Liability claims are becoming broader, costlier and harder to predict, forcing insurers and brokers across Australia and New Zealand to rethink how emerging risks, litigation funding and class actions intersect.

In Brief

• Liability claims are spreading into new areas including privacy, ESG, PFAS and AI-related disputes, creating risks that can cross multiple insurance lines at once.
• Insurers are increasingly concerned about the legal and funding systems helping large-scale class actions grow faster and become more commercially viable.
• Brokers face rising pressure to help clients strengthen governance, disclosure and risk management as insurers tighten underwriting in higher-risk sectors.

Liability reform is back on the insurance agenda in Australia and New Zealand as claims become broader, more expensive and increasingly difficult to contain once they begin.

For insurers and brokers, the issue is no longer just the number of claims entering the system. It is the way legal costs, litigation funding, regulatory action and evolving court procedures can rapidly scale a single issue into a major class action exposure.

Speaking before the federal parliamentary inquiry into small business insurance, Insurance Council of Australia CEO Andrew Hall called for a national review of civil liability settings, arguing rising liability pressures are affecting affordability and availability of cover.

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