62A   Certain damage to be covered by insurance

(1)  Any damage to property caused by the exercise in good faith of functions under section 37A (1) or 61 (1) by:

(a)  the Minister or an emergency services officer authorised by the Minister during a state of emergency, or

(b)  a senior police officer or another police officer authorised by a senior police officer at an actual or imminent emergency, or

(c)  a person acting on and in accordance with a direction given by:

(i)  the Minister or an emergency services officer authorised by the Minister under section 37A (1) during a state of emergency, or

(ii)  a senior police officer or another police officer authorised by a senior police officer under section 61 (1) at an actual or imminent emergency,

      is taken to be damage by the happening that constitutes the emergency (being fire, flood, storm, tempest, explosion or other risk, contingency or event) for the purposes of any policy of insurance against the risk, contingency or event concerning an act or omission that covers the property.

(2)  This section applies only in respect of damage to property caused in the exercise of a function to protect persons or animals from injury or death or property from damage if those persons are, or the property is, endangered by the happening that constitutes the emergency or endangered by the escape or likely escape of hazardous material as the result of that happening.

(3)  Any provision, stipulation, covenant or condition in any agreement that negatives, limits or modifies or purports to negative, limit or modify the operation of this section is void and of no effect.

(4)  In this section, hazardous material means anything that, when produced, stored, moved, used or otherwise dealt with without adequate safeguards to prevent it from escaping, may cause injury or death or damage to property.