Insurance shadow over our foster carers

Yet if one of their charges seriously harms them or their property, they have no guarantee they will be compensated.

A mood of fear - and anger - has overcome Canberra's foster carers, many of whom learned recently they lack insurance for ''malicious acts''.

Their anxiety worsened earlier this month when ACT Work Safety Commissioner Mark McCabe advised them they were not covered by work health laws. His office had previously told the carers they were.

The concerns were sparked when a foster child with behavioural problems burned down his carer's caravan. The ACT's insurer would not cover the damage because it was caused by an act of malice.

The Community Service Directorate eventually stepped in and agreed to pay what it said was a ''fair and reasonable amount agreed to by the carer''. A spokesman said yesterday the directorate would continue to pay carers on a case-by-case basis while it explored whether to replace its existing insurance policy.

However, foster carers say this assurance gives them little confidence.

Mrs Woonton said she had five outstanding claims for damage - TVs, laptops, blinds and other property smashed by an angry child - and had waited for up to nine months for a resolution.

''If my house burnt down today, I wouldn't be at all confident that, in a timely fashion, the directorate would step in to help,'' she said.

Her greater fear, though, was not the foster children but, in some cases, their families.

''There have been times when people have had weapons during contact [visits]. I don't like attending these: the government tells me I have to.''

She wrote in a submission to Mr McCabe this month: ''If I was to be assaulted or killed during the supervision of contact, my family would have to rely on my own private life insurance to compensate them. An ACT public servant or agency worker would be covered by workers compensation in the identical situation.''

ACT Foster Care Association president Fiona Tito Wheatland said the lack of protection for carers was a breach of trust.

''We were told we were covered when we weren't. We're now relying solely on the generosity of the government, and many of us don't feel very comfortable with that.''

She said foster agencies and the child protection service didn't always tell carers about the risks associated with a child, such as whether he or she had a history of arson.

''I had a [foster] child once who was a firebug, but no one mentioned to me he'd burned down other houses. Sometimes, the agencies are just desperate to get these children fostered out.''

Ms Tito Wheatland said carers were willing to accept some risks when dealing with traumatised children. ''We just want some financial certainty. It's hard enough to get foster carers as it is.''