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IMA Policy on Supporting Customers affected by Family and Domestic Violence

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What is family and domestic violence?

1. Family and Domestic Violence (FDV) does not have a universal definition and can vary across different countries, states and territories. The core characteristic however is controlling behaviour, whether criminal or non-criminal, that is aimed to cause fear within another person or their family.

2. FDV can include violence, abuse or threatening behaviour in domestic or family settings, as set out below:

a) Acts of violence that occur in domestic settings between two people who are, or were, in an intimate relationship. It includes physical, sexual, emotional, psychological and financial abuse.

b) Any violent, threatening or other behaviour by a person that coerces or controls a member of their family or household or makes the family or household member fearful.

c) It may be a pattern of behaviour designed to make a person dependent by:

i. Isolating them from sources of support,

ii. Exploiting their resources and abilities for personal gain,

iii. Depriving them of means needed for independence, resistance and escape,

iv. Regulating their everyday behaviour.

Why this is important

3. This Policy sets out how IMA supports our customers who are affected by Family and Domestic Violence. It is important because we believe in doing the right thing by our customers, respecting who they are and their individual circumstances. This Policy supports IMA’s vision by helping to make our customers safer and reducing the risk of harm from FDV.

4. This Policy is designed to produce these outcomes:

a) Our customers have visibility of how we will support them if they are affected by FDV,

b) Minimising the risk of harm to customers affected by FDV,

c) Supporting our customers with empathetic, consistent and timely responses in their dealings with IMA.

5. Our customers’ safety is paramount. If a customer tells us, or we suspect they are affected by FDV, we can discuss options on how they can get support.

Internal Support

6. If there is an immediate threat of harm, we may contact emergency services to provide our customers with support. We may refer them to a specialist team at IMA if appropriate as these team members have undertaken additional training regarding FDV.

7. If a customer tells us, or we suspect, they are affected by FDV, we will help keep information they give us about their situation confidential. We will explore the most appropriate options for insurance customer’s policy or claim with flexibility and care, including if the customer has a joint policy.

8. We will ensure claims handling processes are managed sensitively and recognise the complexities in these situations for customers experiencing FDV. If customers tell us, or we suspect, they are affected by FDV we may refer them to specialist claims teams.

External Support

9. If appropriate we may refer customers to a trusted external support provider such as these listed below:

Agency
Agency

Hours

Contact

1800 RESPECT

Hours

24/7

Contact

1800 737 732
www.1800respect.org.au/

Full Stop Australia

Hours

24/7

Contact

1800 385 578

www.fullstop.org.au/

These services can be accessed online or over the phone for confidential counselling, information, and referral services. 

Financial Hardship

10. We will work with our customers affected by FDV to understand their individual situations if they are impacted by financial hardship. We will be flexible when discussing ways we might be able to provide support, we might be able to help by:

  • reviewing cover to make sure it is right
  • changing how often payments are made
  • extending payment due dates
  • developing a payment plan
  • deducting excess from claim settlements

11. If collection arrangements are necessary and a customer has told us, or we suspect, they are experiencing FDV we will ensure these matters are managed sensitively and with care. If we become aware our customer is affected by FDV after a referral has been made to a third-party debt collection agency, our internal collection teams will work with the agency to understand our customers situation and be flexible in the ways we can support our customers regarding their financial obligations with us.

Employee Training

12. We will train our employees to understand and support customers who are experiencing vulnerability, including those affected by FDV. Training will depend on an employee’s role, and will include information about:

a) Recognising signs that could indicate a customer is experiencing vulnerability or affected by FDV

b) Recognising that violence or abuse may be happening now, and may continue into the future

c) Understanding the impacts of trauma and how it can make a customer look, sound and behave, and to listen without judgement

d) How best to support customers affected by FDV sensitively and empathetically, including:

  • Minimising the number of times a customer needs to disclose information about FDV, and avoiding asking customers to repeatedly share details on their experience
  • Protecting any information a customer provides us that could put them, or another individuals’ safety at risk
  • Referring a customer to a specialist team or other services where appropriate, promoting active listening, respectful conversations and avoidance of assumptions

13. We will continue to work with industry bodies, non-profit groups and communities to better understand FDV, and refine our approach to supporting customers affected by FDV.

14. Anyone can be affected by FDV, including our employees. We support our employees by giving them access to:

a) Local employee assistance programs, external support services and internal specialist teams, and

b) Sick leave, emergency or additional leave and flexible work arrangements if needed.

15. For more information, employees can refer to their internal FDV Policy.

16. If you have any questions or want more information about this Policy, please contact us at member_relations@racv.com.au and one of our team members will assist you.

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