The Insurance in Superannuation Industry Working Group has been established by representatives from funds, consumer groups, and industry bodies to develop leadership on insurance in super and a code of practice/conduct.
The industry bodies that established the group were the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees (AIST), the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA), the Financial Services Council (FSC), the Industry Funds Forum (IFF), and Industry Super Australia (ISA), according to an announcement by ASFA.
ASFA said the group would develop new standards for trustees and insurers that would set the benchmark for industry practice into the future.
“The standards will set out how the industry will operate to deliver insurance that meets the needs of individuals and the community,” ASFA said.
“It is intended for the code of practice/conduct to be binding, enforceable and contain mechanisms for independent administration and monitoring to enhance consumer protections.”
The announcement said it was intended for the code to be finalised before the end of 2017 and improvements to industry practice would be progressively delivered throughout 2017.
