Zurich Financial Services Australia has announced new commitments aimed at improving its approach to mental health, including exploring a proposed collaborative research project with attendees of its latest Mental Health Roundtable.
The company stated that it would work with roundtable participants to investigate factors influencing mental illness and resilience to enhance underwriting, claims, and prevention services.
Justin Delaney, Chief Executive Officer, Zurich, noted the increasing impact of mental health conditions, saying, “Zurich is continuing to witness the rising and profound impact of mental health conditions across our diverse customer base, with up to a quarter of applications now including mental health disclosures and more than two thirds of claims relating to mental health conditions for some products.”
In addition to the proposed research, Zurich outlined several initiatives developed in response to feedback from the roundtable attendees. These include new mental health and vicarious trauma training for its claims team, consultation with the University of Technology Sydney on the use of artificial intelligence to better understand mental ill-health, the appointment of a Head of Health Services to oversee medical officers and in-house psychologists, and updates to its vulnerable customer framework.
According to Delaney, the Mental Health Roundtable aims to provide “an important opportunity for the broader mental health ecosystem to collaborate, exchange views and share data to drive continued progress in addressing this growing issue.”
Established in July 2024, Zurich’s Mental Health Roundtable is a bi-annual forum for industry stakeholders to discuss trends and insights related to mental health diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. The second roundtable, held in February 2025, was attended by representatives from organisations including Black Dog Institute, Lifeline Australia, Gotcha4Life Foundation, Bupa, and Mandala Partners.
