BRANDENBURG MARINE INSURANCE BROKERS LTD
TERMS OF BUSINESS

We, Brandenburg Marine Insurance Brokers Ltd., are fully regulated by the Superintendent of Insurance of the Republic of Cyprus under license number 5331. You can verify our licence to provide insurance broking services by visiting the website of the Insurance Companies Control Service in Cyprus.

Purpose of these Terms of Business – To clearly and concisely establish a contractual framework for the provision of our services to you.

Our Values – We are a specialist marine insurance broker committed to providing the best marine insurance solutions to our clients. We strive to provide transparent broking activities to our clients and ensure that their risks are placed with the best securities in the market at the most competitive rates.

Our Services – As an insurance broker, we normally provide some or all of the following services according to these Terms of Business:
- negotiating and placing insurance covers for our clients
- providing our clients with their insurance covering documents
- advising our clients on their insurance covers
- assisting in presenting our clients’ insurance claims and liaising with their insurers.

Negotiating and Placing Insurance Cover – Prior to approaching any insurers we will request you to provide us with all the information we require in order to fully understand your insurance needs. We will then commence negotiations with suitable insurers in order to obtain competitive quotations appropriate for your insurance needs. Where we consider it appropriate or when same is required by relevant law, we may approach insurers via other insurance intermediaries (brokers). In some instances, we may ask you to issue a Letter of Appointment to us prior to us approaching any potential insurer.

Completing Application Forms – Obtaining quotations for your required insurance may need completion of application forms/questionnaires. You must complete them accurately. While we can provide our guidance to you for filling out the application forms/questionnaires, we cannot sign them for you.

Duty of Disclosure of Information – During your insurance application, you have the responsibility to disclose to the prospective insurer every material circumstance known to you or ought to be known to you. Such circumstances may influence the insurer's decision to accept the policy and/or what terms to apply. Failure to disclose material circumstances may result in cancellation of your policy or full or partial rejection of your insurance claim under the policy. If you are in any doubt whether any circumstances are material, you should disclose them. This duty applies not only during your insurance application but also at renewal and when amending your policy.

Solvency of Insurers – While we will only place your insurance cover with insurers that are considered to be financially sound or with insurers for which you have provided us your specific written instructions, solvency of the insurer cannot be and is not guaranteed.

Binding Insurance Cover and Your Agreement to These Terms of Business – Your instructions to us to bind an insurance cover for you shall be deemed your signed, written agreement that provision of our services to you shall be subject to these Terms of Business and any additional agreement concluded between you and us, and our commercial relationship shall formally commence at that moment.

The Form of Insurance Documents – Once the insurance cover has been bound, we will receive your insurance documents from your insurer, including but not limited to your Certificate of Insurance (Cover Note) and the applicable policy terms and conditions, for their further forwarding to you. Insurance documents are usually provided in electronic form. Should you wish to receive your insurance documents also as hard copies, please inform us accordingly.

Responsibility for Checking Insurance Documents and Seeking any Required Clarification – As soon as we provide you with your insurance documents, it is your responsibility to read them carefully and let us know if you require any clarification regarding your insurance cover. Lack of thorough understanding of your policy may prevent you from taking actions required under your policy or lead you to taking actions not allowed under your policy, thus resulting in you being in breach of the policy terms and conditions. In particular, we would like to stress to you the importance of complying with all the warranties/subjectivities applied on your policy as it may affect validity of your policy and your ability to obtain claim reimbursement under the policy. Please also note that it is important to handle your policy and relevant insurance documents in a safe manner.

Payment of Insurance Premium – It is of utmost importance that you comply with all your policy’s terms regarding payment of premium or any instalment thereof. Please note that failure to make any payment by the due date may lead to insurers cancelling your policy. Please also note that insurance premium may include applicable tax (if any) which is not refundable in case of subsequent policy cancellation.

Our Remuneration – As an insurance broker, we earn our commission from the insurance premiums of policies placed via our services. Such commission is included in any insurer’s quotation we provide to you. Our commission is deemed earned in full at the moment of binding your insurance cover. Therefore, please note that in case of policy cancellation we retain the earned commission in full and it is not refundable.

Our Debit and Credit Notes – Our Debit Notes will show the premium, deductible or any other amounts or fees due from you to your insurer or us. While Our Credit Notes will show claim settlement, reimbursement of condition survey costs or any other amounts or fees credited to you by the insurer or us.

Amendments to Your Policy – Should you require any amendments to your policy, we will need your written instructions thereof. Upon insurer’s confirmation of the amendments having been effected, on most occasions they will provide us with an endorsement. However, for some amendments, the insurer will merely provide a written confirmation in a form of an email. We will forward such endorsement to you or inform you of the written confirmation having been provided by the insurer.

Prompt Notification of Claims – If you need to notify an actual or potential insurance claim, it is important to notify us immediately, so that we may advise your insurer accordingly. You may also refer to your policy for full details of insurance claims’ notification requirements, should you prefer to report the claim directly to your insurer. Please note that it is your responsibility to monitor the time limitation periods under your policy applying to your insurance claims.

Claims Handling – As your insurance broker, we act for you by assisting in presenting your claim and liaising with your insurer for the period of our appointment. However, in order for us to fully exercise such assistance in an efficient manner and ensure that we proceed in accordance with your wishes and decisions, we will need your input in providing the required documents/information/confirmations/instructions as the case may be. Your responsiveness and full cooperation in providing the above and complying with the applicable deadlines is therefore crucial for efficient processing of your insurance claim. Please note that on a case by case basis and in case of complex claims, we may charge claims handling fees. Please also note that grounds for making an insurance claim under your policy may also arise after the termination of your policy. Therefore, it is important to handle all relevant documents and evidence in a safe manner.

Electronic Communication – During the course of providing our services to you, we may communicate with you and with other relevant parties by electronic mail, sometimes attaching further electronic data, such as scanned copies of documents and email exchanges. By using electronic means of communication, we and you accept the risks inherent thereto, such as but not limited to security risks of interception of or unauthorised access to such communication and the risks of viruses and malware. Neither of us will challenge the legal evidential standing of an electronic document, and the Brandenburg Marine Insurance Brokers Ltd. system shall be deemed the definitive record of electronic communications and documentation.

Confidentiality – All information provided by you to us during your insurance application, policy negotiations, duration and renewal of your policy will be treated as confidential, except where:
- disclosure is required in order for us to provide your solicited services;
- disclosure is requested by you;
- the information is available in public domain;
- disclosure is required by applicable law.

Exclusive Use of Our Information – All data, recommendations, proposals, reports and other information provided by us to you in connection with our services are provided for your exclusive use only. You undertake not to permit access by any third party to such information without our express written permission.

Data Protection – We are regulated by the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) 2016/679 and we undertake to comply with the GDPR in all our dealings with your personal data. Your personal data will be kept secure. Personal data provided to us will only be used in accordance with our Privacy Notice which you can access here. Please kindly note that, should you disagree with our Privacy Policy, you should discontinue using our services. Please read it carefully before providing any personal data to us. By providing personal data to us, you consent to their use in accordance with our Privacy Notice.

Client Money – In accordance with the applicable regulations, our clients’ funds are kept in separate bank accounts from our own funds.

Our Administrative Fees/Charges – We reserve the right to make charges to cover the administration of your insurance and making relevant transfers of funds. Such charges are not refundable, including in case of cancellation or amendments to your policy. Our current charges are as follows while we reserve a right to amend them at any time without prior notice in order to reflect any change in the actual costs to us:
 

* or equivalent in EUR

Change in Circumstances - In case of any changes in your circumstances that may affect our services provided or to be provided to you, you must advise us as soon as reasonably possible.

Complaints Procedure – We endeavour to provide our clients with the best possible service, however, we recognise that every client has a right of complain, should he/she feel unsatisfied with the level of service provided by us. You can access our complaints procedure here.

Termination – Our appointment as your insurance broker according to these Terms of Business may be terminated as follows:
- with immediate effect, if either party becomes insolvent or is subject to a winding up or similar procedure; or
- by one party giving a 60 days’ prior written notice to the other party by registered mail to the relevant party’s registered address or by email to the main email address(-es) actively used for the latest communication between you and us. Notice served by registered mail is deemed received on the third day after its posting, while a notice served by email is deemed received on the next working day after it was sent.

Upon the termination according to the above, we will be entitled to receive any remuneration earned or payable at the relevant date, including by off-set.

Limit of our Liability – Please kindly note that our total liability to you that may arise from or in relation to us providing our services to you under these Terms of Business is limited to USD 500 000 (USD five hundred thousand only.

Applicable Law and Jurisdiction – These Terms of Business are governed by Cyprus law. Any dispute arising from or in connection to these Terms of Business shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Cyprus.