Mei Sun Yee

ANZIIF is proud to launch the 2026 ANZIIF Business School, a new industry learning initiative designed to equip insurance professionals with the skills and insights needed to confidently navigate the rapidly evolving risk landscape.

Designed as a university-style learning experience, the program will feature four expert-led sessions delivered across a single day, combining practical expertise with peer exchange.

The inaugural event will be held on Thursday 18 June at the University of Technology Sydney, where participants will hear directly from industry leaders and gain insights that can be applied immediately in the workplace.

Participants will learn the latest developments on the following topics:

Session 1

The Future Direction of Insurance in Australia (Speaker to be announced shortly)

Session 2

Trends in Quality Assurance & Regulatory Operations

Speakers:

• Prue Monument – General Manager Code Compliance, AFCA
• Jared Orth – Senior Manager Code Compliance (General Insurance), AFCA
• Insurance Broking Presenter – AFCA (Speaker to be announced shortly)

Session 3

Cyber: Trends and Emerging Products including AI (Speaker to be announced shortly)

Session 4

The Growing Impact of Natural Catastrophes on the Insurance Industry

Speaker: Dr Mei Sun Yee – Analytics Manager Australasia, Munich Re

ANZIIF is pleased to announce that Prue Monument, General Manager Code Compliance, Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) will lead the session covering trends in quality assurance.

This timely session will examine the key challenges facing general insurers, life insurers and insurance brokers, including the navigation of emerging risks, meeting community expectations, and delivering good customer outcomes.

Joined by Jared Orth, AFCA Senior Manager Code Compliance (General Insurance), Prue will lead a panel discussion to share takeaways from her work monitoring Code compliance and explore how insurers and brokers can better meet their Code commitments.

In addition, ANZIIF welcomes Dr Mei Sun Yee, Analytics Manager Australasia, Munich Re to present The Impact of Natural Catastrophes on the Insurance Industry. Dr Yee will explore the growing impact of natural catastrophes and how insurers are redefining the way risk is assessed, priced and transferred.

This session unpacks the shift in claims patterns, the emergence of parametric insurance, and the strategic implications of a world where past data no longer reliably predicts future losses.

A flexible format will allow participants to attend individual sessions of their choice or curate their own personalised experience, complemented by a variety of dedicated networking opportunities.

Between sessions, a sponsorship marketplace will allow professionals to connect with solution providers, explore emerging services and continue important industry conversations.

Katrina Shanks, CEO of ANZIIF, says the ANZIIF Business School initiative reflects the organisation’s mission to prioritise and support professional growth, development and confidence across the industry.

“The ANZIIF Business School reflects our commitment to educating, connecting and leading the insurance profession. By bringing together industry expertise with practical learning, we are helping professionals strengthen capability, raise standards and prepare for the challenges and opportunities shaping the future of our industry,” Shanks says.

Places are limited. Members and non-members are encouraged to secure their sessions early for what promises to be a compelling and energising day of learning.

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Ian Govey

An inquiry into handling of deceased estates has found instances of poor practice and non-compliance with the Banking Code of Practice^[1] among the six banks in the study.

“Managing the affairs of a loved one who has passed away is difficult. Unfortunately, our inquiry found practices that were contributing to the difficulty of managing a deceased estate,” the Independent Chair of the Banking Code Compliance Committee (BCCC), Ian Govey AM, said.

“While there were instances of good practice, and the issues varied across the banks, we found inadequate systems, processes and procedures were making a difficult time worse for the bereaved.”

The inquiry’s report said the poor practices and non-compliance fell into three categories:

• Fees and charges for services no longer provided – Banks continuing to apply fees and charges to accounts of deceased customers despite being notified of their passing.
• Failing to act within timeframes – Banks failing to act on requests or instructions within the obligatory 14 days of receiving the necessary information.
• Lack of respect and compassion – Banks failing to treat representatives and family of deceased customers with the respect and compassion expected in the circumstances.

“Our inquiry found instances of fees being charged for service no longer provided on deceased estates in all six banks we reviewed. And delays in responding to requests or acting on instructions from people managing a deceased estate were too common,” Mr Govey said.

“As a result of these poor practices, customers perceived a lack of respect and compassion from the bank at a time when they needed it to be understanding, flexible and responsive.”

Following the inquiry, the BCCC has notified three banks that it will be commencing investigations into their compliance with deceased estates obligations under the Code.

The BCCC also expects the banks not subject to the inquiry to audit their practices regarding deceased estates.

The inquiry’s report sets out nine recommendations for all banks to consider.

“All banks need to look closely at their systems and processes to identify the areas that need addressing,” Mr Govey said. “We expect banks to understand their obligations under the Code and to ensure their management of deceased estates is fully compliant within 18 months.”

The BCCC’s CEO, Prue Monument, emphasised the significance of the report and its findings.

“Several years ago now the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry showed that banks had a lot of work to do. It is reasonable for the community to have expected more progress and seen improvements sooner,” Ms Monument said.

“While we have seen work from the banks on this front, with some more progressed than others, clearly not enough has been done. Our report is a timely reminder for banks: they need to prioritise improvements in line with community expectations.”

Ms Monument expressed the BCCC’s expectation that this report will lead to better outcomes both for people handling the estates of loved ones and for banks. “Fixing the issues we identified will improve processes for consumers and help relieve the stress of managing the estate of a loved one. But doing so will also be good for banks,” she said. “Failing to stop fees, for example, creates additional work and can contribute to a loss of customer goodwill and harm a bank’s reputation.”

Background

The BCCC, an independent body that monitors bank behaviour, has been looking at compliance with Code obligations for deceased estates since the provisions were introduced in the new Banking Code of Practice in 2019.

In this latest enquiry, the BCCC asked six banks to audit the way they managed deceased estates and conducted a survey of consumers and their representatives. The inquiry involved all four major banks and two other banks.

Chapter 45 of the Code sets out obligations for managing deceased estates. Under Chapter 45, banks commit to treating a deceased person’s representative with respect and compassion and provide clear and accessible information on what they can do to manage accounts. Chapter 45 requires that, once notified of a customer’s death, a bank will identify and stop charging fees for products and services that can no longer be provided and make refunds if necessary.

Read the report.

——–

[1] Banking Code of Practice

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Rene van de Rijdt, who has been acting in the role since March, has taken up the new position of Deputy General Manager.

The Banking Code of Practice, the Customer Owned Banking Code of Practice, the General Insurance Code of Practice, the Insurance Brokers Code of Practice, and the Life Insurance Code of Practice are each monitored by an independent Code Compliance Committee. On behalf of these committees, the Code Compliance and Monitoring Team conducts code monitoring activities, investigates alleged code breaches and shares examples of good industry practice.

Ms Monument has joined AFCA from Australia’s higher education regulator, the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency, where she was Executive Director, Quality Assurance & Regulatory Operations. She was previously Director of Compliance at the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission. She has also held senior roles in the Department of Immigration and Border Protection, including as National Manager of the Allegations Assessment Team.

“Prue brings to the team extensive regulatory and self-regulatory experience, and a strong focus on practice improvement and public benefit,” AFCA Chief Executive and Chief Ombudsman David Locke said. “She will ensure that both financial firms and consumers benefit from the work the Code Team does to monitor and influence good industry practice.”

Ms Monument said: “I’m thrilled to have joined the AFCA team and look forward to supporting the important work the five Code committees do in building firms’ compliance capabilities and protecting the interests of consumers.”

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