Independent business insurance brokers · Newcastle and the Hunter
Cover that holds when the day goes wrong.
We look after 340 mid-sized businesses across the Hunter in construction, manufacturing, transport and professional services. We visit your site, read your contracts and stay in the room when a claim gets hard.
Independent broker 32 insurers Claims handled in-house
Renewal coming up? Talk to us 90 days out.
Why Keelson
Most businesses are insured. Fewer are covered.
Policies get renewed on autopilot. Turnover grows, contracts change, a second site opens, and the cover stays where it was three years ago. Then something happens and the wording decides who pays.
We're independent, so we place with whoever writes your risk best. And we read your contracts, leases and fleet schedules before we touch a policy, because that's where the gaps start.
- Public and products liability
- Contract works and plant
- Motor fleet and transit
- Business interruption Gap found: Runs out at 12 months
- Cyber Gap found: Not held
- Management liability
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340
Hunter businesses we look after
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32
insurers and underwriting agencies we place with
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$14.2m
paid on our clients' claims last financial year
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96%
of clients renew with us each year
What we place
One program, no gaps between policies.
Six classes of cover, arranged so they hand off cleanly to each other. Most claims that go wrong fall in the space between two policies, so that's the space we design first.
- 01
Property and business interruption
Buildings, plant, stock and the income they earn. We set indemnity periods by how long a Hunter rebuild really takes, usually 18 to 24 months, not the 12 most policies default to.
- 02
Public and products liability
Limits matched to what your contracts actually demand, not a round number picked years ago. Labour hire and export arrangements checked line by line.
- 03
Construction risks
Annual contract works, owned and hired plant, and the insurance clauses principal contractors ask for. We read the head contract before you sign it, not after a loss.
- 04
Motor fleet and transit
Heavy vehicles, light commercials, marine transit and warehouse liability, written to work together so a crash with a full load is one claim, not three.
- 05
Professional and management liability
Professional indemnity, directors and officers, employment practices and statutory liability. Cover for the people running the business, not just its assets.
- 06
Cyber and fraud
Breach response, downtime and social engineering fraud, with a 24-hour incident line. Fake supplier invoices are now the claim we see most from offices.
Industries
Four industries. We know where each one gets hurt.
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01
Construction
Civil, commercial and residential builders turning over $10m to $150m.
The risks we see
- Principal-arranged contract works that leaves your own plant uninsured
- Subcontractors on site without their own liability cover
- Defects claims that arrive years after handover
- Contract clauses that make you liable for more than your policy covers
We read the head contract's insurance clauses before you sign.
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02
Manufacturing
Fabricators, food producers and engineering shops from Tomago to Rutherford.
The risks we see
- A fire or breakdown that stops production for months
- Product liability and recall, at home and for exports
- Underinsurance after years of rising rebuild and machinery costs
- A key supplier going down, with no cover for the knock-on
We have plant and stock valued properly, not just indexed each year.
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03
Transport and logistics
Fleets of 10 to 200 vehicles, freight forwarders and warehousing.
The risks we see
- Load damage where the paperwork decides who pays
- Weeks of heavy vehicle downtime after an accident
- Chain of Responsibility exposure for directors and managers
- Legal liability for customers' goods sitting in your warehouse
Fleet, transit and liability placed together, with one claims contact.
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04
Professional services
Engineers, consultants, accountants, architects and IT firms.
The risks we see
- Professional indemnity claims that land years after the job
- Email compromise and fake supplier invoices
- A director personally named in an employment claim
- Client contracts asking for limits your policy doesn't carry
PI, cyber and management liability placed as one program.
What to expect
How a review works.
Four steps, usually six to eight weeks from first visit to bound cover. Start about 90 days before your main renewal and nothing gets rushed.
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01
We come to you
A site visit, not a questionnaire. Two hours walking the yard, the floor or the office, then an hour with whoever signs your contracts.
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02
We write your risk register
Every exposure we found, ranked, with what your current program does about each one. Plain English, about twelve pages.
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03
We take it to market
Underwriters get a proper submission with photos, loss history and the improvements you've made. Better submissions get better terms.
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04
We stay for the claim
Our claims team runs it from first call to settlement. You won't be handed to a call centre, and you won't chase anyone.
Claims we've handled
The part you're actually paying for.
Illustrative claims. Client details are changed, and every claim turns on its own policy wording.
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Claim 01
Switchboard fire, steel fabricator, Beresfield
- production stopped
- 11 weeks
- paid in full
- $1.38m
A year earlier we'd pushed their business interruption cover from 12 to 18 months and added cover for a key supplier's site. Both mattered. Wages, rent and lost profit were paid monthly and nobody was stood down.
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Claim 02
Stolen excavator, civil contractor, Maitland
- to a replacement on site
- 3 days
- paid
- $412k
Taken from a fenced site on a Friday night. Our claims team had a hire machine there by Monday, and the hired plant extension we'd added at renewal paid for it while the claim settled.
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Claim 03
Rollover with a chilled load, Hunter Valley
- to settle
- 7 weeks
- one claims contact
- 3 policies
A B-double rolled on the New England Highway. Motor, transit and liability all responded, and we ran it as a single claim, so the client's customer was paid for its stock before the truck was back on the road.
How we charge
Every dollar on the invoice.
Brokers are paid by commission, by fee, or both. We'll tell you which and how much before you agree to anything, and it's on every invoice after that.
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Risk review
No charge
for premiums over $25,000 a year
A site visit, a written risk register and a view of the market. It's yours to keep, whether or not you move to us.
- On-site review at your premises
- Twelve-page risk register
- Gaps ranked by cost and likelihood
- No obligation to switch
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How most clients pay
Commission and fee
from $450
broker fee per policy, plus insurer commission
How most of our clients pay. Insurers pay us a commission, usually 10 to 20 per cent of base premium, and we charge a modest fee on top.
- Every dollar shown on your invoice
- Claims handling included
- Mid-term changes at no extra fee
- Quarterly check-ins on larger programs
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Fee for service
from $8,800
a year, including GST
A fixed annual fee with insurer commissions rebated to you. It suits larger programs, usually above $250,000 in premium.
- One fixed fee, agreed up front
- Commissions credited back to you
- Full claims advocacy
- Annual strategy session with a director
Premiums are set by insurers and vary with your risk. Fees include GST. We'll give you our Financial Services Guide before we arrange any cover.
Team
People who've stood on your site.
Eleven of us in Newcastle. You'll deal with a director and an account manager who know your business, and the same claims team every time.
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Callum Ashby
Managing director
Diploma of Insurance Broking
Started Keelson in 2007 after twelve years broking construction risks in Sydney. Still does the first site visit for every new construction client.
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Nadia Vukovic
Director, transport and manufacturing
B.Com, Diploma of Insurance Broking
Nine years as an underwriter before she crossed to broking, so she knows exactly what the other side of the table wants to see.
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Hamish Larkin
Head of claims
Former loss adjuster
Runs every major claim himself. If something's on fire at 2am, he's the person who picks up.
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Mereana Toms
Account director, professional services
Bachelor of Laws
Looks after engineers, consultants and IT firms, and reads the contracts that come with them. Clients send her drafts before they sign.
FAQs
Straight answers.
Something we haven't covered? Call 0491 570 157 and you'll get a broker, not a menu.
What size businesses do you work with?
Mostly firms turning over $5 million to $150 million and paying $25,000 to $1 million a year in premium. Smaller businesses are welcome when their risks are complicated.
How do you get paid, and will I see it?
Usually a commission from the insurer plus a broker fee from us. Both are shown on every invoice in dollars. If you'd rather pay one fixed fee and have the commissions rebated to you, we'll do that instead.
Why use a broker instead of buying direct?
Choice and advocacy. We place with 32 insurers and underwriting agencies, many of which don't deal with businesses directly. And when there's a claim, we work for you, not for the insurer.
What happens when we need to claim?
Call us first, any hour, on the same number. Our claims team lodges it, deals with the loss adjuster and pushes for progress payments so your cash flow holds up. One contact, start to finish.
Can you review our insurance without us moving it?
Yes. The risk review is yours to keep, and some businesses take it straight back to their current broker. Most end up staying with us, but that's entirely your call.
When's the best time to switch brokers?
About 90 days before your main renewal. That gives us time to visit, write a proper submission and get real competition between insurers. Switching mid-term is possible too, with a simple letter appointing us.
Do you cover work outside the Hunter?
Yes. Most of our clients are based in the Hunter, but their projects, fleets and customers aren't. We place cover for work right across NSW, and interstate when your operations go there.
Book a risk review
Let's walk your site.
Tell us a little about the business and when your main renewal falls. A director will call within one business day to set a time for the visit.
- Phone
- 0491 570 157
- Office
- Newcastle, and on site across the Hunter
- Claims
- Same number, any hour