Insurer AIA Australia is not interested in taking on new, large superannuation fund partners because it wants to avoid compromising service for current clients, chief executive Damien Green has said.
Green said although he would not comment on any particular deal, players in the group sector should be wary of putting short-term gains before long-term sustainable business and service when signing large contracts.
"We've seen recent moves in the market where some of our competitors in the group space are very hungry and growth focused and would perhaps put the sustainability of their own business and existing customer relationships at risk in order to be able to take on large new partners, and that's not our focus," he told Investor Weekly.
"We certainly look to grow our partnership base in the group sector, but only when we are confident that we can deliver a premium service outcome to our existing customers."
In late 2009, AustralianSuper gave Tower Australia a $200 million mandate in annual premiums over three years on behalf of the fund's 1.4 million members.
According to media reports, Tower Australia mangaing director Jim Minto said there would me more large insurance deals coming up for tender in the near future.
However, AIA Australia is putting effort into beefing up its claims area and recently rolled out a new suite of reporting mechanisms to its superannuation fund clients.
"There has to be more open transparency with our key partners," Green said.
"We have a strong commitment to improving our customers' members' claims experiences . claims are the moment of truth, so we're strongly focused on claims."
The insurer would also be looking to employ more staff in its claims area, he said.
