Latest Australia Headlines
All the headlines from our Australia Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Buys Australia’s Effectus Consulting Pty Ltd.
Nov 5 2020 // Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. announced the acquisition of Brisbane, Queensland-based Effectus Consulting Pty Ltd. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Effectus Consulting is a data-driven employee and leadership...
BMS Appoints Massis as Chairman of Australian Affinity Business
Nov 4 2020 // BMS Group, the London-based independent specialist re/insurance broker, announced the appointment of Cris Massis as chairman of BMS’s Australian affinity business, effective Nov. 1 and based in Melbourne. Massis adds...
Australian Pension Fund Agrees to Settle Landmark Climate Risk Litigation
Nov 2 2020 // SYDNEY — One of Australia’s largest pension funds on Monday agreed to settle a landmark climate risk litigation filed by a 25-year-old member who alleged it was failing to protect his retirement savings against...
Australia’s Westpac Takes A$1.2B Charge Against Q2 Earnings for Laundering, Refunds
Oct 26 2020 // Westpac Banking Corp. has taken a A$1.2 billion ($871 million) charge against second-half earnings to cover a record money-laundering fine and the mounting cost of compensating customers for years of misconduct. The charge...
Lloyd’s Approves Syndicate-in-a-Box, Picnic Syndicate 2460, to Support Mutuals
Oct 22 2020 // Asta, the third-party managing agent at Lloyd’s, announced the Council of Lloyd’s granted in-principle approval for the launch of Picnic Syndicate PIC 2460, a syndicate-in-a-box (SIAB). Picnic will commence...
Insurance Losses for April’s Queensland Hailstorms Estimated at A$604M: PERILS
Oct 19 2020 // The insurance industry’s loss footprint for the April 2020 Central Queensland hailstorms is estimated at A$604 million (US$423.2 million), according to PERILS, the independent Zurich-based organization that provides...
Western Wildfires Taint Vineyards With Taste Of Smoke
Sep 25 2020 // Smoke from the West Coast wildfires has tainted grapes in some of the nation’s most celebrated wine regions with an ashy flavor that could spell disaster for the 2020 vintage. Wineries in California, Oregon and...
Catastrophe Losses Driven Higher by Secondary Perils – And Climate Change
Sep 23 2020 // Secondary perils, exacerbated by climate change, are driving catastrophe insurance losses, warn a growing chorus of reinsurers and brokers. Indeed, broker Aon reveals that more than 60% of 2020’s insured catastrophe...
Coronavirus Safety: U.S. Behind Global Rivals in Protecting Meat Plant Workers
Sep 22 2020 // The U.S. government is falling behind global rivals when it comes to protecting meatpacking workers from Covid-19 infections, even though the nation’s plants were among the first to confront rampant cases across...
Frequent Wildfires Decimating Forests Becomes Concern Worldwide
Sep 22 2020 // Wildfires among ponderosa pines and Douglas firs of the U.S. West have long been part of nature’s cycle of renewal, as much as the changing of the seasons. But as climate change makes the region more arid, wildfires...
Hamilton Re Appoints Former AXIS Capital Executive as New CEO
Sep 10 2020 // Hamilton Re has named Megan Thomas, a former AXIS Capital and AIG executive, as the company’s new chief executive officer. She succeeds David Brown, the chairman of Hamilton Re who was appointed interim CEO in early...
Search for Crew from Capsized Cattle Ship Continues; Records Reveal Ship Defects
Sep 4 2020 // A crewman from a cattle ship that capsized enroute from New Zealand to China has died after being pulled unconscious from water by the Japanese coastguard on Friday, while it emerged the vessel had a history of mechanical...
More Than 40 Crew Members Missing After Ship with 6,000 Cattle Capsizes Off Japan
Sep 3 2020 // More than 40 crew members were missing after a ship carrying cattle from New Zealand to China capsized in stormy weather in the East China Sea, the Japanese coastguard said on Thursday. A lone crew member from the Gulf...
McDonald’s Has a Trademark Beef With Australia’s Hungry Jack’s ‘Big Jack’
Sep 3 2020 // Global fast food giant McDonald’s Corp. has filed a trademark infringement notice in Australia after the local unit of Burger King created a similar product called the “Big Jack,” according to a local...
Former Australia Bank Unit Sued Over Insurance Commissions
Sep 3 2020 // Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) said on Thursday a class action lawsuit had been filed over commissions paid to its former subsidiary and advice given by it on financial products including insurance. The lawsuit was...
Actuaries Index: Extreme Climate Conditions Hit New High in Winter 2019-20
Aug 27 2020 // A multiyear trend of increasing climate condition measurements from the U.S. and Canada hit a new high in winter 2019-2020, according a new Actuaries Climate Index released this week. The quarterly data’s key metric...
Class Action Targets Commonwealth Bank of Australia Over Insurance Advising
Aug 21 2020 // Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) said on Friday a class action lawsuit was filed over advice given on life insurance policies issued and recommended by three former subsidiaries. The lawsuit was filed by Shine Lawyers...
Australia Detains Cargo Ships for Alleged Labor Violations Related to COVID Lockdowns
Aug 12 2020 // Australian authorities detained at least two cargo ships for alleged labor violations related to demands from seafarers to be sent home, some of whom have spent more than a year at sea. The ships, which are or will be...
New Risk to Global Supply Chains Emerges as Weary Crews, Stuck Offshore, Halt Work
Aug 7 2020 // A new risk to global supply chains is emerging as exhausted seafarers stuck offshore for months halt work, a breaking point caused by restrictions on crew changes amid coronavirus precautions. Three vessels are idled in...
Australia to Spend $1.2B to Beef Up Private Sector’s Cyber Defenses After Rise in Attacks
Aug 7 2020 // Australia will spend A$1.66 billion ($1.19 billion) over the next 10 years to strengthen the cyber defenses of companies and households after a rise in cyber attacks, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Thursday. Cyber...
