Two Queensland insurance brokers will take part in a charity dance event in May to raise funds for Women’s Legal Service Queensland (WLSQ), as rising domestic and family violence and increased recognition of financial abuse keep pressure on insurers to review how they support vulnerable customers.
Lisa Carter (pictured left), founder and CEO of Clear Insurance, and Kate Greaves (pictured right), director of Goldsworthy General Insurance Services, will perform what they describe as a “country-rock mashup with an insurance flavour” as part of the 2026 Dancing CEOs fundraiser on May 30 at Brisbane City Hall. The annual event pairs business leaders with professional dancers to raise money for WLSQ, which provides free legal advice and support to women and children dealing with domestic and family violence, family separation, parenting arrangements, and child safety matters.
Carter has worked in the general insurance market for more than three decades and, in 2019, became the first woman to receive the National Insurance Brokers Association (NIBA) National Broker of the Year award. She said her participation is closely linked to her own experience growing up. “It’s all about breaking the cycles and helping to create real change. If I can dance on a stage to help another eight-year-old girl not have to witness what I did, then that’s the least I can do,” Carter said.
Greaves, a third-generation broker with more than 20 years’ experience and NIBA Queensland Broker of the Year in 2025, said she and Carter have both had clients who needed assistance from WLSQ. “We’ve both got clients who’ve needed this support over the years, and it’s wonderful to be able to give back to an organisation where you know the funds are directly helping families in need,” Greaves said. Dancing CEOs has set a 2026 fundraising target of $500,000. Carter and Greaves have established a joint fundraising page and are seeking sponsors and auction items to support their contribution to the overall total, which they hope will exceed $1 million.
The fundraising comes at a time of increased demand for domestic and family violence support services and higher recorded domestic and family violence offender rates. WLSQ chief executive Nadia Bromley said that when the service reopened after the 2025 holiday shutdown, staff received 424 calls on the first day but were able to answer fewer than a quarter of them. The organisation operates a legal helpline between 9am and 4:30pm AEST on weekdays and is funded through a mix of government support, fundraising, and partnerships.
Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) show that in the 2024-25 financial year, the number of offenders proceeded against by police for family and domestic violence-related offences rose 8%, an increase of 7,103 offenders, to 97,800. That compares with about 90,700 in 2023-24 and is the largest annual rise since national family and domestic violence (FDV) reporting began in 2019-20. The ABS reported an FDV offender rate of 403 per 100,000 people in 2024-25, the highest since national FDV data were first published. More than three-quarters of FDV offenders were male (78%), with a median age of 35, compared with 32 for all offenders. Across all offence categories, the total number of alleged offenders proceeded against by police rose 1% to 344,620. By contrast, youth offenders aged 10 to 17 declined 5% to 44,583, with New South Wales, Queensland, and Victoria among the jurisdictions recording the largest falls.
Alongside crime and service-use data, industry discussion has increasingly focused on how financial services, including insurance, intersect with domestic and family violence, particularly financial abuse. In a March 31, 2026, article, the Australian and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance (ANZIIF) noted that financial abuse is common and closely connected to the systems people use, such as insurers, banks, and government agencies. The article cited Australian research indicating that one in four women have experienced domestic and family violence since age 15, and that more than 90% of those women also experience financial abuse. Separate analysis referenced in the article found that one in 30 women are subjected specifically to financial abuse, with an estimated economic cost of more than $10 billion a year.
The article set out a series of operational measures across product design, customer interaction, internal systems and governance. On design and product, the guidance included reviewing policies, procedures, and system rules for features that can be misused for control; focusing on areas such as joint policies, unilateral changes, and claims payment arrangements; and embedding “financial safety by design,” including through co-design with victim-survivor input where possible.
For customer-facing work, the article proposed using strengths-based, non-judgmental language; asking open questions that seek context rather than strict compliance; providing clear options so customers can retain decision-making control; and clearly explaining confidentiality and safe-contact preferences. At a systems and culture level, suggested steps included trauma-informed training based on lived experience; clear escalation and referral pathways for staff; and removal of requirements in scripts, forms, and processes that may create safety risks or be perceived as punitive. The article also noted that partnering with specialist organisations, such as domestic and family violence services, can strengthen referral pathways. On governance and leadership, the guidance encouraged insurers to view vulnerability as situational and changeable rather than a fixed label, to assign responsibility for customer outcomes across senior leadership and culture, and to align prevention of abuse with long-term recovery and trust.
Carter and Greaves say they hope their participation in Dancing CEOs will prompt further discussion within the insurance community about how domestic and family violence affects underwriting, distribution, claims, and customer support, as well as raising funds for legal services. In the lead-up to the May performance, they are running several events, including a “Play-It-Forward” long lunch at Carina Leagues Club on April 24, 2026, featuring speakers from sport, media, survivor advocacy, and WLSQ leadership. Tickets are available via Humanitix. They are also hosting Clear Fest, a community event at Brisbane Racing Club on Sunday, April 26, with event information available via Eventbrite.
