RACQ fights for north Queensland in submission on Cyclone Reinsurance Pool Bill
RACQ has once again strongly advocated for its north Queensland members, making a submission on the Federal Government’s draft Cyclone Reinsurance Pool legislation.
RACQ CEO David Carter said the Club maintained its support for a well-designed pool as a part of the insurance solution in the north.
“We’re engaging with Government in the interests and wellbeing of our members and we believe a pool has the potential to work for north Queenslanders,” Mr Carter said.
“However, resilience must remain at the core of keeping insurance accessible and affordable. A Cyclone Reinsurance Pool will work best when it’s running alongside significant multi-year investment in resilience and mitigation.”
Mr Carter commended the Federal Government on adopting many of RACQ’s previous policy suggestions but said the Club was still unable to fully assess how effective the proposed pool design would be because the draft legislation left many unanswered questions.
“We know insurers will need to purchase cyclone-related reinsurance and the Government intends for the pool to be budget-neutral over time, but the draft Bill and associated materials didn’t contain any pricing or cyclone modelling information,” he said.
“The draft legislation also contains a number of issues that could work against the Government’s policy objective of improving accessibility and affordability of insurance in cyclone prone areas.
“For instance, the Pool should reduce how much reinsurance we need against major cyclones and it must also provide certainty and clarity for global reinsurers so they clearly understand exactly what they are covering.”
Mr Carter said RACQ had made a total of 15 recommendations around cost and pricing, coverage and claims management.
“We remain hopeful an effective Pool can be achieved this year however our participation in the Pool is highly likely to take longer given we still don't have the whole picture of how it will operate and no legislation has been passed yet,” he said.
“We look forward to working with the Government on the finer details and resolving several outstanding concerns and challenges.”
RACQ’s full submission to the draft legislation which was released on 3 December 2021 can be found here.
More articles
Related topics
Things to note
The information in this article has been prepared for general information purposes only and is not intended as legal advice or specific advice to any particular person. Any advice contained in the document is general advice, not intended as legal advice or professional advice and does not take into account any person’s particular circumstances. Before acting on anything based on this advice you should consider its appropriateness to you, having regard to your objectives and needs.
Insurance Products (excluding Travel Insurance) are issued by RACQ Insurance Limited ABN 50 009 704 152 (RACQI) and arranged by RACQ Distribution Services Pty Ltd (RDS) ABN 35 116 361 650, AFSL 567130 and RDS' authorised representatives (including RACQ Operations Pty Ltd ABN 80 009 663 414, AR No. 234978 (RACQO)). Conditions, limits and exclusions apply.
Any advice provided by RDS and RACQO is general advice only and does not take into account your personal objectives, financial situation or needs and you will need to consider whether the advice is appropriate for you. Read the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) before making a purchase decision on the product. You can also access our Target Market Determinations on this website.
RDS receives a commission from RACQI for the policies it arranges. RACQO receives fees paid for services it provides to RDS. Further details about remuneration are available on request prior to purchasing.
Banking and loan products issued by Members Banking Group Limited ABN 83 087 651 054 AFSL/Australian credit licence 241195 trading as RACQ Bank. Terms, conditions, fees, charges and lending policies apply. This is general advice only and may not be right for you. This information does not take your personal objectives, circumstances or needs into account. Read the disclosure documents for your selected product or service, including the Financial Services Guide and the Terms and Conditions, and consider if appropriate for you before deciding.
Except for RACQ Bank, any RACQ entity referred to on this page is not an authorised deposit-taking institution for the purposes of the Banking Act 1959 (Cth). That entity’s obligations do not represent deposits or other liabilities of RACQ Bank. RACQ Bank does not guarantee or otherwise provide assurance in respect of the obligations of that entity, unless noted otherwise.
RACQ Bank subscribes to the Customer Owned Banking Code of Practice which establishes higher standards than the law requires. The Code reflects modern consumer expectations and developments in approaches to issues such as consumer vulnerability, guarantors, and supporting customers through financial hardship. Please read our Customer Owned Banking Code of Practice page for more information.
RACQ Operations Pty Ltd (ABN 80 009 663 414, AR No. 234978) and Members Travel Group Pty Ltd (ABN 45 144 538 803, AR No.432492) (RACQ) are authorised representatives of the RACQ Travel Insurance insurer Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance Co., Ltd. (ABN 80 000 438 291 AFSL 246 548) (Tokio Marine). Tokio Marine Management (Australasia) Pty Ltd (ABN 69 001 488 455, AR No. 1313066) is an authorised representative of Tokio Marine, and administers RACQ Travel Insurance as the managing agent on behalf of Tokio Marine. Terms, conditions (including eligibility criteria), exclusions, limits and sub-limits apply. Any advice is general advice only, and does not take into account your specific objectives, financial situation or needs. Before you purchase, please consider the Combined Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) / Financial Services Guide (FSG) and Target Market Determinations (TMDs) available at racq.com or on request from RACQ.