Insurance bodies representing Australia, New Zealand, the UK and Canada have announced the formation of a Four Nations Insurance Alliance, to confront the rising risks threatening economic resilience across these four nations.
Together, the Insurance Council of Australia, the ABI, Insurance Bureau of Canada and the Insurance Council of New Zealand represent insurers writing around $200bn in premiums annually.
The partnership announced on 6 October 2026 has been established in response to common problems that have been growing across the four economies, including climate risk, persistent inflation, regulatory cost, premium affordability, and a growing protection gap.
Additionally, emerging risks, including cyber threats and greater geopolitical instability, are challenging insurers and the vital economic and financial system role they play.
Insurance is critical economic infrastructure in all four nations; keeping cover sustainable and affordable depends on partnership across industry, government and borders.
The common institutional heritage and similar regulatory, legislative and commercial environment of the four countries have supported informal collaboration and knowledge sharing between the national trade bodies for some time.
The establishment of the Alliance will formalise and boost that work for the benefit of insurers and their customers, regulators and policymakers in all four countries.
Under the partnership, the four trade insurance bodies will share evidence on what works, spanning public-private partnerships, hazard data, resilience investment, regulation and emerging risks including cyber and artificial intelligence, with the intent of turning lessons from one jurisdiction into practical reforms in another.
The launch takes place in London alongside a bipartisan Australian insurance delegation examining how governments and insurers can drive down underlying risk and keep protection available as the risk environment evolves.
Insurance Council of Australia CEO Andrew Hall, said, “Insurance is the shock absorber of the economy. When it comes under strain, that is a signal the risk beneath it is growing, and the honest response is to reduce that risk, not to disguise it. Right now our economies spend far too much rebuilding after disasters and far too little preventing them, and that equation cannot hold.
Risk does not respect borders, so it makes sense for four countries facing the same pressures to work as one. We are still paying for yesterday’s disasters while new gaps open through cyber, artificial intelligence and global instability, and this Alliance helps us get ahead of them.”
Insurance Council of New Zealand CWO Kris Faafoi said, “Working as a collective of insurance industry bodies we want to ensure the shared challenge of resilience and risk reduction can be met to close protection gaps and keep communities safe. By working with Government’s and sharing our insights, we can ensure regulatory settings, technology and accessible insurance can strengthen the stability we value.”
(Photograph: Courtesy Insurance Council of Australia website)