Regulation and supervision Insurers Regulation of insurance sector

Regulation of insurance sector

The Insurance (Prudential Supervision) Act 2010 is administered by the Reserve Bank for the purposes of:

  1. promoting the maintenance of a sound and efficient insurance sector; and
  2. promoting public confidence in the insurance sector.

The Act applies to all insurers carrying on business in New Zealand (as defined by the Act) and includes:

  • a licensing system for insurers, based on meeting the Act's prudential requirements;
  • supervision by the Reserve Bank of compliance with the prudential requirements; and
  • powers under the Act for the Reserve Bank in respect of insurers in financial distress or other difficulties.

The Insurance (Prudential Supervision) Act 2010 and the commencement orders that brought various sections of the Act into force on specific dates are available on the Legislation.govt.nz website:

Through the licensing phase of the Act a number of technical issues were identified as appropriate for reform and changes were made on 4 September 2013 under the Insurance (Prudential Supervision) Amendment Act 2013 relating to those technical issues.

Read the Insurance (Prudential Supervision) Amendment Act 2013.

Regulations

The insurance sector is also subject to regulations.

The Insurance (Prudential Supervision) Regulations 2010 relate to:

  • prescribed jurisdictions for home/host regulatory recognition and other provisions;
  • reassessment requirements for fit and proper certification;
  • matters relating to the disclosure of overseas policyholder preference;
  • limited exemptions for insurers with annual gross written premium less than $1.5 million;
  • deeming certain consumer credit insurance contracts, where issued by a non-life insurer, not to be life policies; and
  • statutory funds.

Read the Insurance (Prudential Supervision) Regulations 2010.

Standards

Licensed insurers need to adhere to the following standards as part of the prudential requirements of the Reserve Bank.

Standards for insurers
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Fit and proper standard
Information on the Fit and proper standard for licensed insurers, including the current Fit and proper standard.
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Solvency standards
Information on solvency standards, including current and earlier solvency standards. One or more solvency standards may apply to a licensed insurer under the licensed insurer's conditions of licence.
Financial strength rating agencies for insurers
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Financial strength rating agencies
A list of the financial strength rating agencies approved by the Reserve Bank for the purposes of sections 60-71 of the Act and guidelines to assist these agencies in understanding the Act's requirements.

Related to this page

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Generic Page Thumbnail Licensing
Generic Page Thumbnail Supervision of insurers
Generic Page Thumbnail New Zealand Insurer Data Collections
Generic Page Thumbnail Publications and reports for the insurance sector
Generic Page Thumbnail Relationship with other regulatory and supervisory bodies
Generic Page Thumbnail Contact the insurance team
Generic Page Thumbnail Consultations and policy development for insurers
Insurance news & updates

Oct 2021 Insurance

We are changing the implementation date of the Interim Solvency Standard from 1 January 2022 to 1 January 2023.  This will give insurers more time to develop their systems and processes.

More information can be found on the Review of the Insurance Solvency Standards page.

Aug 2021 Insurance

New IPSA review consultation

The Reserve Bank has released a consultation paper as part of the ongoing review of the Insurance (Prudential Supervision) Act 2010. This consultation is on Policyholder Security. This document can be found on the IPSA Review page.

Feedback on the consultation paper is encouraged. A webinar will be held to discuss the consultation at 10am on Wednesday 15 September 2021. To express your interest in attending the webinar, please subscribe to our mailing list. An invite will be sent to our Insurance mailing list closer to the date.

Aug 2021 Insurance

We are publishing the template to be used in assessing the quantitative impact of the draft interim solvency standard:

Jul 2021 Insurance

Solvency

We are publishing three documents relating to the Review of the Insurance Solvency Standards:

  • A feedback statement from the consultation run over summer;
  • A draft of an Interim Solvency Standard, for consultation; and
  • An explanatory note.

These documents can be found on the Solvency Standard Review page.

We’ll be holding a webinar to discuss the draft interim standard at 10am on Thursday 5 August. To express your interest in attending the webinar, please subscribe to our mailing list. An invite will be sent to our Insurance mailing list closer to the date.

IPSA

We are also publishing an IPSA Review feedback statement; this relates to the recent consultation on the Scope of the Act and the treatment of overseas insurers. This document can be found on the IPSA Review page.

Mar 2021 Insurance

We have today released a feedback statement (PDF 700KB) on the consultation relating to Solvency Standard Review principles. We thank those who provided submissions. We are working through submissions received for the consultation on the structure of the solvency standards and our approach to IFRS 17.

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