Leading Queensland insurer, RACQ, has announced plans to withdraw from Queensland’s Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance scheme after years of advocating for fairness to be restored.

For more than 20 years, the Club has been a critical provider of CTP insurance, helping more than 25,000 people injured on the State’s roads.

Chief Executive Officer David Carter said while the Club had built a strong reputation for claims management and was proud of its industry leading claimant satisfaction, it was no longer viable to continue participating in the scheme.

“The scheme’s design allows for all participating insurers to be profitable, however, this assumes an equitable distribution of risk. In recent years, RACQ’s risk profile has worsened through no fault of our own, resulting in significant losses for the Club,” Mr Carter said.

Analysis shows that over the past five years, there is a significant difference between the most profitable and least profitable insurers in the scheme.

“In FY22, for every $100 of premium RACQ received, we paid $123 in claims and expenses due to the increased frequency and severity of claims that the Club received relative to the scheme average. We saw little change in FY23 and in the absence of any changes to the way premium is shared between insurers, the outlook shows no signs of material improvement.”

Mr Carter reinforced that RACQ’s CTP losses did not relate to claims management but to how the scheme was operating, with analysis by Motor Accident Insurance Commission (MAIC) actuary Taylor Fry confirming that claims management performance was comparable across the four scheme insurers.

“Importantly, RACQ’s departure is not a reflection on the premiums paid by motorists,” he said.

“Premiums paid by Queensland motorists are fair and do not need to increase and should not increase now because RACQ has withdrawn from the scheme."

Mr Carter said the Club would have liked nothing more than to stay in the scheme and support the 1.2 million Queensland motorists who choose RACQ as their preferred provider.

“However, following several years of raising concerns with the State Government and MAIC, it’s clear that even the most recent scheme review is unlikely to achieve a level playing field or restore fairness across the insurers,” he said.

“The unfortunate reality is despite the extensive steps we have taken over many years to improve our position, including support provided by our reinsurance partners, it is no longer viable for us to continue participating in the scheme.”

Mr Carter said the decision would not compromise or cause any disruption to CTP claimants with a claims process underway or who may have a claim in the future.

“RACQ will continue to provide a claims management service to ensure our existing CTP claimants continue to receive the same high standard of service we are known for, even after our exit from the scheme,” he said.

“We will cease offering CTP insurance cover from 1 October 2023 and RACQ has formally requested our license be withdrawn. This is pending approval from MAIC.”

All existing RACQ CTP policies remain in place and over the following 12 months, Queensland motorists with RACQ CTP insurance will be transitioned to another insurer on renewal of their registration.

“RACQ CTP insurance will continue to be available to anyone who has, renews or selects RACQ as their CTP provider prior to 1 October 2023. Any motorist who renews their CTP post this date will no longer be able to select RACQ as their CTP provider, however the Club will work closely with MAIC to ensure a seamless transition.”

Mr Carter said this change did not affect RACQ’s other insurance products in any way, or its commitment to providing Queenslanders with motor and home insurance now and into the future. 

Background

CTP insurance is a mandatory requirement for all motorists in Queensland. It is paid as part of the vehicle registration process and covers people injured in a motor vehicle accident. It doesn’t cover the damage caused to or by the motorist’s vehicle – that damage is covered under RACQ Insurance’s suite of motor insurance products which remain unchanged.