One of the main themes running through the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) conference in Canberra last week was the burden of additional regulation since the introduction of the FSRA in March.

ICA Executive Director Alan Mason told the conference that the industry may be suffering from reform fatigue. “Certainly compliance and its associated costs have become a major issue for insurers in recent years.”

He said two of the unintended consequences of the FSRA are that consumers have been subjected to information overload, and the availability of consumer advice has been severely restricted.

“I for one do not entirely blame the lawyers over the FSRA and the discussion around documentation. The lawyers are ultimately only responding to the demands of their clients based on the architecture of the legislation, regulation, policy statements, and so on.

“Society is increasingly demanding almost a foolproof regulatory system.”

Australian Consumers' Association (ACA) CEO Peter Kell said the level of regulation had to be carefully assessed. He said the ACA will be looking closely at the disclosure issues surrounding the FSRA, but early research indicated that too much information can reduce the quality of decision-making.

“‘Anything goes, as long as you disclose’ is a dangerous mindset to be in,” he said, adding that the ACA is committed to reducing the complexity of documents, removing unfair terms and minimising jargon.