News
Disingenuous insurer seeking to undermine QLD CTP review process
20th Mar 2017
The Australian Lawyers Alliance (ALA) has today called out the actions of Queensland insurer RACQ as a disingenuous attempt to undermine the important review process currently underway into Queensland’s Comprehensive Third Party (CTP) scheme.
ALA spokesperson Rod Hodgson said the Motor Accident and Insurance Commission (MAIC) was undertaking an important, thorough and consultative process in looking at the State’s CTP scheme, and deserved to be commended for its efforts to ensure Queensland continued to have the best CTP scheme in Australia.
“The antics today of the RACQ in hinting that an improper process is being undertaken by MAIC in reviewing the State’s CTP scheme are disappointing, but unfortunately not surprising,” Mr Hodgson said.
“These comments again serve as an important reminder: RACQ is an insurance company first, and representing the best interests of their members comes a distant second.
“Today’s comments from the RACQ seek to discredit what has unquestionably been a very thorough and proper process undertaken by MAIC to look at all aspects of the current CTP scheme, including looking at the super profits being made by CTP insurers such as RACQ,” Mr Hodgson said.
“CTP insurers, including RACQ, have for years been making double the profit percentage they were originally modelled to receive under the scheme, and MAIC, as the scheme regulator, is doing its job by looking at these super profits and asking what further savings could be delivered to motorists.
“The RACQ may not like that, but to make pot shot claims about misleading advice or otherwise that serve only to cast a shadow on what has been a thorough process is completely disingenuous, and motorists – namely RACQ’s members – deserve a lot better,” Mr Hodgson said.
“Unfortunately this is not the first time we have seen an attempt from the RACQ to trade away the interests of their injured members for profits.
“The RACQ also pushed last year for a Queensland National Injury Insurance Scheme that would have forced their members with catastrophic injuries into a pension-type system - one that was better for insurers, but meant significantly fewer benefits for injured motorists,” Mr Hodgson said.
“Thankfully the State Government saw through that, and Queensland instead now a very fair catastrophic injury scheme in place.
“We commend MAIC for the stakeholder engagement it has fostered as part of its current CTP scheme review, and we urge them to stay the course irrespective of these unwarranted attacks from insurers – this is critical in ensuring that Queensland’s CTP scheme remains the best in Australia for supporting injured motorists,” Mr Hodgson said.
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