The most significant fire season forecast in years
Following the "Black Summer" bushfires in 2019 and 2020, owners of both domestic and commercial properties around Australia have struggled to deal with the limited capacity and rising cost of bushfire insurance. For those who manage to obtain a quote, the cost can be prohibitively expensive.
Property owners have been scrambling to utilise available resources to implement their own risk management strategies to protect against the catastrophic personal and financial losses expected to hit this year on the back of extreme heat and fire warnings already in place for the 2023/24 summer.
Ground-breaking, fire-retardant undercoat paint
With recent news of Flame Security Australia's "FSA Firecoat" protective paint product, things may be about to change for the better. The product which has been researched and developed in conjunction withThe University of NSW, sets out to give Property Owners a significant tool in their armory to protect their property from burning down.
Justin Rooney, Founder and Managing Director of Flame Security Australia, shared with Channel 10 News "The product allows you to leave, and leave your property as safe as it can be". As the paint alights, it forms a charr layer over the underlying material, protecting it from catching alight any further. Testing demonstrated on the Channel 10 news clearly shows the benefit of the product on a small-scale fire.
The product is now available nationally at Bunnings Warehouse. Follow this link see product information.
Impact on Risk and Insurance
So what are the implications for insurance? The product is currently undergoing thorough testing by FM Global, the leading certifier in risk management standards across the insurance industry. Products certified by FM Global are generally widely accepted by the Insurance Market as being an adequate risk management tool. Should FM Global certify the product and its capabilities as currently stated, application of the product could have widespread ramifications on the market. This may allow Insurers to provide increased capacity and more competitive bushfire insurance products for hard to insure locations.
Furthermore, Flame Security Australia are working on several other supporting materials and products to compliment the paint, providing a more comprehensive risk management solution to property owners.
GSA and Steadfast work closely with Flame Security and we will provide further updates on progress and availability of the Flame Security Australia paint and products. This will form a key part of many risk management programs to better protects assets, and we forecast positive implications on the insurance landscape.
Our team is here to help. For more information, please get in touch.
