Insurance intermediaries invoiced $10.6 billion of premium in the six months to December 31, according to the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA).

In APRA’s previous update, for the June half, the invoiced amount was $9.4 billion.

About $8.8 billion of the December-half premium was placed with APRA-authorised general insurers, $1.1 billion with Lloyd’s underwriters and $600 million with unauthorised foreign insurers (UFIs). Singapore and the UK accounted for 79% of premium placed with UFIs.

Of the UFI premium, $364 million was in the fire and industrial special risk class.

The high-value-insured exemption was used to place 76% of business with UFIs, the custom exemption 19%, the atypical exemption 4% and the foreign exemption 1%.