The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) has released its quarterly aggregate statistics for the insurance sector for the quarter ended Sept. 30, 2025, covering general insurance, life insurance, and private health insurance - with some notable shifts.
In general insurance, industry insurance revenue reached $20.1 billion in the September 2025 quarter, up from $19.7 billion in June 2025 and $19.5 billion in the December 2024 quarter. Insurance service expense was $14.3 billion, broadly in line with the prior three quarters, while reinsurance premiums allocated for the period were $4.3 billion and amounts recoverable from reinsurers totalled $1.3 billion.
The insurance service result rose to $2.8 billion, compared with $2.7 billion in June and $2.3 billion in December 2024. Short-tail property classes contributed $1.6 billion to this result, with long-tail business at $396 million, mortgage insurance at $167 million, other direct classes at $197 million, and inwards reinsurance at $488 million.
The industry reported an investment result of $1.1 billion for the quarter. Net insurance financial result through profit or loss remained negative at $283 million but narrowed relative to the $606 million loss recorded in the June 2025 quarter. Profit after income tax was $2.3 billion, slightly below the $2.4 billion reported in June but above December 2024’s $1.8 billion.
Total assets stood at $141.2 billion and net assets at $42 billion. Return on net assets was 5.4%, down from 5.9% in June but higher than the 2.8% recorded in March 2025. The sector’s total eligible capital base was $40.6 billion, and the prescribed capital amount coverage ratio was 1.88, marginally below June’s 1.90. The number of authorised general insurers remained at 87.
GlobalData projects that Australia’s general insurance market will continue to grow, with direct written premiums forecast to reach $144.5 billion by 2029 on a compound annual growth rate of 8.8%. For 2025, the firm expects direct written premiums of $102.8 billion, an 8.6% increase on 2024, driven by climate-related catastrophe exposure, inflationary conditions, and increased demand for health-related cover.
APRA’s life insurance revenue was $6 billion in the September 2025 quarter, compared with $5.6 billion in December 2024 and $5.7 billion in March 2025. Insurance service expense was $5.8 billion, up from $5.4 billion a year earlier. Reinsurance premiums allocated for the quarter were $1.8 billion, while amounts recoverable from reinsurers totalled $2 billion.
The insurance service result was $231 million, down from $613 million in June but ahead of the $36 million recorded in the December 2024 quarter. The investment result was $1.8 billion, compared with $2.1 billion in June and $800 million in March 2025.
The net insurance financial result through profit or loss remained negative at $875 million, an improvement on the $1.4 billion loss reported in June 2025 and the $1.8 billion loss in September 2024. Profit after income tax was $284 million, following $374 million in June and $332 million in March.
Total life insurance assets at Sept. 30, 2025, were $131.8 billion, down from $136.2 billion a year earlier. Net assets were $18.1 billion, compared with $19 billion at September 2024. Return on net assets was 3.1%, versus 4.8% a year earlier. The capital base was $16.2 billion, and the prescribed capital amount coverage ratio was 1.97, down from 2.15 in September 2024 and 2.08 in March 2025. The number of life insurance entities decreased to 22 from 24 over the year.
GlobalData forecasts that life insurance gross written premiums will grow from $26.2 billion in 2025 to $30.5 billion in 2029, implying a compound annual growth rate of 3.9%. The analysis links expected growth to demographic trends, higher household income, and greater focus on financial protection.
Industry insurance revenue for the sector was $8.6 billion in the September 2025 quarter, up from $8.2 billion in December 2024. Insurance service expense rose to $8.2 billion, resulting in an insurance service result of $381 million. Investment income contributed $296 million, and profit from continuing operations after income tax was $493 million, unchanged from the June 2025 quarter.
Hospital insurance business gross margin was 14.6%, an increase from 13.7% in June but below the 16.5% level seen in March 2025. Net margin was 3.9%, up from 1.9% in June and down from 5.5% in the September 2024 quarter. The expense ratio was 10.7%, the same as a year earlier.
Total assets in private health insurance were $21.1 billion at Sept. 30, 2025, with total liabilities of $8.3 billion and net assets of $12.8 billion. The capital base was $11.9 billion. The prescribed capital amount coverage ratio was 2.49, down from 2.61 in September 2024 but significantly above regulatory requirements. The number of registered private health insurers decreased to 29 from 30 during the year.
At quarter-end, 12.63 million people, or 45.5% of the population, held hospital treatment cover, up 102,922 over the quarter. Growth in family policies (up 14,777) and single policies (up 21,751) both contributed. The largest increase during the quarter by age band was for people aged 40–44, while the 0–4 age group recorded the largest net gain after movements between age bands, with an increase of 31,524 people.
General treatment cover reached 15.32 million people, or 55.2% of the population, an increase of 107,394 compared with June 2025. Over the year to Sept. 30, 2025, the number of people with general treatment cover rose by 319,848. General treatment (ancillary) cover increased by 87,156 over the quarter, including a net gain of 30,759 insureds in the 0–4 age group.
Hospital utilisation for the quarter comprised 178,092 episodes in public hospitals, 902,432 in private hospitals, 182,337 in day hospital facilities, and 73,834 in hospital-substitute settings. Overall hospital episodes increased by 2.1% from the June quarter, largely due to growth in hospital-substitute care.
Average out-of-pocket payments continued to rise. The average gap per hospital episode was $478.74 in the September 2025 quarter, 10.8% higher than a year earlier. For general treatment ancillary services, the average out-of-pocket cost per service was $63.52. Where a medical gap applied, average out-of-pocket was $271.23, with orthopaedic services recording the highest average gap at $807.42.
The Members Health Fund Alliance, representing not-for-profit and member-owned health funds, said the APRA data underscored the role of private cover in funding hospital and ancillary services. “The data suggests disruption caused to hospital operations by COVID-19 is firmly behind us. Private hospitals revenue has increased sharply during the quarter with the percentage of premiums paid in hospital benefits rebounding back to a payout ratio of 88.4%,” said Members Health CEO Matthew Koce.
Members Health reported that private hospital revenue for the first quarter of the 2025–26 financial year increased by 8.5% year on year to $3.4 billion, supported by higher benefit outlays. Koce also highlighted the rise in participation, noting that the number of people with private hospital cover rose by 102,922 over the quarter to more than 12.6 million, while extras membership increased by 107,394 to more than 15.3 million.
“That a growing 55% of all Australians choose to be part of a health insurance fund points to the value being delivered. Waits for care in the public system can extend into the years. By growing private health participation, people can bypass those very long queues for care while also freeing up public resources for those most in need,” Koce said.
Koce said health funds had paid “over $26.3 billion benefits” over the 12 months to September 2025, including a $434 million, or 6.7%, increase in extras benefits. During the September 2025 quarter alone, health insurers paid $1,672.88 million in extras benefits, comprising $947.90 million for dental services, $213.74 million for optical, $130.48 million for physiotherapy, and $78.04 million for chiropractic treatment.
“Despite record payouts by health insurers, I remain very concerned that some Australians are not making the most of their extras cover for preventative health checks,” Koce said. He noted that many policies reset extras limits at the start of the calendar year, encouraging members to review entitlements and consider checkups such as dental and optical examinations before year-end.
