Australia’s insurance industry does not have any of the inherent disclosure and commission problems apparent in the US, according to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). But it still intends to conduct regular monitoring of the industry to ensure it’s on the right track.

Speaking at last week’s National Insurance Brokers Association (NIBA) Convention on the Gold Coast, ASIC Executive Director Compliance Jennifer O’Donnell said the broker remuneration investigation undertaken earlier this year uncovered “nothing that made us want to take out the enforcement stick”.

Nevertheless, she told delegates, ASIC will continue to conduct similar investigations “from time to time” to check up on the industry.

Ms O’Donnell says brokers’ breach notifications under the Financial Services Reform Act are “right on par with other industries”, but some brokers aren’t reporting any breaches.

“ASIC will spend some time in the next few months to chase up brokers that are apparently perfect.”

She says the issue of contingent commissions still raises some questions over the quality of consumer protection. “While it’s great that most brokers using these commissions are disclosing them, they are still very complex and might not be easily understood by consumers.”

Industry associations like NIBA are doing the right thing by developing industry codes of conduct and “creating greater consumer confidence in the process”, Ms O’Donnell says.

“We are fully supportive of NIBA’s code of conduct and will provide feedback on it when the time comes.”