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Australia to Ban Firms From Automatically Charging Young Workers for Life Insurance

  • Rules effective April 2020 under legislation passed Thursday
  • Changes will save A$3 billion in annual fees, Rice Warner says
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Australia’s government has banned the common practice of young workers automatically being charged life insurance, as policy makers fix structural flaws in the world’s fourth-largest pension system.

Firms may only give life, disability and income protection insurance in default pension plans to new members aged under-25 or those with balances below A$6,000 ($4,075) if they’ve explicitly ask for it, under legislation passed by parliament Thursday. The bill comes into effect in April 2020 and ensures workers in dangerous jobs can still get automatic cover.