Full Protection

To be eligible for this protection, you are required to have at least the most basic collision damage waiver (“CDW”, “LDW” or similar basic protection package) offered by the car rental company. Please read the rental terms carefully as CDW is not always included at the time of booking.

While CDW covers basic body damage, it has a high excess that you need to pay if there’s damage, even if you did not cause the damage. Full Protection covers those excess charges and their costly damage-related fees, and it covers certain types of damage that the rental companies exclude from CDW.

If your estimated costs exceed $3,000, please notify us - before you pay the rental company - by visiting rentalcover.com/claim. In some cases we will handle the transaction with the rental company to ensure you are treated fairly by them.

You can cancel at any time. Visit rentalcover.com/account to get started.

Your Protection

You can cancel at any time.

All drivers on the rental agreement are covered.

You are covered up to the full value of the rental vehicle up to $100,000.

This protection is designed to cover the various costs applied by the rental companies, namely the excess that’s payable on damages and other damage-related fees when you rent a vehicle, as outlined below.

We may provide protection when you are charged for...

Damage to the rental vehicle's bodywork.
Theft or vandalism of the rental vehicle.
Damage to windscreens, mirrors, and lights, including external glass and lights.
Damage to wheels and tyres including punctures, fittings, replacements, and repairs.
Damage to the underbody of the vehicle.
Key loss or replacement or lock out: Covers call out fees, replacement of lost, damaged or stolen car keys, key programming and key delivery.
Damage caused by natural weather events.
Charges applied by the rental company called “third party excess charges” or similar.

We may also provide protection for...

Towing and roadside assistance fees: You are covered for towing or roadside assistance costs including call out fees following physical loss or damage to or mechanical breakdown of the rental vehicle.
Administration fees: Includes Administration fees or anything similar that are charged for processing damage claims (also called handling fees, carriage fees, postal fees, accident fees). This does not include fees applied by your credit card company for processing or costs incurred for any other reason.
Drop off/relocation of damaged vehicle fees: Includes drop off/relocation costs of your rental vehicle if there’s a breakdown or accident.
Loss of use/demurrage fees: Includes fees charged by rental companies for loss of use while the vehicle is being repaired.

If we think any fees from the rental company are unreasonable, we may refer the claim to the dispute process outlined in the ‘Disputed charges from the rental company’ section.

You are not covered...

The board will not exercise its discretion to pay claims under the protection in the following circumstances:

Where you breach a condition of this protection for example, failing to purchase one of the rental company’s CDW coverage options.
Where you or another driver on the rental agreement breach any term of the vehicle rental agreement.
Where you or another driver on the rental agreement contravene driving rules or laws in any local jurisdiction.
Where you have given a false or misleading statement or you have engaged in fraudulent conduct.
Where you have not provided the necessary documents that we have reasonably requested during the claims process which means we cannot verify whether your claim comes within these terms and conditions.
Where you paid the rental company in cash and have insufficient evidence for that payment. Appropriate evidence would include ATM/cash withdrawal receipt, bank statement, or credit card statement.
For transaction costs applied by your credit card including international card and foreign exchange fees.
Where the event for which you are making a claim occurred before this protection was purchased.
Where you incur costs resulting from using incorrect fuel in your rental vehicle.
Where you incur costs from mechanical failure caused by you driving in a manner which is reckless, or in a manner which otherwise violates the terms of your rental agreement.
Where you did not notify police of damage, theft or other events and this was required by the terms of your rental agreement. We recommend that you understand the local requirements for notifying authorities before picking up your vehicle.
Where you are liable for injuries to passengers, other drivers or any other party.
Where you are liable for damage to the property of passengers, other drivers or any other party.
Where you have driven the rental vehicle off-road or on an unsealed road, except for unsealed roads which you are required to use to access your accommodation venue.
Where your rental vehicle is being used for deliveries or similar commercial purposes.
Where the vehicle does not meet the definition of rental vehicle in these terms and conditions.
Where your rental vehicle requires a non-standard driver’s licence in your region/s of travel.
Where you have admitted you are “at fault” in relation to an accident or collision. This means you have, without our prior written consent, compromised our ability to recover any loss from the other driver. If you are an “at fault” driver, you should always inform the other driver that you will contact us. You should not accept responsibility for the incident by signing or agreeing to anything relating to the incident without first telling us.
If the rental company is not appropriately licensed or authorised to rent vehicles.
For internal damage including, but not limited to upholstery/seating, bedding, toilets, showers, electrical outlets, interior panels, bilge pumps, interior lighting, appliances and portable accessories.
For any claim arising as a result of terrorism, war, invasion, acts of foreign enemies, hostilities or warlike operations (whether war be declared or not), civil war, rebellion, revolution, insurrection, civil commotion or uprising, blockade, military or usurped power, as well as nuclear or radioactive risks.
You have not selected “4X4” as your vehicle type and the vehicle has been used off-road.

23. If your vehicle was rented from a company on our Restricted Rental Companies list.
24. If your protection is purchased within an hour of renting a vehicle (you can however extend an existing booking during the rental period).
25. If your protection is purchased after vehicle collection.

Subrogation

You agree, if we pay your claim, in addition to any common law and equitable rights of subrogation that we may have, that:

We assume all of your rights of recovery for loss and you permit us to bring legal or other action in your name to enforce those rights. You agree that we may at our discretion bring a legal action in your name to enforce these rights and also request any payment through that enforcement to be paid directly to our bank account of choice and agree to terms to settle the claim without further notice to you or approval from you.
If you are eligible for a future reimbursement by the rental company or another third party (for instance from the "at fault" driver), you agree that we are entitled to those proceeds.
You will provide all reasonable assistance to us to recover such amounts and/or settle claims (including the provision of documents and affidavit or witness statements or signing a settlement agreement).

You continue to have the right to make a recovery for loss or damage which is not covered by this protection, where you have a legal right of compensation or recovery against someone who caused that loss or damage.

Disputed charges from the rental company

If you paid for your rental vehicle with a credit card, and if you or our claims team thinks that the rental company’s charges are inconsistent or unfair, we will discuss with you the process for recovering the charges through your credit card issuer (“dispute process”). This is a quick process with a high likelihood of success. Examples of where we may invoke this dispute process include, but are not limited to, exaggerated repair estimates or costs, or any costs that you are not responsible for and charges for third party damages for which you are not liable which might relate to the rental vehicle interior, breakdown, wear and tear and pre-existing damage, or other damage.

We may not cover any payments you make to the rental company when there is insufficient evidence that the rental company has incurred the loss (i.e. the rental company claims against you without documentary proof that it has incurred loss and you pay that amount).

If you are unsuccessful in recovering these charges or did not pay for your rental vehicle with a credit card, we will process your claim under the terms of this protection.

Coverage through other means

If you are covered by benefits that overlap with the terms of this protection, including but not limited to free credit card travel cover or personal auto insurance or CDW, we may request that you provide details of that protection including the name of the provider at the time of filing your claim.

Currency calculations and fees that you pay to your credit card issuer

Claims are calculated based on the currency of loss. Our claims calculation does not include international card or other fees or foreign exchange conversions applied by your credit card issuer. Our claims process allows you to convert your approved claim amount from the original currency of loss to your preferred currency using a retail exchange rate.

Incidents involving another vehicle

In cases where another vehicle (a “third party”) has been involved in an accident, and details of that vehicle and/or its driver are available, we require that information to be provided to us during the claim process. We may also confirm with the rental company that they have received those details. Rental companies will often charge you an amount up to the excess and reimburse you if you are deemed to be “not at fault” as a result of an investigation between the insurers of each driver. We will assist you to help ensure you’re expediently reimbursed.

If we pay out a claim before the completion of any investigation, as noted above under ‘Subrogation’, we reserve the right to recover the reimbursable funds on your behalf.

General Conditions

This protection is subject to the following conditions:

You are between the ages of 19 and 99 years;
Your name must be on the rental agreement and it must be signed by yourself.
The rental agreement must include any additional drivers.
You must not have breached any terms of the rental agreement.
This protection is limited to one rental vehicle per rental agreement for the duration of the protection, except if your rental vehicle has been replaced by the rental company. Each time that you sign a new rental agreement you will need to add protection.
You must take reasonable care to protect the rental vehicle and avoid an accident or collision which may cause damage.
You must have purchased at least the most basic CDW offered by the rental company. Please read the rental terms carefully as CDW is not always included at the time of booking.

Making a Claim

Visit rentalcover.com/claim to start the claim process. To ensure you are treated fairly by the rental company, if the charges are likely to exceed $3,000, please notify us via the claim form before you pay the rental company.

In the event that you make a claim, you agree to provide documentation showing that your rental agreement includes CDW.

You will need photos or scans of these documents:

Your rental agreement from the rental company.
Your driver’s licence.
Bank statement showing your payment for the damage.
Final invoice from the rental company (available when the damage costs are settled - this may differ from your initial invoice).
We may also request that you provide an invoice showing the repair cost for damages.
Police report, if applicable.
All correspondence with the rental company.
Other documents as requested by your claims officer including any CDW terms and conditions or alternative protection or insurance that may apply.

Fraudulent claims

You acknowledge and agree that you have a duty to take reasonable care not to make a misrepresentation when purchasing this protection or making a claim. We reserve the right to cancel your protection for any form of misrepresentation or non-disclosure (examples include forging documents or deliberately damaging your property). We can also reject claims and take legal action to recover any funds that have been paid based on any misrepresentation or other fraudulent conduct. We may retain the contribution and refer matters to local authorities.

Cancellation and refunds

If your plans change after pickup, you can also cancel for a refund for any unused period. Visit rentalcover.com/account to get started.

To cancel your protection please log in to your RentalCover Account. You can cancel for a refund at any time up until pickup.

If it is your first time logging in to RentalCover, you will receive an email asking you to confirm your email address. Click the link in this email to finalise your account setup.

Cancellation by us

We may occasionally cancel your protection for reasons such as misrepresentation, non-disclosure, technical errors, and sanctions. You will receive an email notification.

Definitions

Any word defined below will have the same meaning throughout:

Accident or collision: means a sudden, unexpected event caused by something external, which results directly in loss or damage.
Administration fees: means fees or anything similar that are charged to you by the rental company for processing damage claims (also called handling fees, carriage fees, postal fees, accident fees). Administration fees do not include fees applied by your credit card company for processing or costs incurred for any other reason.
AFSL: means Australian Financial Services Licence.
Agent: means RentalCover.com, a trading name of Cover Genius Pty Ltd, Australian Company Number (ACN) 159 983 598, AFSL No. 490058, and its authorised subcontractors.
APRA: means Australian Prudential Regulation Authority.
ASIC: means Australian Securities & Investments Commission.
"At fault": means one of the drivers involved in an accident or collision is deemed to be responsible for damages after an investigation between the insurers of each driver.
Board: means the board of directors of Asservo Mutual Limited.
Breakdown: means mechanical or electrical breakdowns, failures or breakages to the rental vehicle.
Bodywork: means the metal frame of your rental vehicle.
Call out fee: means a roadside assistance charge from a service provider to attend to a vehicle breakdown.
CDW: means Collision or Loss Damage Waiver (CDW or LDW) or similar insurance offered by the rental company to limit your liability for damage during the term of the rental agreement.
Certificate: means a protection certificate issued by the agent on behalf of the mutual which describes who is covered under this protection. This is provided along with the email or invoice which confirms the protection has been issued to you.
Conditions: means the general eligibility requirements that you must meet in order to be covered by this protection.
Constitution: means the current rules governing the relationship between the mutual, its members and mutual capital instrument (MCI) holders. A copy can be obtained from the agent on request, at no charge, or viewed at http://www.asservoprotection.com.
Contribution: means the amount we will charge you for the protection for the duration of the protection period.
Currency of Loss: means the currency that was used by the rental company for the damage charges that were charged to you.
Damage: means physical harm to the rental vehicle that impairs its value, usefulness or normal function.
Drop off/relocation fees: means fees charged to you by the rental company for any drop off/relocation costs of your rental vehicle if the rental vehicle is damaged or there’s a breakdown.
Excess: means the amount paid - or payable - by you to the rental our partner, if there’s accidental damage or theft.
Full value: means the market value of the rental car at the time of your claim, up to a maximum market value of AUD $100,000. This is the maximum amount that we pay in the event of a claim.
GST: means goods and services tax per the meaning given in the Goods and Services Tax Act 1985.
Key loss or replacement or lock out: means the call out fees, replacement of lost, damaged or stolen car keys, key programming and key delivery charged to you by the rental company.
Loss: means the amounts charged to you by the rental company which are covered by this protection.
Loss of use/demurrage fees: means fees charged to you by the rental company for loss of use of the rental vehicle while it is being repaired.
Manager: means Picnic Services Pty Ltd, ACN 638 145 418, Authorised Representative (AR) No. 532540.
Member: means a person, corporation, organisation or entity that has been admitted to membership of the mutual in accordance with the constitution and, subject to the constitution, is entitled to request a claim is considered under the protection.
Mutual/Asservo Mutual: means Asservo Mutual Limited ACN: 664 040 975.
Mutual capital instrument (MCI): means a financial instrument issued by the mutual in accordance with its constitution and the MCI class rights (in accordance with the constitution) that provides funds to the mutual to support its solvency.
Natural weather event: means an event caused by natural forces, including but not limited to wind, hail, fire, flood, earthquake, explosion, tsunami, volcanic eruption, landslide, avalanche, hurricane, cyclone or storm.
“Not at fault”: means that one of the drivers involved in an accident or collision is not deemed to be responsible for damages after an investigation between the insurers of each driver.
Off-road: means any area that is not a sealed road. It includes, but is not limited to, tracks, rivers, tidal crossings, sand, flood waters, unformed roads, fire trails, rivers, dams, streams, rocks, beaches, creek beds, fields and paddocks.
Picnic: means Picnic Licensing Pty Ltd, ACN 647 642 117, AFSL No. 532540.
Product Disclosure Statement(PDS): means the document and any Supplementary Product Disclosure Statement we issue for this product.
Protection Period: means the time and date you pick up the rental vehicle at the start of your trip until the time and date you drop off the rental vehicle at end of your trip.
Protection: means a miscellaneous financial risk product used to manage risks, issued to a member in accordance with the constitution. The protection is described in this document.
Rental agreement: means the contract between you and a rental company in respect to the provision of a rental vehicle for a trip that contains your signature confirming you agree to its terms.
Rental company: means a commercial operation which is in the business of renting out vehicles and that is fully licensed, where applicable, by the regulatory authority of that country, state or local authority including online "share" or "peer to peer" websites, loan cars from a licensed mechanic or accident replacement vehicles.
RentalCover.com: the website which distributes the protection and provides the claims administration system.
Rental vehicle: means cars and standard vehicles (including SUVs, wagons and 4x4s) that don’t need special licences and aren’t for commercial or offroad use, rented from an authorised rental company at the time the rental contract is entered into. This includes mechanic loan cars and accident replacement cars. Vehicles which are not rental vehicles include, but are not limited to, a truck/lorry, van, bus, performance, racing car or street car, motorcycle, scooter, moped, motorhome, RV, campervan.
Third party excess charges: means charges applied by the rental company when two or more vehicles are involved in an accident. These are discretionarily applied by rental companies. These do not relate to “third party insurance claims” which are handled between vehicle owners and do not involve renters.
Towing and roadside assistances fees: means call out fees following damage to or breakdown of the rental vehicle.
Theft: means a rental vehicle that has been stolen, to either a known or unknown location, without your permission.
Unsealed road: means a road which is not a sealed road. It includes roads that are not dressed in a hard material such as tar, bitumen or concrete.
Vandalism: means a rental vehicle that has been damaged intentionally by you or someone known or unknown to you.
You/your: means a member who holds a protection as described in your certificate and any other person who drives the same rental vehicle and is listed on the same rental agreement.
We/us/our: means Asservo Mutual.

Important Information

This document is a Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and has been prepared in accordance with Australian law. It is an important document and you should keep it in a safe place with any other documents relating to this protection, such as your certificate.

Throughout this document, certain words are defined and they are set out in the Definitions section of this document.

This PDS was prepared on 1 May 2023.

Target Market Determination

A target market determination for this product can be obtained here.

About this document

This Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) is an important legal document. It is designed to help you understand what you need to know about Asservo Mutual Limited ACN 664 040 975 (mutual) and the Full Protection Plan (protection) so you can make an informed choice about whether or not you wish to join the mutual as a member and how to apply for protection.

The protection is a financial risk product offered by RentalCover.com, a trading name of Cover Genius Pty Ltd (agent) ACN 159 983 598 on behalf of the mutual. The mutual is the provider of the protection on the terms contained in the PDS (subject to the operation of the constitution and any other limitation specified in the protection certificate).

Before you decide whether to join the mutual or to hold a protection, please read this PDS, and the mutual’s constitution carefully.

A certificate will be issued to you when you purchase a protection and this forms part of the terms and conditions of the protection.

The mutual may update some of the information in this document from time to time without needing to notify you (but only if it is not materially adverse information). You can obtain a copy of any updated information by contacting the agent or visiting www.asservoprotection.com. A free copy of any updated information will be made available to you on request, at no charge. When necessary, the mutual will issue a supplementary or replacement document.

About the mutual

What is Asservo Mutual?

Asservo Mutual is an Australian non-profit company limited by guarantee that has been formed to operate a discretionary mutual fund to provide financial protection for the benefit of members of the mutual. The mutual offers discretionary risk protection, including the protection solely to its members. Claims on the mutual may only be made by members.

As a discretionary mutual, the mutual can use the combined purchasing power of its members to spread the cost of risk and to provide additional benefits within the discretionary risk protection in areas where traditional insurers will not provide cover.

The mutual, the agent and the manager have worked closely with the community to design the protection, a product that is tailored to the needs of the members.

Who is involved?

The mutual is the product issuer of the protection and is able to offer this product as an Authorised Representative of Picnic Licensing Pty Ltd ACN (picnic) under it’s Australian Financial Services License (AFSL No: 532540).

Address of the mutual is: Level 4, 11 York Street Sydney 2000.

For the purpose of distribution of the mutual’s product in Australia, the agent is an Australian Financial Services Licensee (AFSL No: 490058). The agent will act in all member-facing aspects for the mutual and will facilitate membership and protection on behalf of the mutual.

The agent is your first point of contact for any enquiries about membership and protection.

You can contact the agent using the following details:

Address: Level 19, 45 Clarence Street, Sydney 2000.
Website: rentalcover.com/help.

The manager provides financial and governance services to the mutual. The manager is an authorised representative (AR No. 532540) of Picnic.

How is Asservo Mutual managed?

The board manages the mutual with the assistance of the manager, who acts as a financial and governance manager, and the agent, who acts in all services and claims interactions with members as well as being membership administrator. The agent will facilitate membership and protection to eligible people who wish to participate and become a member.

The board must abide by the constitution of the mutual, which sets out the objectives of the mutual, its powers as a company limited by guarantee, the rules governing its operations, the eligibility criteria of members, the election of directors and the conduct of members’ and directors’ meetings.

It also contains the power to exercise discretion in response to a member’s claim for protection should a member suffer loss of the type described in the Protection Wording.

Each member of the mutual is entitled to appoint a representative to vote at a general meeting of members. One or more of the directors, including the foundation member representative as defined in the constitution, are also representatives of the members.

The board also has the discretion to appoint other non-executive and independent directors, allowing them to participate in the decision-making process and represent the members.

Members have the right to have their claim(s) for protection considered by the board. The board has the absolute discretion to accept or refuse a member’s claim for protection.

Notice of Annual General Meeting of Asservo Mutual

As an active member of Asservo Mutual, you can join the AGM to be held on the upcoming first Wednesday of November of the year at 9am Sydney time via the link on the manager's website.

How does it work?

Member-based community

The structure of the mutual means it is owned by its members and you will be invited to join as a member before you are offered a protection. Only members of the mutual are entitled to access the benefits of the protection when they pay their contribution.

The mutual uses the contributions of all members to fund costs involved in providing the protection and other operating costs. The contributions collected from all members effectively funds the payment of protection claims by the mutual.

The advantage of the mutual’s structure is that it provides a cost effective way for members to manage their financial risk. By managing the risk pool in this manner along with the tax advantages, contributions can be kept to a minimum.

As a mutual, where members are part of a community, it is incumbent on members to engage as a community. The power of the community is that it creates scale, as a whole, allowing the variable loss experience of individual members of the community to be pooled. Member ownership of the mutual allows savings from that pooling to be retained by the mutual for the benefit of the members.

General Advice Warning

The Mutual and the Agent are licensed to provide General Advice only and this General Advice does not take into account your personal circumstances. Please read this Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and Financial Service Guide to see if the product is right for you”. If you are still undecided you should seek your own independent advice.

Resilient Community

The success of the community is dependent on the members. This includes how they manage their own risks and their behaviour relative to generally accepted norms. Failure of a member to exhibit these desirable attributes may result in the end of a member’s membership and renewal not being offered on their protection.

Strong Member Attributes

Typical members of the mutual are committed to proactive risk management and will have the following attributes:

they provide information truthfully and accurately in respect to their protection and claims;
they fully cooperate with all reasonable requests in the course of processing their claim;
they do not expect their product to protect them in situations that they can prevent, such as deliberately damaging a rental vehicle;
they ensure they and other drivers operate the rental vehicle legally and are appropriately licensed; and
they take due precaution to minimise the chance of a loss or further loss including where relevant:
- ensuring the rental vehicle is secured;
- securing the keys to the rental vehicle; and
- not attempting to drive the rental vehicle if it is damaged.

If all members adopt a mindful and respectful attitude to risk management then the mutual will thrive and the pooled contributions can be used widely to protect members when they need it most.

When considering a member’s claim, the mutual will expect that these attributes have been demonstrated by the member. Where a member has not demonstrated these attributes, the mutual may exercise its discretion to accept the member’s claim either in part or not at all.

Privacy statement

We are committed to ensuring the privacy and security of your personal information in accordance with the Privacy Act 2020. We will only ever collect your personal information directly from you or through other entities listed in our Privacy Policy. We do not trade, rent or sell your information. You can access our Privacy Policy here.

Important Information

Discretionary Risk Protection

Why does the board have discretion to approve claims?

To qualify as discretionary protection, it is important for the board to have the absolute discretion to accept or reject a member’s claim. Otherwise there is a risk that the product would be considered an insurance product, and the mutual would be required to be authorised under the Insurance Act 1973 (Cth) to conduct an insurance business.

By offering protection that is discretionary, the mutual is able to offer its members a protection product for management of their risks without establishing an insurance company. Discretionary protection is a financial product in Australia which is regulated by ASIC. The agent is also supervised by ASIC, as the holder of the AFSL for the offer of financial products by the mutual.

APRA regulates insurance companies, but not discretionary mutuals such as Asservo Mutual. This means the mutual is not subject to the prudential standards which apply to insurance companies in Australia and are set by APRA
or the provisions of the Insurance Act 1973 (Cth). The protection is also not subject to the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth) in Australia.

This means that the mutual is not subject to the same laws and regulations as an insurance company or financial service provider and that you may not have the same rights against the mutual as you would against an insurer or financial service provider.

Insurance is different to protection because an insurer must indemnify a policyholder if the claim comes within the policy terms and conditions. Protection involves the board deciding whether to exercise its discretion to pay a claim based on its understanding of the member’s claim and its potential impact on the financial position of the mutual.

The board’s discretion will be exercised fairly and consistently, and with all due consideration to the merits and circumstances of each claim and the terms and conditions for the protection set out in the Protection Wording section. The board comprises non-executive independent directors as well as representatives for the foundation member, the manager, and representatives acting for mutual capital Instrument holders, in accordance with the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth).

The board sets guidelines to ensure that they exercise discretion in the interests of the members and they will consider whether your claim falls within the protection terms and conditions when deciding whether you qualify for the payment of your claim.

Notwithstanding that the protection offered is not insurance, the board seeks to maintain adequate claims provision, surplus assets, and its own insurance cover (to protect the mutual from financial exposures). The mutual also abides by governance policies and protocols which are benchmarked to the standard of the generally accepted reserving practices expected of a general insurer as contained in APRA’s prudential standards. There is no guarantee from the Federal Government’s Financial Claims Scheme in the event of insolvency of the mutual.

This PDS explains the scope of protection available to members including the risk management and other behaviours expected of members and this gives members an indication of the circumstances when the board is likely to exercise its discretion in favour of the payment of a member’s claim.

What are the significant risks?

Protection is a financial product and you should be aware of the following:

Protection is not an insurance product.

The protection is a ‘miscellaneous financial risk product’ in Australia. This means that there is no automatic right of indemnity under the terms of the protection. Instead, there is an automatic right to have a claim considered and the member may ask the Board to exercise their discretion to indemnify them for the loss. The payment of all claims is at the discretion of the board.

Whether there is adequate funding of the mutual.

If a large number of claims are made in any one year that exceeds the amount of contributions that the mutual has set aside to pay claims, there could be a risk that a protection claim would not be paid.

To address this risk, the manager provides the mutual with professional advice as to the adequacy of the contributions to meet likely claims liabilities. In addition, the mutual purchases its own insurance cover that may meet claims that exceed the mutual’s self-retention limit or that covers a given proportion of claims.

A member could lose their protection entitlements if their membership is cancelled.

The mutual is operated for the benefit of all members. The board reserves the right to expel members in circumstances which are in the best interests of the members as a whole, or where a member breaches the rules of membership.

Financial Information

Cost of protection

A contribution is the amount you pay to the mutual for each protection period. Because the mutual is a not-for-profit entity, there is no ‘profit factor’ built into the calculation of your contribution.

The mutual calculates the amount of the contribution based on key factors which are relevant to your risk, that risk being the possession and use of the rental vehicle and the obligations you have to maintain the condition of the rental vehicle.

The cost of your protection depends on factors such as:

the type of rental vehicle and
the duration of the rental period.

These matters have been taken into account in setting our current contribution amounts for the protection. Details of these can be obtained from the agent on request, at no charge, or viewed at as part of your quotation or your certificate.

Tax implications

Your contributions may be tax deductible if it is incurred by you in deriving income, or in the course of carrying on a business for the purpose of deriving income. Contributions may be subject to GST and GST may be included in your quotation when we offer the protection to you, or in a tax invoice (or taxable supply information, as the case may be) that we may provide to you when you purchase the protection.

There is no stamp duty or other insurance taxes (e.g. emergency services levy) payable on the contribution.

The mutual does not provide any advice on the individual tax treatment for members of having membership and protection or the treatment of any claims that are paid to members. Members should seek their own advice on tax issues, including the availability of any tax deductions.

Dealing with surplus

At the end of the financial year, there may be a ‘surplus’ of funds held by the mutual – this is the amount that the mutual retains and has not paid out in claims to members.

The mutual may in its discretion reserve these funds for additional and likely claims from members and/or apply a surplus from a previous financial year to assist claim payments in future years. These funds can also be used by the mutual to offer other benefits, reduce contributions for members, provide increased protection to members, pay a dividend to mutual capital instrument holders where appropriate to do so, or for any other use approved by the board on the grounds that it is considered beneficial to the membership base (e.g. the development of risk management programs) or which is permissible under the constitution.

Unlike other public companies, members are not entitled to receive surplus funds on voluntary winding up or after the closure of the financial year in order to preserve the tax treatment.

If the mutual is wound up, it could use a surplus for the purposes of its objects including in any successor mutual or risk vehicle, to offer other products and services that benefit the members or by transferring the surplus to other non-profit organisations which provide benefits to the members.

Estimating future payments

On the advice of its professional consultants, the agent and the manager, the mutual will calculate the total amount of contributions that is reasonably required to ensure that the mutual will have appropriate financial resources to discharge claims liabilities.

Each year, the mutual will model its future claims liabilities to members based on a mathematical model and actuarial advice. The mutual will manage these future liabilities and payments through its risk assessment process and reserves.

Protection period

The protection period defines the period of time that the rental vehicle may be protected for losses described in the Protection Wording section. The protection period commences when you pick up the rental vehicle at the start of the trip and ends when you drop off the rental vehicle at the end of the trip. Your certificate will show the protection period.

If you return the rental vehicle after the agreed trip end date and time, you may not be protected for loss that occurs outside the protection period.

Your protection and membership will end at the end of the protection period.

Data Protection

We are committed to protect your personal information and we are committed to the principles of data security in the configuration of our services. With respect to European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), as a data controller, we collect and process information about you and we also receive personal information from your booking agent including your email address, name and phone number, risk details and other information which enables us to issue and modify policies and process claims, detect, investigate and prevent activities which may be illegal or could result in your plan being cancelled or treated as if it never existed and protect our legitimate interests. We may share that data from time to time with insurers or contractors investigators, crime prevention organisations who may be outside of the European Union. We will never share your data with external marketing services. Our privacy policy outlines how we process your data, the data that we collect and the processes to undertake should you either wish to request a copy of your data, or remove consent for us to retain your data.

You can access the administrator’s privacy policy at https://www.rentalcover.com/en/privacy.

Complaints/Disputes

You can contact the friendly agent’s Complaints Team at any time. Include your reference number (ending with "INS") for a formal review of your claim. We will respond within 5 days. Click the button to send us an email.

FILE A COMPLAINT

If the complaint is not resolved to your satisfaction, you may refer the complaint or dispute to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA). AFCA is a free dispute resolution service to consumers who may be in dispute with their protection provider. AFCA’s decision will be binding on us. Information about AFCA, and the types of disputes that it can consider, can be found at its website. Membership of AFCA is held by Picnic as the authorising licensee of mutual, manager and agent.

You can contact AFCA at:

Address: AFCA GPO Box 3 Melbourne VIC 3001.
Phone: 1800 931 678.
Email: [email protected].
Website: afca.org.au.

Full Protection

Your Protection

You can cancel at any time.

All drivers on the rental agreement are covered.

You are covered up to the full value of the rental vehicle up to $100,000.

We may provide protection when you are charged for...

Damage to the rental vehicle's bodywork.
Theft or vandalism of the rental vehicle.
Damage to windscreens, mirrors, and lights, including external glass and lights.
Damage to wheels and tyres including punctures, fittings, replacements, and repairs.
Damage to the underbody of the vehicle.
Key loss or replacement or lock out: Covers call out fees, replacement of lost, damaged or stolen car keys, key programming and key delivery.
Damage caused by natural weather events.
Charges applied by the rental company called “third party excess charges” or similar.

We may also provide protection for...

Towing and roadside assistance fees: You are covered for towing or roadside assistance costs including call out fees following physical loss or damage to or mechanical breakdown of the rental vehicle.
Administration fees: Includes Administration fees or anything similar that are charged for processing damage claims (also called handling fees, carriage fees, postal fees, accident fees). This does not include fees applied by your credit card company for processing or costs incurred for any other reason.
Drop off/relocation of damaged vehicle fees: Includes drop off/relocation costs of your rental vehicle if there’s a breakdown or accident.
Loss of use/demurrage fees: Includes fees charged by rental companies for loss of use while the vehicle is being repaired.

If we think any fees from the rental company are unreasonable, we may refer the claim to the dispute process outlined in the ‘Disputed charges from the rental company’ section.

You are not covered...

The board will not exercise its discretion to pay claims under the protection in the following circumstances:

Where you breach a condition of this protection for example, failing to purchase one of the rental company’s CDW coverage options.
Where you or another driver on the rental agreement breach any term of the vehicle rental agreement.
Where you or another driver on the rental agreement contravene driving rules or laws in any local jurisdiction.
Where you have given a false or misleading statement or you have engaged in fraudulent conduct.
Where you have not provided the necessary documents that we have reasonably requested during the claims process which means we cannot verify whether your claim comes within these terms and conditions.
Where you paid the rental company in cash and have insufficient evidence for that payment. Appropriate evidence would include ATM/cash withdrawal receipt, bank statement, or credit card statement.
For transaction costs applied by your credit card including international card and foreign exchange fees.
Where the event for which you are making a claim occurred before this protection was purchased.
Where you incur costs resulting from using incorrect fuel in your rental vehicle.
Where you incur costs from mechanical failure caused by you driving in a manner which is reckless, or in a manner which otherwise violates the terms of your rental agreement.
Where you did not notify police of damage, theft or other events and this was required by the terms of your rental agreement. We recommend that you understand the local requirements for notifying authorities before picking up your vehicle.
Where you are liable for injuries to passengers, other drivers or any other party.
Where you are liable for damage to the property of passengers, other drivers or any other party.
Where you have driven the rental vehicle off-road or on an unsealed road, except for unsealed roads which you are required to use to access your accommodation venue.
Where your rental vehicle is being used for deliveries or similar commercial purposes.
Where the vehicle does not meet the definition of rental vehicle in these terms and conditions.
Where your rental vehicle requires a non-standard driver’s licence in your region/s of travel.
Where you have admitted you are “at fault” in relation to an accident or collision. This means you have, without our prior written consent, compromised our ability to recover any loss from the other driver. If you are an “at fault” driver, you should always inform the other driver that you will contact us. You should not accept responsibility for the incident by signing or agreeing to anything relating to the incident without first telling us.
If the rental company is not appropriately licensed or authorised to rent vehicles.
For internal damage including, but not limited to upholstery/seating, bedding, toilets, showers, electrical outlets, interior panels, bilge pumps, interior lighting, appliances and portable accessories.
For any claim arising as a result of terrorism, war, invasion, acts of foreign enemies, hostilities or warlike operations (whether war be declared or not), civil war, rebellion, revolution, insurrection, civil commotion or uprising, blockade, military or usurped power, as well as nuclear or radioactive risks.
You have not selected “4X4” as your vehicle type and the vehicle has been used off-road.

Subrogation

You agree, if we pay your claim, in addition to any common law and equitable rights of subrogation that we may have, that:

We assume all of your rights of recovery for loss and you permit us to bring legal or other action in your name to enforce those rights. You agree that we may at our discretion bring a legal action in your name to enforce these rights and also request any payment through that enforcement to be paid directly to our bank account of choice and agree to terms to settle the claim without further notice to you or approval from you.
If you are eligible for a future reimbursement by the rental company or another third party (for instance from the "at fault" driver), you agree that we are entitled to those proceeds.
You will provide all reasonable assistance to us to recover such amounts and/or settle claims (including the provision of documents and affidavit or witness statements or signing a settlement agreement).

Disputed charges from the rental company

Coverage through other means

Currency calculations and fees that you pay to your credit card issuer

Incidents involving another vehicle

General Conditions

This protection is subject to the following conditions:

You are between the ages of 19 and 99 years;
Your name must be on the rental agreement and it must be signed by yourself.
The rental agreement must include any additional drivers.
You must not have breached any terms of the rental agreement.
This protection is limited to one rental vehicle per rental agreement for the duration of the protection, except if your rental vehicle has been replaced by the rental company. Each time that you sign a new rental agreement you will need to add protection.
You must take reasonable care to protect the rental vehicle and avoid an accident or collision which may cause damage.
You must have purchased at least the most basic CDW offered by the rental company. Please read the rental terms carefully as CDW is not always included at the time of booking.

Making a Claim

Your rental agreement from the rental company.
Your driver’s licence.
Bank statement showing your payment for the damage.
Final invoice from the rental company (available when the damage costs are settled - this may differ from your initial invoice).
We may also request that you provide an invoice showing the repair cost for damages.
Police report, if applicable.
All correspondence with the rental company.
Other documents as requested by your claims officer including any CDW terms and conditions or alternative protection or insurance that may apply.

Fraudulent claims

Cancellation and refunds

If your plans change after pickup, you can also cancel for a refund for any unused period. Visit rentalcover.com/account to get started.

Cancellation by us

We may occasionally cancel your protection for reasons such as misrepresentation, non-disclosure, technical errors, and sanctions. You will receive an email notification.

Definitions

Any word defined below will have the same meaning throughout:

Accident or collision: means a sudden, unexpected event caused by something external, which results directly in loss or damage.
Administration fees: means fees or anything similar that are charged to you by the rental company for processing damage claims (also called handling fees, carriage fees, postal fees, accident fees). Administration fees do not include fees applied by your credit card company for processing or costs incurred for any other reason.
AFSL: means Australian Financial Services Licence.
Agent: means RentalCover.com, a trading name of Cover Genius Pty Ltd, Australian Company Number (ACN) 159 983 598, AFSL No. 490058, and its authorised subcontractors.
APRA: means Australian Prudential Regulation Authority.
ASIC: means Australian Securities & Investments Commission.
"At fault": means one of the drivers involved in an accident or collision is deemed to be responsible for damages after an investigation between the insurers of each driver.
Board: means the board of directors of Asservo Mutual Limited.
Breakdown: means mechanical or electrical breakdowns, failures or breakages to the rental vehicle.
Bodywork: means the metal frame of your rental vehicle.
Call out fee: means a roadside assistance charge from a service provider to attend to a vehicle breakdown.
CDW: means Collision or Loss Damage Waiver (CDW or LDW) or similar insurance offered by the rental company to limit your liability for damage during the term of the rental agreement.
Certificate: means a protection certificate issued by the agent on behalf of the mutual which describes who is covered under this protection. This is provided along with the email or invoice which confirms the protection has been issued to you.
Conditions: means the general eligibility requirements that you must meet in order to be covered by this protection.
Constitution: means the current rules governing the relationship between the mutual, its members and mutual capital instrument (MCI) holders. A copy can be obtained from the agent on request, at no charge, or viewed at http://www.asservoprotection.com.
Contribution: means the amount we will charge you for the protection for the duration of the protection period.
Currency of Loss: means the currency that was used by the rental company for the damage charges that were charged to you.
Damage: means physical harm to the rental vehicle that impairs its value, usefulness or normal function.
Drop off/relocation fees: means fees charged to you by the rental company for any drop off/relocation costs of your rental vehicle if the rental vehicle is damaged or there’s a breakdown.
Excess: means the amount paid - or payable - by you to the rental our partner, if there’s accidental damage or theft.
Full value: means the market value of the rental car at the time of your claim, up to a maximum market value of AUD $100,000. This is the maximum amount that we pay in the event of a claim.
GST: means goods and services tax per the meaning given in the Goods and Services Tax Act 1985.
Key loss or replacement or lock out: means the call out fees, replacement of lost, damaged or stolen car keys, key programming and key delivery charged to you by the rental company.
Loss: means the amounts charged to you by the rental company which are covered by this protection.
Loss of use/demurrage fees: means fees charged to you by the rental company for loss of use of the rental vehicle while it is being repaired.
Manager: means Picnic Services Pty Ltd, ACN 638 145 418, Authorised Representative (AR) No. 532540.
Member: means a person, corporation, organisation or entity that has been admitted to membership of the mutual in accordance with the constitution and, subject to the constitution, is entitled to request a claim is considered under the protection.
Mutual/Asservo Mutual: means Asservo Mutual Limited ACN: 664 040 975.
Mutual capital instrument (MCI): means a financial instrument issued by the mutual in accordance with its constitution and the MCI class rights (in accordance with the constitution) that provides funds to the mutual to support its solvency.
Natural weather event: means an event caused by natural forces, including but not limited to wind, hail, fire, flood, earthquake, explosion, tsunami, volcanic eruption, landslide, avalanche, hurricane, cyclone or storm.
“Not at fault”: means that one of the drivers involved in an accident or collision is not deemed to be responsible for damages after an investigation between the insurers of each driver.
Off-road: means any area that is not a sealed road. It includes, but is not limited to, tracks, rivers, tidal crossings, sand, flood waters, unformed roads, fire trails, rivers, dams, streams, rocks, beaches, creek beds, fields and paddocks.
Picnic: means Picnic Licensing Pty Ltd, ACN 647 642 117, AFSL No. 532540.
Product Disclosure Statement(PDS): means the document and any Supplementary Product Disclosure Statement we issue for this product.
Protection Period: means the time and date you pick up the rental vehicle at the start of your trip until the time and date you drop off the rental vehicle at end of your trip.
Protection: means a miscellaneous financial risk product used to manage risks, issued to a member in accordance with the constitution. The protection is described in this document.
Rental agreement: means the contract between you and a rental company in respect to the provision of a rental vehicle for a trip that contains your signature confirming you agree to its terms.
Rental company: means a commercial operation which is in the business of renting out vehicles and that is fully licensed, where applicable, by the regulatory authority of that country, state or local authority including online "share" or "peer to peer" websites, loan cars from a licensed mechanic or accident replacement vehicles.
RentalCover.com: the website which distributes the protection and provides the claims administration system.
Rental vehicle: means cars and standard vehicles (including SUVs, wagons and 4x4s) that don’t need special licences and aren’t for commercial or offroad use, rented from an authorised rental company at the time the rental contract is entered into. This includes mechanic loan cars and accident replacement cars. Vehicles which are not rental vehicles include, but are not limited to, a truck/lorry, van, bus, performance, racing car or street car, motorcycle, scooter, moped, motorhome, RV, campervan.
Third party excess charges: means charges applied by the rental company when two or more vehicles are involved in an accident. These are discretionarily applied by rental companies. These do not relate to “third party insurance claims” which are handled between vehicle owners and do not involve renters.
Towing and roadside assistances fees: means call out fees following damage to or breakdown of the rental vehicle.
Theft: means a rental vehicle that has been stolen, to either a known or unknown location, without your permission.
Unsealed road: means a road which is not a sealed road. It includes roads that are not dressed in a hard material such as tar, bitumen or concrete.
Vandalism: means a rental vehicle that has been damaged intentionally by you or someone known or unknown to you.
You/your: means a member who holds a protection as described in your certificate and any other person who drives the same rental vehicle and is listed on the same rental agreement.
We/us/our: means Asservo Mutual.

Important Information

Target Market Determination

A target market determination for this product can be obtained here.

About this document

About the mutual

What is Asservo Mutual?

Who is involved?

How is Asservo Mutual managed?

Notice of Annual General Meeting of Asservo Mutual

As an active member of Asservo Mutual, you can join the AGM to be held on the upcoming first Wednesday of November of the year at 9am Sydney time via the link on the manager's website.

How does it work?

Member-based community

General Advice Warning

Resilient Community

Strong Member Attributes

Typical members of the mutual are committed to proactive risk management and will have the following attributes:

they provide information truthfully and accurately in respect to their protection and claims;
they fully cooperate with all reasonable requests in the course of processing their claim;
they do not expect their product to protect them in situations that they can prevent, such as deliberately damaging a rental vehicle;
they ensure they and other drivers operate the rental vehicle legally and are appropriately licensed; and
they take due precaution to minimise the chance of a loss or further loss including where relevant:
- ensuring the rental vehicle is secured;
- securing the keys to the rental vehicle; and
- not attempting to drive the rental vehicle if it is damaged.

Privacy statement

Important Information

Discretionary Risk Protection

Why does the board have discretion to approve claims?

What are the significant risks?

Protection is a financial product and you should be aware of the following:

Protection is not an insurance product.

Whether there is adequate funding of the mutual.

A member could lose their protection entitlements if their membership is cancelled.