As the costs of group insurance increase, there is an increased focus on finding the balance between insurance needs and affordability. This session discussed the current positioning of funds and how they might address these conflicting requirements.
SPEAKERS:
Jenni Baxter, executive general manager insurance, Rice Warner
Richard Land, head of insurance and pricing, AustralianSuper
Moderator: Alex Proimos, head of institutional content, Conexus Financial
Key takeaways
- Australian superannuation funds have lifted their premiums by an average of 16 per cent for death and TPD since January, according to research by Rice Warner.
- Super members with income protection experienced even steeper premium rises averaging 28 percent, with some funds exceeding 50 per cent, prompted by more claims, new legislation and the impacts of Covid-19, the researcher said.
- Further impacts of people losing insurance because of early withdrawal and mental disability claims are yet to be factored in.
- Overall, premiums are going up fairly significantly and that will put pressure on affordability, the panel raised.
- Revenues have also fallen since Putting Members Interest First laws were introduced in April with changes to opt in insurance for young members and those with balances below $6000.
Poll Results
Should the 1% salary cap be an enforceable provision?
