FPA offers free advice to cancer sufferers
13 June 2017
The Financial Planning Association will run a pilot pro-bono referral service with the Cancer Council…
Life Insurance
ASIC rubber-stamps commission caps and clawback
05 June 2017
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has issued the formal legal document setting limits on life insurance commissions…
Comparators ‘offer less for same commissions’
05 June 2017
Comparator websites receive similar commissions to advisers for life insurance sales, but they do not deliver the same levels of advice, according to Rice Warner…
ASIC proposes new SOAs for life advice
05 June 2017
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission wants to make life insurance statements of advice shorter…
Canberra urged to ban underwriters using genetic test data
05 June 2017
Life insurers should not have access to genetic testing information, a working group has told a parliamentary inquiry…
Drug use among over-40s rises as ice trend continues
05 June 2017
Increasing numbers of people aged over 40 are using illicit drugs, according to a report from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare…
FPA calls on ASIC panel to take monitoring role
05 June 2017
The Financial Planning Association wants the proposed Australian Securities and Investments Commission financial services panel to take on a monitoring role, rather than focusing only on enforcement…
Policy specialist rejoins AFA
05 June 2017
Former Association of Financial Advisers (AFA) COO Phil Anderson has rejoined the organisation as GM Policy and Professionalism…
MLC upgrades claims management software
05 June 2017
MLC Life is using technology from international software provider ClaimVantage in its claims transformation program…
FPA warns over box-ticking compliance
05 June 2017
A government and consumer expectation that every breach will be detected and reported will create box-ticking compliance in the financial services industry, the Financial Planning Association warns…
Freedom share grows as sales surge
05 June 2017
Freedom Insurance doubled its market share last calendar year, recording $47 million of direct annual premium sales, up from $22.8 million the previous year…
Zurich upgrades TPD offering
05 June 2017
Zurich Financial Services Australia has revamped its total and permanent disability product, introducing non-occupation-based assessment criteria and a more flexible superannuation optimiser facility with rate reductions…
Fitch predicts flat earnings for Japanese groups
05 June 2017
Japanese life insurers’ earnings will remain flat in their financial year to next March, according to Fitch Ratings…
AIA breaks new ground with health insurance JV
29 May 2017
AIA Australia will offer health insurance after forming a partnership with GMHBA and South African financial services provider Discovery…
Industry profits fall further, APRA says
29 May 2017
Life insurance net after-tax profit fell to $2.4 billion in the year to March 31, compared with $2.9 billion the previous year, according to Australian Prudential Regulation Authority data…
Questions grow over AMP life business
29 May 2017
A recent investor-day briefing on AMP’s growth plans focused on expanding operations in China and its adviser groups, but excluded life insurance…
FPA raises concerns on APL standard
29 May 2017
The Financial Planning Association has called for a proposed standard on approved product lists to be significantly expanded…
AIA picks up HESTA life contract
29 May 2017
AIA Australia has won the HESTA life insurance tender, beating seven-year incumbent CommInsure…
AI innovator wins MetLife trial opportunity
29 May 2017
An Australian artificial intelligence company has won an award through MetLife’s Asia start-up accelerator Collab…
Genetic testing trend ‘threatens life industry’
29 May 2017
A rise in the number of people taking genetic tests could pose a serious threat to the life insurance industry, a paper presented at the Actuaries Institute summit warns…