NSW THOROUGHBRED RACING BOARD - Racing NSW

Premiums
Substantial increases in general
(Public Liability etc.) insurance
premiums have been the subject of
much publicity this year and the
thoroughbred racing industry has
not escaped in regards to either
increased premiums or publicity.
Some increase in workers’
compensation premiums has been
necessary for 2003/2004, but
certainly not on the scale of general
insurance.
The result has been a move away
from the wage-based method of
calculating premium to system that
features:
• Pay as you go,
• Activity and location-based
charges,
• Based/minimum fee at the start
of the year,
• Claims rating fee at the end of
the year.
OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH &
SAFETY (OH&S)
Over the past four years the NSW
Thoroughbred Racing Board
(NSWTRB) has been a leader in the
Australasian region in the
development of Occupational Health
& Safety (OH&S) programs and
procedures for the racing industry.
In this regard the NSWTRB
developed:
1. “Occupational Health & Safety
Form Guide” - a video training
package for the industry,
2. “A Systems Approach to OH&S”
- provides documentation
necessary to introduce a first
class OH&S program into any
business in the industry.
Available to all on the Racing
NSW website.
The NSWTRB has also been
instrumental in incorporating safety
issues into many facets of racing in
NSW, such as industry training and
rules of racing.
During the year the NSWTRB
conducted a 'Train the Trainer' type
course for all Clubs in NSW - this
course has accredited individuals
as presenters of the training
package. It is strongly
recommended that Clubs should
take full advantage of this
opportunity to ensure that their
organisation is compliant with
OH&S legislation introduced in
2000.
Progressing to the next stage,
funding has been obtained by the
NSWTRB from WorkCover to assist
in delivering the OH&S training to
horse trainer operations in NSW
over the coming year.
The NSWTRB has invested
considerable time and resources in
developing and delivering industrybased
OH&S training and
management tools to assist
industry employers to meet their
legislative requirements.
The NSWTRB’s efforts in this area
have been aimed at saving industry
employers the not insubstantial
time, money and effort they would
have been required to invest, had
they attempted this individually.
Employers in the industry should
not need to be reminded that the
legal responsibility for developing
and implementing appropriate
OH&S systems and training rests
with them. The task ahead is to
encourage individuals and
organisations in the industry to
embrace and run with OH&S
concepts.
INJURY MANAGEMENT
Employers and employees would
have noticed the increased attention
being focused on participation in
the injury management process,
which is aimed at achieving early
intervention, improved medical
management and early return to
work.
There has been substantial
improvement in early notification of
injuries, which greatly assist in the
early intervention and medical
management. There has also been
an improvement in the willingness
of employers to provide suitable
duties to injured employees, which
assists in the early return to work.
Employers’ understanding of their
involvement in the process of injury
management has improved, to the
extent that some employers are
taking the initiative in considering
management options before being
approached by the TRB insurance
department.
Further development in this area is
certainly warranted but the
improvement is encouraging.
GENERAL INSURANCE
PROGRAM
The Insurance Fund facilitates the
purchase of general insurance cover
for Race Clubs in NSW.
The general state of the insurance
market has meant that fewer
insurers are available to take on the
risk (both real and imaginary)
associated with our industry. Those
that are available are being more
selective, imposing previously
unheard of conditions and
considerable increases in
premiums.
Insurance industry advisers do not
necessarily see that there will be a
relief in this area next year and that
a return to previous premium level
is extremely unlikely.
The NSWTRB in conjunction with
the Australian Racing Board,
Queensland Racing and Racing
Victoria Ltd., has entered into an
insurance arrangement with
Employer Mutual Limited. This
arrangement will see a pooling of
Public Liability premiums for Race
Clubs. The nature of this mutual
arrangement will see lower and
more consistent premiums.
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