What are lithium-ion batteries?

Lithium-ion batteries are the driving force behind many of our everyday electronic devices, including mobile phones, laptops, e-bikes, power tools, and more. These rechargeable power sources are known for their efficiency, but their unique composition can also pose fire risks if they are not handled properly.

Understanding the fire risks associated with lithium-ion batteries is essential. These batteries contain highly flammable electrolytes, and if a battery were to burst, it could release toxic and explosive gases. Such incidents can lead to intense, self-sustaining fires that are incredibly difficult to extinguish.

Understanding fire risks related to lithium-ion batteries

Incidents involving lithium-ion batteries highlight the need for caution. For example, a recent explosion from an e-bike left charging in a unit at North Bondi serves as a reminder of the potential fire risks associated with these batteries.

Several factors can increase the fire risk of lithium-ion batteries, including:

• Over charging; using non-compliant charging equipment can lead to overheating
• Physical Damage: Dropping or crushing the battery can cause internal failure
• Short-circuiting: Malfunctions within the battery or system can trigger fires
• Manufacturing defects: poor production quality can lead to unsafe batteries

According to an ACCC report, charging is the most common time for lithium-ion battery fires to occur. Fire services have collectively responded to over 1,000 lithium-ion battery fires since January 2023.

Implications for insurance regarding lithium-ion battery fire risks

Insurers are evaluating policy modifications to better manage the fire risks associated with lithium-ion batteries. It could include setting strict conditions for battery storage, adhering to manufacturer guidelines and ensuring purchases are from reputable suppliers.

To help mitigate the risks related to lithium-ion battery use, we recommend seeking advice from independent risk management professionals that specialise in your industry. They can help you develop adequate policies and procedures for the use, maintenance and disposal of lithium-ion devices within your business. When implemented, it provides evidence to insurers that you actively try to mitigate and monitor fire risk.

How to mitigate the fire risks of lithium-ion batteries?

Staying informed about lithium-ion battery safety is essential in our tech-driven world. Here are five tips that safety experts recommend for managing the fire risks associated with lithium-ion batteries:

1. Check Product Quality

Ensure all products meet local safety standards and purchase devices from authorised dealers. Avoid cheap or counterfeit chargers that may lack essential safety features.

2. Conduct Regular Inspections

Safety experts recommend maintaining an inspection register for all lithium-ion battery devices, including age, quality, and performance. They recommend scheduling regular inspections of devices using lithium-ion batteries and having a device replacement program. Should you notice any faults, damage or the batteries, reach the end of their usable life, it is recommended that you stop using the battery immediately and follow the correct procedures for replacement and disposal.

It is advisable to monitor for product recalls and take note of device safety notices. Fire incidents within general waste are on the rise due to improper disposal of batteries, increasing the risk for workers at refuse and recycling stations. Check out the local recycling programs to see what’s available in your area.

3. Educate Occupants & Staff

Safety experts recommend that staff and residents are aware of fire safety procedures, including the location and use of fire extinguishers.

4. Install Safety Equipment

Fire safety experts recommend regular inspections of fire extinguishers and fire safety equipment to ensure they are easily accessible in the event of a fire. They also recommend monitoring cell voltage, currents and temperature to reduce fire risk, especially in areas that store devices with batteries or battery banks.

5. Follow Manufacturer Guidelines

Manufacturers recommend that lithium-ion batteries are charged according to the manufacturer’s instructions to minimise fire risk. They set out the best practices for charging and storing their devices. It may include charging devices in well-ventilated areas away from direct sunlight and ensuring they are not covered or enclosed while charging.

Manufacturers recommend device charging periods to ensure users avoid charging their products longer than required or overnight. They often recommend unplugging devices once they reach full charge to protect battery life and storing lithium-ion battery devices at 40-60% charge.

How to seek advice on transferring risk to insurance

Insurance is a valuable tool for risk transfer. As risk and insurance advisers, we can help you identify the risks to your business and guide you through the options available to transfer those risks to insurance. Clear Insurance offers a no-obligation risk and insurance review, resulting in a detailed gap analysis report of your current risk transfer and insurance program. This report empowers you to make informed decisions about whether to keep, mitigate or transfer risks to insurance.

We also recommend seeking advice from professionals on matters such as HR, legal, risk management, health and safety and insurance replacement valuations to ensure you have robust policies, procedures and valuations in place to reduce the risk of claims.

A proactive risk strategy enables you to present an accurate picture of your business and operations to insurers, allowing them to assess whether to underwrite the risk and determine the premium cost. 

Contact Clear Insurance today for advice on your risk transfer and insurance needs.

Your business may not be directly at risk of bushfire damage; however, you may be subject to supply chain or access issues that impact daily operations.

Here are 5 things you can do today to prepare your business for bush fire season:

1. Check your insurance cover.

Experienced insurance brokers can guide you through your current insurance program. They can explain any gaps in cover that may leave you vulnerable or reassure you that all is well.

Advisers protect your interests. They use their expertise to negotiate the best cover for your needs and budget.

2. Prepare Your Bushfire Emergency Plan

It’s vital to have a plan for that works for any emergency. It ensures staff know what to do, who to contact, how to stay safe and the steps they can take now to help minimise damage.

Its critical to discuss the plan with staff and provide adequate training. Don’t write it and leave it in the drawer.

Check out the Federal Government’s guidance on developing an emergency management plan. It includes templates and advice designed to help you.

The Australian Disaster Resilience Knowledge Hub is another great resource which includes business emergency planning tools for every State and much more.

3. Know Your Bushfire Risk

Interactive maps from the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) are a great source of information. They include general data, details of recovery projects, areas impacted by fire, cyclones or floods based on historical data and can help you find local recovery and support services.

4. Stay Up to Date with Local Bushfire Information

Your local emergency services and weather channels provide updates and warnings. These can help you prepare and decide when to leave. It can help you plan for delivery delays or access issues for customers and suppliers.

Find and follow your local emergency services organisation. The list below is a good place to start:

• ACT Emergency Services Agency
• NSW Rural Fire Service
• NSW State Emergency Service
• Northern Territory Police, Fire & Emergency Services
• Queensland Fire and Emergency Services
• South Australia Fire and Emergency Services
• Tasmanian Department of Police, Fire & Emergency Management
• Victoria Emergency Management
• Western Australia Department of Fire & Emergency Services

5. Seek Advice

You don’t need to wait until insurance renewal time to ask for help. You can seek advice or review your insurance program at any time to ensure it continues to meet your changing needs. You can call Clear Insurance today on 1300 721 132 or complete our online enquiry form and an adviser will be in touch.

The 2019-2020 Australian bushfire season, known as the Black Summer, was a period of intense bushfires in many parts of Australia.

We look back at the stats of the devastating black summer bushfire season:

People and homes

• Sadly, 33 people lost their lives as a result of the Black Summer bushfires, including 9 firefighters
• 3094 houses destroyed

The bushfire season destroyed thousands of homes.

Wildlife and Landscapes

• Over one billion mammals, birds and reptiles died in the fires. Sadly, some species are now extinct due to the fires.

Billions of Australian wildlife suffered in bushfires.

• Around 17 million hectares of the land burned

Satellite images show how far the fires spread.

Help and Support

• Over 20 countries offered to help and assist with the black summer bushfires. Including, Canada, Denmark, Fiji, France, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Nauru, New Zealand, Palau, Papa New Guinea, Samoa, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Solomon Islands, South Korea, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Vanuatu, Western Cape and South Africa
• For the first time in the country’s history the Australian Defence Force deployed 3,000 personnel to help as part of Operation Bushfire Assist. During the operation they helped to:
  • clear and repair:
    • 4,848 km of roads
    • 1,287 km of fencing
    • 240 km of firebreaks
  • purify:
    • 3.9 million litres of water on Kangaroo Island
    • 6.1 million litres of water at Bega
  • provide:
    • over 77,262 meals to emergency services staff and locals
  • deliver:
    • 5.4 million litres of water
    • 73,300 litres of fuel and
    • 1.3 million kilograms of food for livestock

2019/2020 Operation Bushfire Assist

• A total of 6380 firefighter & volunteer firefighters fought the fires and gave on the ground support

Firefighters and volunteer firefighters battle out of control bushfires.

The Recovery

If you’d like to a talk to an insurance adviser about transferring risks to insurance or to better understand your existing insurance program, you can contact Clear Insurance on 1300 721 132 or complete our online enquiry form and an adviser will be in touch.

You can read the original article on 5 Workplace Fire Statistics on the Fire Safety Australia website.

If you would like to discuss your insurance program with an experienced adviser, you can contact Clear Insurance on 1300 721 132 or complete our online enquiry form.

Click here to view the original article ‘5 Workplace Fire Statistics’.

A fire truck from 100 years ago shows how little protection firefighters had.

Todays fire trucks include water curtains, heat shields, and so much more technology to keep firefighers safe.

2. Bushfire Detection

Imagine a system that could detect any bushfire in Australia within minutes of ignition so firefighters could tackle the blaze before it spreads? A Queensland company, Fireball International, has recently announced the first purpose-built satellite for fire detection in Australia. Scheduled to launch next year, the satellite is the first of a planned constellation of 24 that will monitor Australia from low Earth orbit. Once the full system, including ground-based cameras and aerials drones is up and running, it will be able to spot fires within ONE MINUTE of ignition. That may sound like a bold claim, but it’s consistent with the goals of other organisations working on similar technology. Within five years, experts say, we could have a national system of automated bushfire surveillance.

Flashback to the 1900’s when ‘Fire Spotters’ climbed trees and towers and would watch the horizon for the first sign of a bushfire. This early form of lookouts were often just a clearing on top of a hill or a tree with the head removed, a platform attached and spikes in the side of the tree for the observer to climb.

A fire tower was spikes on the side of a tall tree that someone would climb to a platform and look for fires.

3. Using sound waves to extinguish fire

One thing that could revolutionise firefighting is if it could be done without water or chemicals. In 2015, undergraduate engineering students Seth Robertson and Viet Tran at George Mason University in the US have devised one way of doing this thanks to a fire extinguisher equipped with sound waves. Their prototype extinguisher uses low-frequency soundwaves between 20 and 120 Hz, weighs around 9 kg and uses mains power.

The principle behind the extinguisher is simple: as they are mechanical pressure waves that cause vibrations in the medium in which they travel, sound waves have the potential to manipulate both burning material and the oxygen that surrounds it. If the sound could be used to separate the two, the fire would be starved of oxygen and, accordingly, would be snuffed out.” The duo has since founded a company, Force SV, to commercialise the idea, and they have licensed the technology to see it further developed and implemented.  There is, however, a difference between putting out small household fires and the bushfires that eat up hectares of forest and destroy entire towns. One problem with scaling the technology is that it doesn’t cool the flames, so there’s a risk that the fire could catch again when the sound is switched off. That doesn’t mean the technology couldn’t be used via drone or swarm robotics to assist with traditional firefighting, but it does mean there’s little chance that the future of firefighting will involve teams of DJs dropping a sick bass beat.

Rewind 100 years ago, and what would people do if there was no access to water? Where water wasn’t easily accessible firefighters would beat fires out with sticks and wet bags or canvas and created fire breaks by raking the dry grass and leaves towards the fire. Fire break (or fire roads) are still used today however there was definitely no such thing as sound waves back then.

Trying to stop a fire with a wet burlap bag.

Seth Robertson and Viet Tran, electrical and computer engineering students, test their sound-blasting fire-extinguisher prototype.

No matter how much technology improves, there will still be the risk of bushfires and fires happening. Whether your business is rural, industrial or in the city you can never be over prepared.

If you would like to discuss your insurance program with an experienced adviser, you can contact Clear Insurance on 1300 721 132 or complete our online enquiry form..

We all know a business fire is devastating. However, even a minor fire can significantly impact a business. 

A few years back, a small fire broke out in a tenancy located in an older commercial building. Thankfully, fire services responded quickly in the early hours of the morning, containing the fire with minimal physical damage to five other business tenants.

Nonetheless, the entire building suffered extensive smoke damage. Thus, all tenants lost 1-2 weeks of income while the property was made safe and thoroughly cleaned. However, there was a further 3-month impact on trading during the replacement of the old roof trusses.

So, it’s not just the rebuild and reinstatement timeframes a business should consider following a fire. Other factors may also include:

• the physical and mental health impacts on staff
• reputational damage following the loss of life or severe injuries
• time delays in replacing essential or specialist plant and equipment
• time spent dealing with insurance claims and attending court cases and investigations
• environmental damages including impact on cultural heritage
• fines and penalties

Here are 5 ways to mitigate and protect your livelihood from the financial and secondary effects of a business fire. 

Fires within a business can have major implications that can go beyond damage to buildings and stock.

 

1. Establish a Fire Safety & Evacuation Plan

You can reduce the risks of injury and the impact to staff by establishing a Safety & Evacuation Plan that you review and update annually. It should provide clear information, such as:

• What to do in the event of a fire
• Where to gather in the event of an evacuation
• When and how to leave the building
• Identify the persons in charge during emergency situations
• An Emergency Kit which includes items, such as:
  • Spare laptop/mobile phone, chargers & batteries
  • Emergency phone numbers beyond 000 including electricity, gas, water & telecommunications companies; staff next of kin; insurance company details.
  • First aid kit & manual
  • Fresh water
  • Digital or physical copy of vital business records including insurance policies, financial records, key supplier & customer details
  • Details of latest stock & equipment inventory, including photos of, or receipts for, equipment if applicable
  • Spare keys for buildings, vehicles & equipment
  • Hardcopy of your disaster recovery plan
• A fire safety training schedule for all staff

Does your business have an evacuation plan in place?

 

2. Prepare a Disaster Recovery Plan

The best way to maintain cash flow after a business fire is to plan and evaluate your risks before disaster strikes. Therefore, a Disaster Recovery Plan will place your business in a stronger position should a business fire or other emergency occur.

The act of preparing the plan will help you develop a clear understanding of what the business must do to minimise disruption for staff, customers and more. While we know every business is unique, the main items to consider when building a disaster recovery plan are:

• The type and severity of all potential business risks,
• The resources the company will need to keep going, where to find them and their availability,
• 2-3 commercial buildings the business can use as temporary or permanent premises
• A budget and cashflow plan to support the business in the event of a disaster 
• The business needs following major and smaller partial loss scenarios
• A plan to manage business data and data recovery
• A communication plan that sets out how, when and what you will communicate to staff, customers and suppliers regarding working arrangements, temporary premises, new contact details, customer orders or other contractual obligations.

Always have a backup plan in case a devastating event occurs to your business.

 

3. Purchase Quality Business Interruption/Loss of Profits Insurance

Not all insurance covers are equal. However, you can protect your business interests by setting accurate sums insured and sub-limits, for instance.

Importantly, there are other factors you can consider. So, for insurance cover, consider:

• Purchasing a minimum of 12 months indemnity cover or 24 months if you own the building
• Insuring your gross trading profit, not gross accounting profit
• Purchasing 100% cover for wages to help retain staff to avoid additional recruitment and training costs
• Including an additional 10% of your gross profit sum insured to cover any increases in operating costs
• Using forecast or budget financial data to set accurate sums insured and avoid underinsurance
• Including the costs of hiring specialist advice in the event of a claim, such as a specialist accountant or legal counsel

Insurance brokers are experts in insurance, so they can work with you to understand your business operations and advise on the most appropriate risk and insurance solutions for your needs. Brokers can guide you to professionals that can determine the insurance replacement values of your property and other assets to set accurate sums insured and sub-limits.

4. Consider Management Liability Insurance

It’s advisable for any sizeable business to purchase a degree of Management Liability insurance. Although its primary purpose is to provide personal indemnity to directors and officers for their day-to-day management decisions, it can also cover: 

• Management time spent dealing with investigations or court proceedings following a business fire or workplace health and safety enquiry 
• Legal defence and reputation protection costs that may arise due to an investigation or claim against the business or its directors
• Fines and penalties that may result due to a fire or workplace injury 

Insurance brokers take into account your financial and business circumstances to advise on the most appropriate level of Management Liability insurance for your needs.

5. Retain the services of a qualified Risk and Insurance Broker

Risk and insurance brokers, like Clear Insurance Advisers, are experts in risk and insurance. They understand the market and the specific needs of different businesses and industries. Therefore, they can work with you to build your understanding of business risk and help you to decide whether to keep, mitigate or transfer your business risks to insurance.

Clear Insurance Advisers advocate for your business, helping you to negotiate, manage and expedite insurance claim settlements.

For peace of mind, book a no-obligation risk and insurance review to see how your current insurance program stacks up against your business risks.

If you would like to discuss your insurance program with an experienced adviser, you can contact Clear Insurance on 1300 721 132 or complete our online enquiry form.