Insurance
The Safety Office is responsible for managing the University’s insurance programme at an operational level.
Insurance issues may arise for staff and students involved in a number of areas and activities. These include, but are not limited to:
Research Programmes
Confirmation of insurance cover may be required to obtain grants, to obtain ethics approval for projects, to effect collaborative projects with other institutions, etc.
Fieldtrips
Persons involved in organising field trip may be required to provide proof of insurance before entering a third party’s site. Fieldtrips abroad will also require confirmation of insurance.
New Equipment
Persons purchasing high value equipment should ensure that its purchase is notified to the Safety Office so that insurance cover can be confirmed.
Transport Of Equipment
If equipment is being moved off site then confirmation that the item is covered during the transit period and the period that it is off site should be requested. This is particularly important with high value equipment and equipment being sent abroad.
Statutory Plant Inspections
The inspection of ‘statutory plant’ is carried out by the University’s insurers as per the relevant statutory requirements. Every new purchase of a piece of statutory plant must be reported to the Safety Office. Statutory plant includes all lifting equipment (including chains and hoists); boilers; compressors; autoclaves; air receivers; and all pressure vessels.
Accidents / Property Damage
All accidents and incidents of property damage must be reported to the Safety Office on the day of the occurrence or as soon as is practicable thereafter by using an official report form. Report forms are available from Services Centres or from the Safety Office directly. This includes any accidents or incidents which occur off site but involve University staff, students or property.
Work Placements
All work placements involving University staff and students must be notified to the Safety Office, as must all work placements involving third parties placed within UCD. Contracts referring to any work placements must not be signed until they have been approved by the Safety Office (for insurance purposes) and the Corporate and Legal Affairs Secretary’s Office (corporate.legal@ucd.ie). This is particularly important for work placements abroad and those work placements involving medical and veterinary personnel.
Conferences / Seminars
Conferences and seminars organised in-house should be advised to the Safety Office.
Sports Days / Student Events / Staff Social Events
Any sports days, student events or staff social events organised by University staff or students should be notified to the Safety Office.
Travel
All University staff travelling within the European Union on approved University business are automatically covered by the University’s travel and accident insurance policies. It is recommended, however, that staff contact the University Safety Office (insurance@ucd.ie) to obtain details on the levels of cover and policy exclusions if they have not previously done so in the current calendar year.
All travel outside of the European Union must be notified to the University Safety office in advance to arrange adequate insurance over. Persons planning to travel to outside the European Union should consult the Department of Foreign Affairs website (www.gov.ie/iveagh) and the British Foreign Office website (www.fco.gov.uk) to ensure that there are no recommended travel restrictions in place for their planned destinations. Travel to areas subject to official government travel advisories may void all insurance policies
Queries regarding insurance and requests for insurance indemnities should be emailed to insurance@ucd.ie. Please allow at least 5 working days to deal with insurance queries. In some cases a longer time period may be required, e.g. when obtaining insurance cover for large events. When forwarding a query include as much information as possible as lack of detail can significantly delay confirmation of cover.