Welcome to TAL News & Views
Industry -
Welcome to the May edition of our newsletter.
In this edition we share our new TAL research paper, ‘What I wish I knew about retirement’ which reveals key insights into the expectations vs reality for members as they approach and enter retirement, and outlines the opportunities for super funds to build confidence for their members in this important phase of life. If you haven’t got your copy yet, download the report now.
Also in this edition, we get to know one of our team, Wendy Lim, Head of AMP Partnership and look at the progress of the Quality of Advice Review.
Proudly protecting more Australians
Supporting members and their families through the claims we pay is the most important thing we do. Earlier today, Brett Clark announced that in our 2023 financial year* we paid $4.2 billion in claims to more than 50,000 customers and their families, providing support when they needed it most. This is the highest annual claims ever paid by an Australian life insurer.
Federal Budget quiet for sector
The 2024 Federal Budget was largely a quiet one for the superannuation and insurance sectors. The main superannuation exception was the move to pay Super Guarantee to people receiving Government-funded Paid Parental Leave benefits. This welcome initiative will improve retirement outcomes for people who participate in the scheme.
From an insurance perspective, the Government’s intention to establish new mental health programs is of interest. Notable is new spending to build a new digital mental health service to provide early intervention services for people with low intensity mental health concerns. Government will also boost access to clinical services through a network of 61 walk-in Medicare Mental Health Centres.
More broadly, of interest for many superannuation funds will be changes to Australia’s national investment framework, in particular moves to attract and enable participation in major investments through a “single front door”. Government links this initiative to its Future Made in Australia policy, a multi-billion dollar plan to develop industries deemed to be in the national interest.
APRA life claims reporting
We were pleased to see APRA’s recently published life claims data which showed that TAL had the lowest disputes incidence across the industry. We recorded a ratio of 32.2 for IP (vs 64 for the industry) and 13.1 for TPD (vs 27.1 for the industry). TAL’s Death complaint incidence was also below the industry average at 1 versus 1.5.
TAL also had the fastest average TPD claim processing times (4 months versus 4.5 months for the industry) and the equal fastest average IP claim processing times (1.6 months versus 1.8 months for the industry). TAL’s Death claim processing durations were exactly in line with the industry experience (both 1.1 months).
Boosting cyber security
You may have seen some press recently noting TAL as among the first organisations in Australia to explore the capabilities of Microsoft’s Copilot for Security generative AI to enhance defence capabilities. This investment supports our commitment to technology innovation with security-focused tools which continuously improve partner and member experiences. TAL’s Chief Information Officer, Hinesh Chauhan shared, “We believe our involvement in the Copilot for Security EAP will give our specialist cyber team valuable insights on what this technology can do to boost our threat detection and response capabilities, and strengthen their knowledge and expertise.”
Industry discussions
Since our last newsletter, TAL Group CEO and Managing Director, Brett Clark spoke at the 2024 All Actuaries Summit alongside APRA Executive Board Member Suzanne Smith and CEO of QInsure Phil Fraser in a panel discussion led by TAL board member Naomi Edwards. The discussion covered strategic approaches to product distribution and scaling, the importance of legislative changes and the need for clear communication and transparency from insurers to enhance understanding.
Get in touch to learn more
Please speak with your Partnerships Manager if you’d like any more information about the topics discussed in this edition of TAL News & Views.
* Claims statistics based on total claims paid under TAL Life Limited Insurance products (excluding funeral insurance) between 1 April 2023 and 31 March 2024.