Big insurers fight to hide prices lists Sydney Morning Herald
21.05.10
In Bondi, the driver would pay between $819 and $1671, while in Parramatta, the premiums ranged from $747 to $1966. Similar price discrepancies were found in Marrickville and Killara.
Ratecity's chief executive, Damian Smith, acknowledged the prices did not account for some policy conditions, including the excess, but said they were indicative of the potential savings.
''The two majors [IAG and Suncorp] … won't provide data to any service that is trying to compare car insurance side by side,'' Mr Smith said. ''They regularly back this up with strongly worded [letters]. It's pretty anti-consumer.
''We've seen in other markets that when this data becomes available consumers generally get a better deal.''
Since mid-2009, Mr Smith has received several letters from Suncorp and IAG threatening action against Ratecity if it publishes comparative tables or links to the websites of any of their insurance products.
An NRMA spokesman said some price-comparison websites ''have presented wildly inaccurate and inflated prices for our insurance products''.
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Equitable Life policyholders begin High Court case
A High Court case brought by Equitable Life policyholders begins today.
The Equitable Members Action Group represents around 21,000 policyholders who lost up to 50% of the value of their pension funds when Equitable Life came close to collapse in 2001.
The group is demanding a judicial review of the Government’s decision not to implement in full recommendations made by Parliamentary Ombudsman, Ann Abraham.
In July of 2008, Ms Abraham published a report on the demise of Equitable, which from the 1950s had sold policies that guaranteed a minimum annuity rate to investors.
The strategy left the UK’s oldest mutual unable to honour its promises and the Ombudsman’s review accused regulators of comprehensive failure and the Government of maladministration.
Ms Abraham therefore recommended the establishment of a scheme that would consider individual claims for compensation.
However, in January, the Government announced that only Equitable Life policyholders who qualified as having been “disproportionately affected” by the near collapse of the insurer would receive compensation.
The action group described the scheme as totally inadequate, arguing that it could take years to implement and might only assist 10% of those who lost money.
The High Court case, which should last around three days, hinges on whether judges consider that the Treasury has acted in a legal and rational manner.
Source: Insurance Daily
