ASIC has changed Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) requirements for residential strata insurance providers so that, in certain co-insurance arrangements, only a lead insurer must prepare a PDS for strata title home building policies jointly underwritten by multiple insurers.
The change is set out in ASIC Corporations (Strata Title Co-Insurance) Instrument 2026/156, which modifies how Part 7.9 of the Corporations Act 2001 applies to strata title co-insurance. Where two or more insurers participate in a single strata home building policy, the instrument permits a single PDS to be issued by a designated lead issuer for retail clients. The lead issuer must also prepare a supplementary PDS that specifies:
Without this relief, subsection 1013A(1) of the Corporations Act would require each insurer in a co-insurance structure to prepare its own PDS whenever sections 1012A, 1012B, 1012H, or 1012I apply. In practice, this would mean multiple PDSs for a single co-insured policy. Under the new settings, the primary PDS covers the terms of the jointly issued product, while the supplementary PDS records the co-insurance allocations and participating entities. Where only one issuer has prepared the PDS, that entity is treated as the responsible person for the document.
The relief applies in circumstances where the owners’ corporation is a retail client under the Corporations Act. Insurers and intermediaries must continue to determine client classification on a case-by-case basis. The assessment includes considering whether the policy is provided for use in connection with a “small business” and whether the owners’ corporation has a profit-making purpose or generates profit. Where an owners’ corporation is classified as a wholesale client, the PDS regime does not operate in the same way. ASIC has outlined that the instrument is intended to address a legal inconsistency that made strict compliance by all co-insurers difficult in strata co-insurance arrangements, while retaining disclosure about the structure and participants in policies issued to retail clients.
Before finalising the instrument, ASIC conducted targeted consultation with consumer representatives, industry bodies, and experts. It received five substantive submissions. According to ASIC’s summary, four submissions supported granting relief, and one did not express a view. Respondents referred to the regulatory and transaction complexity associated with strata co-insurance and PDS preparation. The instrument:
The instrument has a five-year duration. It is made under paragraph 1020F(1)(c) of the Corporations Act and is a disallowable legislative instrument. ASIC has also prepared a Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights under the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011. ASIC’s view is that the instrument does not engage applicable rights or freedoms and is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in that Act.
Separately, ASIC has updated Regulatory Guide 168 Product Disclosure Statements: Disclosure and other obligations (RG 168), following Consultation 22: Proposed update to ASIC’s guidance on Product Disclosure Statements (CS 22). In revising RG 168, ASIC considered industry submissions on its existing PDS guidance. The updated guide:
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As part of this consolidation, ASIC has withdrawn:
RG 168 continues to set out principles for preparing PDSs and to explain how ASIC oversees and enforces disclosure obligations under the Corporations Act.
ASIC has also updated Regulatory Guide 221 Facilitating digital financial services disclosures (RG 221) after consulting on CS 23 Proposals to continue to facilitate digital disclosure. The revisions to RG 221 remove outdated references and set out ASIC’s current expectations for digital delivery of disclosures under Parts 7.7 and 7.9 of the Corporations Act, associated regulations and legislative instruments. RG 221 operates in conjunction with ASIC Corporations (Electronic Disclosure) Instrument 2025/447, which provides relief from certain Corporations Act requirements so that financial services providers can make disclosures available digitally and notify clients of their availability. The combination of the strata PDS relief, the updated RG 168, and the revised RG 221 outlines ASIC’s present approach to product and digital disclosure for retail clients.
