Thought leadership

2 CPD Points

Getting to Grips With Indigenous Data

Getting to Grips With Indigenous Data highlights that, despite decades of focus on the rights and outcomes of First Nations people, limited progress has been made on Closing the Gap targets. The Report suggests that better progress could be made if changes were made to how data about First Nations people is collected, used, and controlled.

2 CPD Points

Providing Better Support for Children With Autism and Developmental Delay

The latest Dialogue Paper from actuaries Maathu Ranjan and Anthony Lowe explores the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) within the context of support for children with autism and developmental delay.

2 CPD Points

Not a Level Playing Field – People With Disability

This Report seeks to enrich the insights available from the May 2023 Green Paper by providing a deeper and more nuanced examination of inequalities for people with disability in Australia.

2 CPD Points

Not a level playing field

The Actuaries Institute paper, Not A Level Playing Field, for the first time brings together a raft of Australian survey data with new analysis to paint a snapshot of income inequality in Australia. Importantly, it builds on the established work of the Australian Actuaries Intergenerational Equity Index and the investment valuation work actuaries pioneered for Federal and State governments. The paper highlights that inequality is significantly higher than in the 1980s, with the wealthiest 20% of households currently having six times the disposable income of the lowest 20%. Wealth inequality is even larger with the wealthiest quintile having 230 times more net assets.

2 CPD Points

Research Note - An Introduction to Space

As our world gets more complex and reliant on space technology, the risks of this business increase and must be managed, and therefore actuarial skills will be valuable.

3 CPD Points

A Narrow Escape? The 2021 Australian Actuaries Intergenerational Equity Index

The Australian Actuaries Intergenerational Equity Index (AAIEI), first released in 2020, shines a light on differences in wealth and wellbeing across age bands in Australia and how these have been changing over time. This update adds two new data points to the index – 2019 and the ‘year like no other’, 2020.

0 CPD Points

Reinsurance key to providing natural disaster resilience for insurers

Spending an estimated AUD2.5 billion on reinsurance policies saved Australian general insurers from needing to have up to AUD70 billion of capital to cover the cost of natural disasters and other losses last financial year, a new paper published by the Actuaries Institute has found.

2 CPD Points

Reinsurance Explained: A Pillar of Strength for General Insurers

Explore how reinsurance supports affordability and resilience in Australia’s insurance market amid rising natural disaster costs and climate change.

1 CPD Point

Submission to Treasury: Economic Reform Roundtable

The Institute has provided policy reform proposals to Treasury's Economic Roundtable consultation in the areas of climate adaptation and resilience investment, AI governance, quantum computing preparedness, tax reform, superannuation and financial advice and guidance, the health system and improved data management.

2 CPD Points

Summit 2025: Mulplicave SHAP Values: Advancing Interpretable Machine Learning in General Insurance Pricing

Insurance pricing increasingly relies on machine learning models who contradict actuarial pricing’s multiplicative structure. This paper extends SHAP values to multiplicative decompositions, aligning analytics with traditional actuarial rate relativities.

0 CPD Points

Rising House Prices and Climate Risks Creating Dual Housing Risk

Home ownership once considered a cornerstone of the Australian dream is increasingly becoming an elusive goal for many, according to the Actuaries Institute.

2 CPD Points

Housing in Australia: Financial Journeys Through Affordability, Retirement and Climate Challenges

A paper presented to the joint conference hosted by ABS and RBA examining Australia's dual housing challenges and their impact.

9 CPD Points

Summit 2025: Pet Insurance – Understanding the Product, Pricing and Issues

The growing closeness of people to their pets has led to an increase in pet insurance to improve health and prolong life without prohibitive costs. As veterinary medicine advances, pet insurance plays a central role in supporting animal welfare.

0 CPD Points

April 2025: Meeting Minutes

Meeting minutes from the General Insurance Practice Committee meeting in April 2025.

7 CPD Points

Summit 2025: Dynamic Financial Analysis of General Insurers under Climate Change

To navigate the physical, financial and economic challenges over the long term, general insurers need a comprehensive understanding of the impact of climate change.

1 CPD Point

Best Practice Catastrophe Model Evaluation

This session aims to provide a best practice overview and guiding principles for catastrophe model evaluation and validation that is useful for end users.

2 CPD Points

Best Practice Catastrophe Model Evaluation (video)

Watch the recent presentation, for actuaries seeking to gain insight into catastrophe model evaluation.

0 CPD Points

GIPC Meeting Minutes - 14 November 2024

Meeting minutes from the General Insurance Practice Committee meeting in November 2024.

0 CPD Points

GIPC Meeting Minutes - 10 October 2024

Meeting minutes from the General Insurance Practice Committee meeting in October 2024.

1 CPD Point

Submission to SIRA Review into Home Building Compensation Scheme

Given the significant financial risk involved in home building, it is critical for societal resilience that Home Building Compensation schemes remain efficient and effective.

2 CPD Points

Pricing and Reserving For Natural Catastrophes

This Insights session is brought to you by the Natural Perils Working Group; a recently formed group sitting under the General Insurance Practice Committee. This introductory session will explore key considerations and approaches for natural perils pricing and catastrophe reserving. Come along if you would like to learn more about pricing and reserving techniques for natural perils and catastrophes, or if you are a current practitioner looking to brush up on your toolkit.

1 CPD Point

Submission to Treasury: Economic Reform Roundtable

The Institute has provided policy reform proposals to Treasury's Economic Roundtable consultation in the areas of climate adaptation and resilience investment, AI governance, quantum computing preparedness, tax reform, superannuation and financial advice and guidance, the health system and improved data management.

2 CPD Points

Summit 2025: Quantum Computing

A discussion on key concepts of quantum computing – superposition, entanglement, no cloning, and quantum error correction and the various approaches to and practical challenges associated.

1 CPD Point

Insights Session; Metabolic Health and Implications on Insurance slides

The meeting focused on metabolic health and its implications for insurance, covering topics such as the importance of understanding how people live, the impact of diet and lifestyle on health, and potential innovations in insurance products and wellness programs. The discussion emphasized the need for a shift in approach, from supporting people when they need insurance to rewarding prevention, and explored the potential of incorporating metabolic health factors into underwriting, pricing, and claims management. The team also shared personal experiences with glucose monitoring and addressed questions about using wellness data in life insurance, highlighting challenges and opportunities in this evolving field.

2 CPD Points

Insights Session: Metabolic Health and Implications on Insurance

The meeting focused on metabolic health and its implications for insurance, covering topics such as the importance of understanding how people live, the impact of diet and lifestyle on health, and potential innovations in insurance products and wellness programs. The discussion emphasized the need for a shift in approach, from supporting people when they need insurance to rewarding prevention, and explored the potential of incorporating metabolic health factors into underwriting, pricing, and claims management. The team also shared personal experiences with glucose monitoring and addressed questions about using wellness data in life insurance, highlighting challenges and opportunities in this evolving field.

2 CPD Points

Value-Based Healthcare; What is it and How can Actuaries play a role?

Get an introduction to value-based care, a value-based care framework and delve into barriers to implementing value-based care, lessons from other parts of the world and Actuaries and value-based care.

1 CPD Point

Value-Based Healthcare; What is it and How can Actuaries play a role?

Download the slides.

1 CPD Point

Is the Gold Private Health Insurance Hospital Tier Sustainable?

1 CPD Point

Is the Gold Private Health Insurance Hospital Tier Sustainable?

2 CPD Points

How COVID-19 has Affected Mortality in 2020 to 2023

The new Research Paper from the Mortality Working Group explores how COVID-19 affected mortality in Australia from 2020 to 2023 and how Australia’s experience compares with the rest of the world.

2 CPD Points

What happened to My Health Record? Opportunities for improved health data sharing in Australia

The Federal Government’s Strengthening Medicare Report sets out an expansive agenda to improve healthcare in Australia through blended care pathways, supported by investment in better use of digital technology to share patient data. But the My Health Record system that underpins part of this plan has existed for over 10 years, has seen $2bn in investment and is still considered, to date, unsuccessful. This paper explores the reasons for those failures but also the possibilities for health and health actuaries should further investment in this system prompt the progress and growth long desired. With the Strengthening Medicare Report also putting the role of private health insurers in primary care back on the agenda, the presentation will also explore the current landscape and sentiments around private health insurers’ involvement in this area and the benefits to consumers of an appropriately safeguarded but better integrated data sharing platform.

2 CPD Points

Optimal Illusion – A look at the practical limitations of insurance price optimisation

Price optimisation in insurance seeks to modify premiums away from risk cost in ways that maximise business objectives, such as increasing profit while achieving a target volume. Knowledge of customers’ price sensitivities can lead to sophisticated approaches to optimise premiums. While the practice has attracted some debate, it is generally accepted as effective. However, significant uncertainties and complexities arise on more careful analysis. Issues with model inaccuracy and complexities with multi-year impacts mean that establishing superior performance is less clear. This paper builds on existing research by exploring the situations where optimisation approaches can potentially struggle: • How do strategies play out over multiple years, and what is the impact on a portfolio’s price sensitivity over time? • How do nonlinearities in modelled demand curves, such as those induced by link functions, affect optimisation? • What are the practical impacts of model uncertainty on performance? • How do strategies fare in situations where customer price sensitivity can vary year to year? • How important is random price testing to maintaining accurate demand models? The paper will look at theoretical and simulated results, with an emphasis on understanding the robustness of standard optimisation approaches under plausible uncertainty assumptions on a multi-year basis.

2 CPD Points

Autonomous Reserve Segmentation: An ML Clustering Framework

Traditional aggregate reserving techniques assume that each data triangle used is a homogeneous group of claims. However, the practical constraints of management and reporting requirements often hinder the adoption of a statistically optimal approach to segmentation. There is often a reliance on legacy class hierarchies, business processes or expert judgement due to the difficulty of determining an optimal segmentation. This can reduce homogeneity in triangles and affect the performance of aggregate reserving techniques. To address these challenges, we propose a framework and methodology for automated segmentation to allocate individual claims in a reserving class to homogeneous subgroupings more suitable for triangle-based projections. The proposed approach involves use of machine learning techniques to: • Evaluate claim features that can relate to claim development in a statistically significant way. • Implement an algorithm to segment claims. • Assess and compare different segmentations on their impact on claim reserve accuracy. We also explore the practicalities for constructing models in a way that allows managing segmentation changes across reporting periods. Overall, we propose a methodology and practical framework for leveraging clustering techniques as part of a reserving process to improve accuracy and reduce the need for intervention of actuaries managing insurers’ claims reserves.

2 CPD Points

AASB17 in PHI - how's it gone

An overview of how implementation of AASB 17 for the health insurance industry has gone. Where was the conflict? Where were the tears? Where were the happy hugs? With the standard now in-force for the entire industry, I will comment on: • The path taken to where we are now. • How did the implementation ahead of the first external reporting (APRA returns for 30 September 2023) go? How did it all go down? What went well What went badly Lessons for the future • What the public accounts have to say about what is being implemented. What level of consistency is there? Where is there divergence? What is the range of the divergence? Differences between large/small or profit/non-profit? Are differences reasonable and expected? • Where did actuaries get caught out? • Next steps for the industry

1 CPD Point

Plenary 5: Estelle Pearson — Fact Meets Fiction: emerging risks unlike you've ever heard

Hear from leading Australian author of thrillers and Non-Executive Director John M Green on the questions you should ask and how you can craft your scenario narratives to better engage management and boards in the risk discussions every organisation needs to have. Joining him in this session is Actuary/Director, Finity Estelle Pearson.

1 CPD Point

Plenary 7: There When Needed - the promise of General Insurance

Actuaries Institute President David Whittle leads a discussion on the consumer promise of General Insurance. Is the process, payout and the ‘human experience’ of making a claim lining up with the promise made to consumers? Joined by Shez Ford, EGM Consumer at Allianz Australia, and Helen Rowell, David will ask – is it time to rewrite the promise? And what should the new promise look like?

1 CPD Point

Plenary 4: Digitisation and Your Consumer

Digitisation can be more than enhancing processes and cutting costs. It’s about creating new way to understand and reach your customer, reshaping business models and upending traditional views of the customers experience. In this session actuary Iwan Juwono, Head of Insurances at Grab Insure Business and Frankie Chan, Head of Programme Value Optimisation, Air & Insurance, Cathay Pacific Airways explore how data science and AI is transforming their businesses.

1 CPD Point

Insurance in Super: Public Policy Statement and Sub-committee update

This session will provide participants with the context behind and insight into the development of the new Public Policy Statement* on Group Insurance within Superannuation, which will be released ahead of this session. There will be opportunities for participants to affirm and challenge particular positions. With the objective of superannuation legislated and a new parliamentary term starting, actuaries and the profession at large are well positioned to contribute and shape the ongoing policy debate around potential upcoming reforms in this area.

2 CPD Points

Insurance in Super: Public Policy Statement and Sub-committee update

This session will provide participants with the context behind and insight into the development of the new Public Policy Statement* on Group Insurance within Superannuation, which will be released ahead of this session. There will be opportunities for participants to affirm and challenge particular positions. With the objective of superannuation legislated and a new parliamentary term starting, actuaries and the profession at large are well positioned to contribute and shape the ongoing policy debate around potential upcoming reforms in this area.

1 CPD Point

Group Insurance in Superannuation Public Policy Statement

This Statement highlights key public policy positions of the Institute on group insurance in superannuation, promoting stronger governance, simpler products and fairer outcomes for Australians.

2 CPD Points

Complementing the Standard Risk Measure: Framing Super as an Investment for Retirement

A Discussion Paper introducing a new long-term investment risk measure for superannuation.

0 CPD Points

Technical Paper: Good Practice Principles for Retirement Modelling (July 2025)

This Technical Paper (TP) has been revised by the Superannuation Projections and Disclosure (SPD) sub-committee and the Retirement Incomes Working Group of the Actuaries Institute’s Superannuation and Investments Practice Committee.

1 CPD Point

Actuaries back APRA’s capital initiatives to unlock annuity market potential

The Actuaries Institute welcomes the consultation initiative by Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) to improve the capital framework for annuity products.

1 CPD Point

Consultation: Capital Settings for Longevity Products

The Institute believes that many Australians retirees could enjoy higher standards of living if lifetime income products such as annuities played a larger role in the retirement system.

1 CPD Point

Submission to Treasury: Economic Reform Roundtable

The Institute has provided policy reform proposals to Treasury's Economic Roundtable consultation in the areas of climate adaptation and resilience investment, AI governance, quantum computing preparedness, tax reform, superannuation and financial advice and guidance, the health system and improved data management.

0 CPD Points

Treasury Consultation: Payday Super Exposure Draft Legislation - Further Comments

This supplementary submission suggests consequential amendments to the Superannuation Guarantee (Administration) Regulations 2018 and comments further on ensuring appropriate treatment of accumulation members in defined benefit superannuation funds.

0 CPD Points

PG 499.02 Retirement Benefit Projections

This Practice Guideline applies to any Member advising a Client or other party in relation to Retirement Benefit Projections. Retirement Benefit Projections may be provided as illustrations or numerical indications depending on the purpose, audience, and the nature of the retirement benefit.

0 CPD Points

PG 499.02 Retirement Benefit Projections Explanatory Memorandum July 2025

This Explanatory Memorandum has been prepared by the Superannuation and Investments Practice Committee (SIPC) to assist Members in understanding the updates to Practice Guideline 499.02 Retirement Benefit Projections (PG 499.02). PG 499.02 applies to Members advising a Client or other party in relation to retirement benefit projections.

1 CPD Point

Actuaries in Action; Superannuation & Investments

The meeting featured an insight session where four actuaries shared their career journeys in the financial and actuarial sectors, discussing their experiences in retirement solutions, consulting, and trading roles. The panelists explored the value of actuarial training in various professional settings, including consulting and direct employment, while addressing stereotypes about actuaries and emphasizing the importance of lifelong learning and professional development. The discussion concluded with conversations about actuaries' roles in improving retirement outcomes and their career development journeys, highlighting the significance of mentorship, effective communication, and aligning personal values with career choices.

0 CPD Points

Rising House Prices and Climate Risks Creating Dual Housing Risk

Home ownership once considered a cornerstone of the Australian dream is increasingly becoming an elusive goal for many, according to the Actuaries Institute.

2 CPD Points

Housing in Australia: Financial Journeys Through Affordability, Retirement and Climate Challenges

A paper presented to the joint conference hosted by ABS and RBA examining Australia's dual housing challenges and their impact.

8 CPD Points

Summit 2025: Retirement Incomes: Approaches to Member Cohorting and Outcome Analysis

A key challenge for funds to assist members identify the most suitable strategy for them in retirement is accessing and appropriately analysing data on their circumstances and understanding their preferences.

5 CPD Points

Summit 2025: Towards Fairer Retirement Outcomes; Socio-Economic Mortality Differentials in Australia

This paper addresses the challenge in delivering equitable and sustainable income retirement.

2 CPD Points

Leading and Motivating Teams to Achieve Great Environmental Outcomes

Hear from leading specialists from RMIT, n0de and UniSuper about their experience in leading net zero initiatives, and how climate and sustainability factored into board decision making.

1 CPD Point

Submission to Treasury: Economic Reform Roundtable

The Institute has provided policy reform proposals to Treasury's Economic Roundtable consultation in the areas of climate adaptation and resilience investment, AI governance, quantum computing preparedness, tax reform, superannuation and financial advice and guidance, the health system and improved data management.

0 CPD Points

Australian Actuaries Climate Index hits record high

A substantial rise in sea levels driven by ex-tropical Cyclone Alfred, torrential rain and warmer water temperatures have pushed the Australian Actuaries Climate Index (AACI) to a record high in autumn 2025.

0 CPD Points

Rising House Prices and Climate Risks Creating Dual Housing Risk

Home ownership once considered a cornerstone of the Australian dream is increasingly becoming an elusive goal for many, according to the Actuaries Institute.

2 CPD Points

Housing in Australia: Financial Journeys Through Affordability, Retirement and Climate Challenges

A paper presented to the joint conference hosted by ABS and RBA examining Australia's dual housing challenges and their impact.

1 CPD Point

Submission to Productivity Commission - Investing in Cheaper, Cleaner Energy and the Net Zero Transformation

This submission details key barriers and enablers to improving the resilience and adaptation of Australia’s housing stock to climate change.

1 CPD Point

Summit 2025: Modernising Actuarial Practice to Address Climate Change and Societal Issues: A Systematic Literature Review

This research examines how actuaries might use new methods to adapt to this disrupted environment with the likes of climate change and demographic transitions.

7 CPD Points

Summit 2025: Dynamic Financial Analysis of General Insurers under Climate Change

To navigate the physical, financial and economic challenges over the long term, general insurers need a comprehensive understanding of the impact of climate change.

2 CPD Points

The Critical Role of Actuaries in the Transition to a Low-Carbon Economy

This session brings insights from board members, leading actuaries, global thought leaders and general insurance experts to challenge the status quo and provide inspiration for how the role of the actuary will evolve in coming years.

1 CPD Point

Climate Change Public Policy Statement

This Statement highlights key public policy positions of the Institute relating to climate change.

1 CPD Point

Submission to Australian Sustainable Finance Taxonomy - Second Consultation

The Institute is highly supportive of inclusion of ‘Climate change adaptation and resilience’ as one of the six headline ambitions for the taxonomy.

1 CPD Point

Submission to Senate Inquiry into Impact of Climate Risk on Insurance Premiums and Availability

Climate risk is one the greatest challenges and opportunities for all countries. While some of the risks of overall increased adverse weather conditions and events have begun to be realised, there is significant uncertainty over future decades.

1 CPD Point

Submission to ASFI on Australian Sustainable Finance Taxonomy

The Institute supports the inclusion of ‘Climate change adaptation and resilience’ as one of the six headline ambitions for the Australian sustainable finance taxonomy.

0 CPD Points

Actuaries Climate Index points to disease risk, increased fuel load

The Australian Actuaries Climate Index results for the summer of 2023/24 show that both low and high temperatures were warmer than usual. In addition, high levels of extreme rainfall and wind were observed in the north east.

1 CPD Point

Consultation on National Adaptation Plan Issues Paper

The Institute encourages a bold and ambitious vision for the Plan. We encourage greater consideration of the uncertainty of the impact of climate change and the resources available to assess, manage and adapt to it than is indicated in the consultation paper.

1 CPD Point

Exposure Draft - SR1 Australian Sustainability Reporting Standards – Disclosure of Climate-related Financial Information

The Institute strongly supports the work of the AASB in drafting the ASRS Standards, and supports the initially narrowed focus to climate risk and intended expansion to broader sustainability at a later time and phased implementation across reporting entities.