New surveillance rules proposed by the ACT could hamper investigation of fraudulent claims and increase the cost of cover, the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) warns.

ICA says fraud is estimated to cost the general insurance industry more than $2 billion a year, leading to increased premiums.

“The ability of insurers and their agents to appropriately conduct legitimate surveillance activities is critical,” it says in a submission on the proposals.

ICA urges greater clarity around rules for surveillance in public places and says a “non-government” definition may be ambiguous when companies are acting as agents for state-run programs such as compulsory third party schemes.

Other areas of concern include recommendations for gaining consent and communicating surveillance results.

“Insurance claimants are unlikely to expressly consent to being monitored by surveillance,” ICA says. Even if consent is gained when policies are issued, this would not help when a third party is the target, it notes.

Privacy issues related to mobile technology and people moving in or out of the ACT reinforce ICA’s push for a national set of rules.

“At the minimum, privacy and surveillance legislation across state and territory jurisdictions should be consistent.

“The current patchwork of regulation makes compliance for businesses operating at the national level unnecessarily complex, given the policy objectives of privacy and surveillance regulation should not differ between jurisdictions.”

ICA says the impact of the proposed legislation needs clarification in terms of social media use, such as when users have made data public in their privacy settings. The submission supports a licensing regime to regulate investigation agents, including those used by insurers.