Priority Insurance Brokers specialises in mining insurance for contractors working above or below ground. Whether you’re in coal mining, shutdowns, heavy machinery, or onsite repairs our award-winning team builds policies that hold up on site.
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Working on or near mine sites isn’t just another job it carries real risk. Whether you’re underground, handling shutdowns, moving plant, or inspecting safety systems, most off-the-shelf policies won’t touch it. Or worse, they’ll exclude the parts of your work that matter most.
That’s why mining contractor insurance exists. It fills the gaps that generic business insurance leaves wide open. From coal and hard rock operations to exploration and surface logistics, Priority Insurance Brokers works with underwriters who understand the risks and back businesses like yours.
As a brokerage recognised nationally for our mining expertise including People’s Choice Broker of the Year and Steadfast policy access we know how to build cover that doesn’t fall apart when things go wrong.
The two policies most mining contractors need and are often asked to prove on entry are:
This protects your business if your work causes injury to someone else or damages mine infrastructure. Say a machine you’re operating causes a shutdown, or a subcontractor gets hurt under your supervision this is the cover that responds.
We only place policies with insurers who explicitly include work on mine sites, whether it’s for shutdowns, ongoing maintenance, or surface-level operations.
If your role includes signing off on compliance, providing reports, or giving advice, you’ll likely need this. It protects you if a client claims your advice or inspection led to financial loss for example, a geotech report that causes delays or triggers site penalties.
PI cover is often required alongside liability insurance, especially for engineers, auditors, safety consultants and planning professionals.
We’ll make sure both are in place and written to reflect the real work you’re doing before you step foot on site.
Need a mining insurance broker who can assist with Mining Contractor Insurance? We've got you covered.
We understand that just running the day to day operation of your business takes a lot of time. This is why we provide the perfect solution for business owners with regards to their insurance. We provide you all of the information that you need to make sure you are covered correctly. We provide simple, straight forward and fully managed mining insurance policies.
Mining operations involve complex logistics, high-value machinery, and strict compliance requirements all in some of the most challenging environments in Australia. A well-structured mining contractor insurance policy doesn’t just tick boxes; it actively protects your work, your equipment, your reputation, and your livelihood.
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Mining can be a high risk industry, even if you’ve had years of experience. This is why it’s crucical for you to find the right type of insurance for your business.
With an industry like mining, there are unique requirements that a mining contractors insurance should include.
Understand Exclusions on mining insurance policies
Don’t just focus on what your policy includes, this is the trap that most mining contractors fall into is that they purchase a public liability or professional indemnity insurance policy and don’t read through any of the exclusions. We ensure that any exclusions that applied to your policy are made very clear.
Assess the listed occupation on your policy
Every mining contractors insurance policy will have a description of your occupation or the professional services that you provide. Ensure that this is accurate to what you actually do.
Underground work needs to be added
Underground operations are generally excluded on most policies however, our mining insurance policies has the option to include cover for underground works.
Priority Insurance Brokers supports mining contractors across every major mining region in Australia, from remote underground sites to large-scale open cut operations. Whether you’re operating machinery in the Pilbara or managing shutdowns in the Bowen Basin, we understand the specific risks you face and how to insure against them.
These are the most frequent occupations that require professional indemnity cover however, we can consider most occupations depending on the professional services that are being provided.
There are 2 places to find exclusions that apply to insurance for miners, one would be in the product disclosure statement and the other would be via an endorsement on your policy schedule. a PDS exclusion is a general exclusion that applies to all occupations and an endorsement exclusion is generally triggered by the occupation being set or an answer to a question set by the insurer.
There is no actual policy that is called mining contractors insurance it is however, what we refer to as a cluster of different types of policies that may be available based on your occupation, size, structure and industries that you work within. Some of the main things that we can provide cover for are:
It’s not as though the site itself is considered high risk. In fact mine sites have more health and safety protocols in place than most other businesses.
The high risk exposure that the insurer is concerned about is the potential costs of damages that could occur.
For example, if you shut a whole mine site down for even just 1 day the costs associated with that would be huge. Let alone fixing the damage that caused it.
Yes, we do.
We work with both incidental mining contractors and contractors that just work with mine sites.
Depending on your occupation and the work that you do will determine whether our insurers will accept cover for underground work. We have placed many insurance policies for underground mining contractors.
No, not necessarily by law however, you could potentially be in breach of your contractors agreement if it is a requirement of the mine site to be insured for specific types of insurances. It is recommended that you speak with your insurance broker to determine the appropriate cover for your business requirements as it is important to note that the specific insurances that a mine site asks for doesn’t necessarily cover all potential exposures to your business and could lead to significant losses.
A Public liability insurance policy will only cover the costs that you are legally liable for in the event of personal injury or property damage occurring.
Certain policies will allow you to have errors and omissions cover added to your policy however, it could also be recommended that a separate professional indemnity policy be taken out depending on the type of work that you are doing.
Yes, defence costs are typically covered under a public liability insurance policy for mining contractors.
Professional Indemnity policies can also provide this cover however, it depends on what occurs as to which policy would provide the coverage.
Personal injury and property damage would be covered by a public liability policy and financial losses would be covered under a professional indemnity policy.
Yes, it is recommended that any separate business operating under their own ABN should have their own insurances in place. A primary contractors policy will only provide cover to the primary contractor however, unless a subrogation waiver or hold harmless agreement has been signed then there is a good chance that the primary contractors policy will seek recovery from the subcontractor in the event that they are solely liable.
Generally speaking, income protection is generally sourced through a financial planner as this is a personal insurance protection.
However, we are able to source personal accident and illness insurance for miners which is designed to provide a form of income protection insurance for miners but for a limited time.
The main differences between traditional income protection and personal accident and illness cover is a personal accident and illness policy will only cover you for a defined period of time (1, 2 or 3 years) whereas traditional income protection will cover you up until a defined age (retirement age or age 65).
Priority Insurance Brokers specialises in mining contractor insurance — from shutdown maintenance and mobile plant to underground operations and exploration work. We work with insurers who are willing to cover what others won’t.
Led by Daniel Ufer (2023 ADVISR Broker of the Year – People’s Choice) and backed by a team with deep industry experience, we provide tailored advice, access to over 300 insurers through the Steadfast network, and full claims support when it matters most.
You’ll get a dedicated advisor who knows your business, not a generic service team. We review your policies, explain your exclusions, and make sure you’re covered properly for the work you actually do.
Fast quotes, honest advice, no shortcuts. That’s why mining contractors across Australia choose Priority.
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