Insurers and brokers must “go back to basics” to explain the value of cover to clients, LMI MD Allan Manning told the TIO insurance conference last week.

Many people do not understand common insurance terms, but they do see the value of discussing cover when it is explained in terms of protecting their assets, Professor Manning says.

Commercial insurance take-up in Queensland has dropped since the 2011 floods, and while this may be partly due to price, it could also result from damage to the “insurance brand”.

“We have to really go back to basics and not talk about price,” Professor Manning told the conference in Darwin.

Recent disasters have highlighted how little governments spend on mitigation and maintenance, he argues.

One Tasmanian bushfire spread along a roadside rather than across farms, fuelled by grass and overhanging branches, Professor Manning says. And floods have revealed a lack of waterway maintenance, with rubbish and logs washing under bridges and forming dams.