Insurtechs turn up the heat
07 August 2017
Insurers face an uncertain future amid increasing pressure from insurtechs, according to interviews with industry leaders…
Analysis
How the SRS acquisition ended in a lawsuit
31 July 2017
When acquisitions take place in the insurance industry – a common event – there’s usually a brief flurry of announcements, followed by the acquired company getting back down to business under its new owners…
IAG’s new Australia Division is worth watching
24 July 2017
Until Peter Harmer took the reins at IAG late in 2015, the entities that made up Australia’s largest insurance group existed in a series of independent silos, each of which carried its own systems and cultures…
Global outlook: emerging from the ‘lost decade’
17 July 2017
Things are looking up for global insurance markets, according to a detailed new report from insurance heavyweight Allianz…
Re-repeat: the rate slide persists
10 July 2017
Reinsurance renewals have stuck to a familiar theme this mid-year as fierce competitive pressures, excess capacity and a legacy of benign catastrophe years drive down rates yet again…
Insurance: the ultimate shared-value industry
03 July 2017
Shared value as a concept is nothing new – but a recent report suggests the Australian insurance industry is perfectly placed to take it to the next level…
Flammable cladding: ignoring the alarms
26 June 2017
London’s Grenfell Tower disaster, which has so far claimed 79 lives, looks to have kicked Australian authorities into action on flammable cladding.
June renewals: rising at last
19 June 2017
The soft market may finally be behind us, as brokers report underwriters successfully pushing through rate increases in the June renewals…
The Berejiklian backflip: chaos reigns
13 June 2017
NSW insurance brokers are in a unique position to observe the impact of the State Government’s remarkable backflip on emergency services levy reform…
ESL backflip is beyond belief
05 June 2017
Insurers hauled before a public inquiry a couple of weeks ago to explain their plans for removing the emergency services levy from property policies in NSW may now be wondering why they bothered…
Motoring along: the many routes towards automation
29 May 2017
The race to develop and deploy fully automated vehicles shows no sign of slowing, and one insurer is determined to stay ahead of the pack…
SME index: now for the good news
22 May 2017
The first tranche of results from Vero’s annual SME Insurance Index earlier this year made sobering reading for brokers, showing that demand for their services has declined…
Mitigation: still nobody listening
15 May 2017
The argument is simple: Australia should invest in disaster mitigation now, and save billions of dollars later when the inevitable cyclones and floods strike…
Domestic violence: spotlight falls on insurers
08 May 2017
Family violence is a major problem, with former Australian of the year Rosie Batty describing it as an “epidemic”…
Debbie exposes hole in cyclone defences
01 May 2017
The damage wrought by Cyclone Debbie has again highlighted insurance affordability worries in northern Australia, exposing a lack of action by the Federal Government, which has left decisions on the issue languishing for more than a year…
Industry stands its ground amid hail of fire
24 April 2017
Critics were lining up to take shots at the insurance industry during two days of Senate inquiry public hearings last week…
FENZ levy: fanning the flames of anger
10 April 2017
It took many years to achieve, but politicians, insurers and consumer leaders on the Australian mainland agree that taxes on insurance cause problems, are inefficient and contribute to underinsurance…
The digital dilemma for brokers
03 April 2017
Technological upheaval and shifts in SME buying behaviour show more than ever the need for brokers to deliver high-quality, tailored advice and ensure their role is not swept aside amid a wave of disruption…
Beyond the levy: Fels hits out at price divergence
27 March 2017
Monitoring of the emergency services levy removal from NSW policies has taken an unexpected diversion into wider issues, with data collected for one purpose being used for another – namely criticising insurers for failing to support comparison websites…
Facing up to insurtech
20 March 2017
Insurtech is on its way, and the insurance industry must brace for major change…