Owned Cat plant
Accidental damage to machines on site, generally scheduled individually by value.
Caterpillar Equipment Insurance
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Caterpillar Equipment Insurance
Cover for Cat plant from compact machines to mine-spec equipment.
Cat is the widest machine range on Australian sites, from three tonne mini excavators through to mining trucks, so a Cat fleet rarely has one risk profile. Values hold up well, which helps at claim time but also means schedules drift out of date if they are not reviewed. Attachments and GPS machine control kit are the usual gaps.
What is it?
Caterpillar builds excavators, dozers, wheel loaders, backhoes, graders, compactors, articulated and rigid haulers, telehandlers and compact track loaders, sold in Australia through territory dealers including Hastings Deering, WesTrac, William Adams and Cavpower. Machines are commonly fitted with Product Link telematics and Cat grade control, both of which matter when describing the asset to an insurer.
What does caterpillar equipment insurance cover?
Attachments and grade control
Buckets, hammers, quick hitches and GPS grade control kit, which are often under-scheduled.
Hired-in and dry hire
Cat machines you hire in, or hire out, where contractual responsibility must match the wording.
What affects the cost?
- Fleet size, values and machine ages
- Whether work is residential, civil, quarry or mining
- Machine control and telematics fitted
- Storage and site security overnight
- Operator ticketing and site inductions
Worth raising on the call
- Strong resale values mean agreed values drift low if the schedule is not reviewed each renewal.
- GPS grade control components are a theft target and are often left off the plant schedule.
- Mine and head contractor sites usually impose their own insurance requirements on top of yours.
Claims we are commonly asked about
Grade control kit stripped overnight
A GPS mast, receiver and in cab control box are taken off a Cat excavator parked on an open subdivision site. Replacement cost for a full machine control set is substantial, and claims are often reduced or declined when the kit was never added to the plant schedule.
Excavator off the ramps
A twenty tonne machine slides sideways coming off a low loader on a wet, cambered verge and drops onto the track frame and boom. Damage during loading and unloading is one of the most frequent claims on a mid sized fleet, and the transit wording decides whether your policy or the carrier's answers.
Mini excavator and trailer stolen
A compact machine left on a residential job with its trailer is taken during the night, trailer and all. Insurers usually ask about the declared overnight storage arrangement and whether tracking or an immobiliser was fitted and active.
Worth confirming in the wording
- Worth confirming whether GPS grade control components, telematics hardware and aftermarket screens are scheduled and covered against theft when left fitted to the machine outside a locked yard.
- Worth confirming whether machines are insured on an agreed value or a market value basis, and how depreciation would be applied at claim time on machines that hold their resale strongly.
- Worth confirming whether machines you dry hire out to other contractors remain covered, and what the hire agreement is required to contain for the policy to respond.
Common questions
Should I insure my machines for agreed value or market value?
Agreed value fixes the settlement figure at the outset and removes argument at claim time, while market value settles at the machine's worth on the day, which can be lower or higher than expected. Availability of agreed value generally depends on the insurer, the machine's age and a supporting valuation. Because well maintained Cat plant tends to hold value, a stale market value assumption can leave a real gap, so it is worth reviewing the basis each renewal.
Does the dealer warranty replace machinery breakdown cover?
No. A manufacturer or dealer warranty is a contractual promise about defects within a defined period and set of conditions, while machinery breakdown insurance responds to internal failure more broadly, subject to the policy terms. The two overlap in places but leave different gaps, particularly on older machines out of warranty. Worth confirming what your warranty actually covers before deciding whether breakdown cover is needed.
What drives the cost of insuring a Cat fleet?
It depends on the fleet, and no figure is meaningful without underwriting. Fleet size, values and machine ages, whether work is residential, civil, quarry or mining, machine control and telematics fitted, storage and site security overnight, operator ticketing and inductions, and claims history are the main drivers. Excess levels and whether attachments and grade control are properly scheduled also move the number.
Do I need to tell my insurer before a machine goes onto a mine site?
Yes. Moving from civil or residential work onto a mine or resources site is generally a material change in risk, and insurers expect to be told. Mine sites also commonly impose their own insurance requirements through the contract, including higher liability limits and interested party notations. Raising it before mobilisation avoids both a coverage argument and a contract compliance problem.
General information only. Cover, limits and exclusions depend on the PDS, TMD, eligibility, underwriting and the policy terms. See mobile plant machinery insurance for the wider picture.
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