Peninsula closes after insurer rejects flood-damage claim

The company was decimated by flooding on 11 October during widespread storms across Queensland’s south-east. The entire lower floor of the Virginia-based business was flooded, including its A1 and A2 Komori presses, which were under 18 inches of water.

The company was hoping to have the presses replaced and be up and running again by January.

But Peninsula director Rick Biddle told ProPrint that the company’s claim has now been rejected by the insurance house on the basis that, while they were covered for storm damage, they were not covered for flood damage.

“We were paid under that policy for a similar incident last year, but with the size of the claim this time, they’ve denied us,” he said.

Biddle said that Peninsula’s claim has now entered the insurer’s dispute resolution process, but with the company now entering its eighth straight week without income, he has been forced to close the business.

The resolution process is expected to take at least three to four weeks, though Biddle said that even if a payout came, it would be too late.

“In that timeframe, it’s just not enough to save the business. By then we’re at Christmas, and if we put some orders in for equipment, we still wouldn’t be up and running until March.

“The staff deserve the opportunity to try and find work elsewhere.”

Biddle expressed disappointment at being forced to close Peninsula, saying that it was “too early to tell” what he would do next. He added that the company was thankful for the help of the printing industry over the last few weeks.

“The industry support has been fantastic,” he said.

Peninisula was established in 1989 as a pre-press trade house.

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