Good evening everyone.
I'd like to welcome everyone this evening, particularly:
- Our keynote speaker the Honourable Daniel Mookhey, Treasurer of New South Wales,
- State Member for Oxley Michael Kemp,
- ASIC Chair Sarah Court and Commissioner Alan Kirkland,
- APRA Executive Board Member Suzanne Smith,
- NSW Small Business Commissioner Kalina Koloff,
- Business Council of Australia CEO Bran Black,
- NIBA CEO Richard Kilpin,
- CALI CEO Christine Cupitt,
- ANZIFF CEO Katrina Shanks,
- Representatives from Treasury, AFCA, and the ACCC, our generous sponsors, and members of the ICA Board.
The Insurance Council Annual Dinner is one of the few times each year when we all come together in the same room. It's an opportunity to step back from the day-to-day and reflect on what's happened, what we've learned, and where we need to focus next.
And when I think about the year that's been, I keep coming back to a simple idea.
People don't remember every detail of an interaction.
They don't remember every process.
They remember how they felt.
Because while we spend a lot of time talking about risk, affordability, regulation and claims, our customers experience those things very differently.
They experience them as moments.
Moments when they're stressed.
Moments when they're looking for answers.
Moments when they need help.
And ultimately, that's how our industry is judged.
Not just by what we do, but how we make people feel.
This has been another year where the world has moved rapidly, and our industry felt every shift
The Bondi tragedy shocked all of us and reminded us that events which feel unimaginable can happen close to home.
The conflict in the Middle East reminded us how quickly global instability has local consequences.
And as events escalated, and the Strait of Hormuz closed, our industry stepped up.
Working alongside government and other sectors, we helped anticipate potential supply chain disruptions and developed mitigation strategies aligned with the Government's four-stage fuel action plan.
Thankfully, that plan has not needed to be activated to date.
But what stood out was the quality of the collaborations.
It demonstrated what can be achieved when industries and governments work together on shared challenges.
We also faced another season of volatile weather.
In the last financial year alone there were seven declared insurance events across Australia - totalling $3.8bn - including severe storms and hail in NSW and Queensland, bushfires in Victoria and flooding in Queensland and the Northern Territory.
Behind every declared event, every headline and every statistic, are people trying to recover.
Families trying to get back into their homes.
Business owners trying to get back on their feet.
Communities trying to rebuild.
And again, those are the moments people remember.
The experience.
How they felt.
That same human perspective is important when we talk about affordability.
Australians are under pressure.
They feel it at the checkout.
At the petrol pump.
In their power bills.
In the cost of building, repairing and replacing the things they rely on every day.
And they feel it when it's time to renew their insurance.
We know insurance affordability is a genuine concern for many households and businesses.
And we know that some Australians are making difficult decisions as a result.
They're cutting back elsewhere so they can afford the essentials.
Some are forgoing the protection insurance offers.
If we're serious about addressing that challenge, we also need to be honest about what's driving it and what we can and cannot tackle as an industry.
Inflation has had a significant impact on our industry.
The cost of rebuilding homes has increased by 50 per cent since before the pandemic and premiums have reflected that reality.
But even if governments succeed in putting the inflation genie back in the bottle, two other forces will continue pushing premiums higher year after year.
Rising risk.
And taxes on insurance.
And these areas really need government support.
That doesn't mean industry has no role to play. Far from it.
But it does mean that meaningful improvements in affordability will require governments and industry working together.
And nowhere is that more evident than here in New South Wales.
The Emergency Services Levy remains one of the clearest examples of a tax that increases the cost of insurance.
It makes protection between 10 and 34 per cent more expensive for households, businesses and motorists at a time when affordability is already under significant pressure.
That's why the industry's position has been so consistent.
We support properly funded emergency services. But taxing insurance is not the best way to do it.
I do want to acknowledge the progress that has been made.
Treasurer, your government's commitment to reform, the options paper, and the referral to Parliamentary Inquiry this year have all moved this issue forward.
After talking about this issue for many years, we now have an opportunity to deliver meaningful reform.
We can't afford to miss it.
We understand the need for bipartisan support to get it over the line, and the industry will do our part working across the Parliament to make the case for this reform.
Because removing the levy would provide real relief for our customers across New South Wales, particularly those facing the greatest exposure to risk.
We cannot have a conversation about affordability without talking about risk.
We understand risk better than we ever have before.
We have better data.
Better modelling.
Better insight into the challenges facing Australian communities.
But understanding risk and reducing risk are two very different things.
Insurers can identify risk.
We can model it.
We can price it.
But we cannot reduce it alone.
That requires governments, communities and industry working together.
The international experience is instructive. In places like California, government schemes have stepped in to make cover more affordable but in doing so they limited the coverage terms and masked the very risk signals that insurance pricing is meant to send.
Locally we have some strong foundations already in place.
The Commonwealth's Disaster Ready Fund.
The Hazards Insurance Partnership.
State-based resilience programs.
The flood buyback initiatives established after the 2022 floods, including here in New South Wales.
These are all examples of what can happen when we move beyond talking about risk and start reducing it.
Because if we're serious about affordability in the long term, there is no more effective solution than making communities safer and more resilient.
Over the last five years, our industry has matured its coordination on risk reduction with every level of government.
The challenge now is to build on that momentum.
To keep working together.
And to focus on practical actions that reduce risk before disaster strikes.
Of course, none of that lets us off the hook.
Our responsibility remains exactly the same.
And at the centre of that responsibility is the customer.
Our commitment to customers is why the updated General Insurance Code of Practice is so important.
The Code isn't just a document or a compliance exercise.
It reflects a shared commitment to continually improving the experience customers have when they deal with us.
Particularly when they're vulnerable.
The updated Code will deliver stronger protections for customers.
It strengthens accountability.
And it helps ensure people receive the support they need when they need it most.
At the end of the day, the core business of our industry is caring for our customers in the most challenging times of their lives.
If we do right by our customers, compliance with the Code should follow as a matter of course.
Our customers count on us to be there after a catastrophe strikes and when accidents happen.
They expect us to be there not just when they make a claim, but throughout the whole claim journey until the last piece of work is done.
Getting this right and giving Australians confidence in insurance is vital. Because in an era of growing political and economic uncertainty, the certainty insurance gives someone to take out a mortgage, drive a car or start a business is more important than ever.
There is more work to do. But we should also recognise the progress that has been made more broadly across our industry and continue building on it.
Because trust isn't created by what we say. It's created by what we do, and how we do it.
It's created by what our customers experience.
As I look around this room tonight, I feel super optimistic about the future of our industry.
Not because the challenges have become easier.
Affordability remains a challenge.
Risk continues to grow.
Customer expectations continue to evolve.
But I'm optimistic because of the people in this room.
Because time and again we've shown a willingness to come together, to tackle difficult issues, and to focus on solutions.
Whether that's removing taxes that worsen affordability.
Working with governments to reduce risk.
Improving customer outcomes.
Or responding to communities when they need us most.
At the end of the day, people won't remember every policy debate.
They'll remember whether they felt supported by someone who genuinely cared.
Whether they felt that someone was on their side.
And I think that's a useful thing for all of us to keep in mind.
Because ultimately, trust is built one interaction at a time.
Thank you for everything you do for this industry.
And enjoy the evening.
