New Zealand to set up super-regulator
03 May 2010
The NZ Government will fast-track the development of a new super-regulator to oversee financial markets following the failure of a succession of local finance companies…
Regulatory & Government
Australia, US sign disaster co-operation deal
03 May 2010
Australia and the US have agreed to strengthen emergency management co-operation and co-ordination following natural disasters and other civil emergencies…
Insurance anxiety over tax review
27 April 2010
Finance Minister Lindsay Tanner is giving nothing away ahead of the Federal Government’s belated response to the Henry Tax review, saying nothing can be ruled out before its release…
Speculation rises over NZ’s state insurance monopoly
27 April 2010
Media speculation that the NZ Government will act to privatise its Accident Compensation Corporation monopoly is rising…
WA WorkCover premiums at historic lows
27 April 2010
Boom state WA has lowered premiums on compulsory worker’s compensation insurance to its lowest level on record…
Inquiry looks at disability insurance scheme
19 April 2010
The Productivity Commission has begun an inquiry into a long-term disability care and support system that will examine the merits of a social no-fault insurance scheme…
Black Saturday lawyers want levy abandoned
19 April 2010
Lawyers assisting Victoria’s Black Saturday inquiry have added their voice to growing calls for the fire services levy to be abolished…
Former Lombard directors face charges
19 April 2010
New Zealand’s Securities Commission has laid charges against the directors of Lombard Finance & Investments, the failed NZ finance firm whose parent shell has since been acquired…
APRA set to tighten insurers’ capital rules
12 April 2010
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority has foreshadowed tough new regulatory capital standards, with local insurers facing terms that are “broadly consistent” with banks…
ASIC releases PI requirements
12 April 2010
Credit licensees will be required to hold PI cover for up to $2 million per claim under regulatory guidance released by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission…
Victorian inquiry outlines regulatory burden
12 April 2010
A Victorian inquiry into regulation barriers within the financial services sector has identified insurance tax as a concern, but is unlikely to address the issue…
Deadline extension for disclosure requirements
29 March 2010
Insurers have been granted a 12-month extension to prepare for new disclosure requirements – a decision hailed by one legal expert as “a great result”…
Fire services levy under attack in NZ
29 March 2010
Insurance industry moves to kill off the fire services levy system have spread to New Zealand with Insurance Council of NZ CEO Chris Ryan describing the current system as “broken”…
Critics attack public sector insurance appointment
29 March 2010
The appointment of former Federal ALP senator Robert Ray to a senior public sector insurance role in Victoria has raised eyebrows among critics who claim he lacks industry experience…
ACCC says no to energy co-insurance scheme
29 March 2010
The competition watchdog has ruled against a proposal by NSW Government-owned electricity generators and future private stakeholders to utilise a co-insurance scheme…
Lawyers call for consistency in accident compensation
29 March 2010
Law firm Slater & Gordon has called for greater consistency in the maximum compensation limits paid to victims of motor accidents, with Queensland trailing the other…
Insurance contracts under new scrutiny
22 March 2010
Compliance gurus are watching intently as the legislative spotlight hovers over insurance contracts…
APRA proposes new conglomerate regulation
22 March 2010
The prudential regulator is proposing new regulations for conglomerate groups to prevent the behaviour of individual business units forcing the collapse of a parent company…
Royal commission hears alternatives to fire services levy
22 March 2010
Removal of the fire services levy in WA has been a success, according to the person running the state’s emergency services…
Battle for Axa lengthens
15 March 2010
The wait to see who will eventually buy Axa Asia Pacific Holdings has been lengthened by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission…