Queensland gives some, takes a lot more
10 June 2014
The Queensland budget handed down last week contains good news and bad news for the insurance industry…
Regulatory & Government
ACT moves closer to insurance tax phase-out
10 June 2014
The ACT is on target to abolish all insurance taxes by July 1 2016, Treasurer Andrew Barr announced in last week’s budget…
Disclosure can’t cure all ills: ASIC
10 June 2014
The assumption that disclosure always fixes market failures is not “borne out in practice”, according to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission…
No change for WorkCover NSW rates
10 June 2014
WorkCover NSW’s premium rate will remain at 1.47% of wages in the year from June 30, after dropping from 1.55% last December…
ASIC forced to cut surveillance
10 June 2014
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission is to scale back surveillance activities in some areas, including insurance, due to budget cuts…
Treasury reviews capital loss rules
10 June 2014
Treasury is considering removing prudential limitations on the way general insurers deal with loss absorption of regulatory capital…
Time running out for NZ building upgrade decision
10 June 2014
Insurers fear a decision on a crucial amendment to the Building Act may not arrive before New Zealand’s Parliament rises on July 31, ahead of the country’s September 20 election…
APRA to face increased government oversight
02 June 2014
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority will face closer scrutiny from the Federal Parliament, with the House of Representatives’ Economics Committee establishing…
APRA levy on GI industry holds steady
02 June 2014
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority aims to generate $21 million in levies from the general insurance industry in 2014/15, with the sum unchanged from…
Queensland to boast lowest WorkCover rates
02 June 2014
Queensland’s average premium rate for workers’ compensation will be the nation’s lowest when it falls 17% next financial year…
Don’t rely on mortgage insurance, APRA tells lenders
02 June 2014
Banks and other lenders should not consider lenders’ mortgage insurance an alternative to due diligence on borrowers, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority…
Regulator relents on financial condition reports
02 June 2014
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority will allow insurers to lodge financial condition reports up to four months after balance dates, instead of the three-month deadline it imposed from April 1…
WA opens asbestos compensation inquiry
02 June 2014
The WA Law Reform Commission is to review compensation rules for sufferers of asbestos-related diseases…
Private market ‘cannot cover all terror risks’
26 May 2014
The threat of terrorism remains and the private reinsurance market does not have the capacity to cover all commercial property, according to the Australian Reinsurance Pool Corporation’s…
APRA reviews insurance in ADIs
26 May 2014
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority is examining how general and life insurance companies fit into authorised deposit-taking institutions…
ACC signals levy cuts
26 May 2014
New Zealanders have been told to expect cuts in levies for the Accident Compensation Corporation no-fault injury scheme…
SA flags WorkCover reforms
26 May 2014
South Australia’s workers’ compensation rules may change in July next year as the State Government presses ahead with plans for a major overhaul of the system, employers…
Now IAG sweats on RBNZ review of Lumley takeover
26 May 2014
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand has acknowledged that IAG’s takeover of Lumley NZ is significant for the country’s insurance market, but has not confirmed…
Victorian fire levy drops following reform
26 May 2014
The Victorian Government has reduced its fire services levy, a year after the charge was removed from insurance premiums and added to council rates…
Equality review waves away insurance issues
26 May 2014
The private insurance market has largely escaped scrutiny under the Australian Law Reform Commission’s review of equality, capacity and disability in Commonwealth laws…