A legal overview of the impact of COVID-19 on insurance

The National Insurance Brokers Association (NIBA) has been liaising regularly with NIBA legal adviser Mark Radford in relation to the various ways in which COVID-19 issues and challenges might have an impact on the work of insurance brokers and insurance companies.

At the same time, there have been some significant comments from ASIC (directed primarily to the insurers) as well as the ACCC Interim Authorisation of conduct by Suncorp, QBE and Allianz and some positioning statements by AFCA.

In addition, the Insurance Council of Australia has announced some changed timing for the introduction of the General Insurance Code of Practice, including bringing forward the new GI Code provisions for vulnerable customers and hardship to 1 July 2020.

You can watch a video from NIBA CEO, Dallas Booth regarding some of the challenges

NIBA’s legal advisor Mark Radford has pulled all of this information together in an extensive note that members can download below The note is also a very useful reminder of a number of key considerations that insurance brokers and insurance companies need to be aware of when considering how to respond to the challenges that COVID-19 is presenting for clients.

While a number of aspects are technical, and there is a degree of legal complexity, Booth believes these are important issues that insurance brokers need to be aware of and urges insurance brokers to review the document, and to share it with the key managers in your business.