Congratulations to two new life members

AILA President’s message – Cameron Roberts

During the gala dinner for the 2022 National Conference, I was delighted to have the opportunity to make some very special announcements.

AILA awarded life membership to two people who have each played an important role in the growth of our association.

They are Paul O’Brien, a director at YPOL, Sydney, and Rebecca Stevens, a partner at Carter Newell, Brisbane.

Paul is a committed AILA member, having held board positions in the past and been a long-term, active member of the NSW committee. For many years, he spearheaded the successful NSW Twilight Seminar Series. Paul has been instrumental in leading more than 150 AILA seminars.

Rebecca joined AILA in 1999 after attending her first National Conference in Hobart. She was a committee member of the Queensland Branch for more than 10 years, including serving as secretary for seven years and state president in 2011.

Rebecca was a member of the AILA National Board for four years from 2007 to 2011.

Congratulations to you both.

I also presented the annual 2022 Insurance Law Prize to Justice Mark Livesey, President of the South Australian Court of Appeal. Justice Livesay is a long-time supporter of AILA, both as a member, friend and presenter at numerous events and conferences.

He is a very deserving winner of the Insurance Law Prize.

I also congratulate the winner of the Ron Shorter Award for professionalism in public speaking, Charlotte Hall, of Jackson McDonald in Perth.

Second place went to Declan See, of Wotton + Kearney, and third place to Nicolas Sandrone, of Arch Underwriting. All three finalists’ video presentations were shown at this year’s National Conference.

The Ron Shorter Award is now in its 10th year and moved into a national online training and presentation opportunity in 2021 and 2022. The award has provided more than 500 of our industry young professionals with public speaking training to enhance their careers. I would also like to thank the award sponsors – Colin Biggers & Paisley, Sedgwick, Dever’s List, Law Image and Steadfast – for their support and the team at the Australian Institute of Management for partnering with AILA to roll out the awards and training.

Climate change risks exposed

Reserve Bank of Australia Head of Domestic Markets Jonathan Kearns gave an excellent speech at a credit law conference that reinforced the important message from Prof Andy Pitman and other presenters on the climate change panel at the AILA National Conference (see Climate is ‘operating on steroids’).

Mr Kearns warned that climate change is a significant issue with broad-ranging implications for the economy, the financial system and society. He said average temperatures in Australia have risen 1.4 deg C since 1910 and climate scientists tell us that, with current policies, average temperatures will rise 2.7 deg C above pre-industrial levels by 2100.

He said general insurers have a head start in managing the financial risks of climate change but, with the frequency and severity of weather events increasing, insurers need to plan accordingly, including for larger potential losses.

He warned that insurers have the opportunity to reassess risks annually, so can adjust premiums, or decide not to write policies in some locations. “A reduction in insurance coverage could have significant implications for society, the economy and the financial system.”

Mr Kearns said insurers face liability risk if they do not disclose, address and manage the effects of climate change sufficiently for their customers and owners. “Ensuring they provide detailed information on their exposure to climate risk is important in managing liability risk,” he said.

Sobering words indeed and an important message for the entire insurance industry.

Floods impact on GI claims

APRA has released the latest general insurance data, which shows the industry reported a net profit after tax of $924 million and a return on net assets of 3.1% for the year ended 30 June 2022.

The minor increase in net profit was driven by a stronger underwriting result, in part reflecting the impact of premium increases across some classes of business. Gross claims expenses were higher because of the NSW and south-east Queensland floods in the March quarter.

Agency warns on cyber prosecutions

A Federal Court action by ASIC against financial service provider RI Advice Group has prompted cyber insurance specialist underwriting agency Emergence to warn that more prosecutions are likely.

Emergence’s COO Colin Pausey says regulators have moved beyond a soft approach of educating organisations about their responsibilities and are likely to take action against those that fail to implement adequate cyber protection.

RI Advice Group’s settlement with ASIC included a $750,000 contribution to ASIC’s costs.

ASIC unveils priorities

ASIC has released its corporate plan for 2022-26, which includes four external strategic priorities. They are:
Product design and distribution: Reducing the risk of harm to financial and credit product consumers caused by poor product design, distribution and marketing, especially by driving compliance with new requirements. 
Sustainable finance: Supporting market integrity through proactive supervision and enforcement of governance, transparency and disclosure standards for sustainable finance. 
Retirement decision making: Protecting consumers, especially as they plan and make decisions for retirement, with a focus on superannuation products, managed investments and financial advice. 
Technology risks: Focusing on the impacts of technology in financial markets and services, driving good cyber risk and operational resilience practices, and addressing digitally enabled misconduct, including scams.