The new General Insurance Code of Practice comes into effect today, after a 12-month transition period.

The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) says members signing up for the code should now have adjusted their business practices and are now fully subject to the new code.

ICA says the important revision brings the industry into line with existing technology and practices. It says it will raise service standards, improve claims and complaints procedures and create a more transparent industry.

The new code replaces a 12-year-old version and covers all types of insurance, from small-budget personal lines to the largest of business risk arrangements.

It is a self-regulating regime but insurers will be monitored by the Insurance Ombudsman Service, which will have the power to impose sanctions on any companies in contravention.

An ICA spokesman told Sunrise Exchange News a wide range of insurers have signed up to the code. She said this week marks the first official application of the new guidelines, but many signatories have been applying them for some time.