Page 3604 - Week 08 - Thursday, 19 August 2010
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I now seek to amend the act to make clear the functions of the CTP scheme’s regulators along with its annual reporting responsibilities. Specifically, this bill will formally establish the legal status of the CTP regulator as an entity similar to the ACT Insurance Authority. Prior to the new CTP scheme, third-party insurance in the ACT was largely an unregulated, accidental monopoly market. In order to attract competition, it was essential for the new scheme to set the foundations for an effective regulatory function.
As there was no pre-existing body performing a regulatory function in the market, it was necessary to vest that function initially in a single position—namely, the Under Treasurer. However, now that a couple of years have elapsed and competition is almost certainly at our doorstep, it is appropriate that a long-term structure be established that reflects an independent regulatory function.
Under the amendments proposed by this bill, the Under Treasurer will continue to undertake the role of the CTP regulator. However, this will be a role as a territory authority subject to the provisions of the Financial Management Act. This will be a step forward in terms of governance, placing the ACT’s CTP scheme for the first time on a comparable footing with both New South Wales and Queensland, the other two Australian jurisdictions with privately underwritten fault-based common law schemes. It will also enable the ACT to make scheme statistics available to the public, as is the case in New South Wales and Queensland. This builds upon the foundations of transparency and accountability that have been embedded in the new scheme.
The functions of the CTP regulator as set out in the bill are based on the common governance provisions found in the New South Wales and Queensland CTP legislation for their respective regulatory entities—the Motor Accidents Authority and the Motor Accident Insurance Commission. Specifically, the functions of the regulator will continue to address the government’s ongoing responsibilities in ensuring the continued effectiveness of the CTP insurance scheme in parallel with the work being done by all jurisdictions nationally.
The bill will afford the regulator a clear role in ensuring compliance with the CTP act, and more crucially around all parties’ key obligations under the act—namely, the early payment of medical expenses, early and full disclosure between parties, compulsory conferences, mandatory final offers and restrictions on legal costs. It will underpin the ability of the regulator to monitor claims management and the provision and availability of effective rehabilitation and injury management services. It will also give the regulator the power to promote and support measures to reduce the number of motor crashes and increase road safety in line with other jurisdictions.
Ultimately, it will be the function of the regulator to ensure the government’s commitment to a better value proposition for all ACT motorists is being met. In summary, these functions are consistent with the objectives of the new act and are a necessary and important step towards enabling the CTP regulator to ensure that these objectives can be achieved.
In addition to formalising the powers and functions of the regulator, this bill seeks to make two other amendments. Firstly, this bill will enable the average CTP risk
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