Who must comply with General Insurance Code of Practice (ICA)?

ICA Code binds member insurers on conduct + claims + complaints.

The Insurance Council of Australia's General Insurance Code of Practice 2020 binds member insurers on commitments around buying, claims, complaints, vulnerability + financial hardship. Monitored by the Code Governance Committee with public reporting.

Applies when the business has industry: General insurers and APRA regulation. Where the business has industry: General insurers, check whether you are an Insurance Council member or distribute for one.

How the regulator frames it: ICA member general insurers + their distribution partners.

What triggers it: ICA membership.

Jurisdiction: Commonwealth law, so the test is the same in every state and territory.

Outcome across the 35 industries Rules Mate maps (1 of 35: only if a further fact applies; 34 of 35: no).

Structure does not change the answer in general insurers: for every structure the answer is "only if a further fact applies".

Size does not change the answer in general insurers: at every size band the answer is "only if a further fact applies".

Each line is one run of the Rules Mate applicability engine for a single business profile, with the reason the engine gives:

• Pty Ltd company in real estate agents with 6–19 employees, turnover $1M–$3M: does not apply. Requires industry: General insurers and APRA regulation.
• Pty Ltd company in general insurers with 6–19 employees, turnover $1M–$3M: check whether it applies. applies only if you are an Insurance Council member or distribute for one.

The engine shows this obligation as "check whether this applies" when a business has industry: General insurers. It then applies only if you are an Insurance Council member or distribute for one. That fact is not something Rules Mate can infer from industry, structure or size.

When due

Continuous; CGC monitoring.

Frequency

Ongoing

Evidence to keep

Code subscriber; complaint data; vulnerability + hardship records.

Status

Current

Priority

High

Maximum penalty: Code-based; reputational + AFCA reliance on Code in determinations.

Rules Mate has not yet classified the audit or assurance level for this obligation. Any audit, review or certification requirement is set by the regulator source listed below.

If this obligation applies to you, so does this one: the engine uses the same rule for each.

• General Insurance Code of Practice 2020

• Comply with claims handling + settling as a financial service (s 766A): From 1 January 2022, insurance claims handling is a financial service requiring AFSL authorisation.
• Comply with Private Health Insurance Act 2007 + APRA rules: Private health insurers regulated by APRA + PHIO; community rating, complaints + claims rules apply.
• Life Insurance Code of Practice 2.0: FSC member life insurers bound by Code 2.0 (commenced 1 July 2023).
• Manage business interruption claim definitions (post-pandemic precedent): BI insurance policies must clearly define pandemic exclusions per Federal Court guidance.
• PHI Prudential Standards (APRA): Private health insurers must meet capital + governance standards.

Rules Mate tracks 8 published obligations tagged "insurance", 1 of them rated critical. For a professional services Pty Ltd company with 6–19 employees operating in every state, 0 of those apply outright. This obligation is rated high priority, and is an ongoing duty.

Regulated by Australian Securities and Investments Commission and Australian Financial Complaints Authority.

ASIC: Corporate regulator administering the Corporations Act, financial services and credit licensing (AFSL/ACL), markets supervision, insolvency, and registries (ASIC and ABRS).

AFCA: External dispute resolution body for financial services, credit, insurance, and superannuation complaints. Mandatory member scheme.

• Australian Securities and Investments Commission
• Australian Financial Complaints Authority

Free tools that help with this obligation:

• Compliance calendar builder