The Australian Reinsurance Pool Corporation (ARPC) has acknowledged the release of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's (ACCC) fifth and final insurance monitoring report. The report marks the conclusion of the ACCC's formal monitoring role under the Cyclone Reinsurance Pool, introduced in 2022.
The report draws on five years of data on prices, costs, and market outcomes. It found the pool has moderated premium increases for households and small businesses exposed to higher cyclone risk. Those outcomes have been sustained over time, particularly in higher-risk regions.
Insurance affordability remains a significant challenge, according to the report, with premiums continuing to track cost pressures including claims, extreme weather, and inflation.
The report put hard figures behind that moderation. Home insurance premiums fell 14% and small business insurance 31% compared with pre-pool prices within two years of insurers joining. With the ACCC's oversight role now closing, a statutory review of the underlying legislation is the only formal accountability mechanism left.
The report found insurers are passing through reductions in reinsurance costs to policyholders. The pool's benefits are targeted, primarily assisting households and businesses in medium to high cyclone risk areas, which account for around 2% of policies nationally.
There have been some improvements in availability, although insurer participation and competition in northern Australia remain constrained. Private mitigation is being recognised by insurers, but incentives remain weak and uptake is limited.
Insurer sentiment toward ARPC itself has been more positive than the ACCC's affordability findings might suggest. A separate survey gave the corporation a stakeholder perceptions score of 84 out of 100. Most insurers rated their relationship with ARPC as good or very good.
Consumer advocates have taken a different view of the affordability findings. The Australian Consumers Insurance Lobby (ACIL) has argued the statutory review should consider structural reform, with chair Tyrone Shandiman noting that some households face premiums exceeding $20,000 a year.
ARPC chief executive Christopher Wallace said the ACCC's monitoring had tracked how the pool is operating in practice. "Their monitoring has been important in tracking how the cyclone pool is operating in practice, and in highlighting both the progress made and the areas where continued focus is needed," he said.
Wallace said the report confirms the pool is lowering reinsurance costs and supporting more affordable premiums in higher-risk areas. "It is encouraging to see evidence that those benefits are flowing through to many policyholders," he said.
Wallace said the report also reinforces that insurance pricing is influenced by a broader set of factors beyond the pool. Addressing affordability over the long term will require continued progress on mitigation, he said.
Those broader factors include market structure. Four insurers control nearly three-quarters of Australia's general insurance market. The ACCC cited that concentration in December 2025 when it blocked IAG's proposed acquisition of RAC Insurance.
The ACCC's findings underline the importance of strengthening the link between mitigation and insurance pricing. They also point to a need for clearer consumer information on how risk reduction can affect premiums.
Wallace said the conclusion of the ACCC's monitoring role marks a milestone but not the end of the task. ARPC will continue to work with governments, insurers and communities to support resilience, he said.
