide personal information or choose not to identify yourself, deal with us on an anonymous basis or use a pseudonym. However, a refusal may mean that the product or service you requested is not provided or your application is forfeited or declined.
We can only use and disclose your personal information for the purpose it was collected, unless the use or disclosure for another purpose is with your consent or otherwise permitted by law.
We may use your personal information and data in our business operations including to:
process your application for insurance;
generally administer your legal expense insurance policy;
manage the claims process;
arrange for legal services to be provided to you;
provide you with access to any document centre or customer account portal;
provide you with access to our Broker Web Portal where authorised brokers can submit policy applications and purchase policies on behalf of their clients;
to process any invoices, claims payments or other payments;
contact you in respect of the products and services we provide to you or other matters relating to you;
answer your enquiries and generally provide customer service to you;
resolve complaints;
carry out internal business activities, including administration, quality and compliance reviews, risk management (including claims auditing), training, accounting, audit and information technology;
work with insurance intermediaries and distributors and group policy holders;
develop our products and services;
conduct market research and analysis;
conduct surveys or marketing promotions; and
comply with laws and regulations.
We may disclose your personal information to:
HDI Global Speciality SE – Australian (HDI), as HDI acts as the insurer in respect of the legal expense insurance policies and with whom we have a binding authority to issue its legal expense insurance and settle claims as well as administer these policies on behalf of HDI (The privacy policy of HDI is found at https://www.hdi-specialty.com/int/en/legals/privacy);
our related corporate entities for the purpose of performing our functions, disaster recovery practices, reinsurers or corporate reporting, including technology or data storage services. These related entities may be located overseas in any of the countries in which ARAG operates including, but not limited to, Germany and the United Kingdom. Accordingly, personal information may be accessed from, transferred to, and/or stored outside the country in which you are located. When we disclose your information overseas, we take steps to ensure that our related bodies corporate or other service providers are obliged to protect the privacy and security of your personal information;
reinsurers, third-party claims administrators, lawyers and mediators in connection with your legal expense insurance policy with us;
in connection with insurance related issues:
A. investigators and assessors to investigate and assess claims and related matters, to defend actions by third parties, to recover our costs (including amounts owed to us) or to seek a legal opinion;
B. witnesses, to obtain witness statements;
C. experts including medical experts to provide us with opinions;
D. other parties to a claim to obtain statements from them, seek recovery or defend an action;
A. investigators and assessors to investigate and assess claims and related matters, to defend actions by third parties, to recover our costs (including amounts owed to us) or to seek a legal opinion;
B. witnesses, to obtain witness statements;
C. experts including medical experts to provide us with opinions;
D. other parties to a claim to obtain statements from them, seek recovery or defend an action;
service providers and third parties engaged by us or engaged to carry out business activities on our behalf, to administer your policy, arrange and provide legal advice, supply documents and for us to carry out internal business activities;
other entities within the ARAG Group or the HDI corporate group who may be located overseas, credit reference agencies, our advisers, our agents, our administrators and those involved in the claims handling process (including assessors, investigators and others), for the purpose of assisting us and them in providing relevant services and products to you, or for the purpose of recovery or litigation;
our professional advisers, including our lawyers, accountants and auditors;
if you applied for your insurance policy through a broker or other agent, we may disclose your information to that party for the purposes of setting up and maintaining your insurance policy;
group policy holders for the issue and administration of your insurance and claims made by you under the insurance policy;
people listed as co-insured on your insurance policy and to family members or any person acting on your behalf; and
any person authorised by you.
We (or a third-party providing services to us) may use cookies, pixel tags, “flash cookies”, or other local storage provided by your browser or associated applications (each a “Cookie” and together “Cookies”). A Cookie is a small file that may be placed on your computer when you visit our Website.
Cookies may be used to provide you with our services, including to identify you as a user of our Website and our document centre, remember your preferences, customise and measure the effectiveness of our Website and our promotions, advertising and marketing, analyse your usage of our Website and services, and for security purposes.
Cookies are widely used in order to make websites work, or work more efficiently, as well as to provide information to the site owners, such as which pages you find useful or not. Some cookies are only stored temporarily and are deleted when the browser is closed. Other cookies are stored for a longer period of time or permanently or until an expiration date is reached or until manual deletion from your browser cache.
Cookies are sent to your browser by a website and then stored in the cookies directory of your device. To check and update your cookies settings, you will need to know what browser you are using and what version of it you have. You can usually find this out by opening the browser (just as if you were going to use the internet) and then clicking on 'Help' and then 'About'.
To find out how to allow, block, delete and manage the cookies on most standard web browsers, go to www.allaboutcookies.org and select the browser and version you are using. You'll also find information about how to delete cookies from your computer. If you choose to have your browsers refuse cookies, this may prevent you from taking full advantage of this website.
You also may encounter Cookies used by third parties and placed on certain pages of our website that we do not control and have not authorised (such as webpages created by another user). We are not responsible nor liable for the use of such Cookies.
Our Website may also include links to third party websites (including links created by users or members) and applications (“Linked Sites”). Organisations who operate Linked Sites may collect personal information including through the use of Cookies. We are not responsible nor liable for Linked Sites and recommend that you read the privacy policies of such Linked Sites before disclosing your personal information. For the avoidance of doubt Linked Sites are not subject to this Privacy Policy.
By submitting your information you consent to the use of that information as set out in this policy. If we change our cookies policy we will post the changes on this page. Continued use of the service will signify that you agree to any such changes.
Our website uses Google Analytics, a service which transmits website traffic data to Google servers in the United States and/or European Union. Google Analytics does not identify individual users or associate your IP address with any other data held by Google. We use reports provided by Google Analytics to help us understand website traffic and webpage usage.
Please note, by using this website, you consent to the processing of data about you by Google in the manner described in 'How Google uses data when you use our partners' sites or apps' which is located at www.google.com/policies/privacy/partners.
To keep track of your selection, we save your settings together with the complete IP address.
In addition, there is the possibility in the current internet browsers to customise the use of cookies of your own browser.
We hold your personal information on our databases. We take all reasonable steps to securely retain any information we hold. We maintain security systems and procedures to manage and protect the use of records containing personal information. We regularly review our systems to ensure they are effective at keeping your personal information secure.
The reasonable steps we take include protecting the information from misuse or loss and from unauthorised access, modification or disclosure.
Where we no longer require your personal information for a permitted purpose under the APPs, we will take reasonable steps to destroy it.
Even after you cancel your account with us, we will retain your information for as long as we reasonably need it for the purposes outlined in this Privacy Policy. For example, we may retain your information to prevent fraud, or to maintain systems security. We may also retain your information if required or allowed to by law, regulation or relevant standards and codes of conduct, or to fulfil our contractual obligations to a third party. In certain circumstances, including where we are prevented by technical or systems constraints, we may not be able to remove all of your personal information.
The transmission and exchange of information is carried out at your own risk. We cannot guarantee the security of any information that you transmit to us, or receive from us. Although we take measures to safeguard against unauthorised disclosures of information, we cannot assure you that personal information that we collect will not be disclosed in a manner that is inconsistent with this Privacy Policy.
You are responsible for ensuring that your personal information is accurate, current and complete.
We will provide you with access to any information held about you on your request. For your protection, we may require you to confirm your identity before access to your personal information is granted.
In limited circumstances access may be refused if required or permitted by law. For example, you may be refused access to your personal information which relates to:
anticipated or existing legal proceedings where that information could not be subject to a process of discovery;
information regarding our negotiations with you; and
legal advice we have received in relation to your claim.
Access may be refused where providing access poses a serious threat to life, health or safety or if access may have an unreasonable impact on the privacy of other individuals.
If we refuse to provide you with access to your personal information, that decision will be detailed to you in writing.
We do not charge a fee to access your personal information.
If you would like to access to your information or to correct personal information we hold about you, please make the request in writing using the contact details provided below.
We may send you direct marketing communications and information about our products and services that we consider may be of interest to you.
These communications may be sent in various forms, including mail, SMS, fax and email, in accordance with applicable marketing laws, such as the Spam Act 2003 (Cth). If you indicate a preference for a method of communication, we will endeavour to use that method whenever practical to do so.
In addition, at any time you may opt-out of receiving marketing communications from us by contacting us (see the details below) or by using opt-out facilities provided in the marketing communications and we will then ensure that your name is removed from our mailing list.
You can contact us on the details below to make a complaint about us handling your personal information.
We are committed to acknowledging your complaint in a prompt manner. We will review your complaint, and will respond to you after we have carefully considered it (which may require further information from you).
We reserve the right to review, change, update, or withdraw this Privacy Policy from time to time. We encourage you to periodically review this Privacy Policy to be informed of how we protect your information.
If you wish to contact us about the handling of your personal information, accessing or correcting your information or to make a complaint, please contact:
Privacy Officer
ARAG Services Australia Pty Ltd
Post: PO Box Q94, Queen Victoria Building NSW 1230
E-mail:
If you receive communications purporting to be connected with us or our services that you believe have been sent to you other than in accordance with this Privacy Policy, or in breach of any law, please contact us immediately.
If you have any concerns or wish to make a complaint about how we have treated your Personal Information, or whether we have complied with the Privacy Act, please contact us.
If you complain to us and feel that your complaint has not been satisfactorily resolved you can contact:
The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner:
Post: GPO Box 5218 SYDNEY NSW 2001
Email:
Phone: 1300 363 992
Website: www.oaic.gov.au
Domestic Violence Policy
This Domestic Violence Policy sets out how ARAG Services Australia Pty Ltd ABN 14 627 823 198 (ARAG Australia) supports customers in the situation where they are the victim of domestic and family violence (this Policy).
If you have a legal expense insurance product with us and you are in a situation where you are the victim of domestic violence, please let us know so we can do all we can to assist you. If you’re in an emergency or unsafe, please call the police on 000.
The safety of our customers and their family members affected by family violence is paramount. If you need support, please call 1800 RESPECT, a national help and support line that is available 24/7 for counselling and support services.
Domestic and family violence can happen to anyone. It generally involves violent, threatening or abusive behaviour enacted by a current or former family member, with the intention of coercion or control, causing fear or harm.
physical violence
sexual assault
emotional or verbal abuse
psychological abuse or controlling behaviour
stalking
financial abuse, and
abuse of older Australians
We understand that the issues of family and domestic violence are complex. Victims may struggle with immediate issues in crisis or ongoing issues in the longer term.
We recognise that everyone’s situation and needs are different, but we are committed to supporting our customers and our employees if and when they experience domestic and family violence.
This policy outlines our processes to help you if you are experiencing family or domestic violence. It outlines the principles and processes we adhere to in assisting you and ensures our team can provide timely and consistent assistance.
We are committed to assisting our customers who may be affected by Family Violence with sensitivity, dignity, respect and compassion. We will consider your security and financial hardship circumstances where applicable.
If you advise us that you are affected by domestic or family violence, we undertake to treat you with respect and dignity and exercise discretion and sensitivity, and make sure your safety is paramount.
minimise the number of times that you need to disclose information about your situation
handle your claims process with the utmost care
prioritise your safety, by protecting sensitive, private and confidential information
refer you to specialist services, and
engage with you with sensitivity, dignity, respect and compassion
If you are on a call with one of our team and you can tell us about your circumstances or concerns, please do this so we can offer support and assistance in a timely manner.
We will handle your complaint with sensitivity, flexibility and care where:
A. the alleged perpetrator has caused the claim or is involved in relation to the subject matter of the complaint — for example, by damaging the property the subject of the complaint, or
B. you and the alleged perpetrator are joint policyholders.
We will not require you to do either of the following (unless you are comfortable doing so):
A. make direct contact with the alleged perpetrator; or
B. make a police report about the alleged perpetrator
If you hold a joint policy – i.e. someone else is named on your policy as well as you, we will:
consider the potential risks to your personal safety and weigh up our obligations relating to joint policy holders
ensure we’re paying the appropriate beneficiaries under a policy pertaining to the particular claim and circumstances.
Privacy can be critical to your safety in any domestic and family violence situation.
We will handle your personal information in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and any other applicable laws. We are committed to the security of your personal information and will engage with you to determine your preferred methods of communication.
Depending on your personal circumstances, we can:
help keep your contact information on our systems secure and confidential
help you manage how your personal information is shared with other parties, and
discuss safe ways to communicate with you.
Precautions we take when communicating may include:
finding a mutually appropriate time to talk on the phone
assessing whether it’s safe to send text messages or leave voice messages on the phone, and
sending information separately — if you’re a joint policy holder, we may need to send information to two different mail or email addresses.
We will not disclose your personal information to the alleged perpetrator of the Family Violence if you tell us who they are, even if they are a joint policyholder, unless we are required to do so by law. We recommend that you update any personal security codes you use to prevent the alleged perpetrator from accessing your information, especially if the codes are based on information they may be aware of.
Queensland Government:
Financial and Hardship Policy
This Financial Hardship Policy sets out how ARAG Services Australia Pty Ltd ABN 14 627 823 198 (ARAG Australia) is making a difference when dealing with insurance claims, so if support with any of our insurance claim services is needed, we are prepared to help (this Policy).
It is our purpose to go beyond and make a difference when dealing with insurance claims, so If you need support with any of our insurance claim services, we are here to help you.
If you’re in financial stress and are unable to pay money owed to us, we may - in certain circumstances - agree to:
offer instalment payments
delay or extend payment terms
put the recovery of monies on hold
release your debt (where appropriate)
agree with you to pay a reduced lump sum amount
deduct an excess from a claim amount (cash settlement), and/or
give you access to our financial hardship support team.
Our agents have been trained to manage financial distress. However, you may still contact us. If you tell our collection agent or solicitor that you’re in financial distress they must notify us and will give you information in writing about our Financial Hardship process.
If you’re going through financial hardship, please contact us. We’ll provide you with a form to apply for financial support and help you through the application process. Please let us know if we can help refer you to external services such as community support and financial counselling services.
We support all our customers and their communities by responding to catastrophes and natural disasters efficiently, professionally and compassionately.
If a natural disaster has meant you have to make a claim under your policy and caused you financial hardship, we may:
fast track both our assessment of your claim and the process we follow to decide about your claim, and/or
pay you an advance amount in order to ease your urgent financial need within 5 days once agreed. If you’re in this position, please let us know –we’re here to support you.
Here are free and confidential financial counselling resources that can provide advice to Australians in every state and territory:
Contact National Debt Helpline on 1800 007 007
Good Shepherd for affordable financial programs to people who are financially excluded
If you would like to discuss your insurance needs in a language other than English, our team and partners speak other languages, too. If yours is not one of those, we have an interpreter service available in more than 160 languages. Just ask our team member for an interpreter in your preferred language when you call or email us and they will arrange this for you where possible.
Relay and Teletypewriter (TTY) Services
The National Relay Service (NRS) is a government initiative that allows people who are deaf, hard of hearing and/or have a speech impairment to make and receive phone calls or to access TTY services. Full details on the NRS is available from their website
Access the Financial Hardship Application Form here.
If you have any questions or queries regarding how to fill out the form, or the application process, please contact our team on 02 8066 0162 (office hours Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 5.30pm AET).
ARAG Services Australia Pty Ltd (ABN 14 627 823 198) (ARAG) has been granted delegated authority by the Insurer to enter into, vary or cancel Policies and handle Claims on their behalf. In providing these services, ARAG acts on behalf of the Insurer and not as Your agent. ARAG is authorised to provide financial services in accordance with its Australian Financial Services Licence (AFS Licence number 513547). Any advice provided by ARAG in relation to this product is general in nature and does not take into account Your individual circumstances.
The Insurer is detailed in your policy documents.
All enquiries should be addressed to ARAG.
Any advice contained on this website is general advice only and has been prepared without considering your individual objectives, financial situation or needs. Before purchasing or renewing a product we recommend that you consider if it is suitable for your circumstances and read the policy terms and conditions.
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