Ten top stories from 2021
13 December 2021
It’s been another challenging year, and the team at insuranceNEWS.com.au has taken great pride in keeping our army of readers up to date throughout...
Analysis
Cyclone pool details revealed, but questions remain
06 December 2021
The Federal Government has moved at a fast clip to develop a cyclone reinsurance pool, after announcing in May that it would go ahead with the long-debated proposal, with draft legislation released last week providing details while leaving some key questions unanswered...
Fair play: AFCA set for tweaks after positive beginnings
29 November 2021
The Australian Financial Complaints Authority has received a generally positive report card after its first Treasury review, with recommendations aimed at fine-tuning and keeping it on track rather than requiring major changes...
'I'm a builder': QBE chief seeks stability, then growth
22 November 2021
QBE Group CEO Andrew Horton wants a more stable strategy and leadership – and has highlighted areas where the insurer can grow...
Why all this weather? An abbreviated explanation
15 November 2021
Spring and summer can often be unstable seasons in Australia, but as many parts of the country emerge from yet another wild weekend of weather it seems like we’re getting more than our fair share at the moment...
Mission possible: insurers and the race to net zero
08 November 2021
Carbon emission reduction pledges from world leaders will not by themselves save the planet from climate change peril. Similar promises have been made in the past, only to fail dismally, upended by domestic political roadblocks...
Cyber to the fore: industry grapples with viral danger
01 November 2021
Move over COVID. Insurers in Australia and globally have a more pressing viral threat on their radar – one that has already stoked geopolitical fears of a new Cold War that could be fought, not with nuclear weapon launch codes, but with the click of a mouse...
Recovery reset: after a false start better results beckon
25 October 2021
An expected recovery in insurers’ profitability didn’t go to plan last financial year but with premiums rising and pandemic business interruption claim risks factored in, the anticipated rebound is likely back on track...
To pay or not to pay? Ransomware blame game ramps up
18 October 2021
Insurers can be an easy target when things go wrong – and responses to the current ransomware epidemic illustrate the point perfectly...
Welcome surprise: BI test case delivers win for insurers, but appeal looms
11 October 2021
After the shock of losing the first business interruption test launched last year there must have been much industry relief on Friday as the Federal Court handed down a judgment that went overwhelmingly in favour of insurers...
Earthquake shakes up risk complacency
04 October 2021
The partial collapse of a building front in Melbourne and shaking felt in several states following the Victorian earthquake is a warning against complacency about a risk for which Australians are generally unprepared...
Different tack: Trowbridge recommends broker commissions continue
27 September 2021
The topic of broker commissions receives some different treatment in the Trowbridge report released by the Insurance Council of Australia, compared with other recent reviews that have raised industry hackles...
'Morally wrong': landlord insurers' practices under spotlight
20 September 2021
Actions matter a whole lot more in the post-Hayne royal commission era, and promises to do right by consumers are no longer enough...
Near and far: reinsurer examines coming changes
13 September 2021
Swiss Re has taken a look to the end of the year, and two decades further ahead, as current trends herald changes that will transform the industry into the future...
The future workplace: no cookie-cutter solutions
06 September 2021
Could the COVID pandemic be an unlikely catalyst to end what historian Geoffrey Blainey once dubbed Australia’s “tyranny of distance"?...
Dissecting ASIC's enforcement approach after conspicuous omission
30 August 2021
Has the corporate regulator gone soft? The Australian Securities and Investments Commission may have inadvertently given that impression with the release last week of its annual report outlining the regulator’s priorities for the next four years...
October blitz: Hayne reforms steam ahead
23 August 2021
Another set of Hayne royal commission reforms is set to come into effect in October, building on other changes implemented since the start of the year such as the application of unfair contract terms laws to insurance contracts in April...
IAG and Suncorp diverge in latest earnings results
16 August 2021
Headline financial results last week presented diverging stories for Suncorp and IAG, with the former basking in a better-than-expected outcome and IAG hit by organisational and risk management failures...
Lucky Star: BI court judgment offers bright spot for insurers
09 August 2021
After an adverse legal decision on business interruption cover and the pandemic in the first test case, insurers may gain some confidence from a Federal Court judgment handed down on a different matter in their favour...
AFCA's candid self-reflection as review concludes
02 August 2021
With just weeks now to wait for the report from an independent review of its operations by Treasury, the tone of Australian Financial Complaints Authority ombudsmen at a two-day member forum last week was conciliatory and amenable...