Incident Reporting

To report an incident with FDCA, please click here to lodge your incident via the FDCA Member Zone.

Category A

These are severe incidents where a claim is likely to occur. These types of incidents must be reported to FDCA within 48 hours of the incident.

Some examples of a Category A incident are:

• Death / spinal injury / burns / loss of consciousness / fractures or breaks to major limbs
• Any incident that requires admission to hospital
• Where a parent threatens legal action or withdraws the child from care because of the incident

Category B

These incidents are less severe but a claim may still occur from the incident. These types of incidents must be reported to FDCA within 30 days of the incident.

Some examples of a Category B incident are:

• Fractures or breaks to minor limbs (fingers and toes)
• Injuries to teeth
• Lacerations requiring first aid
• Convulsions / seizures / fits where medical assistance was required

Category C

These incidents are not severe and can be managed and dealt with straight away and there is no need to report to FDCA.

Some examples of a Category C incident are:

• A child has hurt themselves and just needs to be comforted
• A band-aid is required

Why do I need to report these incidents?

These timeframes need to be adhered to in order to ensure that you are protected under your insurance policy in the event that the incident leads to a claim in the future. Sometimes claims may take years to be advised of and if we have no incident report on file then we are just relying on your memory of the incident which may make it harder to protect you in the future. An incident report completed and sent to FDCA immediately after an incident occurs helps protect all involved should a valid claim ever be made in the future. Delaying notification of an incident may also affect your benefits under the policy so it is important that an incident report is provided as soon as possible.

What happens after an incident is reported?

Once you notify FDCA of the incident we may appoint an investigator, depending on the nature and severity of the incident. The investigator will provide a report to the insurer while the incident is still fresh in everyone's mind and they may take statements from you or anyone who observed the incident to ensure that the correct facts are disclosed straight after the incident. It’s important to remember that FDCA insurers act on your behalf and these steps may need to be taken in order to ensure your rights are protected.

Your family day care service may also have their own incident reporting timeframes which need to be followed as some serious incidents may need to be reported straight away to the Regulatory Authority. It is important to understand what your service's timeframes are so you are not in breach of their policies. Always remember when sending an incident report form into your service to forward a copy to FDCA so we have a copy on file also.

Remember there is no harm in reporting an incident to FDCA if you are unsure if an incident needs to be reported; it is always best to play it safe and report the incident. You can report an incident via your FDCA Member Zone by clicking here. FDCA’s Incident Report forms are also available here and once completed can be emailed to memberservices@fdca.com.au.

If you have questions relating to any incidents or claims, please contact FDCA Insurance Services on 1800 658 699.

Please note: educators and approved providers also have a range of reporting obligations relating to incidents under the Education and Care Services National Law and National Regulations. Click here to see a summary of the notification obligations under the National Law.