Announcement - Flex Insurance joins the ARPC Cyclone Pool
Flex Insurance is pleased to announce, that from July 2023, Flex’s residential strata policies will be included in the ARPC (Australian Reinsurance Pool Corporation) Cyclone Reinsurance Pool. This inclusion applies to eligible residential strata new business and renewals with an effective date of 29 July 2023, allowing policy holders to benefit from participating in the pool.
Frank Scamarcia, the General Manager of Flex Insurance, expressed his satisfaction with this development, stating, "Flex Insurance welcomes measures that promote affordability and accessibility to suitable insurance products for property owners. It comes at a much-needed time, especially for those living in cyclone prone areas of Australia and when the financial strain faced by individual households is increasing due to inflation and living costs."
Flex Insurance is all about choice, and the flexibility for residential strata property owners to choose what they need within their policy, and not what they don’t need. In this case, however, all eligible policies will automatically be added to the pool. While it will not be immediately evident to customers of the affected policies, as there is no changes to wording, or the policies themselves, the purpose of the Cyclone Pool (backed by at $10 billion Government Guarantee) is to improve insurance affordability for the population who live in the most cyclone prone parts of Australia.
It is mandatory for some insurers to enter the pool. Large insurers will have until 31 December 2023 to reinsure all eligible cyclone risk with ARPC. Small general insurers (insurers whose total gross written premiums for household insurance are less than $300 million for the financial year before 31 December 2022) will be required to transfer their portfolio to ARPC by 31 December 2024, however, all insurers can voluntarily join the pool from 1 July 2022. The ARPC has allowed for a transition period to give insurers time to navigate the complexities of the pool requirements.
Flex Insurance is proud to be among the first to enter the pool.
To learn more about the ARPC Cyclone Pool, click here for a more in depth understanding. Flex Insurance has also put together an FAQ fact sheet which is attached here.