Target Market Determination – Personal Accident
Publication date: 5 October 2021
Important information
This Target Market Determination (TMD) is effective from 5 October 2021 and relates to the Sunderland Marine Personal Accident Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and policy wording. It is required under section 994B of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) and has been prepared by the product issuer The North of England Protecting and Indemnity Association Limited (trading as Sunderland Marine) AFSL 507074 ABN 33 624 528 123 (Sunderland Marine; we; the Issuer).
The TMD is designed to assist customers, distributors and Sunderland Marine staff to understand who this product has been designed for and who it is not suitable for. The TMD identifies triggers for Sunderland Marine to review the target market and sets out the conditions and restrictions on distribution of the product described below. It also sets out review triggers and reporting obligations of Sunderland Marine’s distributors.
This document is not a Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and is not a summary of the product features or terms of the product. It does not form part of your policy. To ensure you understand this TMD, please read your policy, the PDS (and any supplementary PDS issued from time to time) and any other document that we tell you forms part of your policy.
This document does not take into account any person’s individual objectives, financial situation or needs and is not intended to constitute personal advice. Persons interested in acquiring this product should carefully read the PDS before deciding whether to purchase this product.
This TMD is effective from the date of publication until its replacement or withdrawal.
Where a word is capitalised in this TMD and not otherwise defined, the definition of the word can be found in the policy wording/PDS.
Target Market Determination
1. Details
| Product name | Personal Accident Insurance |
| Publication date of TMD | 5 October 2021 |
| Initial review date | January 2022 |
| Frequency of subsequent Product reviews | At least every 24 months |
2. Product target market
What is the Product?
The Product is Sunderland Marine’s Personal Accident Insurance policy. Insured Persons covered by the Product are generally crew members of commercial vessels, although arrangements can be made to cover non-seagoing owners, connected persons and key personnel subject to our agreement and applicable underwriting criteria.
Any cover under the policy is subject to the terms, conditions, limitations and exclusions set out in the policy. In order to determine if this insurance coverage meets the customer’s needs, the PDS and the policy must be read in their entirety.
Key covers/attributes
The key attributes of the product are as follows:
| Name of benefit | Description | Up to |
| Capital sum benefits | Payable in the event of death, permanent total disablement, Permanent Partial Disablement or Injury of an Insured Person. | The maximum compensation amount selected and shown in the Policy Schedule. |
| Weekly benefits | Payable in the event of Temporary Disablement of an Insured Person. | The amount selected and shown in the Policy Schedule. |
The product has been designed to enable the customer to select their desired level of compensation for each benefit.
Target Market for the Product
The Product is designed for owners and operators of commercial vessels who:
- Are resident in Australia;
- Own and/or operate a vessel for commercial fishing;
- Own and/or operate a vessel for commercial purposes other than fishing but are not eligible for an appropriate workers’ compensation scheme;
- Have an appropriate licence to use their vessel;
- Employ or engage crew and/or other individuals in connection with the operation of their vessel;
- Wish to obtain an insurance policy covering monetary compensation for people connected with their vessel(s), including themselves if they are a natural person, up to but not exceeding their usual earnings in the event that they are prevented from earning income as a result of an injury;
- Wish to provide for a lump sum payment for people connected with their vessel(s), including themselves if they are a natural person, in the event of their death or permanent disablement;
- Comply with their vessel’s build plate and relevant laws and regulations;
- Take reasonable steps to maintain their vessel in a proper state of repair, condition and seaworthiness; and
- Take reasonable steps to protect their vessel from loss or damage.
Customers the Product was not designed for
The Product is not designed for customers who:
- Are resident outside Australia;
- Use their vessel for domestic or recreational purposes;
- Want to arrange compensation for individuals connected with their vessel, including themselves if they are a natural person, that exceeds the usual income earned by those individuals;
- Want to arrange to arrange compensation for individuals connected with their vessel, including themselves if they are a natural person, who have pre-existing medical conditions within the last five years and who are not named in the Policy;
- Wants to arrange to arrange compensation for individuals connected with their vessel, including themselves if they are a natural person, who are not aged between 15 and 70 years; or
- Are seeking cover for medical expenses for which a Medicare Benefit is payable under the Health Insurance Act 1973 (Cth) or for expenses which are capable of being the subject of health insurance under the National Health Act 1953 (Cth);
- Want cover for loss or damage to the hull and machinery and/or third party liabilities in connection with their vessel.
Customers’ likely objectives, financial situation and needs
Customers’ likely objectives are to provide for monetary compensation for people connected with their vessel(s) in the event that they are prevented from earning income as a result of an injury or death. Customers are likely to pay the Product premium from income received in connection with the operation of their vessel.
Customers should ensure they are comfortable with:
- the application of excesses in the event of claims made;
- the level of the sum(s) insured;
- the schedule of premium payments; and
- the application of exclusions in respect of certain events or elements referred to in the PDS and the Product policy wording.
3. Conditions/restrictions on Product distribution
| Condition/restriction | Description |
| Method of distribution | The Product can only be purchased through an insurance broker or intermediary appointed by customers to act on their behalf or directly from Sunderland Marine. In most circumstances, distribution is conducted by an intermediary or broker. Sunderland Marine does not provide personal advice, so any direct sales are conducted on a product-specific advice basis only.
The distribution method consists of a proposal form and email submission via an insurance broker or intermediary or directly to Sunderland Marine. |
| Underwriting criteria | In deciding whether to offer cover under the Product, we will consider various underwriting criteria including loss history and the level of benefits for which cover is sought. |
| Promotional material | Distributors are contractually required to seek our approval of any promotional material. |
| Distribution in accordance with TMD | The Product can only be distributed to a person in accordance with these conditions:
|
| Restrictions | The Product must not be distributed a person unless that person meets all the following criteria:
Sunderland Marine maintains a register of approved brokers we deal with who meet these criteria. |
Why the Product is consistent with the target market
Customers who obtain the Product in accordance with the distribution conditions set out above are likely to be in the target market for the Product because:
- They own and/or operate a commercial vessel;
- The Product provides protection sought by those owners, being monetary compensation for people connected with their vessel(s) (including themselves if they are a natural person) up to but not exceeding their usual earnings in the event that they are prevented from earning income as a result of a covered event; and
- They have approached Sunderland Marine to purchase the Product or have independently appointed a Distributor specialising in or otherwise having appropriate knowledge of the distribution of marine insurance to act on their behalf in order to purchase the Product.
4. Product Review
| Periods of review | The initial review of this TMD will occur no later than 12 months from the date this TMD is first published, or within 10 business days of an event or circumstance (Review Trigger) occurring that would reasonably suggest that the TMD is no longer appropriate.
This TMD will then be reviewed at least every 24 months. |
| Review Triggers | Any material change to the Product, including a change to the PDS. |
| Changes to relevant laws, regulatory guidance or industry codes. | |
| Any determination or feedback from regulators, the Australian Financial Complaints Authority, a court or a tribunal suggesting that the target market may no longer be appropriate (including the use of product intervention powers). | |
| The nature of feedback regarding the Product, including whether complaints have increased significantly from consumers or distributors. | |
| Distribution or purchasing of the Product in a manner significantly inconsistent with the TMD/occurrence of a significant dealing. | |
| Adverse trends in policy and claims data indicating the Product is not performing as expected by the customer. This may include trends such as significantly reduced uptake in the product, a significant increase in midterm cancellations and/or a significant increase in declined claims. | |
| Changes to Product pricing. | |
| External events such as adverse regulatory or media coverage. |
Review triggers are events that suggest the TMD may no longer be appropriate and may trigger a review prior to any periodic review as set out above. The review triggers for this product are set out in the table above.
To determine whether a trigger has occurred, we will collect and review the following information:
- Claim ratios;
- Number, nature and magnitude of paid, denied and withdrawn claims;
- Number of policies sold, including penetration rates;
- Policy lapse or cancellation rates;
- Average claim duration; and
- Information collected from our distributors under section 5 of this TMD.
5. Reporting obligations
Sunderland Marine’s third party distributors must report the following information to the contact details provided in section 6 below in order to ascertain whether or not the TMD remains appropriate to assist us in ensuring our product is and continues to be suitable for our customers.
Distributor reporting obligations
| Type of report | Description | Reporting period |
| Complaints | The number of complaints received regarding the Product during the reporting period and the nature and details of the complaints. Complaint is defined in the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) Regulatory Guide RG 271.
We may request further information about any complaints reported to us to enable us to establish any potential impact (if any) on the suitability, design and distribution of the Product. |
Within five business days of you receiving a complaint |
| Significant dealings | A significant dealing in the Product which is not consistent with this TMD must be notified to ASIC.
What amounts to a “significant dealing” will be determined by the circumstances of each case but generally regard should be had to:
If in doubt, distributors must report the dealing to us, so that we can undertake the necessary assessments. The report must include:
|
As soon as practicable and within 10 business days of becoming aware of the significant dealing. |
| Breaches | Any breach of your legal, regulatory, conduct or contractual obligations in respect of the distribution of the Product | Within three business days of you becoming aware of the breach |
| Sales information | Adverse trends in policy and claims data indicating the Product is not performing as expected by the customer. This may include trends such as significantly reduced uptake in the product, a significant increase in midterm cancellations and/or a significant increase in declined claims. | In accordance with existing contractual arrangements or within 30 business days of a request |
6. Contact us
The North of England Protecting and Indemnity Association Limited t/a Sunderland Marine
ABN 33 624 528 123 AFS Licence No. 507074
19 Agnes Street , Jolimont VIC 3002
Telephone: 03 9650 6288 | Fax: 0396506396
Email: australia@sunderlandmarine.com
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