Dear Customer,

We pride ourselves on Understanding your needs better than any other insurance company.  And Understanding is all about giving you great service, every time.

Apia has always aimed to provide exceptional customer service, and for Home insurance this was backed by Apia's Customer Service Charter, Understanding…guaranteed!  However, from 1 January 2007, Apia's Customer Service Charter will extend to all of your Apia policies, so our Customer Service Charter now backs Apia's great service across all products.  In fact, should we ever fall short in delivering any of our promises, you'll receive a cheque for $50.  We also back this up with a publicly released annual report that's independently audited by PricewaterhouseCoopers.  This lets us track our progress and allows you to judge our performance for yourself.

As you can see Understanding is the heart and soul of our business, which is why we have extended our Customer Service Charter to cover all your insurance policies and not just your home.

So you can be assured we Understand your expectations and the level of satisfaction you expect.  And what's more we Understand how we can keep improving.  From each and every one of us here at Apia, you have our total commitment.

Kevin Pattison,
General Manager

Our Customer Service Charter

Your Policy and our service to you.

Promise 1. Whenever you need to discuss your insurance needs, our qualified staff will be there to provide you with personal advice, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Promise 2. When you write to us, we will respond within 5 business days of receiving it.

Promise 3. To help maintain continuous coverage, we will send your renewal notification at least 21 days prior to the expiry of your policy.

Promise 4. We will always try to resolve any disputes you may have, quickly and fairly, through our internal dispute resolution process. Should you not be satisfied with our decision, you will also have access to an independent external dispute resolution process.

Promise 5. No matter what kind of legal advice you need, we will make available our free, independent Legal Advice service to provide you with an over-the-phone, initial consultation.

Promise 6. We want you to understand exactly what you are covered for, so your policy documentation will be in plain language.

Your Claims and our Service to you.

Promise 7. When you make a claim, we will make it easy for you by recording your details over the telephone.

Promise 8. If you have a claim and we authorise repairs to your property, we will guarantee for life the quality of the workmanship and the materials used in the repairs.

Home, Boat, Travel, Caravan and Motorhome Claims.

Promise 9. When we appoint an assessor to your home or travel claim, we'll contact you to arrange your appointment by 7pm the following business day.

Promise 10. We will send you any claim payment to which you are entitled within 3 business days of us agreeing to pay.

Promise 11. You will be contacted 10 business days from the completion of your claim to ensure you are satisfied with our claims service.

Motor Vehicle Claims.

Promise 12. If your motor vehicle is a total loss, we will send to you any payment to which you are entitled within 3 business days of us agreeing to this amount.

Promise 13. If you use the Motor Vehicle Valet service, we will contact you within 10 business days of the completion of repairs to your motor vehicle, to ensure that you are satisfied.

Promise 14. We want you to be confident in the qualifications of the person assessing the damage to your motor vehicle, so all our motor vehicle assessors will be qualified motor vehicle tradespeople.