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Tower Limited

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FY2023 Annual Report · Tower Limited
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Tower Limited 
Annual Report 2023

2023 in review

Weather events

Our strategy

Sustainability

Consolidated financial statements

Corporate governance

GRI content index 

 Contents

1

Contents

2023 IN REVIEW

2023 snapshot

Update from Chair

Update from CEO

LOOKING AFTER OUR CUSTOMERS AND COMMUNITIES

A year of unprecedented large events

Events snapshot

Supporting New Zealand’s recovery 

DELIVERING ON OUR STRATEGY

Our strategy

Leading customer experience 

Operationally efficient and effective

High performing culture

Resilient

ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL AND GOVERNANCE PERFORMANCE

MATERIAL IMPACTS

BOARD OF DIRECTORS 

CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Financial statements

Notes to the consolidated financial statements

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT

APPOINTED ACTUARY’S REPORT

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AT TOWER

GRI CONTENT INDEX

TOWER DIRECTORY

REGISTRAR

3

4

6

8

11

12

13

14

17

18

20

28

34

40

47

52

58

61

62

67

106

111

113

125

130

131

ANNUAL REPORT 20232023 in review

Weather events

Our strategy

Sustainability

Consolidated financial statements

Corporate governance

GRI content index 

 Contents

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ANNUAL REPORT 20232023 in review

Weather events

Our strategy

Sustainability

Consolidated financial statements

Corporate governance

GRI content index 

 Contents

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2023 IN REVIEW

ANNUAL REPORT 20232023 in review

Weather events

Our strategy

Sustainability

Consolidated financial statements

Corporate governance

GRI content index 

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2023 snapshot 

17%
$7.6M
-$1.2M

Underlying GWP 
growth1 $527m vs. 
$457m in FY22

Underlying profit2 
incl. large events vs. 
$27.3m in FY22

Reported loss after 
taxation vs. $18.9m 
profit in FY22

321K
32.2%
23%

Customer growth vs. 
310k in FY22

Management expense 
ratio vs. 36% in FY22

Reduction in 
emissions

1   Adjusted to exclude Papua New Guinea.

2  Underlying profit includes large events but excludes non-underlying items. A reconciliation to reported loss can be found in the appendix of Tower’s FY23 results presentation via the NZX..

ANNUAL REPORT 20232023 in review

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Countries

Years in operation 
and counting

Canstar’s 5-Star Rating 
for Outstanding Value 
Home & Contents in 
2023

39%
87.5K
390

Senior leaders are 
women*

Reported claims across 
New Zealand and the 
Pacific, including large 
events

Staff volunteer hours in 
our communities

8
154
5

*  Band 8 and above.

ANNUAL REPORT 20232023 in review

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Our strategy

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Corporate governance

GRI content index 

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Update from the Chair 

In what has proved to be an extremely tough year for 
the global insurance industry, Tower withstood the 
immediate challenges of 2023 and remains resilient.

In the year to 30 September 2023, Tower’s underlying 
profit including large events was $7.6m, down 72% from 
$27.3m for the full-year 2022. Loss after taxation was 
-$1.2m, versus $18.9m profit at the end of FY22.

On the basis of these results, the Board has decided 
against payment of a full year dividend in accordance with 
its focus on prudent fiscal management. Consideration 
will be given to restarting dividends in FY24.

Unprecedented weather events worldwide have 
sheeted home the impact of climate change and 
signalled that the risk environment in which insurance 
businesses operate has irrevocably changed. Inevitably, 
the reinsurance market moved quickly to price 
accordingly for what now is likely the new normal. 

Risk-based pricing has been Tower’s best protection 
to address these issues.

Tower was New Zealand’s first insurer to implement 
risk-based pricing for inland flooding in November 2021. 
Hazard modelling continues to be expanded to other 
climate-related risks, with ratings for landslide and 
coastal risks shortly due to be introduced to customers. 
Our view remains that risk and pricing transparency 
not only supports and encourages informed decision-
making but is fairer to customers and in the best 
interests of our shareholders.

Importantly, Tower’s ability to proactively manage risks 
throughout its portfolio via risk-based pricing has been 
a key factor in securing a comprehensive reinsurance 
programme for FY24 at competitive rates. This is crucial 
as reinsurance provides protection from volatility caused 
by large events, maintains flexibility to enable Tower’s 
growth and supports strong solvency.

However, while risk-based pricing successfully 
underpins Tower’s competitive pricing, robust 
underwriting, continued growth, and response to issues 
arising from climate change, it is not a cure-all or silver 
bullet for all challenges.

In the year ahead, our biggest challenge will be to 
continue to innovate at pace to meet the market. Over 
time, a range of options are likely to be offered including 
parametric cover which has already been successfully 
trialled in the Pacific. Customers are also likely to be 
offered the opportunity to choose the risks they want – 
and can afford – to cover. For example, offering fire only 
policies in flood-prone areas. 

This approach is already common in many other parts of 
the world and, while it will take some getting used to, it 
will likely replace comprehensive cover for at least some 
New Zealanders. 

High inflation and the resultant cost of living crisis is a 
New Zealand-wide problem, not just a Tower problem, 
but the upshot is that insurance is increasingly expensive. 
And, while everyone would like to see insurance 
affordable and accessible for all, the twin challenges 
of an inflationary environment and increasing risks from 
climate change make this unrealistic. 

The New Zealand market enjoys strong insurance 
penetration and people will be loath to give up all 
protection. So, while affordability is currently presenting 
challenges, the desire and need for insurance will not 
dissipate. Fortune will favour those insurers who can 
pivot and adapt, something that Tower has the digital 
capability and proven ability to do. 

The unpalatable truth is that not everyone is – or will be – 
able to afford to insure their home in the way they do now.

For Tower to remain a sustainable, resilient business, 
we must not only be more selective about the risks we 
take on, but also develop cost-effective alternatives to 
traditional, comprehensive insurance cover. 

From Tower’s perspective it is about developing 
responsible alternatives to ensure insurance remains 
accessible. Quite simply, if New Zealand Inc is unable 
or unwilling to reduce risks by improving infrastructure 
to protect at-risk land and assets, then these insurance 
options become an absolute necessity. 

The good news is that Tower is well-placed to tackle 
these issues given its digital expertise and experience 
in Pacific markets where affordability and low insurance 
penetration are significant challenges. Tower has the 
technical capability, expertise, and agility to price for 
risk on a granular level and quickly get new options to 
market as the insurance landscape changes. 

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In an ideal world, Tower would continue offering 
affordable, comprehensive cover to all, but in today’s 
complex environment, that approach will not support 
a sustainable, resilient business. Tower’s continued 
resilience will be fostered through innovation and 
meeting the market where it is at, not where we would 
like it to be.

In closing, the Board acknowledges and thanks 
management and the Tower team for the resilience 
and determination they have shown in supporting our 
business, customers and communities in what has 
been a tough year. 

Michael Stiassny
Chair 

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Update from the CEO 

At Tower, our purpose is to inspire, shape and 
protect the future for the good of our customers and 
communities. After a challenging year navigating 
the impacts of catastrophic weather events in 
New Zealand and across the Pacific, widespread 
inflation and increasing crime, our purpose is more 
important than ever.

While the business has rightly had a strong focus on 
responding rapidly to the weather events and resolving 
customers’ claims; we have continued to deliver on our 
strategy - to be the best direct insurer in our chosen 
markets, enabled through our investments in people, 
technology and data. This has positioned Tower well to 
grow and deliver sustainable value.

We remain resolutely focused on providing leading 
customer experiences, increasing efficiencies across the 
business, enhancing our culture and ensuring we remain 
financially resilient.

Some key highlights include expanding our leading risk-
based pricing model, developing our parametric solution 
in partnership with the United Nations, and reducing our 
management expense ratio (MER) while growing our 
customer numbers and premiums.

Tower is a resilient business with a strong purpose and 
robust strategy, and we are pleased to report on the 
progress we have made in FY23.

*  Adjusted to exclude Papua New Guinea.

Business performance

Navigating catastrophic events 

For the year to 30 September 2023, our underlying 
profit including large events was $7.6m, down 72% from 
$27.3m for the full-year 2022. Loss after taxation was 
-$1.2m, versus $18.9m at the end of FY22. The difference 
between FY22 and FY23 is largely a result of the 
catastrophic events and inflation pressures resulting in 
higher claims costs.

Our focus on simple and rewarding customer 
experiences combined with consistent rating actions 
has contributed to strong growth in both customers and 
premium. Underlying gross written premiums (GWP) 
increased 17%* year on year, up to $527m.

During the financial year we have grown customer 
numbers to 321,000, up 4% on FY22. Our 17% growth 
in premium reflects a mix of rating and organic growth, 
with 80% of our New Zealand premium growth driven by 
decisive rating actions. 

Improving efficiencies as our investments in digitisation 
continue to drive down Tower’s costs to acquire and 
serve customers along with continued focus on cost 
control, has seen our overall MER improve again to 32.2% 
versus 36% in FY22. 

Tower’s solvency margin was reduced during the year, 
primarily due to the catastrophic weather events. The 
solvency margin is improving as event claims are settled. 
As at 30 September 2023, Tower’s New Zealand parent 
solvency ratio was 159% and the company was holding 
$53.8m above the minimum solvency capital required 
by RBNZ.

In the financial year to 30 September 2023, three 
catastrophic weather events took place in the space of 
three months across Aotearoa and the Pacific: significant 
weather events in Auckland and the upper North 
Island, Cyclone Gabrielle, and Cyclones Judy and Kevin 
in Vanuatu. 

For 154 years, Tower has been helping people protect 
the things they love, and we are committed to helping 
our customers and communities get back on their feet, 
as quickly as possible. 

As at 20 November 2023 we had completed 
approximately 84% of claims for the New Zealand 
weather events and 88% of claims for the Vanuatu 
cyclones. We are working hard to close the remainder.

We continue to work closely with the Government’s 
Recovery Taskforce, Auckland Council’s Recovery 
Programme, and the wider insurance industry to 
support both a cohesive response to these events and 
New Zealand’s resilience for the future.

Continuing to enhance risk-based pricing 

Tower has long urged New Zealand to stop building in 
risky areas. In November 2021 we were New Zealand’s 
first insurer to launch a leading inland flooding risk-
based tool in conjunction with RMS, a global leader in 
risk modelling. The flood tool leverages five million data 
points and 50,000 years of continuous simulation of 
the entire precipitation cycle. We share earthquake and 
flood risk profiles with customers through My Tower. 
We also shared data insights with central and local 
government with an aim to better inform and protect and 
customers and communities today, and in the future.

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Risk-based pricing supports competitive pricing and 
robust underwriting, and can inform action on issues 
arising from our changing climate. Earlier this year, we 
expanded our risk tool to include landslide and coastal 
risks. In FY24 we will launch customer-facing ratings 
for these risks, and we will continue to develop fair, 
transparent and competitive products that meet the 
needs of our customers today and in the future.

Customer experience

Tower continues to innovate and invest significantly in 
digital and data capabilities to deliver our direct customer 
experience, driving deeper customer engagement and 
growth. In FY23, we completed the rollout of our flagship, 
digital self-service platform, My Tower, across our 
Pacific operations. We are now bringing the same digital 
customer experience to all markets where we operate. 

We’re also proud to have launched our parametric Cyclone 
Response Cover pilot in Tonga, following a successful trial 
in Fiji during the 2022/2023 cyclone season. 

Streamlining our operations

We made positive progress in streamlining our business 
in FY23, with the sale of our Papua New Guinea 
subsidiary and the announcement of the sale of our 
Solomon Islands business.

We also continued to develop our Suva hub this year. 
With our core platform live across all territories we 
operate in, we can now seamlessly flex resource up 
and down across Fiji and New Zealand – our two 
biggest markets. 

Sustainability is at the heart of our business 

Summary

FY23 marks the second year of our sustainability 
reporting, with the aim of being more transparent about 
the impacts of our business activities. We have continued 
important initiatives to manage our most material 
sustainability impacts and we’ve remained focused on 
reducing our operational emissions. Our efforts this year 
have helped reduce emissions by 23% compared to 
FY22. We are on track to meet our five-year emissions 
reduction target of 21% in 2025.

We continue to work towards B Corp accreditation and 
are aiming to achieve this in the coming year. We look 
forward to making our first Climate-related Financial 
Disclosure in 2024. 

Our people 

I would like to thank our people who have worked 
incredibly hard to support our customers and 
communities – particularly those who were impacted 
by the weather events. 

We’re grateful to everyone, including those who pivoted 
in their roles to rapidly respond and help support those 
who needed it most when the catastrophic weather 
events were unfolding. We’re extremely proud of the 
empathy, selflessness and strong commitment to 
helping others that our people have shown. 

Our ability to scale up our support to the most impacted 
areas is not only a reflection of our people’s willingness, 
but further reinforces our ‘one team’ culture that 
operates across New Zealand and our Pacific markets. 

In keeping with our strategy, we’re pleased to have 
announced some significant initiatives this year aimed at 
empowering our people to give our customers their best. 

We acknowledge how incredibly challenging this year 
has been for our customers, our communities, our 
industry and our business. 

Our Tower strategy is very clear; we want to be the best 
direct insurer in our selected markets. We are ruthlessly 
driven to achieve this through a simple and rewarding 
customer experience, enabled through digital, data and 
our culture. 

We are focused on delivering solid underlying operating 
performance through robust risk management and 
continued rating actions to mitigate inflation, the effects 
of motor crime and weather events. 

We also continue to focus on targeted customer and 
premium growth while enhancing our margins through 
efficiency and organisational improvements. 

Tower is committed to mitigating the volatility caused by 
large events through risk-based pricing and our robust 
reinsurance arrangements. And while we manage the 
effects of the changing climate now, we will continue to 
invest in future business resilience and sustainability. 

Ultimately, this leads to attractive and sustainable 
earnings and dividends for shareholders over the 
medium to longer term. 

Blair Turnbull,  
CEO

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A community hub in Auckland, following January 27 weather event

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LOOKING AFTER 
OUR CUSTOMERS 
AND COMMUNITIES 

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A year of unprecedented large events

JAN 23

FEB 23

MAR 23

MAY 23

Auckland and upper  
North Island weather event

5,688 claims 
$174m

Cyclone Gabrielle

Vanuatu cyclones 

Auckland rain event

3,636 claims 
$52m

295 claims 
$11m

438 claims 
$4m

Event costs are gross estimates as at 30 September 2023.

$38M

Net large event claims 
expense for Tower in 
FY23, after reinsurance 

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Events snapshot

Auckland and upper North Island weather event and Cyclone Gabrielle

5,711

House claims

1,045

Motor claims

2,330

Contents claims

84%

Event claims settled*

367

Families supported 
with temporary 
accommodation costs 

$200K

In food spoilage claims 
paid to customers in the 
aftermath of both events

975K

Emails with claims, safety 
and cleanup advice sent 
to customers in the month 
following events

317K

Texts sent within two 
hours of January 27 
weather event beginning

6

Attended all six community 
hubs immediately after 
events in Hawke’s Bay 
and Auckland

5

Years’ worth of large 
loss house claims in 
just over a fortnight

*  As at 20 November 2023.

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Supporting New Zealand’s recovery

This financial year Aotearoa 
faced two catastrophic events, 
the Auckland and the upper 
North Island weather event and 
Cyclone Gabrielle.

The scale of these weather events 
was unprecedented for both our 
country and industry. Tower is 
committed to helping our customers 
and communities get back on their 
feet, as quickly as possible.

Tower’s rapid response

The speed of our initial response on January 27 meant 
customers in impacted areas were sent texts within 
hours of the event beginning, with advice on how to 
claim. Our Chief Claims Officer activated Tower’s event 
response team that night and by morning, additional 
resource was on the way to help with the high volume 
of claims. This included flying assessors into Auckland 
from around New Zealand.

Our large event motor claims process was triggered 
immediately, and two hours after the event began our 
towing network was transporting customers’ vehicles 
to a central assessment yard. This meant we were able 
to start settling motor claims for our customers within 
one business day.

A couple of weeks later, we followed this model 
for customers impacted by Cyclone Gabrielle too. 

Our teams were on the ground within a day of each 
event, assisting customers at community hubs in 
Auckland and Hawke’s Bay. We scaled up, using our 
suppliers, hiring additional staff and redeploying our 
people in Fiji and Rotorua to our phone lines and 
online claims lodgement. 

Flooding in Auckland during the January 27 weather event

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83%

84%

Auckland & upper 
North Island event 
claims settled* 

Cyclone Gabrielle event 
claims settled*

Tower’s central motor assessment yard following 
January 27 weather event

Tower staff at an Auckland community hub following January 27 weather event

There for our customers

The volume of claims and the range of external parties 
required to resolve claims related to these events 
presented challenges for everyone. We know the time 
it has taken to resolve some claims and contact Tower 
at times has been frustrating for people.

With every event, we take the opportunity to learn 
and improve so we can provide a better service for our 
customers. This year we have made improvements to 
our claims processes, to ensure that our customers 
receive timely communications and action from us, 
throughout the entire claims journey.

By 20 November, Tower had settled 84% of claims 
from the Auckland and Upper North Island event and 
Cyclone Gabrielle.

A few weeks after Cyclone Gabrielle, Cyclones Judy 
and Kevin made landfall in Vanuatu. These events were 
devastating for the people of Vanuatu and we are proud 
of the support we provided our Vanuatu customers. 
As at 20 November, Tower had settled 88% of claims for 
these events.

These events are a reminder of the role insurance 
plays in our economic resilience. We continue to look 
for ways to improve how we help our customers and 
communities recover after large events. 

* As at 20 November 2023.

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ANNUAL REPORT 20232023 in review

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DELIVERING ON 
OUR STRATEGY

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Our strategy

Our values

To be the best direct insurer in our selected markets 
differentiated through digital and data, fairness and 
transparency, and by caring for our customers in 
everything we do.

Our strategic pillars

WE DO WHAT’S RIGHT

OUR PEOPLE COME FIRST

LEADING
CUSTOMER
EXPERIENCE

OPERATIONALLY
EFFICIENT &
EFFECTIVE

HIGH 
PERFORMING
CULTURE

RESILIENT

OUR CUSTOMERS ARE OUR COMPASS

Simple and 
rewarding 
customer 
experiences 
across the life 
cycle.

Digitise and 
automate core 
processes 
and leverage 
geographical 
footprint.

An inclusive, 
diverse and risk 
aware culture. 
Empower 
our people to 
achieve great 
things.

Manage volatility 
and deliver 
sustainable 
outcomes for all 
stakeholders.

PROGRESS BOLDLY

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Our purpose

Our vision

To inspire, shape and protect the future for the 
good of our customers and communities.

Ta tātou kaupapa

To deliver beautifully simple 
and rewarding experiences 
that our people and our 
customers rave about.

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Leading 
customer 
experience

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Innovating for our customers

In line with our strategy to create 
leading customer experiences, Tower 
continued to develop our innovative 
products and digital offerings over 
the financial year. These efforts have 
contributed to record growth in GWP.

My Tower

In FY23, our flagship, digital self-service platform, 
My Tower continued to enhance the insurance 
experience for our customers, allowing them to 
purchase insurance, update and keep track of policies 
and view their property’s risk profile for flooding and 
earthquakes. All this, via one simple online platform.

In New Zealand, My Tower assisted our customers to 
lodge and check the progress of their claims online. 

This financial year, we completed the rollout of My 
Tower across our Pacific operations - the first platform 
in the Pacific that allows people to get a quote and 
purchase insurance online. It’s a remarkable step-
forward in our plan to increase insurance accessibility 
in the Pacific, where roughly 10% of homes have 
insurance, compared to 90% in New Zealand. 

$391M

Tower Direct GWP1  
up 22% from FY22

$53M

264K

Customers now 
registered for 
My Tower

$82M

1  Legacy partnership portfolios have been transferred from the Partnerships business unit to Tower Direct after purchase.

2  Excluding Papua New Guinea which was sold in FY23.

Pacific GWP2 
up 4% from FY22

Partnerships GWP 
up 26% from FY22

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Forward thinking products for modern 
customers 

Our focus on innovation and investment in large-
scale digital transformation over the last four years 
continues to enable Tower to evolve rapidly, in 
line with the latest in technology and customer 
expectations. The result is customer-focused, 
digital-first insurance solutions that allow us to 
create products to suit the modern lifestyles of 
our customers.

In FY23, we celebrated the one-year anniversary of 
Contract Works – Renovation Cover, ensuring we are 
there to support our customers as they renovate their 
homes. It’s the newest addition to our personal lines 
offering, which includes products for motor, contents, 
boat, travel, pet and landlords, as well as insurance for 
renters, lifestyle block, EVs, e-scooters and e-bikes.

77%

18%

50%

NZ direct sales 
online vs. 66% 
in FY22

Increase in Tower 
Direct online 
quotes vs. FY22

Customers hold 
multiple policies 
with us

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Partnering for success 

Our partners continued to drive more customers to 
Tower in FY23, with an uptick in referrals and subsequent 
growth through the New Zealand Financial Services 
Group, Kiwi Adviser Network, Allianz Partners, Ray White, 
Coastguard, TSB, Aon Fiji and the Fiji Development Bank, 
among others.

New partnerships with New Zealand Home Loans, MTF 
Finance and Squirrel Mortgages, also helped to support 
our customers and business growth.

Wherever possible we also partner to deliver products 
in better ways and to do existing tasks more efficiently. 
In the year, work continued with the likes of Risk 
Management Solutions, Redbook, FRISS and Sentro to 
enhance our different business processes.

35%

Increase in new risks 
sold from referral 
partners vs. FY22

GOLD AWARD: 
Outbound Business to 
Business Calling

2,500

Active advisers  
up 67% from FY22

SILVER AWARD: 
Outbound Business to 
Consumer – Sales

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Sustainable and innovative growth 

Growth is key to our strategy 
but in order to be there for our 
customers and deliver good returns 
for shareholders long-term, this 
growth must be sustainable. We are 
focused on growth in the right areas, 
with the right risks.

2

Parametric insurance 
now available in two 
countries, Fiji and Tonga

600

Parametric policies 
in place for the FY24 
cyclone season

Parametric insurance for the Pacific

In August 2023, Tower launched its parametric Cyclone 
Response Cover pilot in Tonga. Cyclone Response 
Cover was first trialled in Fiji for the 2022/2023 cyclone 
season in collaboration with the United Nations Capital 
Development Fund, under its flagship Pacific Insurance 
and Climate Adaptation Programme. Following the pilot’s 
success, Cyclone Response Cover is now available to 
all Fijians. 

Under Tonga’s Cyclone Response Cover trial, the product 
is available to Tonga Development Bank customers and 
Pacific Disability Forum members for the 2023/2024 
cyclone season. Following this, our goal is to launch the 
product to the wider Tongan market. 

Cyclone Response Cover provides a rapid cash pay-out 
to customers based on proximity to a high wind speed 
cyclone event, regardless of damage and without the 
need for an insurance assessor’s signoff. Parametric 
insurance products are a lower-cost alternative that 
provide a level of cover for communities that may not 
benefit from traditional insurance. 

Cyclone Response Cover will help increase insurance 
accessibility, particularly as climate change impacts 
increase over time. In the coming years Tower plans 
to expand parametric insurance into more of our 
Pacific territories.

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In FY24, Tower will fully automate underwriting for 
landslide and sea surge risks, and these will be added to 
the customer view in My Tower alongside a transparent 
premium breakdown.

87%

79%

72%

Kiwis think risk-based 
pricing is a fair way to 
price insurance*

Kiwis agree that landslip risk 
should be factored in when 
assessing a property’s risks*

Kiwis agree that storm surge 
risk should be factored in when 
assessing a property’s risks*

Risk-based pricing, a fair way to price insurance

With our award-winning and market-leading approach 
to earthquake and flood risk-based pricing, we’re 
proud to share information with customers about their 
properties, empowering them to better understand their 
insurance needs and premiums.

We believe risk-based pricing is a fairer way to price 
insurance as customers only pay for the risks that apply 
to their properties. Launched in 2021, the response to 
our risk tool has been positive. Since then, we’ve tested 
our model against the impacts of actual flood events and 
these have matched closely every time. This continues 
to give us confidence in the accuracy of our pricing 
and underwriting.

Following accurate modelling of this year’s large events, 
we used our risk-based pricing model to implement 
three key changes to ensure we price fairly, grow 
sustainably and further protect the business from the 
volatility of weather events:

1.  Increased the weighting of the flood-risk portion of 

our premiums to better reflect changing risk profiles.

2.  Implemented new risk selection criteria for 

landslide risks, immediately following the January 
2023 weather event.

3.  Added automated risk-selection for sea surge 

for new business and underwriting risk reviews for 
existing customers.

*  Independent research conducted by the Octopus Group in April 2023, with a sample size of 1,000 representative of New Zealand’s population.

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Fair and transparent insurance

At Tower, fairness and transparency 
are a core part of our customer 
experience. We aim to make insurance 
simple and easy so that our customers 
understand their insurance and have 
the right cover in place to suit their 
needs. Most importantly and in line 
with our values, we do what’s right. 

Committed to supporting our customers

A new Financial Advice Provider (FAP) regime was 
introduced to the industry in FY23. Tower is committed 
to understanding and supporting the needs of our 
customers so we applied for and were issued a full FAP 
Licence. Tower supports the intent of the regime – which 
is to make good financial advice accessible to Kiwis.

194

175K

Tower team members 
trained to provide 
financial advice to Kiwis

Inbound calls answered by 
our trained representatives 
since the regime went live 
in March 2023

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Putting things right for our customers 

Tower is focused on putting things right for customers 
who have received incorrect discounts or benefits. 
We sincerely apologise to those who have been 
affected by these errors.

The most significant part of our remediation 
programme in FY23 has been refunding customers 
who have not received correct multi policy 
discounts. We have made substantial progress 
with $6.2m excluding GST paid to these customers 
as of 31 October 2023. Tower has provisioned 
$11.2m for this customer remediation which allows 
for amounts to be paid to around 65,000 customers 
and potential regulatory action. After we identified 
the issue, we proactively advised the Financial 
Markets Authority (FMA) and we have been assisting 
FMA with its investigation in relation to the overcharge.

Other remediations we have in progress are for 
premium overcharges in connection with the 
application of promotions and policy discounts. 
We have provisioned around $500K for these. 
We are working to identify all impacted customers 
so we can refund any overpayments.

As well as reviewing our processes, we are also 
redesigning and simplifying our multi-policy offering 
and expect to share more about this change in FY24.

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Operationally 
efficient and 
effective

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Our digital and data capabilities

55%

Service tasks and transactions 
completed digitally in NZ vs. 
50% in FY22

55%

Combined NZ net 
promoter score for 
online experiences

As a forward thinking insurer, the 
customer and efficiency benefits 
from our digital platform continue 
to be realised.

Our digital platform is driving down the costs to 
acquire new business and serve as Kiwi and Pacific 
communities increasingly adopt our online sales 
and service channels. 

Customers are also seeing the benefits as 
evidenced by our New Zealand online net promoter 
score. For our business, our core platform agility has 
enabled rapid deployment of technology releases, 
which take us just 25 minutes a day.

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Our vision for the future of claims

Tower’s vision for the future is of a digitised end-to-
end customer experience, where our customers can 
manage every aspect of their claim via My Tower, 
supported by automated internal systems and supplier 
networks. We’re on a journey to achieve this by FY26 
with the goal of improving transparency for customers, 
reducing operating costs, increasing efficiency and 
productivity, and continuing to deliver good, simple 
customer experiences.

In FY23, thanks to our new Repair Partner Network’s 
straight-through-repair model for simple repairs, 
we removed the need for 40% of our customers to 
wait for an insurance assessment. Similarly, 40% of 
our My Tower motor claims are now lodged through 
claims automation. 

59%

Claims now lodged online 
in NZ vs. 49% in FY22

69%

Claims from the Auckland and 
upper North Island weather 
event and Cyclone Gabrielle 
were lodged online

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Simplifying our business to deliver 
sustainable growth and efficiencies

Over the last four years Tower 
has invested heavily in digitisation 
to increase scale and simplify our 
business. In FY23, this investment 
led to a further reduction in our 
management expense ratio (MER) 
and improvements in our customer 
experience. 

81%

New Pacific business 
purchased via new platform 
up from 45% in FY22

32.2%

MER down from 36% 
in FY22

One core platform

With our core personal lines platform now live across 
all countries, we have simplified our organisational 
alignment around our three customer journeys: new 
business, service and claims – rather than across 
geographical locations. This is aimed at delivering 
consistent and repeatable processes across our 
business, simultaneously reducing complexity, 
duplication and risk. 

Streamlining our operations

In FY23, Tower completed the sale of our Papua New 
Guinea subsidiary and announced the sale of our 
Solomon Islands business, which we expect to complete 
in the first half of FY24. These sales allow Tower to focus 
on developing and delivering our personal lines and 
small-medium enterprise customer experience in the 
Pacific. Growth in our Pacific business will be enabled 
through Tower’s digital and data offering, while we 
streamline our operations and tighten our risk appetite.

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The cornerstone of our Pacific operation

With our core platform and 
My Tower now live across the entire 
Tower Group, our Suva Hub began to 
realise its full potential this financial 
year, delivering significant value and 
organisational efficiencies.

Supporting our large event response

Our strategic advantage

Following the Auckland and upper North Island weather 
event and Cyclone Gabrielle escalating claims volumes 
impacted our customer wait times. Our Suva team was 
able to support via our phonelines, email communications 
and online claims lodgment processes. Online support 
for our New Zealand customers via Suva was a milestone 
moment for Tower - with our core platform, we’re not 
only operating as one team we’re operating on the same, 
innovative, digital system too, regardless of location.

Tower has operated in the Pacific Islands for almost 
150 years. As the cornerstone of our Pacific operation, 
Fiji represents a differentiator and strategic advantage 
for Tower. 

Our two biggest markets, New Zealand and Fiji, sit 
in the same time zone, or within an hour’s difference 
during daylight saving months. Because we’ve 
expanded our operations in Fiji to include all core 
business functions our BAU operations can now 
operate seamlessly across both countries, as well 
as the wider Tower group.

Instead of outsourcing, we are investing in local 
economies which offers great strategic value to 
Tower. This value goes hand-in-hand with the 
expansion of our Suva team, which has grown from 
62 FTE in FY21 to 88 in FY22 and now 233 in FY23.

Staff attrition in the Pacific is lower than in 
New Zealand, where the labour market is tight 
compared to Fiji. Fiji’s cultural similarities means 
our access to talent in-country presents a unique 
opportunity to provide a better experience for all 
Tower customers, while bolstering resilience and 
reducing MER.

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New Zealand Fiji Business Council breakfast with Fiji 
Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka

Future growth enabled

To support this growth, at the beginning of FY24, our 
Suva team will move into a new, larger office, marking 
the next chapter in our Suva Hub journey.

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High 
performing 
culture

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Our culture

Our people are at the heart of 
everything we do. We know that 
by looking after our teams, we 
empower them to show up in the 
best way possible for our customers.

Diverse and inclusive

At Tower, our values are; ‘we do what’s right’, ‘our 
customers are our compass’, ‘progress, boldy’ and ‘our 
people come first’. We truly live by these values and our 
staff engagement surveys, run in March and September 
each year, reflect this.

We’re particularly proud of our diversity and inclusion 
score and contributors, which are consistently high. In our 
latest survey, our overall ‘diversity and inclusion’ score was 
8.6, with contributors like ‘freedom of opinion’ and ‘feeling 
valued’ scoring at 8.1. This is important to us because for 
our people to feel comfortable to express their opinions 
at work, there needs to be a high level of trust across 
the entire Tower group. When people feel valued and 
respect each other’s individual differences, this creates an 
environment for people to thrive and collaborate freely. 
We know that this is crucial for a business to flourish, stay 
competitive and remain ahead of the curve.

7.8

81%

Employee engagement 
score*

100%

Employees earn a living 
wage in NZ or a living wage 
equivalent in the Pacific

Emerging Talent programme 
employees progressed in their 
careers at Tower in FY23

59%

Employees are non-European, 
based on the 96% of staff 
who chose to disclose their 
ethnicity in FY23

*  As at 22 September 2023, based on Tower’s latest staff engagement survey.

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Committed to our people

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8.3

Employees rated Tower’s 
commitment to health and 
wellbeing at 8.3, in the top 25% 
of the global finance sector* 

Putting our people first

Enhanced wellbeing

New benefits launched this year include gender 
affirmation leave and increased paid parental leave. 

These are in addition to our existing benefits such as 
our refreshed volunteer leave framework, birthday leave, 
domestic violence leave, the ability to purchase up to 
eight extra days leave, flexible working, free financial 
wellbeing seminars, discounts for group insurances 
and with a range of suppliers across New Zealand and 
the Pacific.

To make it easier to access these benefits in FY23, we 
launched the Tower Beam app, which consolidates all 
our staff discounts into one easy platform for our people 
to take advantage of, no matter where they are.

Our people’s wellbeing was top of mind during our 
response to weather events this year. In addition to hiring 
more people to handle the sharp increase in workloads 
we delivered 15 sessions on managing stress through 
compassion, connection and mindfulness to more than 
200 staff. This included a tailored session for our event 
response team.

Changing sick leave to wellbeing leave in FY22 has 
also helped enhance our teams’ wellbeing in FY23, 
while opening up broader conversations about mental 
health and managing stress. Wellbeing leave replaces 
sick leave and can also be used for rest or activities that 
proactively manage personal wellbeing.

As an insurer, our work environment is unique. Spread 
across eight countries, from offices to assessing 
damages out in our communities - we’re proud that 
in FY23, we reported zero workplace injuries and 
zero harm. 

*  As at 22 September 2023, based on Tower’s latest staff engagement survey.

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20.2%

Gender pay gap, improved by 5.7% vs. FY22

When we take the total salary for all women and 
divide that by the number of women, and the total 
salary of all men and divide that by the number of 
men, we have a gap of 20.2%. 

For the most part, this is because we have a larger 
proportion of women in some of our New Zealand 
frontline roles, and a greater proportion of men in 
senior roles.

-0.2%

Gender pay equity gap 

When we compare like-for-like roles for women and 
men at Tower in New Zealand, our pay equity gap is 
–0.2% (women are paid 0.2% more than men for the 
same role).

2.7%

Leadership gender pay gap

Comparing our senior leadership population and 
the average pay gap between men and women, our 
leadership pay gap is 2.7% (men are paid 2.7% more 
than women).

3

Tower leaders named on Insurance Business 
New Zealand’s Elite Women List; Head of 
Pricing, Amy You; Head of Corporate Affairs and 
Sustainability, Emily Davies; and Head of Platform 
Delivery, Johannah Benton

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Looking after our people 
at work and at home

In FY23 Tower increased parental 
leave entitlements from 12 to 16 
weeks paid leave for primary carers 
and, two to four paid weeks leave 
for partners.

An especially exciting development was the rollout of 
these same benefits across our Pacific operations. This 
was part of a wider project to align staff benefits across 
the Tower group. Parental leave legislation varies greatly 
in the Pacific compared to New Zealand, options are 
limited and in some countries even unpaid leave for 
partners is not required by law.

Now, our teams in the Cook Islands, Solomon Islands, 
Vanuatu, Tonga, Fiji, Samoa and American Samoa 
enjoy the same updated benefits as our teams in 
New Zealand, including parental leave – typically above 
and beyond what is available in each country.

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Resilient

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Here to do good, for good

2023 was challenging for the 
local and global insurance industry. 
Our ability to stay agile, driven by 
digital and data capabilities, backed 
by robust reinsurance, allows us to 
remain financially resilient and adapt 
to market challenges. 

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Protecting Tower and our customers with 
real-time, automated underwriting

In FY23, we continued automating our underwriting 
processes underpinned by our risk-based pricing model 
and digital agility. In New Zealand, for the second year 
running, nearly 100% of our existing house customers’ 
sums insured were updated automatically, mainly using 
data from the Cordell calculator. This helps customers 
choose a suitable level of cover.

This financial year, Tower proactively managed 
inflationary pressures through targeted rating and 
underwriting actions. Monthly rating changes allowed 
us to mitigate reinsurance and weather-related cost 
increases as well as keep pace with inflation. Similarly, 
with increased motor crime, Tower identified vehicles 
subject to higher rates of theft and made appropriate 
changes to rates and excess charges.

Our ability to take swift and decisive action to address 
emerging issues on a granular level is at the heart of 
the digital transformation Tower has undergone in 
recent years. It’s this flexibility and agility that helps us 
to successfully mitigate external challenges beyond 
our control and remain resilient.

94%

NZ risks are now sold 
without requiring a manual 
underwriting review and 
pricing adjustments

100+

Pricing and underwriting 
adjustments made 
across FY23

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Robust reinsurance

In May, following large weather events and aligned 
with our comprehensive approach to reinsurance, 
Tower placed additional reinsurance reinstatement 
cover for the remainder of FY23. The purchase of 
additional cover ensured protection remained in place 
for additional events up to a limit of $889m.

Reinsurers are attracted to our robust underwriting 
and risk-based pricing approach and Tower is pleased 
to receive ongoing support from some of the world’s 
largest reinsurers as well as backing from reinsurers 
looking to start new relationships with us.

In a challenging reinsurance market following significant 
global weather events, Tower was pleased to secure 
a comprehensive FY24 reinsurance programme, at 
competitive rates for home, motor, boat and commercial 
portfolio cover, across New Zealand and the Pacific.

Last year’s Toka Tū Ake EQC cap increase from 
$150,000 to $300,000 reduced the amount of 
catastrophe coverage needed.

To support our prudent risk appetite, Tower purchased 
cover for two catastrophe losses up to $750m. Cover 
is inclusive of an automatic reinstatement. Tower also 
purchased cover for a third catastrophe event up 
to $75m.

This cover, combined with Tower’s existing multi-year 
placements, results in a reinsurance excess increase to 
$16.9m for the first two events in FY24, up from $11.9m 
in FY23. An excess of $20m applies for a third event.

The market experienced significant increases in 
reinsurance prices and excesses throughout FY23 so 
we were very pleased to achieve moderate pricing and 
excess increases for FY24.

$750M

Cover in place for first 
two catastrophe losses 
in FY24

$75M

Cover in place for a third 
event in FY24

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Protecting the everyday

As an insurer it’s our job to be there 
when the worst happens. Large 
events in New Zealand and the 
Pacific this year have brought this 
role to the fore for our communities. 
But we’re also here to help when 
everyday things go wrong, reporting 
76,597 everyday claims in FY23. 
From holidays to vehicles and 
homes, we helped protect more of 
the things our customers love this 
year too.

4K

67%

319

Travel insurance policies 
for trips to Australia, our 
most popular destination

14

Rugby ball related claims in 
NZ, mostly for kids kicking 
rugby balls into TVs

Increase in travel 
policies sold

405

Claims for wedding and 
engagement rings in NZ

Claims for Pacific homes

31%

63

Boat claims happened out on 
the water in NZ

Boat claims caused by 
mishaps at boat ramps 
around NZ

1,600

Pacific motor claims

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12.7K

530

26%

60%

Claims for Kiwi homes

Claims for hot water 
cylinders

Increase in NZ motor 
theft claims

Growth in electric 
vehicles (EVs) covered

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ENVIRONMENTAL, 
SOCIAL AND 
GOVERNANCE 
PERFORMANCE

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Moving all aspects of our 
business towards zero-
carbon and zero waste,  
and ensuring we have 
a positive impact on 
Aotearoa and the Pacific, 
now and in the future.

A diverse and 
inclusive workplace 
that builds 
people’s physical 
and emotional 
wellbeing.

Sustainability at 
the heart of what 
we do

Our sustainability strategy 
guides how we manage relevant 
environmental, social and 
governance issues and provides a 
framework for managing our most 
material impacts. It was developed 
to enable us to deliver on our 
company purpose: 

“To inspire, shape  
and protect the future  
for our customers  
and communities.”

Providing no-
surprises, easy 
to understand 
insurance that is 
accessible and 
affordable.

Championing informed 
dialogue about climate 
change and pursuing win-
win outcomes that tackle 
sustainability issues.

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ESG Governance

Tower’s Board provides the highest level of ESG 
governance at Tower. The Board approves and 
monitors our ESG governance and reporting, with 
performance monitored through periodic updates 
from management. ESG governance is formalised 
through an executive level steering committee which 
has responsibility for overseeing progress on our 
initiatives and monitors environmental and social risks. 
Our ESG performance is coordinated by the Head of 
Corporate Affairs and Sustainability, reporting to the 
CEO. As we progress our response to Climate-related 
Financial Disclosures and our B Corp aspirations, the 
Board and management will continue their focus on 
ESG governance and climate risks and opportunities, 
by developing new policies and continuing to enhance 
our governance framework in FY24.

This annual report is Tower’s second step into 
sustainability reporting with the aim of being more 
transparent about our broader business activities. 
This report has been prepared in accordance with 
the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) 2021 standards.

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Reducing our emissions

Tower has set a science-based reduction target 
of 21% over five years from our 2020 base year 
(551 tCo2e). Our carbon footprint is calculated in 
accordance with the requirements of the Greenhouse 
Gas Protocol and ISO 14064-1:2018. 

Our actions to curb emissions in FY23 following 
a post-Covid spike in FY22 has resulted in a 23% 
reduction over the year to 477 TCo2e. This year’s 
progress sees us on track to achieving our current 
FY25 target with calculated emissions now 13% below 
our FY20 baseline year. 

Emissions reductions in the year have largely 
been achieved through progressively replacing our 
New Zealand and Pacific fleet with hybrid vehicles 
and changing driving behaviours in both regions. All 
our New Zealand fleet vehicles are now hybrids and 
we will continue to transition the remainder of our 
Pacific vehicle fleet in FY24. 

Virtual meetings technology has now been fully 
embraced in our Pacific operations and we are 
increasingly conducting claims assessments virtually 
in New Zealand, reducing the need to travel. 

Emissions from powering our premises are now 25% 
below our baseline year, largely due to the move 
to our Six Green Star Rated premises in Auckland. 
An increase in stationery energy emissions of 18% in 
FY23 is predominantly due to the inclusion of additional 
data sources. This was partially offset by emissions 
reductions from New Zealand’s continued transition 
to renewable energy and the sale of our Papua 
New Guinea subsidiary. 

Our preparation for Climate-related Financial 
Disclosures includes expanding our measurement 
and reporting of Scope 3 emissions. As more data is 
captured over time, we expect the inclusion of previously 
unreported Scope 3 emissions including from our 
underwriting portfolios and supply chain to increase 
Tower’s total carbon emissions profile. As part of this 
work we will review our emissions targets in FY24.

Tower has elected not to offset our FY23 emissions 
as our preferred approach is to invest in initiatives that 
reduce gross emissions as much as possible such as 
transitioning our fleet and investigating renewable 
energy sources for our Pacific premises. 

SCOPE

SCOPE 1

SCOPE 2

SCOPE 3

FY20 (TCO2E)

FY21 (TCO2E)

FY22 (TCO2E)

FY23 (TCO2E)

169

180

202

115

165

98

300

126

191

165

135

177

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Climate-related Financial Disclosures

Identifying material impacts

In FY23 Tower made positive progress towards 
addressing our climate change risks and opportunities 
with our first mandatory Climate-related Financial 
Disclosure required for the FY24 reporting year. Due 
to internal resources being diverted to managing 
this year’s catastrophic events, we have elected not 
to make an early voluntary disclosure for FY23 as 
originally intended. 

In the year, Tower adapted the New Zealand insurance 
industry climate change scenarios for Tower’s strategy 
and business model in New Zealand and the Pacific 
Islands. Tower’s climate change scenarios explore three 
possible and plausible futures over a timeframe out to 
2050. These scenarios have allowed us to develop a 
comprehensive set of climate change risks (including 
both physical and transition risks) and opportunities 
which will ultimately enable us to model the potential 
future financial impacts of climate change and further 
develop our strategic responses. 

B Corp

As we’ve indicated previously, Tower would like to 
achieve B Corp accreditation in the coming year. 
B Corp measures a company’s entire social and 
environmental impact. Attaining this certification would 
confirm that Tower is demonstrating high verified 
standards of social and environmental performance, 
public transparency, and accountability as we progress 
towards our sustainability goals. 

In 2021, we identified a range of topics and impacts 
through research and engagement, which included 
interviewing a range of stakeholder representatives 
and relevant experts. We spoke to our Board, 
shareholders and partners, representatives from the 
wider insurance industry and financial markets, as well 
as experts in sustainable finance and climate change. 
We undertook employee workshops involving senior 
management and a diverse range of people and 
roles from across the business. In 2022, we assessed 
and prioritised the full range of Tower’s sustainability 
impacts using the GRI 3: 2021 methodology.

Members of our executive steering committee 
reviewed our material impacts in 2023 and validated 
that our 12 material topics largely remain consistent 
with the FY22 assessment. Increases in significance 
were identified for three topics: climate change 
increased, due to the increasing frequency and 
severity of extreme weather; affordable and accessible 
insurance was rated higher, reflecting the current cost 
of living challenges in New Zealand and the Pacific; and 
product development also increased in importance due 
to the potential for product innovations like parametric 
insurance to bring positive benefits to Pacific people.

Our impacts are detailed in the table on pages 52-57 
along with relevant impacts identified and addressed 
both in the table and throughout this report. The 
impacts reflect Tower’s business operations in both 
New Zealand and the Pacific Islands and have been 
reviewed and approved by our leadership.

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Material impacts
Material impacts

STRATEGY 
ALIGNMENT

MATERIAL TOPIC 
OVERVIEW OF POTENTIAL AND ACTUAL IMPACTS

SDG 
ALIGNMENT

MANAGING OUR IMPACTS

DELIVERED IN FY23

Diverse and 
Inclusive to 
the core

Diversity and inclusion

We recognise that a lack of diversity excludes 
minority groups which limits diverse thinking 
and impacts mental health and emotional 
wellbeing. 

Diversity is also an important part of customer 
innovation. We are committed to having a 
diverse and inclusive workplace that builds 
people’s physical and emotional wellbeing. 

Investing in a positive business culture that 
prioritises the personal growth of our people 
impacts our attractiveness as an employer 
and retention of talented employees.

•  We have policies and processes in 
place to ensure equal opportunities 
for roles at Tower 

•  Our recruitment policy incorporates 

cultural considerations for conducting 
interviews and outlines a process 
to ensure all interview panels are 
balanced culturally and by gender 

•  We offer unconscious bias training 

to all staff 

•  Our emerging talent programme has 
a focus on identifying diverse future 
leaders.

FY24 TARGETS 
AND INITIATIVES

TARGET FOR FY25 
AND BEYOND

•  Target to be 
developed.

•  Target to be 
developed.

FY23 targets

Drive practices and outcomes that will result in 
Tower’s leadership reflecting the diversity (gender 
and ethnicity) of our customers and communities:

•  100% of hiring panels, candidate shortlists 

and succession plans consist of one woman 
candidate and one ethnically diverse candidate 

•  Attrition of diverse talent is kept below the level 

of gender and ethnic representation.

Delivered in FY23

•  Target not met largely due to challenges with 

collecting ethnicity data from candidates during 
the recruitment process. However, gender diversity 
was achieved for candidate shortlists in 100% of 
roles and hiring panels for bands 7 and above. 
75% of succession plans included gender diverse 
candidates.

•  Attrition of diverse talent was less than total attrition

•  Increased Parental Leave Benefit

•  Introduced Gender Affirmation Leave

•  Added more options for our people to choose 

from or select for their personal gender, ethnicity, 
and national origin, to better reflect our workforce. 
This resulted in an increase in gender and ethnicity 
disclosure rates to 96% in FY23 compared to 85% 
in FY22

•  239 staff completed unconscious bias training

•  In FY23 our gender pay gap improved to 20.2% 
from 25.9% in FY22. Our gender pay equity gap 
in FY23 was -0.2% and our leadership pay gap 
was 2.7%.

See pages 34-39 and 114-115 for more information.

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Material impacts (continued)

STRATEGY 
ALIGNMENT

MATERIAL TOPIC 
OVERVIEW OF POTENTIAL AND ACTUAL IMPACTS

SDG 
ALIGNMENT

MANAGING OUR IMPACTS

DELIVERED IN FY23

Diverse and 
Inclusive 
to the core 
(continued)

Employee wellbeing

We believe that caring for our people’s 
wellbeing is fundamental to a healthy culture. 

Reduced wellbeing can lead to physical 
or emotional harm and right now financial 
wellbeing is a key concern for many Kiwis and 
Pacific people. 

We can make a difference by having 
opportunities and initiatives in place to 
support our people’s physical, mental and 
emotional wellbeing and build their capability 
for the future.

Supporting our people’s wellbeing

•  Tower is committed to creating a 

culture where incidents, near misses, 
hazards and discomfort are reported

•  We offer a range of contemporary 
benefits plus, flexible working, 
wellbeing leave for proactively 
managing personal or family wellness, 
the ability to purchase extra annual 
leave, and an additional paid day off 
for our people on their birthday

•  We provide training and development 

opportunities for our people that 
includes training for their role, 
personal goals and leadership 
capability

•  We have 15 Mental Health First Aiders, 

trained by St John to support our 
people through challenging times.

FY23 target

•  Zero harm

Delivered in FY23

•  Zero harm achieved

•  Improved employee leave benefits

•  Delivered 15 managing stress sessions to more 

than 200 staff

•  Delivered eight financial wellbeing seminars

•  Provided domestic violence responder 
training to 12 employees, bringing our 
responders up to 20 across Tower

•  Launched the Tower Beam benefits app

•  Achieved Living Wage accreditation

•  Renewal of DV Free Tick accreditation

•  Launched new recognition programme.

See pages 34-39 for more information.

FY24 TARGETS 
AND INITIATIVES

TARGET FOR FY25 
AND BEYOND

•  Zero harm

•  Zero harm

Go-to trusted 
insurance 
partner

Affordable and accessible insurance 

•  We continuously monitor our pricing 

FY23 targets

•  20% of 

•  40% of 

Low rates of insurance in the Pacific are due 
to a range of issues, including the insurability 
of many Pacific homes, the unique ownership 
structures of properties within families, 
affordability and a lack of insurance products 
to suit their needs, or a lack of available 
internet or transportation to access insurance 
products. 

We know that not having the right cover 
makes people, communities, and economies 
reliant on aid, which creates unnecessary 
uncertainty and can mean it takes more time 
to recover when the worst happens. 

We have a responsibility to ensure insurance 
remains accessible and affordable. This is 
a challenge given the current inflationary 
environment and increasing risks from large 
events and climate change.

and benefits to ensure we are 
competitive and offer value for money

•  Our affordability focus group ensures 
our team has the necessary skills to 
assist customers with affordability 
issues.

•  Our parametric insurance product, 
Cyclone Response Cover offers a 
lower-cost alternative level of cover 
for customers in Fiji and Tonga.

transactions in 
the Pacific are 
completed via 
digital platform

•  1,000 parametric 
policies in place 
across three 
countries by the 
end of FY24.

transactions 
in the 
Pacific are 
completed 
via digital 
platform

• 10,000 

parametric 
policies in 
place across 
five countries 
by the end of 
FY25.

•  Consistent digital offerings are in place across 

New Zealand and our Pacific markets

•  1,000 parametric policies in place in the 

Pacific by the end of FY23.

Delivered in FY23

•  Achieved consistent digital offerings

•  Launched parametric insurance pilot in Fiji and 

Tonga

•  Did not achieve our target of 1,000 parametric 

policies in place due to the timing of the Fiji pilot 
launch and subsequent roadshow, which took 
place in the December 2022, half-way through 
cyclone season. In FY23, 600 parametric policies 
have been purchased for the FY24 cyclone 
season. With the product now live across all 
of Fiji and a pilot programme live in Tonga, we 
expect to reach this target in FY24.

See pages 21, 22 and 24 for more information.

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Material impacts (continued)

STRATEGY 
ALIGNMENT

MATERIAL TOPIC 
OVERVIEW OF POTENTIAL AND ACTUAL IMPACTS

SDG 
ALIGNMENT

MANAGING OUR IMPACTS

DELIVERED IN FY23

FY24 TARGETS 
AND INITIATIVES

TARGET FOR FY25 
AND BEYOND

Go-to trusted 
insurance 
partner 
(continued)

Transparent and fair insurance

We know that customers don’t always 
understand their insurance and, transparency 
of information is one of the most important 
factors they take into account when deciding 
on an insurance provider. 

We recognise the need for clearly worded 
and simple descriptions of insurance 
products that help customers understand 
what they’re covered for.

•  We are working to ensure our policies 
achieve the WriteMark plain English 
standard

•  Continually simplifying and improving 
our customer self-service offering 
through digitisation

•  Digital platform provides transparency 

of customers’ risks and pricing

•  Tower is focused on putting things 

right for customers who have received 
incorrect discounts or benefits.

FY23 target

80% of all products are WriteMark certified by 
end of FY23.

Delivered in FY23

•  WriteMark target was achieved in New Zealand. 

Work continues in the Pacific with 70% of products 
now WriteMark certified in Fiji

•  Embedded ways to save built into My Tower. 

This gives customers practical and immediate 
options to save on their premiums

•  $6.2m excluding GST has been paid to customers 

affected by multi-policy discount errors as at 
31 October 2023. 

See page 27 for more information.

•  Continue to align 

Pacific policy 
documents with 
the WriteMark 
standard

•  Embed sea-surge 
and landslip risk 
profiles in quote-
to-buy journey 
and in My Tower.

•  Target to be 
developed.

Product development and innovation

Innovating our products:

Tower is committed to helping New Zealand 
and the Pacific’s transition to a more 
sustainable future. 

Our greatest opportunity to support this aim 
is by positively influencing and supporting our 
customers through the services and products 
we provide. We are working to ensure 
our product development and innovation 
supports climate change resilience and action. 

We know traditional insurance products fail 
to adequately support many Pacific people 
who either do not have insurance or are 
underinsured.

•  Our parametric insurance product, 

Cyclone Response Cover offers a level 
of cover for those in the Pacific who 
are excluded from traditional insurance 
products

•  Offering cover for electric and hybrid 

vehicles, e-bikes and e-scooters 
helps support the transition to more 
sustainable forms of transport.

•  Cyclone response cover product launched to 
wider Fiji market and pilot launched in Tonga

•  Target to be 
developed.

•  Target to be 
developed.

•  Launched new personal lines house, motor 

and contents products in all Pacific countries 
in which we operate

•  60% growth in electric vehicles (EVs) covered

•  34% growth in hybrid electric vehicles covered

See pages 21-25 for more information.

Data protection 

•  Our data governance framework 

•  Updated data risk governance framework

•  Update 

The collection and use of personal and 
non-personal data enables us to offer more 
tailored insurance products and services, 
including more personalised risk assessments.

We know that any misuse or loss of customer 
data is likely to erode trust in the insurance 
industry. Tower is committed to protecting our 
customers’ and people’s data by having safe 
data governance and practices in place.

ensures we are able to take advantage 
of opportunities to use data when they 
arise, and this data is used appropriately 
and effectively

•  We have robust policies, processes and 
technology in place to ensure data is 
protected 

•  Tower is continuing to decommission 
legacy systems which will reduce the 
number of systems where customer 
data is stored. 

•  Updated data retention policy and retention 

schedules

•  Updated third party data access register.

Information 
Management 
Policy

•  Target to be 
developed.

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Material impacts (continued)

STRATEGY 
ALIGNMENT

MATERIAL TOPIC 
OVERVIEW OF POTENTIAL AND ACTUAL IMPACTS

SDG 
ALIGNMENT

MANAGING OUR IMPACTS

DELIVERED IN FY23

FY24 TARGETS 
AND INITIATIVES

TARGET FOR FY25 
AND BEYOND

•  We are continuing to expand our risk-

based pricing strategy to include more 
climate-related hazards

•  Further expanded risk-based pricing by 
implementing heightened risk selection 
criteria for landslide risks

•  We manage financial impacts by 

•  Awarded two scholarships.

See page 25 for more information on 
risk-based pricing.

•  Target to be 
developed.

Expand our hazard 
model to include 
landslide and 
coastal hazards, 
automated pricing 
and underwriting 
implemented 
for these risks, 
including 
transparency 
around risk ratings 
for customers.

Helping 
communities 
manage 
climate 
change

Managing the impacts of climate change

Tower is focused on managing the impacts 
of climate change, both within our business 
and for the communities we serve. 

We can make a positive contribution to 
mitigating climate change risks both through 
our own operations, and by helping others 
to manage their risks through our influence 
as a Kiwi and Pacific business.

Corporate community citizenship

Our approach to employee wellbeing 
extends to our people’s connection with 
communities and the environment. By 
encouraging our people to support projects 
that align with their values and help the 
community we can help foster a community 
mindset within the organisation.

budgeting for increasing large events 
in our planning and via our robust 
reinsurance programme. See page 43 
for more information.

•  Participating in public dialogue on 

climate change impacts and responses

•  Sharing useful data about hazards and 

risks

•  Supporting climate change education 
via our Waikato University Bachelor of 
Climate Change Studies scholarship.

•  We provide every employee with a 

day of volunteering leave every year, 
to contribute to initiatives that restore 
the environment or have positive social 
outcomes

•  With current staff levels Tower has 

7,200 volunteer hours available across 
New Zealand and the Pacific per year 
to make an impact.

•  In late FY23 we refreshed and relaunched our 
volunteering programme. While early days we 
were pleased to have delivered 390 hours of 
volunteering by Tower staff.

See page 37 for more information.

1,000 hours of 
volunteering by 
Tower staff.

•  Target to be 
developed.

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Material impacts (continued)

STRATEGY 
ALIGNMENT

MATERIAL TOPIC 
OVERVIEW OF POTENTIAL AND ACTUAL IMPACTS

SDG 
ALIGNMENT

MANAGING OUR IMPACTS

DELIVERED IN FY23

FY24 TARGETS 
AND INITIATIVES

TARGET FOR FY25 
AND BEYOND

Thinking 
ahead for 
our planet

Carbon emissions

•  Tower has set a science-based 

•  23% reduction in overall emissions.

See page 50 for more information.

We take measuring and reducing our 
emissions seriously as we recognise that 
every effort to reduce emissions helps to 
mitigate global warming. Our carbon impacts 
reach well beyond the boundaries of our 
own operational activities and include the 
activities of our whole value chain, including 
the suppliers we work with.

Corporate governance

We know that the decisions we make 
have wide reaching implications for the 
financial stability of New Zealand and 
Pacific economies in terms of the risks we 
cover and the suppliers we work with. That’s 
why Tower is committed to achieving the 
highest standards of corporate governance, 
ethical behaviour, and accountability. We 
are working to ensure the right culture is in 
place to embed sustainability throughout our 
business so we can have a positive influence 
more broadly.

reduction target of 21% over five years 
from our 2020 base year.

•  We are transitioning our fleet to electric 

and hybrid vehicles

•  We are exploring renewable energy 

options for our Pacific premises

•  Our Auckland head office is a six Green 

Star rated building with advanced 
carbon reduction technology in place 
including solar

•  We are encouraging different driving 
patterns and behaviours in the Pacific 
that reduce emissions

•  We have incorporated the remote 
working lessons from Covid and 
reduced air travel substantially from 
pre-Covid.

• Changes to vehicle fleet, driving habits 

and an updated travel policy have 
seen a reduction in fuel usage across 
all locations despite the increased 
headcount.

Tower is committed to achieving 
the highest standards of corporate 
governance, ethical behaviour and 
accountability. Where developments 
arise in corporate governance, the 
Board reviews Tower’s practices and 
incorporates changes where appropriate. 
Tower’s relevant governance documents 
and policies can be found on this 
webpage: Policies and Documentation | 
Tower Insurance NZ

•  21% reduction 
in emissions 
from our 
2020 base 
year.

•  Establish a 
process to 
measure 
emissions from 
our underwriting 
activities

•  Establish a 
process to 
measure 
emissions from 
our supply chain

•  Establish a 

process and 
measure 
employee 
commuting 
emissions

•  Review and 

improve process 
for measuring 
working from 
home emissions

•  Review emissions 

targets.

•  Developed climate change scenarios for Tower.

•  Developed an understanding of our climate 

change risks and opportunities.

See page 51 for more information.

Sustainability 
education to be 
rolled out for all 
staff.

•  Achieve 
B Corp 
certification. 

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Material impacts (continued)

STRATEGY 
ALIGNMENT

MATERIAL TOPIC 
OVERVIEW OF POTENTIAL AND ACTUAL IMPACTS

SDG 
ALIGNMENT

MANAGING OUR IMPACTS

DELIVERED IN FY23

Thinking 
ahead for 
our planet

Environmental footprint

•  Our Auckland head office is a six Green 

•  Tower took a ‘reuse’ first approach to the 

We recognise that our business operations 
contribute to waste, pollution and biodiversity 
loss in addition to carbon emissions. We are 
committed to understanding and managing 
our broader environmental impacts.

Star rated building with waste and water 
reduction processes and technology, 
including recycling composting, low 
water toilets.

decommission of our existing Suva office with 
almost all of the chattels and furniture either 
re-used in the new site or where feasible 
donated to the local community. We are also 
replacing the existing fluorescent lighting with 
LED100 laptops and other peripheral hardware 
repurposed, reducing total hardware asset 
volumes.

FY24 TARGETS 
AND INITIATIVES

TARGET FOR FY25 
AND BEYOND

•  Measure waste 
across all Tower 
sites, set reduction 
target

•  Measure water 

use across 
all sites, set 
reduction target.

•  Preparation 

for Taskforce 
for Nature 
Based 
Financial 
Disclosures 
(TNFD)

•  Work to 

Responsible investment

As an institutional investor Tower can 
help support the market for responsible 
investment products. Our ability to invest in 
products such as green tech is limited due 
to Tower’s conservative investment policy 
which is focused on high liquidity bonds, 
and a short duration to ensure availability 
of funds for paying claims. 

We are currently building our 
understanding of the ESG impacts 
of our investments. This includes 
determining the proportion of issuers 
who have ESG initiatives in place 
such as: ESG strategies, climate and 
nature-based reporting, commitments 
to eliminate modern slavery, science-
based emissions targets and Net Zero 
commitments.

The investment community is in the early 
stages of this data capture and reporting, 
and we will continue to work with our 
partners as this capability matures. 

Began working with investment partners 
to understand our ESG impacts.

Measure and 
baseline carbon 
emissions from our 
investment portfolio.

understand 
our role in 
measuring 
and mitigating 
biodiversity 
loss through-
out our value 
chain.

•  Develop a 

strategy for 
managing 
investment 
portfolio 
emissions

•  Establish 

reporting for 
other ESG 
impacts.

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58

 Board of Directors

Michael Stiassny 

LLB, BCom, CFInstD 
Chairman 

Non-Executive Director 
Independent 
Director from: 12 October 2012 

Michael holds both a Commerce and Law degree 
from the University of Auckland and is a Chartered 
Fellow and past President of the Institute of Directors. 
Michael has enjoyed a high-profile governance career 
and is currently Chairman of 2 Cheap Cars Group 
Limited, and director of Momentum Life Insurance 
Limited, Tegel Group Holdings Limited, and New 
Talisman Gold Mines Limited.

With a keen interest in fostering successful next 
generation New Zealand businesses, Michael 
also dedicates significant time to start ups and 
championing entrepreneurship through his 
involvement in Founders Advisory. 

Michael resides in Auckland — New Zealand. 

Graham Stuart 

BCom (Hons), MS, FCA 
Non-Executive Director 

Independent 
Director from: 24 May 2012 

Graham is an experienced Director, with over 30 years’ 
experience in governance roles in New Zealand and 
internationally. He is currently the Chair of NorthWest 
Healthcare Property Management Limited and Comhla 
Vet Limited and, a Director of VinPro Limited. Previous 
executive roles include Sealord Group CEO, Fonterra 
Co-operative Group CFO and Director of Strategy and, 
Lion Nathan International Managing Director.

Graham has a Bachelor of Commerce (First Class Hons) 
from the University of Otago, a Master of Science from 
Massachusetts Institute of Technology and is a Fellow 
of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand. 
He has served on multiple Government bodies including 
the Food & Beverage Taskforce, Māori Economic 
Development Panel and as Chair of the Lincoln Hub 
Establishment Board.

Graham resides in Auckland — New Zealand. 

Geraldine McBride

BSc  
Non-Executive Director 

Independent 
Director from: 1 October 2022 

Geraldine has extensive governance and technology 
industry experience, having performed Board and senior 
leadership roles both in New Zealand and internationally, 
with Sky Network Television Limited, SAP, Dell, IBM, 
National Australia Bank and Fisher & Paykel Healthcare. 
Geraldine is the founder and CEO of MyWave. Geraldine 
holds a Bachelor of Science from Victoria University and 
is a Chartered Member of the NZIOD. 

Geraldine resides in Christchurch — New Zealand.

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Marcus Nagel 

MBA (International Management), 
MBA (Banking and Finance) 
Non-Executive Director 

Non-independent 
Director from: 14 January 2019 

Marcus has significant insurance industry experience. 
For a decade he has performed senior leadership roles 
for Zurich in Europe and globally. In his last role at 
Zurich, he served as the Chief Executive Officer of Zurich 
Germany managing both life insurance and general 
insurance businesses. Marcus holds a Master’s Degree in 
Banking and Finance from Goethe University in Frankfurt, 
Germany and Master of International Management 
from the Arizona State University Thunderbird School of 
Global Management in Arizona, United States of America. 
Marcus was nominated by Bain Capital Credit LP 
(Bain Capital) to represent Bain Capital’s stake in Tower 
(Bain Capital hold 20.00% of Tower’s ordinary shares) 
and his appointment was supported by the Tower Board. 

Marcus resides in Schindellegi — Switzerland. 

Mike Cutter

BSc (Hons) GAICD
Non Executive Director

Blair Turnbull 

BCom, PGDipCom 
Executive Director

Independent
Director from: 17 November 2023

Non-independent 
Director from: 29 March 2023

Mike has significant experience in a range of financial 
services businesses in Australia, New Zealand, 
Asia and Europe. He is the Chair of Arteva Funding, 
and a Non-Executive Director of both Sezzle and Pepper 
Money. He is the co-founder of Kadre, a credit risk 
management consultancy.

Mike has recently served as interim Managing Director 
for Bambora Aus and was previously the Group Managing 
Director for Equifax ANZ. Before this he held various 
senior roles with GE, ANZ, Wesfarmers/OAMPS Insurance 
Brokers, Halifax/BankOne and NAB.

Mike is a Senior Fellow of Financial Services Institute of 
Australia. He has served on the Boards of the Women’s 
Cancer Foundation, Ovarian Cancer Institute, the Australian 
Finance Congress, the National Insurance Brokers 
Association and the Australian Retail Credit Association.

Blair Turnbull joined Tower Insurance as CEO in 2020, 
bringing with him 25 years of insurance and financial 
services experience from across NZ & Australia, Asia, 
UK, and Europe. He joined the Board in March 2023 
pending the appointment of a new Independent Director. 

Prior to joining Tower, Blair was Managing Director, 
Digital & Retail, UK & International at Aviva, Britain’s 
largest general insurer. Prior to this, he was Executive 
General Manager, Wealth and Insurance at ASB Bank.

Blair’s focus is on continuing to accelerate Tower’s 
modernisation. He has extensive international 
experience, with a proven global track record in using 
data to deliver disruptive customer-focussed models 
in a proactive way. Blair retired from the Board on 
17 November 2023 following the appointment of 
Mike Cutter as an Independent Director.

Mike resides in Melbourne – Australia.

Blair resides in Auckland — New Zealand.

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CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL 
STATEMENTS

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62

Financial Statements

Consolidated statement of comprehensive income

Consolidated balance sheet

Consolidated statement of changes in equity

Consolidated statement of cash flows

Notes to the consolidated financial statements

1

1.1

1.2

1.3

1.4

2

2.1

2.2

2.3

2.4

2.5

2.6

2.7

2.8

2.9

Overview

About this report

Consolidation

Critical accounting judgements and estimates

Segmental reporting

Underwriting activities

Underwriting revenue

Net claims expense

Underwriting expense

Net outstanding claims

Unearned premium liability

Deferred insurance costs

Receivables

Payables

Provisions

2.10

Assets backing insurance liabilities

3

3.1

3.2

3.3

4

4.1

4.2

4.3

4.4

4.5

4.6

4.7

Investments and other income

Investment income

Investments

Other income

Risk management

Risk management overview

Strategic risk

Insurance risk

Credit risk

Market risk

Liquidity risk

Capital management risk

4.8

4.9

4.10

4.11

4.12

5

5.1

5.2

5.3

5.4

5.5

6

6.1

6.2

6.3

7

7.1

7.2

7.3

7.4

8

8.1

8.2

8.3

8.4

8.5

8.6

8.7

8.8

8.9

Operational risk

Regulatory and compliance risk

Conduct risk

Cyber risk

Climate change risk

Capital structure

Contributed equity

Reserves

Net tangible assets per share

Earnings per share

Dividends

Other balance sheet items

Property, plant and equipment

Intangible assets

Leases

Tax 

Tax expense

Current tax

Deferred tax

Imputation credits

Other information

Notes to the consolidated statement of cash flows

Related party disclosures

Auditor's remuneration

Assets and liabilities held for sale

Tower Long-Term Incentive Plan

Contingent liabilities

Subsequent events

Capital commitments

Impact of new accounting standards and changes in interpretation of current standards

Independent Auditor's report, and Appointed Actuary's report

Independent Auditor's report

Appointed Actuary's report

63

64

65

66

67

67

67

69

69

70

70

71

71

72

77

78

79

80

80

80

81

81

81

82

82

82

83

83

84

85

87

87

88

88

88

88

89

89

89

90

90

90

90

91

91

92

94

96

96

97

97

99

99

99

100

101

101

103

104

104

104

104

106

111

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Consolidated statement of comprehensive income

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2023

NOTE

2023 
$000

RE-PRESENTED  
2022 
$000

NOTE

2023 
$000

RE-PRESENTED  
2022 
$000

Gross written premium

Unearned premium movement

Gross earned premium 

Outward reinsurance premium

Movement in deferred reinsurance premium

Outward reinsurance premium expense

Net earned premium

Claims expense

Less: Reinsurance and other recoveries revenue

Net claims expense

Gross commission expense

Commission revenue

Net commission expense

Underwriting expense

Underwriting (loss)/profit

Investment income

Investment expenses

Other income

Other expenses

Financing and other costs

Profit before taxation from continuing operations

Tax expense

Profit after taxation from continuing operations

(Loss)/profit after taxation from discontinued operations

(Loss)/profit after taxation for the  year 

2.1

2.1

2.2

2.1

2.3

3.1

3.3

7.1

8.4

 511,484 

(40,671)

 470,813 

(82,030)

(368)

(82,398)

 388,415 

(492,197)

205,187 

(287,010)

(12,342)

 4,636 

(7,706)

(105,354)

(11,655)

 14,627 

(298)

5,727 

(44)

(920)

7,437 

(5,085)

2,352 

(3,580)

(1,228)

 436,593 

(26,992)

 409,601 

(62,128)

(151)

(62,279)

 347,322 

(238,293)

15,109 

(223,184)

(13,528)

 4,725 

(8,803)

(91,852)

 23,483 

 1,480 

(338)

1,304 

(63)

(890)

 24,976 

(7,483)

17,493 

1,362 

18,855 

Items that may be reclassified to profit or loss

Currency translation differences

Reclassification of the foreign currency translation reserve

8.4

Other comprehensive (loss)/profit net of tax

Total comprehensive (loss)/profit for the  year

Earnings per share:

Basic and diluted earnings per share (cents) for continuing 
operations

Basic and diluted earnings per share (cents)

(Loss)/profit after taxation attributed to:

Shareholders

Non-controlling interests

5.4

5.4

Total comprehensive (loss)/profit attributed to:

Shareholders 

Non-controlling interests

(1,487)

544 

(943)

(2,171)

0.6 

(0.3)

(1,228)

 – 

(1,228)

(2,171)

 – 

(2,171)

3,948 

 – 

3,948 

22,803 

4.4 

4.7 

18,803 

52 

18,855 

22,737 

66 

22,803 

The above statement should be read in conjunction with the accompanying notes.

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Consolidated balance sheet

AS AT 30 SEPTEMBER 2023

Assets

Cash and cash equivalents

Investments

Receivables 

Current tax asset

Assets classified as held for sale

Deferred tax asset

Deferred insurance costs

Right-of-use assets

Property, plant and equipment 

Intangible assets

Total assets

Liabilities

Payables

Unearned premiums

Outstanding claims

Current tax liabilities

Liabilities classified as held for sale

Provisions

Lease liabilities

Deferred tax liabilities

Total liabilities

Net assets

NOTE

8.1

3.2

2.7

7.2a

8.4

7.3a

2.6

6.3a(i)

6.1

6.2

2.8

2.5

2.4

7.2b

8.4

2.9

6.3a(ii)

7.3b

2023 
$000

 2022 
$000

64,009 

258,798 

413,826 

12,917 

13,697 

14,971 

39,951 

23,204 

6,280 

98,524 

84,502 

258,634 

242,089 

13,069 

20,811 

23,893 

37,819 

23,326 

5,417 

94,653 

946,177 

804,213 

77,032 

272,834 

240,597 

198 

9,765 

12,823 

32,615 

48 

645,912 

300,265 

58,911 

238,116 

124,531 

136 

9,258 

11,873 

35,054 

8,806 

486,685 

317,528 

Equity

Contributed equity

Accumulated losses

Reserves

Total equity

NOTE

5.1

5.2

2023 
$000

 2022 
$000

460,315 

(55,949)

(104,101)

300,265 

460,191 

(41,212)

(101,451)

317,528 

The above statement should be read in conjunction with the accompanying notes.

The financial statements were approved for issue by the Board on 23 November 2023.

Michael P Stiassny 
Chairman 

Graham R Stuart 
Director

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Consolidated statement of changes in equity

YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2023

Year Ended 30 September 2023

Balance as at 30 September 2022

Comprehensive loss

Loss for the year 

Currency translation differences

Reclassification of foreign currency translation reserve to profit and loss

Revaluation surplus transferred to retained earnings

Total comprehensive loss

Transactions with shareholders

Dividend payment

Share rights issued under Tower Long-Term Incentive Plan

Total transactions with shareholders

At the end of the year

Year Ended 30 September 2022

Balance as at 30 September 2021

Comprehensive income

Profit for the year 

Currency translation differences

Total comprehensive income

Transactions with shareholders

Capital return to shareholders

Purchase of non-controlling interests

Dividend payment

Other

Total transactions with shareholders

At the end of the year

The above statement should be read in conjunction with the accompanying notes.

ATTRIBUTED TO SHAREHOLDERS

CONTRIBUTED 
EQUITY
$000

ACCUMULATED 
LOSSES
$000

RESERVES
$000

NON-CONTROLLING 
INTEREST
$000

NOTE

TOTAL EQUITY
$000

8.4

5.2

5.5

8.5

5.1

5.1

5.5

460,191 

(41,212)

(101,451)

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

124 

124 

460,315 

(1,228)

 – 

 – 

1,707 

479

(15,216)

 – 

(15,216)

(55,949)

 – 

(1,487)

544 

(1,707)

(2,650)

 – 

 – 

 – 

(104,101)

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

–

317,528 

(1,228)

(1,487)

544 

 – 

(2,171)

(15,216)

124 

(15,092)

300,265 

 492,424 

(39,995)

(105,385)

 2,676 

 349,720 

 – 

 – 

 – 

(30,634)

(1,599)

 – 

 – 

(32,233)

460,191 

18,803 

 – 

18,803 

 – 

 – 

(20,028)

8 

(20,020)

(41,212)

 – 

3,934 

3,934 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

(101,451)

52 

14 

66 

 – 

(2,742)

 – 

 – 

(2,742)

–

 18,855 

3,948 

22,803 

(30,634)

(4,341)

(20,028)

8 

(54,995)

317,528 

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Consolidated statement of cash flows

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2023

NOTE

2023 
$000

RE–PRESENTED  
2022 
$000

NOTE

2023 
$000

RE–PRESENTED  
2022 
$000

Cash flows from operating activities

Premiums received 

Interest received 

Fee and other income received

Reinsurance and other recoveries received

Reinsurance paid

Claims paid

Employee and supplier payments

Income tax paid

Operating activities cashflow from discontinued operations

Net cash inflow from operating activities

8.1 

Cash flows from investing activities

Proceeds from sale of interest bearing investments

Payments for purchase of interest bearing investments

Payments for purchase of intangible assets 

Payments for purchase of customer relationships

Payments for purchase of property, plant & equipment

Proceeds from sale of property, plant & equipment

Proceeds from sale of discontinued operation (net of 
cash disposed)

Investing activities cashflow from discontinued operations

Net cash outflow from investing activities

6.2

8.4 

8.4 

471,171 

11,612 

6,322 

74,563 

(61,595)

(380,732)

(94,432)

(1,802)

(15,144)

9,963 

256,573 

(254,814)

(15,298)

(5,900)

(2,419)

5,746 

2,618 

1,216 

(12,278)

Cash flows from financing activities

416,245 

Payments for capital return to shareholders

Purchase of non-controlling interests

Dividends paid

Facility fees and interest paid

Payments relating to lease liabilities

6.3 

Financing activities cashflow from discontinued operations

Net cash outflow from financing activities

Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents

Effect of foreign exchange rate changes

Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the year 

Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year 

Cash from discontinued operations

 8.4 

Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year 
from continuing operations

The above statement should be read in conjunction with the accompanying notes.

6,520 

3,588 

11,968 

(51,940)

(236,492)

(83,906)

(1,783)

(4,416)

59,784 

182,145 

(181,578)

(14,695)

(6,089)

(2,100)

 – 

 – 

(1,353)

(23,670)

 – 

 – 

(15,216)

(928)

(6,845)

(190)

(23,179)

(25,494)

(1,493)

92,298 

65,311 

(1,302)

(30,634)

(4,341)

(20,028)

(909)

(5,852)

(1,946)

(63,710)

(27,596)

3,765 

116,129 

92,298 

(7,796)

64,009 

84,502 

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Notes to the consolidated financial statements

1	 Overview

This section provides information that is helpful to an overall understanding of the financial statements 
and the areas of critical accounting judgements and estimates included in the financial statements. It also 
includes a summary of Tower’s operating segments.

1.1	 About	this	Report

a. Entities reporting

The financial statements presented are those of Tower Limited (the Company) and its subsidiaries. 
The Company and its subsidiaries together are referred to in this financial report as Tower or the Group. 
The address of the Company’s registered office is 136 Fanshawe Street, Auckland, New Zealand.

During the periods presented, the principal activity of the Group was the provision of general insurance. The 
Group predominantly operates in New Zealand with some of its operations based in the Pacific Islands region.

The financial statements were authorised for issue by the Board of Directors on 23 November 2023. The entity’s 
owners or others do not have the power to amend the financial statements after issue.

b. Statutory base

Tower Limited is a company incorporated in New Zealand under the Companies Act 1993 and listed on the 
NZX Main Board and the Australian Securities Exchange. The Company is a reporting entity under Part 7 of the 
Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013.

c. Basis of preparation

d. Re-presentation of comparatives

The Group’s Papua New Guinea Operations (disposal group) constitutes a discontinued operation which was 
disposed in the year ended 30 September 2023. 

Select operations in Pacific (disposal groups) where Tower has begun the process to divest its operations also 
constitute discontinued operations and are classified as held for sale as at 30 September 2023. 

All disposal groups together form the “discontinued operations”. Profit or loss information for the current period 
is prepared on a continuing basis with net results from discontinued operations presented separately. Profit or 
loss information for 2022 has been re-presented for comparability. Refer to note 8.4 for further details.

Where necessary, comparative information has been reclassified for consistency with the current year presentation.

1.2	 Consolidation

a. Principles of consolidation

The Group financial statements incorporate the assets and liabilities of all subsidiaries of the Company at 
balance date and the results of all subsidiaries for the year. 

Subsidiaries are those entities over which the consolidated entity has control, being power over the investee; 
exposure, or rights to variable returns from its involvement with the investee; and the ability to use its power 
over the investee to affect the amount of the investor’s returns. 

The results of any subsidiaries acquired during the year are consolidated from the date on which control 
was transferred to the consolidated entity and the results of any subsidiaries disposed of during the year are 
consolidated up to the date control ceased.

The Company is a for-profit entity and the financial statements have been prepared in accordance with 
New Zealand Generally Accepted Accounting Practice (NZ GAAP). They comply with International Financial 
Reporting Standards (IFRS), New Zealand Equivalents to International Financial Reporting Standards (NZ IFRS) 
and other applicable financial reporting standards, as appropriate for Tier 1 for-profit entities.

The acquisition of controlled entities from external parties is accounted for using the acquisition method 
of accounting. Non-controlling interests in the results and equity of subsidiaries are shown separately in 
the statement of comprehensive income, statement of changes in equity and balance sheet respectively. 
Acquisition related costs are expensed as incurred.

The financial statements of the Group have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of Part 7 of 
the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013 and the NZX Main Board Listing Rules.

When the Group ceases to have control, any retained interest in the entity is re-measured to its fair value at the 
date when control is lost, with the change in carrying amount recognised in profit or loss.

The Group financial statements are presented in New Zealand dollars and rounded to the nearest thousand 
dollars. They have been prepared in accordance with the historical cost basis except for certain financial 
instruments that are stated at their fair value.

Intercompany transactions and balances between Group entities are eliminated on consolidation. 

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Notes to the consolidated financial statements (continued)

1.2  Consolidation (continued)

b. Foreign currency

(i)  Functional and presentation currencies

The financial statements of each Group entity are presented in the currency of the primary economic 
environment in which the entity operates. The Group financial statements are presented in New Zealand 
dollars and rounded to the nearest thousand dollars unless stated otherwise. 

(ii)  Transactions and balances

In preparing the financial statements of the individual entities, transactions denominated in foreign currencies 
are translated into the entities’ functional and reporting currency using the exchange rates in effect at the 
transaction dates. Monetary items receivable or payable in a foreign currency are translated at reporting 
date at the closing exchange rate. 

Translation differences on non-monetary items such as financial assets held at fair value through profit or 
loss are reported as part of their fair value gain or loss. 

Exchange differences arising on the settlement or retranslation of monetary items at year end exchange 
rates impact profit after tax in the consolidated statement of comprehensive income unless the items 
form part of a net investment in a foreign operation. In this case, exchange differences are taken to the 
foreign currency translation reserve and recognised (as part of comprehensive profit) in the statement 
of comprehensive income and the statement of changes in equity.

(iii)  Consolidation

For the purpose of preparing consolidated financial statements the assets and liabilities of subsidiaries 
with a functional currency different to the Company are translated at the closing rate at the balance date. 
Income and expense items for each subsidiary are translated at a weighted average of exchange rates over 
the period, as a surrogate for the spot rates at transaction dates. Foreign currency translation differences 
are taken to the foreign currency translation reserve and recognised in the statement of comprehensive 
income and the statement of changes in equity.

Goodwill and fair value adjustments arising on the acquisition of a foreign operation are treated as assets 
and liabilities of the foreign operation and are translated at the closing rate with movements recorded 
through the foreign currency translation reserve in the statement of changes in equity.

On disposal of a foreign entity, the deferred cumulative amount recognised in equity relating to that 
particular foreign operation is recognised in the statement of comprehensive income.

c. Subsidiaries
The table below lists Tower Limited’s principal subsidiary companies and controlled entities. All entities have a 
balance date of 30 September.

HOLDINGS

NAME OF COMPANY

INCORPORATION

2023

2022

Parent Company

New Zealand general insurance operations

Tower Limited

Subsidiaries

NZ

Parent

Parent

Overseas general insurance operations

Tower Insurance (Cook Islands) Limited

Cook Islands

Tower Insurance (Fiji) Limited

Tower Insurance (PNG) Limited (refer note 8.4)

National Pacific Insurance Limited (NPI)

National Pacific Insurance (Tonga) Limited

Fiji

PNG

Samoa

Tonga

National Pacific Insurance (American Samoa) 
Limited

American Samoa

Tower Insurance (Vanuatu) Limited

Vanuatu

Management service operations

Tower Services Limited

Tower Group Services (Fiji) Pte Limited*

NZ

Fiji

100%

100%

0%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

100%

*   National Insurance Company (Holdings) Pte Limited has had its name changed to Tower Group Services (Fiji) Pte Limited 

on 26 May 2023.

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1.3	 Critical	accounting	judgements	and	estimates

b. Financial performance of continuing operations

In preparing these financial statements management is required to make estimates and related assumptions 
about the future. The estimates and related assumptions are based on experience and other factors that are 
considered to be reasonable, and are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to the estimates are recognised 
in the period in which they are revised, or future periods if relevant. The key areas in which estimates and 
related assumptions are applied are as follows: 

 — Net outstanding claims 

 — Liability adequacy test 

 — Intangible assets 

note 2.4

note 2.5

note 6.2

 — Lease liabilities (incremental borrowing rate) 

note 6.3a(ii)

 — Deferred tax 

 — Customer remediation provision 

note 7.3

note 2.9

1.4	 Segmental	reporting

a. Operating segments

Tower operates in two geographical segments, New Zealand and the Pacific region. New Zealand comprises 
the general insurance business underwritten in New Zealand. Pacific Islands comprises the general insurance 
business underwritten in the Pacific by Tower subsidiaries and branch operations. Other contains balances 
relating to Tower Services Limited and group diversification benefits.

The Group does not derive revenue from any individual or entity that represents 10% or more of the Group’s 
total revenue.

The financial performance for Pacific Islands operating segment excludes the disposal groups. The prior year 
comparatives have been re-presented accordingly. Intercompany transactions with the disposal group are 
eliminated within continuing operations, refer note 8.4.

NEW ZEALAND  
$000

PACIFIC ISLANDS  
$000

OTHER
$000

TOTAL
$000

Year Ended 30 September 2023

Gross written premium

Gross earned premium

Outward reinsurance premium expense

Net earned premium

Net claims expense

Net commission expense

Underwriting expense

Underwriting (loss)/profit

Net investment income

Other income and expenses

(Loss)/profit before taxation from 
continuing operations

(Loss)/profit after taxation from 
continuing operations

Year Ended 30 September 2022 (Re-presented)

Gross written premium

Gross earned premium

Outward reinsurance premium expense

Net earned premium

Net claims expense

Net commission expense

Underwriting expense

Underwriting profit

Net investment income

Other income and expenses

Profit before taxation from 
continuing operations

Profit after taxation from 
continuing operations

468,788 

427,907 

(70,199)

357,708 

(274,538)

(6,844)

(96,431)

(20,105)

13,622 

4,204 

42,696 

42,906 

(12,199)

30,707 

(12,123)

(862)

(8,923)

8,799 

707 

(70)

(2,279)

9,436 

(4,709)

6,781 

395,490 

369,871 

(51,026)

318,845 

(207,184)

(8,048)

(82,744)

20,869 

1,023 

192 

41,103 

39,730 

(11,253)

28,477 

(16,346)

(755)

(9,108)

2,268 

119 

159 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

(349)

 – 

 – 

(349)

 – 

629 

280 

280 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

346 

 – 

 – 

346 

 – 

 – 

511,484 

470,813 

(82,398)

388,415 

(287,010)

(7,706)

(105,354)

(11,655)

14,329 

4,763 

7,437 

2,352 

436,593 

409,601 

(62,279)

347,322 

(223,184)

(8,803)

(91,852)

23,483 

1,142 

351 

22,084 

2,546 

346 

24,976 

14,989 

2,158 

346 

17,493 

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1.4  Segmental reporting (continued)

c. Financial position of continuing operations

NEW ZEALAND  
$000

PACIFIC ISLANDS  
$000

OTHER
$000

TOTAL
$000

Additions to non-current assets  
30 September 2023

Additions to non-current assets  
30 September 2022

24,081 

6,319 

–

30,400 

29,547 

883 

(4,327)

26,103 

Total assets 30 September 2023

892,003 

65,484 

(25,007)

932,480 

Total assets 30 September 2022

723,805 

74,539 

(14,942)

783,402 

Total liabilities 30 September 2023

605,797 

41,657 

(11,307)

636,147 

2	 Underwriting	activities

This section provides information on Tower’s underwriting activities. 

Tower collects premiums from customers in exchange for providing insurance coverage. These 
premiums are recognised as revenue when they are earned by Tower, with a liability for unearned 
premiums recognised on the balance sheet.

When customers suffer a loss that is covered by their policy, Tower will make payments to customers 
or suppliers, which it recognises as claims expenses. To ensure Tower’s obligations to customers are 
properly recorded within the financial statements, Tower recognises provisions for outstanding claims.

To manage Tower’s risk and optimise its returns, Tower reinsures some of its exposure with reinsurance 
companies. The premiums paid to reinsurers are recognised as an expense, while recoveries from 
reinsurers are recognised as revenue.

Total liabilities 30 September 2022

426,930 

51,462 

(965)

477,427 

	2.1	 Underwriting	Revenue	

Additions to non-current assets include additions to property, plant and equipment, right-of-use assets, 
intangible assets and investments in subsidiaries. 

Composition

Total assets and liabilities exclude assets and liabilities held for sale. 

Definition

An operating segment is a group of assets and operations engaged in providing products or services 
that are subject to risks and returns that are different to those of other operating segments. Operating 
segments are reported in a manner consistent with the internal reporting provided to the chief operating 
decision-maker (the Chief Executive Officer) who reviews the operating results on a regular basis and 
makes decisions on resource allocation and assessing performance.

Gross written premium

Movement in unearned premium liability

Gross earned premium

2023 
$000

 511,484 

(40,671)

 470,813 

 2022 
$000

 436,593 

(26,992)

 409,601 

Reinsurance and other recoveries revenue

 205,187 

 15,109 

Reinsurance commission 

Insurance administration services commission

Commission revenue

Underwriting revenue

 2,853 

 1,783 

 4,636 

 3,590 

 1,135 

 4,725 

 680,636 

 429,435 

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Net claims expense includes the impact of several large events that occurred during the year ended 30 September 
2023: January’s Auckland and upper North Island weather event, Cyclone Gabrielle in February, Cyclones Judy 
and Kevin in Vanuatu in March (included within discontinued operations), and the Auckland floods on 9 May. 
The net claims expense for large events totals $38m (excluding costs of reinstating reinsurance cover). The cost 
of reinstating reinsurance coverage after these events is recorded within outward reinsurance premiums.

Recognition	and	measurement

Net claims expense is measured as the difference between net outstanding claims liability at the 
beginning and end of the financial year plus any claims payments made, net of reinsurance and 
other recoveries received during the financial year. Please refer to note 2.4 for more information.

Additional disclosures related to the Canterbury earthquake events in 2010 and 2011 are provided in note 2.4.

2.1  Underwriting Revenue (continued)

Recognition	and	measurement

Gross earned premium is recognised in the period in which the premiums are earned during the term 
of the contract, excluding taxes and levies collected on behalf of third parties. It includes a provision for 
expected future premium cancellations (which is offset against gross premium receivables, see note 2.7), 
and customer remediation (see note 2.9). The proportion of premiums not earned in the consolidated 
statement of comprehensive income at reporting date is recognised in the consolidated balance sheet 
as unearned premiums.

Reinsurance and other recoveries on paid claims, reported claims not yet paid, claims incurred but 
not reported and claims incurred but not enough reported are recognised as revenue. Recoveries are 
measured as the expected future receipts and recognised when the claim is incurred.

Reinsurance commission revenue includes reimbursements by reinsurers to cover part of Tower’s 
management and sales expense over the term of the reinsurance agreements. Reinsurance commission 
income can also include a proportion of expected profitability of business ceded to the reinsurer. 
The final value of the variable commission is based on the achievement of a hurdle rate over time. 
This revenue is recognised over the term of the reinsurance agreements dependent on the profitability 
of proportional arrangement which is reassessed at each reporting date.

Insurance administration services commission includes a percentage of levies collected on behalf 
of third parties and is recognised at the point the levy is collected.

2.2	 Net	claims	expense

Composition

EXC. CANTERBURY 
EARTHQUAKE

CANTERBURY  
EARTHQUAKE

TOTAL

2023 
$000

2022 
$000

2023 
$000

2022 
$000

2023 
$000

2022 
$000

2.3	 Underwriting	expense

Composition

People costs

People costs capitalised during the year

Technology 

Amortisation 

Depreciation*

External fees

Marketing

Communications

Miscellaneous

Gross claims expense

491,636 

229,180 

561 

9,113 

492,197 

238,293 

Movement in deferred acquisition costs

Reinsurance and other 
recoveries revenue

(206,348)

(13,479)

1,161 

(1,630)

(205,187)

(15,109)

Claims related management expenses reclassified to claims expense

Net claims expense

285,288 

215,701 

1,722 

7,483 

287,010 

223,184 

Service fees charged to discontinued operations**

Underwriting expenses

Includes $4.0m (2022: $2.7m) of depreciation on right-of-use assets. See note 6.3b for further information. 

* 
**  Refer note 8.4 for further detail. 

2023 
$000

85,429 

(9,562)

16,372 

17,327 

5,836 

11,766 

13,128 

3,361 

3,814 

(4,167)

(36,208)

(1,742)

105,354 

2022 
$000

83,615 

(7,557)

14,549 

14,723 

4,762 

10,502 

11,745 

2,894 

3,066 

(6,310)

(36,842)

(3,295)

91,852 

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2.4	 Net	outstanding	claims

a. Composition

Central estimate of future cash flows

Claims handling expense

Risk margin

Gross outstanding claims

Reinsurance recoveries

Net outstanding claims

Net claim payments within 12 months

Net claim payments after 12 months

Net outstanding claims

Recognition	and	measurement

EXC. CANTERBURY EARTHQUAKE

CANTERBURY EARTHQUAKE

2023 
$000

204,552 

11,727 

5,170 

221,449 

(116,827)

104,622 

89,168 

15,454 

104,622 

2022 
$000

89,404 

5,564 

5,051 

100,019 

(10,293)

89,726 

76,422 

13,304 

89,726 

2023 
$000

13,822 

699 

4,627 

19,148 

(2,329)

16,819 

6,896 

9,923 

16,819 

2022 
$000

18,056 

772 

5,684 

24,512 

(3,787)

20,725 

8,497 

12,228 

20,725 

TOTAL

2023 
$000

218,374 

12,426 

9,797 

240,597 

(119,156)

121,441 

96,064 

25,377 

121,441 

2022 
$000

107,460 

6,336 

10,735 

124,531 

(14,080)

110,451 

84,919 

25,532 

110,451 

Gross outstanding claims liability comprises a central estimate of future cash outflows and a risk margin 
for uncertainty. 

The outstanding claims liability is measured at the central estimate of future cash outflows relating to 
claims incurred prior to the reporting date including direct and indirect claims handling costs. The liability 
is measured based on the advice of the Appointed Actuary or on valuations which have been peer 
reviewed by the Appointed Actuary. It is intended to include no deliberate or unconscious bias toward 
over or under-estimation. Given the uncertainty in establishing the liability, it is likely the final outcome 
will differ from the original liability established. Changes in the claim estimates are recognised in profit 
or loss in the reporting period in which the estimates are changed.

The gross outstanding claim liabilities also include a risk margin that relates to the inherent uncertainty 
in the central estimate of the future payments. The risk margin represents the amount by which the 
liability recognised in the financial statements is greater than the actuarial estimate. Tower currently 
applies a 75% probability of adequacy to the outstanding claims liability which means there is a 1-in-4 
chance all future claim payments will exceed the overall reserve held.

In the current and prior years, discounting has been applied to the provision for outstanding claims 
relating to the Canterbury earthquakes, using spot rates derived from government-issued bonds. 
In the current year, discounting has also been applied to the provision for other outstanding claims, 
whereas in the prior year the net impact of discounting on other outstanding claims was considered 
to be immaterial.

Uncertainties surrounding the liability estimation process include those relating to the available data, 
actuarial models and assumptions, the statistical uncertainty associated with the general insurance run-
off process and external risks.

Net outstanding claims liability is calculated by deducting reinsurance and other recoveries from gross 
outstanding claims. Reinsurance and other recoveries on outstanding claims are recognised as income 
with the corresponding asset being recognised on the balance sheet. 

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2.4  Net outstanding claims (continued)

b. Reconciliation of movements in net outstanding claims liability

Balance brought forward

Claims expense - current year

Claims expense - prior year

Incurred claims recognised in profit or loss from continuing operations

Incurred claims recognised in profit or loss from discontinued operations **

Claims paid and reinsurance and other recoveries raised from continuing and discontinued operations

Foreign exchange

Liabilities reclassified as held for sale*

Outstanding claims

*  Refer note 8.4

**  The prior year comparatives have not been represented.

2023
$000

2022
$000

GROSS

REINSURANCE

NET

GROSS

REINSURANCE

NET

124,531 

505,493 

7,807 

492,197 

21,103 

(393,968)

759 

(4,025)

(14,080)

(218,959)

2,198

(205,187)

(11,574)

108,442 

(53)

3,296 

110,451 

286,534 

10,005 

287,010 

9,529 

(285,526)

706 

(729)

240,597 

(119,156)

121,441 

122,338 

248,024 

(5,970)

240,147 

1,907 

(239,706)

1,826 

(1,981)

124,531 

(22,850)

(20,429)

4,491 

(15,243)

(695)

24,604 

(347)

451 

(14,080)

99,488 

227,595 

(1,479)

224,904 

1,212 

(215,102)

1,479 

(1,530)

110,451 

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2.4  Net outstanding claims (continued)

c. Development of claims
The following table shows the development of net outstanding claims relative to the current estimate of ultimate claims costs for the five most recent years.

ULTIMATE CLAIMS COST ESTIMATE

At end of incident year

One year later

Two years later

Three years later

Four years later

Ultimate claims cost

Cumulative payments

Undiscounted net central estimate

Claims handling expense

Risk margin

Discount to present value

Net outstanding claim liabilities

Reinsurance recoveries

Gross outstanding claim liabilities

All amounts in this note exclude discontinued operations, consistent with other profit or loss disclosures.

Prior year numbers have been restated at current year exchange rates to reflect the underlying development of claims.

PRIOR
$000

2019
$000

2020
$000

2021 
$000

2022 
$000

2023
$000

TOTAL 
$000

146,166 

143,154 

142,405 

142,429 

142,464 

142,464 

155,989 

152,577 

151,261 

151,115 

 – 

151,115 

(142,393)

(149,692)

13,898 

71 

1,423 

182,118 

180,651 

182,203 

 – 

 – 

182,203 

(178,881)

3,322 

198,315 

204,941 

 – 

 – 

 – 

263,519 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

204,941 

263,519 

(198,103)

(182,495)

6,838 

81,024 

106,576 

12,426 

9,797 

(7,358)

121,441 

119,156 

240,597 

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2.4  Net outstanding claims (continued)

d. Actuarial information

The estimation of outstanding claims as at 30 September 2023 has been carried out by:

(i)  Geoff Atkins, BA (ActuarDc), FIAA, FIAL, FANZIIF, Appointed Actuary - Canterbury earthquake claims; and
(ii)  John Feyter, B.Sc., FNZSA - all other outstanding claims

The New Zealand actuarial assessments are undertaken in accordance with the standards of the New Zealand 
Society of Actuaries, in particular Professional Standard No. 30 “Valuations of General Insurance Claims”. 
The Actuaries were satisfied as to the nature, sufficiency and accuracy of the data used to determine the 
outstanding claims liability. The outstanding claims liability is set by the Actuaries at a level that is appropriate 
and sustainable to cover the Group’s claims obligations after having regard to the prevailing market 
environment and prudent industry practice.

e. Canterbury earthquakes 

Cumulative impact of Canterbury earthquakes

As at 30 September 2023, Tower has 23 claims remaining to settle (2022: 36) as a result of the earthquakes 
impacting the Canterbury region during 2010 and 2011. The following table presents the cumulative impact 
of the four main Canterbury earthquake events on the consolidated statement of comprehensive income. 

Earthquake claims estimate net of EQC payments

Reinsurance recoveries

Claim expense net of reinsurance recoveries

Reinsurance expense

Cumulative impact of Canterbury earthquakes before tax

Income tax

Cumulative impact of Canterbury earthquakes after tax

Canterbury earthquake impact on profit or loss before tax

Net claims expense 

2023 
$000

954,175 

(732,643)

221,532 

25,045 

246,577 

(69,042)

177,535 

2023 
$000

1,722 

2022 
$000

953,531 

(733,720)

219,811 

25,045 

244,856 

(68,560)

176,296 

2022 
$000

7,483 

f. Critical accounting estimates and judgements

Outstanding claims liability (excluding Canterbury Earthquakes)

The estimation of the outstanding claims liability involves a number of key assumptions. Tower’s estimation 
uses Company-specific data, relevant industry data and general economic data for each major class of 
business. The estimation process factors in a number of considerations including the risks to which the 
business is exposed to at a point in time, claim frequency and severity, historical trends in the development 
of claims as well as legal, social and economic factors that may affect each class of business.

Assumption (before impact of reinsurance)

Expected future claims development proportion

Claims handling expense ratio

Risk margin

Discount rate*

2023

36.1%

5.9%

5.2%

5.7%

2022

20.3%

6.6%

6.0%

N/A

*  Discounting has been allowed on all outstanding claims (2022: only on outstanding claims relating to the Canterbury 

earthquakes). Refer note 2.4a for further details.

Expected future claims development proportion

This is the proportion of additional claims cost that is expected to be recognised in the future for claims that 
have already been reported. The assumption is expressed as a proportion of current case estimates for open 
claims and the resulting amount is recognised in the balance sheet as an outstanding claims liability. 

Claims handling expense ratio 

This reflects the expected cost to administer current open and future claims. The ratio is calculated based on 
historical experience of claims handling costs.

Risk margin 

Risk margins are calculated for outstanding claims in each country separately and a diversification benefit is 
calculated taking into account the uncorrelated effect of random risk. The total risk margin percentage shown 
is calculated on a weighted average basis.

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2.4  Net outstanding claims (continued)

f. Critical accounting estimates and judgements (continued)

g. Sensitivity Analysis

Canterbury Earthquake outstanding claims liability

Assumptions are made for the estimation of outstanding claims related to the Canterbury earthquakes. The 
key assumptions are estimated ultimate costs (including building costs) for settling open claims, and the 
numbers of new overcap claims, litigated claims, re-opened claims and their associated costs. Other elements 
of judgement include the apportionment of claim costs between the four main earthquake events, future claim 
management expenses and assessment of the risk margin.

Assumption

2023

2022

The impact on profit or loss of changes in key assumptions used in the calculation of the outstanding claims 
liabilities is summarised below. Each change has been calculated in isolation from the other variables and is 
stated before income tax.

Outstanding claims excluding Canterbury earthquake 

IMPACT ON PROFIT OR (LOSS)

Number of future new overcap and new litigated claims

 41 

 46 

Expected future claims development

Average cost of new overcap or new litigated claim

 94,000 

114,000 

Provision for re-opened claims

 790,000 

 1,070,000 

Claims handling expense ratio 

Additional portfolio-level provision for incurred but not enough reported

 1,499,000 

 2,355,000 

New overcap and new litigated claims

New overcap claims are typically for properties that have previously been managed by EQC but where damage 
is now assessed as being more extensive than previously thought and there is now an insurance claim payable.

New litigated claims are existing or future new claims that are referred to either the Insurance Tribunal or the 
High Court for resolution. Costs for new litigated claims are assumed to be substantially higher than costs for 
other overcap claims. Only a small number of new litigated claims are now expected.

Provision for re-opened claims

Re-opened claims arise where additional liability arises for additional scope not previously identified or where 
a repair has failed or where another expense is payable for a claim that is currently closed.

Risk margin

Discount rate

Canterbury earthquake outstanding claims

Number of new overcap or new litigated claims

Change in average cost of a new overcap or new 
litigated claim

Number of reopened claims

Change in average cost of a reopened claim

MOVEMENT IN 
ASSUMPTION

 + 10%

 - 10%

 + 10%

 - 10%

 + 10%

 - 10%

 + 1.75%

 - 1.75%

MOVEMENT IN 
ASSUMPTION

 + 35%

- 35%

+ 20%

- 20%

 + 35%

 - 35%

 + 20%

 - 20%

2023 
$000

(2,037)

2,037 

(607)

607 

(517)

517 

609 

(631)

2022 
$000

(1,419)

1,419 

(556)

556 

(505)

505 

–

–

IMPACT ON PROFIT OR (LOSS)

2023 
$000

(1,351)

1,351 

(772)

772 

(277)

277 

(158)

158 

2022 
$000

(1,817)

1,817 

(1,038)

1,038 

(375)

375 

(214)

214 

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2.5		 Unearned	premium	liability

Reconciliation

Opening balance

Premiums written during the year from continuing operations

Premiums earned during the year from continuing operations

Unearned premium movement from continuing operations

Premiums written during the year from discontinued operations

Premiums earned during the year from discontinued operations

Unearned premium movement from discontinued operations

Foreign exchange movements

Liabilities reclassified as held for sale

2023 
$000

 238,116 

 511,484 

(470,813)

40,671

10,313

(9,969)

344

(990)

(5,307)

2022 
$000

 212,275 

 436,593 

(409,601)

26,992

17,042

(17,405)

(363)

3,957

(4,745)

Adequacy of unearned premium liability
Tower undertakes a liability adequacy test (LAT) to determine whether the unearned premium liability is 
sufficient to pay future claims net of reinsurance recoveries. 

If the present value of expected future net cash flows relating to current insurance contracts, plus a risk margin, 
exceeds the unearned premium liabilities less related deferred acquisition costs and intangible assets, then 
the unearned premium liability is deemed deficient. This deficiency is immediately recognised in profit or loss. 
In recognising the deficiency, Tower will first write down any related deferred acquisition costs or intangible 
assets before recognising an unexpired risk liability.

The unearned premium liability as at 30 September 2023 was sufficient for the New Zealand business 
(2022: sufficient). The unearned premium liabilities as at 30 September 2023 for each Pacific entity was 
also sufficient (2022: sufficient).

Central estimate net claims as a % of unearned premium liability

Risk margin as a % of net claims

2023

52.8%

13.3%

2022

45.5%

11.2%

Unearned premium liability from continuing operations

 272,834 

 238,116 

All unearned premiums will be earned in the 12 months after 30 September 2023 and therefore are current 
liabilities. The unearned premium liability is presented net of cancellation provisions. 

Recognition	and	measurement

Unearned premium liability is the portion of premiums written that are yet to be earned in the 
consolidated statement of comprehensive income. It is calculated based on the term of the risk and in 
accordance with the expected pattern of the incidence of risk underwritten using an appropriate pro-
rated method.

Critical accounting estimates and judgements

The LAT is conducted using a central estimate of premium liability adjusted for risk margin and it is 
carried out on an individual country basis. The test is based on prospective information and so is heavily 
dependent on assumptions and judgements.

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2.6	 Deferred	insurance	costs

Reconciliation

Balance brought forward

Costs deferred

Amortisation expense

Foreign exchange movements

Asset reclassified as held for sale

Closing balance

Deferred insurance costs are expected to be amortised within 12 months from reporting date.

Recognition	and	measurement

Acquisition costs comprises costs incurred in obtaining and recording general insurance contracts 
such as advertising expenses, sales expenses and other underwriting expenses. These costs are 
initially capitalised and then expensed in line with the earning pattern of the related premium. Deferred 
acquisition costs at the reporting date represent the acquisition costs related to unearned premium.

Outwards reinsurance expense reflects premiums ceded to reinsurers and is recognised as an expense 
in accordance with the pattern of reinsurance service received. Deferred outwards reinsurance expense 
at the reporting date represents outwards reinsurance expenses related to unearned premium.

DEFERRED ACQUISITION COSTS

DEFERRED	OUTWARDS	 

REINSURANCE EXPENSE

DEFERRED INSURANCE COSTS

2023 
$000

26,542

59,048

(54,617)

(105)

(819)

30,049

2022 
$000

21,116

48,192

(42,765)

247

(248)

26,542

2023 
$000

11,277

15,183

(14,790)

(316)

(1,452)

9,902

2022 
$000

10,851

17,283

(17,073)

1,303

(1,087)

11,277

2023 
$000

37,819

74,231

(69,407)

(421)

(2,271)

39,951

2022 
$000

31,967

65,475

(59,838)

1,550

(1,335)

37,819

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Finance lease receivables

Tower entered into a sub-lease for its previous Auckland premises. The sub-lease is for the remaining non-
cancellable term of the head lease and therefore is classified as a finance lease. The profile of the net receipts 
is illustrated in the table below:

Less than one year

Between one and five years

Total undiscounted finance lease receivable

Unearned finance income

Net investment in the finance lease

2023 
$000

 345 

–

 345 

(1)

 344 

2022 
$000

2,074 

347 

2,421 

(46)

2,375 

2.7		 Receivables

Composition

Gross premium receivables

Provision for expected future premium cancellations

Premium receivable

Reinsurance recoveries*

Canterbury earthquake reinsurance recoveries

Other recoveries

Reinsurance and other recoveries

Finance lease receivables

Prepayments

Other receivables

Receivable from discontinued operations**

Receivables

Receivable within 12 months

Receivable in greater than 12 months

Receivables

 *  Refer note 2.2 for further detail. 

 **  Refer note 8.4 for further detail. 

Recognition	and	measurement

2023 
$000

243,791 

(516)

243,275 

142,961 

2,329 

17,865 

163,155 

344 

5,416 

1,636 

 – 

2022 
$000

200,715 

(651)

200,064 

15,847 

3,787 

11,378 

31,012 

2,375 

4,411 

2,401 

1,826 

413,826 

242,089 

413,826 

–

413,826 

241,742 

347 

242,089 

Receivables (inclusive of GST) are recognised at fair value and are subsequently measured at cost less 
any impairment.

Tower’s premium receivables and reinsurance and other recoveries arise from insurance contracts. These 
receivables are impaired if there is objective evidence that Tower will not be able to collect all amounts 
due according to the original terms of the receivable. 

The remainder of Tower’s receivables are assessed for impairment based on expected credit losses.

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2.8		 Payables

Composition

Trade payables

GST payable

EQC & Fire and Emergency New Zealand levies payable

Reinsurance premium payable

Other

Payable to discontinued operations*

Payables

Payable within 12 months

Payable in greater than 12 months

Payables

 *  Refer note 8.4 for further detail. 

Recognition	and	measurement

2023 
$000

 11,102 

 27,923 

 16,782 

 12,746 

 5,252 

 3,227 

 77,032 

 77,032 

 – 

 77,032 

2022 
$000

14,672 

25,951 

11,583 

3,696 

3,009 

 – 

58,911 

58,911 

 – 

58,911 

Payables are recognised where goods or services that have been received or supplied and have been 
invoiced or formally agreed with the supplier. Payables are stated at the fair value of the consideration to 
be paid in the future inclusive of GST. GST payable represents the net amount payable to the respective 
tax authorities.

2.9		 Provisions

Composition

Annual leave and other employee benefits

Customer remediation*

Provisions

Payable within 12 months

Payable in greater than 12 months

Provisions

2023 
$000

 5,737 

 7,086 

 12,823 

 11,762 

 1,061 

 12,823 

2022 
$000

8,219 

3,654 

11,873 

10,716 

1,157 

11,873 

*   A customer remediation provision of $3.7m was first recognised at 30 September 2022. During the current year, the estimated 
cost of remediation was re-assessed. A range of possible outcomes was considered, and a mid-point of the re-assessment has 
resulted in an additional $8.1m being recognised in the current period, which has been offset by payments made during the 
period. The resulting provision allows for amounts to be repaid to customers and costs associated with any potential regulatory 
action. The remediation activities are likely to be completed during FY24.

Recognition	and	measurement

Tower recognises a provision when it has a present obligation as a result of a past event and it is more 
likely than not that an outflow of resources will be required to settle the obligation. Tower’s provision 
represents the best estimate of the expenditure required to settle the present obligation at the end of 
the reporting period.

2.10	Assets	backing	insurance	liabilities

Tower has determined that all assets within its insurance companies are held to back insurance liabilities, 
with the exception of: (i) property, plant and equipment; (ii) right-of-use assets, (iii) intangible assets, 
(iv) deferred tax; and (v) investments in operating subsidiaries. Assets backing insurance liabilities are 
managed in accordance with approved investment mandate agreements on a fair value basis and are 
reported to the Board on that basis. 

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3	 Investments	and	other	income

Tower invests funds collected as premiums and provided by shareholders to ensure it can meet its 
obligations to pay claims and expenses and to generate a return to support its profitability. Tower has 
a low risk tolerance and therefore the majority of its investments are in investment grade supranational 
and government bonds, and term deposits.

3.1		 Investment	income

Interest income

Net realised gain/(loss)

Net unrealised gain/(loss)

Investment income

Recognition	and	measurement

2023 
$000

12,871 

1,173 

583 

 14,627 

2022 
$000

6,815 

(2,026)

(3,309)

1,480 

Tower’s investment income is primarily made up of realised and unrealised interest income on fixed 
interest investments and fair value gains or losses on its investment assets. Both are recognised in the 
period that they are earned through profit or loss. 

3.2		 Investments

Tower designates its investments at fair value through profit or loss in accordance with its Treasury policy. 
It categorises its investments into three levels based on the inputs available to measure fair value:

Level 1 

Level 2 

 Fair value is calculated using quoted prices in active markets. Tower currently does not have any 
Level 1 investments.

 Investment valuations are based on direct or indirect observable data other than quoted 
prices included in Level 1. Level 2 inputs include: (1) quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities; 
(2) quoted prices for assets or liabilities that are not traded in an active market; or (3) other 
observable market data that can be used for valuation purposes. Tower investments included 
in this category include government and corporate debt, where the market is considered to 
be lacking sufficient depth to be considered active, and part ownership of a property that is 
rented out to staff.

Level 3 

 Investment valuation is based on unobservable market data. Tower currently does not have any 
Level 3 investments.

LEVEL	1 
$000

LEVEL	2 
$000

LEVEL	3 
$000

TOTAL 
$000

As at 30 September 2023

Fixed interest investments

Property investment

Investments

As at 30 September 2022

Fixed interest investments

Property investment

Investments

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

258,764 

34 

258,798 

258,600 

34 

258,634 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

258,764 

34 

258,798 

258,600 

34 

258,634 

There have been no transfers between levels of the fair value hierarchy during the current financial period 
(2022: nil).

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3.2 

Investments (continued)

Recognition	and	measurement

Tower’s investment assets are designated at fair value through profit or loss. Investment assets are 
initially recognised at fair value and are remeasured to fair value through profit or loss at each reporting 
date. Tower’s approach to measuring the fair value of these assets is covered above.

Purchases and sales of investments are recognised at the date which Tower commits to buy or sell 
the assets (i.e. trade date). Investments are derecognised when the rights to receive future cash flows 
from the assets have expired, or have been transferred, and substantially all the risks and rewards of 
ownership have transferred.

3.3	 Other	income

Agency fees*

Gain on disposal of property, plant and equipment

Other

Other income

*  Agency fees include fees received for managing claims on behalf of EQC.

2023 
$000

3,574 

1,243 

910 

 5,727 

2022 
$000

715 

16 

573 

1,304 

4	 Risk	Management

Tower is exposed to multiple risks as it works to set things right for its customers and their communities 
whilst maximising returns for its shareholders. Everyone across the organisation is responsible for 
ensuring that Tower’s risks are managed and controlled on a day-to-day basis.

4.1		 Risk	management	overview

Tower’s approach to achieving effective risk management is to embed a risk-aware culture where everyone 
across the organisation (including contractors and third parties) is responsible for managing risk.

Tower’s Board expresses its appetite for risk in a Risk Appetite Statement, which:

(i)  Gives clear concise guidance to management of parameters for risk taking.

(ii)  Embeds risk management into strategic and decision-making processes.

(iii)  Facilitates risk to be managed at all levels of the organisation through a structured process to identify 

risk, and the allocation of clear, personal responsibility for management of identified risks by assigned risk 
owners.

The Board then approves and adopts: (i) the Risk Management Framework (RMF) which is the central document 
that explains how Tower effectively manages risk within the business; and (ii) the Reinsurance Management 
Strategy (ReMS) which describes the systems, structures, and processes which collectively ensures Tower’s 
reinsurance arrangements and operations are prudently managed. These documents are reviewed and 
approved at least annually by the Board.

The Board has delegated its responsibility to the Risk Committee to provide oversight of risk management 
practices and provide advice to the Board and management when required. In addition, the Risk Committee 
also monitors the effectiveness of Tower’s risk management function which is overseen by the Chief Risk Officer 
(CRO). The CRO provides regular reports to the Risk Committee on the operation of the RMF.

Tower has embedded the RMF with clear accountabilities and risk ownership to ensure that Tower identifies, 
manages, mitigates and reports on all key risks and controls through the three lines of defence model.

(i)  First line: Operational management has ownership, responsibility and accountability for directly identifying, 
assessing, controlling and mitigating key risks which prevent them from achieving business objectives.

(ii)  Second Line: Tower’s Risk, Compliance and Conduct Function is responsible for developing and 

implementing effective risk, compliance and conduct management processes; providing advisory support 
to the first line of defence and constructively challenging operational management and risk and obligation 
owners to ensure positive assurance.

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4.1   Risk management overview (continued)

(iii)  Third line: Internal Audit is responsible and accountable for providing an independent and objective view 
of the adequacy and effectiveness of the Group’s risk management, governance and internal control 
framework. Internal audit, along with other groups such as external audit, report independently to the 
Board and/or the Audit Committee.

The RMF is supported by a suite of policies that address the risks and compliance obligations covered in 
this section.

4.2		 Strategic	risk

Strategic risk is the risk that internal or external factors compromise Tower’s ability to execute its strategy or 
achieve its strategic objectives. Strategic risk is managed through:

(i)  Monitoring and managing performance against Board-approved plan and targets.

(ii)  Board leading an annual strategy and planning process which considers our performance, competitor 

positioning and strategic opportunities.

(iii) 

Identifying and managing emerging risks using established governance processes and forums.

4.3		 Insurance	risk

Insurance risk is the risk that for any class of risk insured, the present value of actual claims payable will exceed 
the present value of actual premium revenues generated (net of reinsurance). This risk is inherent in Tower’s 
operations and arises and manifests through underwriting, insurance concentration and reserving risk.

a.  Underwriting risk

Underwriting risk refers to the risk that claims arising are higher (or lower) than assumed in pricing due to bad 
experience including catastrophes, weakness in controls over underwriting or portfolio management, or claims 
management issues. Tower has established the following key controls to mitigate this risk: 

(i)  Use of comprehensive management information systems and actuarial models to price products based 
on historical claims frequencies and claims severity averages, adjusted for inflation and modelled 
catastrophes, trended forward to recognise anticipated changes in claims patterns after making allowance 
for other costs incurred by the Group.

(ii)  Passing elements of insurance risk to reinsurers. Tower’s Board determines a maximum level of risk to be 

retained by the Group as a whole.

Tower’s reinsurance programme is structured to adequately protect the solvency and capital positions of 
the insurance business. The adequacy of reinsurance cover is modelled by assessing Tower’s exposure 
under a range of scenarios. The plausible scenario that has the most financial significance for Tower 
is a major Wellington earthquake. Each year, as part of setting the coming year’s reinsurance cover, 
comprehensive modelling of the event probability and amount of the Group’s exposure is undertaken.

(iii)  Underwriting limits are in place to enforce appropriate risk selection criteria and pricing with specific 

underwriting authorities that set clear parameters for the business acceptance.

b.  Concentration risk

Concentration risk refers to the risk of underwriting a number of like risks, where the same or similar loss events 
have the potential to produce claims from many of Tower’s customers at the same time. Tower is particularly 
subject to concentration risks in the following variety of forms:

(i)  Geographic concentration risk - Tower purchases a catastrophe reinsurance programme to protect against 

a modelled 1-in-1000 years whole of portfolio catastrophe loss. 

(ii)  Product concentration risk - Tower’s business is weighted towards the NZ general insurance market where its 
risks are concentrated in house insurance (Home & Contents) and motor insurance. Tower limits its exposure 
through proportional reinsurance arrangements, where Tower transfers its exposure on any single insured 
asset (for example, a house) above a set amount, in exchange for ceding portion of the premium to reinsurers.

The table below illustrates the diversity of Tower’s operations.

Gross	written	premium	

2023

2022

Home & Contents

Motor

Commercial

Liability

Workers compensation

Other

Total

NZ

PACIFIC*

TOTAL

NZ

PACIFIC*

TOTAL

51%

38%

1%

0%

0%

1%

91%

3%

3%

3%

0%

0%

0%

9%

54%

41%

4%

0%

0%

1%

100%

52%

35%

1%

1%

0%

1%

90%

3%

3%

4%

0%

0%

0%

55%

38%

5%

1%

0%

1%

10%

100%

*   The Pacific operating segment excludes the disposal groups and the prior year comparatives have been re-presented 

accordingly. 

Tower has limited exposure to long-tail classes (which comprises part of “liability” and “workers compensation”). 
Long-tail classes have increased uncertainty of the ultimate cost of claims due to the additional period of time 
to settlement.

c.  Reserving risk

Reserving risk is managed through the actuarial valuation of insurance liabilities and monitoring of the 
probability of adequacy booked reserves. The valuation of the net central estimate is performed by qualified 
and experienced actuaries. The central estimate is subject to a comprehensive review at least annually.

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4.4		 Credit	risk	

Credit risk is the risk of loss that arises when a counterparty fails to meet their financial obligations to Tower 
in accordance with the agreed terms. Tower’s exposure to credit risk primarily results from transactions with 
security issuers, reinsurers and policyholders and is set out below.

a.  Investment and treasury 

Tower manages its investment and treasury credit risks in line with limits set by the Board: 

(i)  New Zealand cash deposits that are internally managed are limited to banks with a minimum Standard & 

Poor’s (S&P) AA- credit rating.

(ii)  Cash deposits and investments that are managed by external investment managers are limited to 

counterparties with a minimum credit rating equivalent to S&P A- credit rating.

(iii)  Tower holds deposits and invests in Pacific regional investment markets through its Pacific Island 

operations to comply with local statutory requirements and in accordance with Tower investment policies. 
These deposits and investments generally have low credit ratings representing the majority of the value 
included in the ‘Below BBB’ and ‘not rated’ categories in the table below. This includes deposits and 
investments with Australian bank subsidiaries that comprise 45% (2022: 55%) of the ‘not rated’ category.

CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS

FIXED INTEREST INVESTMENTS

TOTAL

2023 
$000

2022 
$000

2023 
$000

2022 
$000

2023 
$000

2022 
$000

AAA

AA

A

BBB

Below BBB

Not rated

Total

 – 

 – 

 104,646 

 119,198 

 104,646 

 47,992 

 66,228 

 – 

 – 

 11,917 

 4,100 

 64,009 

 – 

 – 

 1,614 

 16,660 

 84,502 

 113,971 

 38,137 

 – 

 1,322 

 722 

 110,957 

 161,963 

 24,399 

 38,137 

 – 

 2,009 

 2,071 

 – 

 13,239 

 4,822 

 119,198 

 177,185 

 24,399 

 – 

 3,623 

 18,731 

 258,798 

 258,634 

 322,807 

 343,136 

b.  Reinsurance

Tower manages its reinsurance programme in line with the ReMS. Tower seeks to manage the quantum and 
volatility of insurance risk in order to reduce exposure and overall cost.

Tower’s policy is to only deal with reinsurers with a credit rating of S&P A- or better unless local statutory 
requirements dictate otherwise. Additional requirements of the policy are for no individual reinsurer to have 
more than 25% share of the overall programme and Tower is prohibited from offering inwards reinsurance to 
external entities. The following table provides details on Tower’s exposure to reinsurance recoveries:

REINSURANCE ON:

OUTSTANDING CLAIMS

PAID CLAIMS

TOTAL

2023 
$000

 – 

 61,759 

 57,295 

 9 

 75 

18 

2022 
$000

 – 

 5,830 

 8,319 

 9 

 102 

 220 

2023 
$000

 – 

 15,474 

 10,677 

(1) 

 2 

 4 

2022 
$000

 – 

 2,929 

 2,220 

 – 

 3 

 2 

2023 
$000

 – 

 77,233 

 67,972 

 8 

 77 

22 

2022 
$000

 – 

 8,759 

 10,539 

 9 

 105 

 222 

 119,156 

 14,480 

 26,156 

 5,154 

 145,312 

 19,634 

AAA

AA

A

BBB

Below BBB

Not rated

Total

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4.4   Credit risk (continued)

b.  Reinsurance (continued)

The following table provides further information regarding the ageing of reinsurance recoveries on paid claims 
at the balance date.

 PAST DUE

 NOT DUE 
$000 

 1 MONTH  
$000

 1 TO 2 
MONTHS  
$000

 2 TO 3 
MONTHS 
$000 

 OVER 3 
MONTHS 
$000 

 TOTAL 
$000 

 26,156 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 26,156 

 5,154 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 5,154 

As	at	30	September	2023

Reinsurance recoveries on 
paid claims

As at 30 September 2022

Reinsurance recoveries on 
paid claims

c.  Premium receivable

Tower’s premium receivable balance primarily relates to policies which are paid on either a fortnightly or 
monthly basis. Payment default or policy cancellation - subject to the terms of the policyholder’s contract - 
will result in the termination of the insurance contract eliminating both the credit risk and the insurance risk.

 PAST DUE

 NOT DUE* 
$000 

 1 MONTH 
$000 

 1 TO 2 
MONTHS 
$000 

 2 TO 3 
MONTHS 
$000 

 OVER 3 
MONTHS 
$000 

 TOTAL 
$000

As	at	30	September	2023

Net premium receivable

 237,736 

 4,375 

 270 

 844 

 50 

 243,275 

As at 30 September 2022

Net premium receivable

 192,464 

 5,933 

 1,188 

 384 

 95 

 200,064 

*   This includes premiums that are less than 30 days outstanding (which are owed but not past due) of $4.3m (2022: $4.0m).

4.5		 Market	risk

Market risk is the risk of adverse impacts on investment earnings resulting from changes in market factors. 
Tower’s market risk is predominately as a result of changes in the value of the New Zealand dollar (currency 
risk) and interest rate movements. Tower’s approach to managing market risk is underpinned by its Treasury 
Policy as approved by the Board.

a.  Currency risk

Tower’s currency exposure arises from the translation of foreign operations into Tower’s functional currency 
(currency translation risk) or due to transactions denominated in a currency other than the functional currency 
of a controlled entity (operational currency risk). The currencies giving rise to this risk are primarily the US dollar, 
Fijian dollar and Papua New Guinea (PNG) kina.

Tower’s principal currency risk is currency translation (where currency movements impact equity). Tower 
generally elects not to hedge this risk as it is difficult given the size and nature of the currency markets in the 
Pacific. Tower seeks to minimise its net exposure to foreign operational risk by actively seeking to return surplus 
cash and capital to the parent company.

Operational currency risk impacts profit and generally arises from:

(i)  Procurement of goods and services denominated in foreign currencies. Tower may enter into hedges for 

future transactions, using authorised instruments, provided that the timing and amount of those future 
transactions can be estimated with a reasonable degree of certainty.

(ii) 

Investment assets managed by the external investment manager that are denominated in foreign 
currencies. Tower’s Board set limits for the management of currency risk based on prudent asset 
management practice. Regular reviews are conducted to ensure that these limits are adhered to.

The following table demonstrates the impact of the New Zealand dollar weakening or strengthening 
against the most significant currencies for which Tower has foreign exchange exposure holding all other 
variables constant.

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4.5   Market risk  (continued)

a.  Currency risk (continued)

New Zealand Dollar - USD

Currency strengthens by 10%

Currency weakens by 10%

New Zealand Dollar - Fijian Dollar

Currency strengthens by 10%

Currency weakens by 10%

New Zealand Dollar - PNG Kina

Currency strengthens by 10%

Currency weakens by 10%

DIRECT IMPACT ON  
EQUITY THROUGH CURRENCY 
TRANSLATION RESERVE

IMPACT ON PROFIT OR (LOSS)

2023 
$000

2022 
$000

2023 
$000

2022 
$000

(1,025)

1,253

(887)

1,084

 – 

 – 

(793)

969

(854)

1,044

(629)

769

42

(51)

(74)

91

(805)

984

113

(138)

(74)

90

44

(54)

b.  Interest rate risk

Tower is exposed to interest rate risk through its holdings in interest-bearing assets. Interest-bearing assets 
with a floating interest rate expose Tower to cash flow interest rate risk, whereas fixed interest investments 
expose Tower to fair value interest rate risk.

Tower’s interest rate risk primarily arises from fluctuations in the valuation of fixed-interest investments 
recognised at fair value and from the underwriting of general insurance contracts, which have interest rate 
exposure due to the use of discount rates in calculating the value of insurance liabilities.

Fixed-interest investments are measured at fair value through profit or loss. Movements in interest rates impact 
the fair value of interest-bearing financial assets and therefore impact profit or loss (there is no direct impact on 
equity). The impact of a 1% increase or decrease in interest rates on fixed interest investments is shown below 
(holding everything else constant).

Interest rates increase by 1% 

Interest rates decrease by 1%

IMPACT ON PROFIT OR (LOSS)

2023 
$000

(1,652)

1,726

2022 
$000

(1,617)

1,690

Tower manages its interest rate risk through Board-approved investment management guidelines that give regard 
to policyholder expectations and risks, and to target surplus for solvency as advised by the Appointed Actuary.

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4.6		 Liquidity	risk

a.  Regulatory solvency capital

Liquidity risk arises where liabilities cannot be met as they fall due as a result of insufficient funds and/or 
illiquid asset portfolios. Tower mitigates this risk through maintaining sufficient liquid assets to ensure that 
it can meet all obligations on a timely basis.

Tower is primarily exposed to liquidity risk through its obligations to make payment for claims of unknown 
amounts on unknown dates. Fixed-interest investments can generally be readily sold or exchanged for cash 
to settle claims and are managed in accordance with the policy of broadly matching the overall maturity profile 
to the estimated pattern of claim payments. This is illustrated in the table below: 

NET OUTSTANDING CLAIMS LIABILITY

CASH AND INVESTMENTS

2023 
$000

 – 

 53,220 

 22,629 

 20,214 

 25,378 

 121,441 

2022 
$000

 – 

 45,224 

 20,726 

 18,969 

 25,532 

 110,451 

2023 
$000

 89,909 

 28,682 

 30,231 

 61,661 

 112,324 

 322,807 

2022 
$000

 84,649 

 28,181 

 44,940 

 55,407 

 129,959 

 343,136 

Floating interest rate (at call)

Within 3 months

3 to 6 months

6 to 12 months

After 12 months

Total

4.7		 Capital	management	risk

Capital risk is the risk that capital is insufficient or not of the best form to provide a buffer against losses arising 
from unanticipated events, while also maximising the efficient use of capital with a view to enhancing growth 
and returns, and adding long-term value to Tower’s shareholders.

Tower has a documented description of its capital management process which sets out Tower’s principles, 
approaches, and processes in relation to capital management that enables it to operate at an appropriate level 
of target solvency capital which is within the bounds of Tower’s risk appetite. 

The capital management process allows the Board, management, rating agencies and the regulator to 
understand Tower’s approach to capital management, including requirements for formulating capital targets, 
and monitoring, reporting and remediating capital as required.

The operation of the capital management process is reported annually to the Board together with a forward-
looking estimate of expected capital utilisation and capital resilience. In addition, Tower carries out stress, 
reverse stress and scenario testing to ensure the level of capital is appropriate given its risk appetite.

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) is the prudential regulator and supervisor of all insurers carrying on 
insurance business in New Zealand, and is responsible for administering the Insurance (Prudential Supervision) 
Act 2010. Tower measures the adequacy of capital against the Solvency Standards for Non-life Insurance 
Business published by the RBNZ alongside additional capital held to meet RBNZ minimum requirements and 
any further capital as determined by the Board.

Foreign operations are subject to regulatory oversight in the relevant jurisdiction. It is Tower’s policy to ensure 
that each of the licenced insurers in the Group maintain an adequate capital position within the requirements of 
the relevant regulator.

During the year ended 30 September 2023 the Group complied with all externally imposed capital 
requirements (2022: complied). 

Tower Limited’s Group and Parent solvency margin are illustrated in the table below.

2023 
$000

2022 
$000

PARENT

GROUP

PARENT

GROUP

Actual solvency capital

Minimum solvency capital

Solvency margin*

Solvency ratio

 145,421 

 91,634 

 53,787 

159%

 174,734 

 99,729 

 75,005 

175%

 136,423 

 66,530 

 69,893 

205%

171,647

79,018

92,629

217%

* Tower is required to maintain a solvency margin of at least $15m (2022: $15m), due to a license condition issued by the RBNZ. . 

In October 2020, the RBNZ commenced consultation on a review of the Insurance (Prudential Supervision) Act 
2010. As part of the overall process, the RBNZ issued an exposure draft on an interim solvency standard (ISS) in 
July 2021 which anticipated the introduction of NZ IFRS 17 Insurance Contracts (IFRS 17). The ISS was issued in 
October 2022, amended in June 2023 and RBNZ has been consulting on further changes to the ISS between 
September and November 2023.

Tower will apply the RBNZ’s new ISS from 1 October 2023.  The ISS will impose some changes that will impact 
solvency margins. Due to the ongoing RBNZ consultation, Tower cannot yet determine the final impacts of the 
ISS on solvency margins.

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4.7   Capital management risk (continued)

4.9		 Regulatory	and	compliance	risk

b.  Capital composition

The balance sheet capital mix at reporting date is shown in the table below:

Regulatory and compliance risk is defined as the risk of legal, regulatory or reputational impacts arising 
from failure to manage compliance obligations, or failure to anticipate and prepare for changes in the 
regulatory environment.

2023 
$000

2022 
$000

Tower, via its ERMS, has in place an obligations management framework. The framework provides operational 
and managerial oversight of applicable and relevant regulatory compliance obligations to Tower and supports 
Tower in discharging its obligations under legislation across NZ & the Pacific. 

Total equity attributed to shareholders

 300,265 

 317,528 

Tower engages with regulators and regularly monitors developments in regulatory requirements to support 
ongoing compliance. 

c.  Financial strength rating 

4.10	

Conduct	risk

Tower Limited has an insurer financial strength rating of “A- (Excellent)” and a long-term issuer credit rating of 
“a-” as affirmed by international rating agency AM Best Company Inc. in April 2023.

4.8		 Operational	risk

Operational risk is the risk of loss due to inadequate or failed internal processes or systems, human error or 
from external events.

Tower’s approach is to proactively manage our operational risks to mitigate potential customer detriment, 
regulatory or legal censure, financial and reputational impacts.

Tower has in place appropriate operational processes and systems, including prevention and detection 
measures. These include processes which seek to ensure Tower can absorb and/or adapt to internal or 
external occurrences that could disrupt business operations.

Management and staff are responsible for identifying, assessing, recording and managing operational risks 
in accordance with their roles and responsibilities. Associated controls for identified risks are recorded and 
then actively monitored and managed through our enterprise risk management system (ERMS). Incidents are 
managed by the first line of defence and overseen by the second line of defence, with ongoing reporting to 
management and the Board Risk Committee.

Tower also maintains and regularly updates its Crisis Management, Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery 
Plans to minimise the impact of material incidents or crisis events and to support continuity of critical systems 
and processes.

Conduct risk is defined as the risk that conduct may contribute to poor outcomes for customers. 

Tower manages Conduct risk through a number of measures including undertaking ongoing product reviews 
to ensure products are delivering good customer outcomes, reviewing customer feedback to identify conduct 
trends or issues, completing quality assurance reviews, managing vulnerable customers, holding workshops 
with frontline staff to identify potential conduct issues and embedding and monitoring controls across the 
business to deliver fair customer outcomes.

Tower’s approach to managing conduct risk is set out in its Conduct Governance Framework. The framework 
is a collation of policies, frameworks and processes and ensures there’s robust governance in place to oversee 
Tower’s conduct risk profile including reporting to the Management and Board Committees. 

4.11	 Cyber	risk	

Cyber risk is any risk associated with financial loss, disruption or damage to the reputation of Tower resulting 
from either the failure, or unauthorised or erroneous use of its information systems.

Tower’s approach to Cyber risk is to proactively protect against, monitor for and respond to those cyber threats 
seen to be targeting the organisation. Tower continues to monitor evolving key cyber risks, which are discussed 
and reviewed on a monthly basis through our Management Risk and Conduct Committee and on a quarterly 
basis with the Risk Committee. Risk mitigation is achieved through ongoing investment in Tower’s security 
programme and Tower’s dedicated security function. 

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4.12	 Climate	change	risk

5	 Capital	Structure

Climate change risk is the risk associated with the unpredictable nature and impacts of weather events which 
may increase in frequency and severity over time due to changes in climate.

Tower’s RMF considers environmental and emerging risks, which are regularly reported to the Board. Tower’s 
approach to managing climate change risk includes leading the insurance market by continuing to expand 
our risk-based pricing strategy for climate-related hazards, maintaining a robust reinsurance programme 
to provide protection from volatility in weather events, planning for increasing large events over time in our 
budget process to limit financial impacts, and supporting communities through climate change via product 
development.

We note that in the financial year Tower experienced several catastrophe events which may be linked to 
climate change. January’s Auckland and upper North Island weather event, Cyclone Gabrielle in February, 
Cyclones Judy and Kevin in Vanuatu in March, and the Auckland floods on 9 May had a net impact to Tower of 
$38m, excluding reinsurance reinstatement. Tower’s liabilities include provision for outstanding claims arising 
from these events.

Other than the impact on outstanding claims liabilities, Tower considers that climate change risk does not 
materially impact the valuation of Tower’s assets and liabilities, where these assets or liabilities are expected to 
be realised in one year or less. For non-current assets, Tower has looked to its short-medium term forecasting, 
which implicitly includes allowances for the risk of climate change in forecasts of the severity and frequency 
of future claims, including large events. These forecasts show continued profitability for Tower, which supports 
the carrying value of non-current assets. Accordingly, Tower does not consider that climate change risk has a 
material impact on the assets and liabilities recorded in these financial statements, as at 30 September 2023.

This section provides information about how Tower finances its operations through equity. Tower’s capital 
position provides financial security to its customers, employees and other stakeholders whilst operating 
within the capital requirements set by regulators.

5.1		 Contributed	equity

Opening balance

Return of share capital to shareholders*

Purchase of non-controlling interests**

Share rights issued under Tower Long-Term Incentive Plan ***

Total contributed equity

Represented by:

Opening balance

Cancellation of shares on return of capital

Total shares on issue

2023 
$000

460,191 

 – 

 – 

124 

2022 
$000

492,424 

(30,634)

(1,599)

 – 

460,315 

460,191 

379,483,987 

421,647,258 

 – 

(42,163,271)

379,483,987 

379,483,987 

*   On 9 March 2022 the Group completed its ordinary share buy-back for a consideration of $30.6m (including transaction costs). 

This resulted in 42.2m shares being cancelled during the year ended 30 September 2022.

**   On 14 October 2021 Tower Limited reached an agreement to increase its shareholding in National Pacific Insurance Limited from 
71.39% to 93.88% for a consideration of $3.4m. Tower Limited subsequently carried out a process to acquire the remaining 6.12% 
shareholding which completed on 17 December 2021 for a consideration of $0.9m.

***  Refer note 8.5 for further detail. 

Ordinary shares issued by the Company are classified as equity and are recognised at fair value less direct issue 
costs. All shares rank equally with one vote attached to each share. There is no par value for each share. 

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5.2		 Reserves

5.3		 Net	tangible	assets	per	share

Opening balance

Currency translation differences arising during the year

Foreign currency translation reserve

Opening balance

Revaluation surplus transferred to retained earnings

Asset revaluation reserve

Capital reserve

Separation reserve*

Reserves

2023 
$000

(2,148)

(943)

(3,091)

1,707 

(1,707)

 – 

11,990 

(113,000)

(104,101)

2022 
$000

(6,082)

3,934 

(2,148)

1,707 

 – 

1,707 

11,990 

(113,000)

(101,451)

*  The separation reserve was created in 2007 at the time of the demerger of the New Zealand and Australian businesses in 

accordance with a ruling provided by the Australian Tax Office (ATO). It will be carried forward indefinitely as a non-equity reserve 
to meet the requirements of the ATO.

Recognition	and	measurement

The assets and liabilities of entities whose functional currency is not the New Zealand dollar are 
translated at the exchange rates ruling at balance date. Income and expense items are translated at a 
weighted average of exchange rates over the period approximating spot rates at the transaction dates. 
Exchange rate differences are taken to the foreign currency translation reserve.

Tower’s land and buildings are valued at fair value less accumulated depreciation. Any surplus on 
revaluation of these items is transferred directly to the asset revaluation reserve unless it offsets a 
previous decrease in value recognised in profit or loss in which case it is recognised in the consolidated 
statement of comprehensive income.

Net tangible assets per share

2023 
CENTS

2022 
CENTS

 49 

55

Net tangible assets per share have been calculated using the net assets as per the balance sheet adjusted for 
intangible assets (including goodwill) and deferred tax assets divided by total shares on issue. 

5.4		 Earnings	per	share

Profit from continuing operations attributable to shareholders 
($ thousands)

(Loss)/profit from discontinued operations attributable to shareholders 
($ thousands)

Weighted average number of ordinary shares for basic and diluted 
earnings per share (number of shares)

Basic and diluted earnings per share (cents) for continuing operations

Basic and diluted earnings per share (cents)

2023

2022

2,352 

17,441 

(3,580)

1,362 

379,483,987 

397,851,001 

0.6 

(0.3)

4.4 

4.7 

The basic and diluted average numbers of ordinary shares shown above are used for calculating all earnings 
per share measures including those for profit after tax from discontinued operations (note 8.4).

5.5		 Dividends

Tower’s Board has determined that no interim or final dividend will be paid in respect of the 2023 financial year.

On 1 February 2023, Tower paid a final dividend in respect of the 2022 financial year of 4.0 cents per share 
(2022: a final dividend of 2.5 cents per share was paid in respect of the 2021 financial year and an interim 
dividend was paid in respect of the 2022 financial year of 2.5 cents per share).

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6	 Other	balance	sheet	items

This section provides information about assets and liabilities not included elsewhere.

6.1		 Property,	plant	and	equipment

30 September 2023

Composition:

Cost

Accumulated depreciation

Property, plant and equipment

Reconciliation:

Opening balance

Depreciation

Additions

Disposals

Foreign exchange movements

Assets reclassified as held for sale*

Closing Balance

LAND AND 
BUILDINGS 
$000

OFFICE 
EQUIPMENT & 
FURNITURE 
$000

MOTOR 
VEHICLES 
$000

COMPUTER 
EQUIPMENT 
$000

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

6,052 

(1,929)

4,123 

2,244 

(496)

2,489 

(71)

14 

(57)

4,123 

1,702 

(1,094)

608 

970 

(316)

 – 

 – 

(18)

(28)

608 

3,587 

(2,038)

1,549 

2,203 

(1,102)

480 

(16)

(10)

(6)

TOTAL 
$000

11,341 

(5,061)

6,280 

5,417 

(1,914)

2,969 

(87)

(14)

(91)

*   Assets reclassified as held for sale include the assets of discontinued operations (2022: the Suva building ($4.5m) and assets of 

discontinued operations). Refer to note 8.4.

1,549 

6,280 

30 September 2022

Composition:

Cost

Accumulated depreciation

Property, plant and equipment

Reconciliation:

Opening balance

Depreciation

Additions

Disposals

Foreign exchange movements

Assets reclassified as held for sale*

Closing Balance

LAND AND 
BUILDINGS 
$000

OFFICE 
EQUIPMENT & 
FURNITURE 
$000

MOTOR 
VEHICLES 
$000

COMPUTER 
EQUIPMENT 
$000

 – 

 – 

 – 

4,102 

 – 

 – 

 – 

456 

(4,558)

 – 

4,547 

(2,303)

2,244 

1,968 

(422)

814 

(85)

(23)

(8)

2,244 

1,949 

(979)

970 

769 

(288)

500 

 – 

15 

(26)

970 

5,237 

(3,034)

2,203 

2,535 

(1,577)

1,277 

(4)

(23)

(5)

2,203 

TOTAL 
$000

11,733 

(6,316)

5,417 

9,374 

(2,287)

2,591 

(89)

425 

(4,597)

5,417 

*   Assets reclassified as held for sale include the assets of discontinued operations (2022: the Suva building ($4.5m) and assets of 

discontinued operations). Refer to note 8.4.

Recognition	and	measurement

Property, plant and equipment is initially recorded at cost including transaction costs and subsequently 
measured at cost less any accumulated depreciation and impairment losses.

Depreciation is calculated using the straight line method to allocate the asset’s cost or revalued 
amounts, net of any residual amounts, over their useful lives. The assets’ useful lives are reviewed and 
adjusted if appropriate at each balance date. An asset’s carrying amount is written down immediately to 
its recoverable amount if it is considered that the carrying amount is greater than its recoverable amount.

Furniture & fittings 
Leasehold property improvements 
Motor vehicles 
Computer equipment 

5-9 years
3-12 years
5 years
3-5 years

Land and buildings are shown at fair value, based on periodic valuations by external independent 
appraisers less subsequent depreciation for buildings. Any accumulated depreciation at the date of 
revaluation is eliminated against the gross carrying amount of the asset and the net amount is restated to 
the revalued amount of the asset.

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6.2		 Intangible	assets	

a.  Amounts recognised in the balance sheet

30	September	2023

GOODWILL 
$000

SOFTWARE 
$000

CUSTOMER 
RELATIONSHIPS 
$000 

Composition:

Cost

Accumulated amortisation

Intangible Assets

Reconciliation:

Opening balance

Amortisation

Additions*

Disposals

Transfers to property, 
plant and equipment

Closing Balance

17,744 

 – 

17,744 

17,744 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

17,744 

94,215 

(36,889)

57,326 

53,458 

(11,430)

17,526 

(256)

(1,972)

57,326 

40,645 

(17,191)

23,454 

23,451 

(5,897)

5,900 

 – 

 – 

30 September 2022

GOODWILL 
$000

SOFTWARE 
$000

CUSTOMER 
RELATIONSHIPS 
$000 

TOTAL 
$000

152,604 

(54,080)

98,524 

94,653 

(17,327)

23,426 

(256)

(1,972)

Composition:

Cost

Accumulated amortisation

Intangible Assets

Reconciliation:

Opening balance

Amortisation

Additions **

Disposals

Transfers to property, 
plant and equipment

17,744 

 – 

17,744 

17,744 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

79,259 

(25,801)

53,458 

48,527 

(9,764)

16,934 

(184)

(2,055)

53,458

34,745 

(11,294)

23,451 

22,321 

(4,959)

6,089 

 – 

 – 

23,451

TOTAL 
$000

131,748 

(37,095)

94,653 

88,592 

(14,723)

23,023 

(184)

(2,055)

94,653

*   During the year ended 30 September 2023, additions to software assets primarily related to continued investment in Tower’s 

core insurance platform, while additions to customer relationships related to the acquisition of Kiwibank’s rights and obligations 
relating to servicing a portfolio of insurance policies underwritten by Tower. 

** 

In the year ended 30 September 2022, additions to software assets primarily related to continued investment in Tower’s core 
insurance platform, while additions to customer relationships related to the acquisition of Westpac’s and TSB Bank’s rights 
and obligations relating to servicing the insurance polices of two further groups of customers already underwritten by Tower. 
The amounts capitalised includes the price paid and associated acquisition/migration costs. The assets will be amortised over 
10 years (for other customer relationships), with the pattern of amortisation being aligned with expected net cashflow benefits 
over this period.

23,454 

98,524 

Closing Balance

17,744

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6.2   Intangible assets (continued)

a.  Amounts recognised in the balance sheet (continued)

Recognition	and	measurement

Intangible assets are assets without physical substance. They are recognised as an asset if they are 
controlled by Tower and if it is probable that expected future economic benefits attributable to the asset 
will flow to Tower and that costs can be measured reliably.

Application software and customer relationships are recorded at cost less accumulated amortisation and 
impairment. Application software is amortised on a straight line basis over the estimated useful life of 
the software. Customer relationships are amortised over the estimated useful life in accordance with the 
pattern of economic benefit consumption. 

Internally generated intangible assets are recorded at cost which comprise all directly attributable costs 
necessary to create, produce and prepare the asset to be capable of operating in the manner intended 
by management. Amortisation of internally generated intangible assets begins when the asset is 
available for use and is amortised on a straight line basis over the estimated useful life.

The useful lives for each category of intangible assets with a finite life are as follows:

- 

- 

 capitalised software: 3-5 years for general use computer software and 3-10 years for core operating 
system software

customer relationships: 5-10 years

Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) arrangements are service contracts providing Tower with the right to 
access a cloud provider’s application software over a stated time period. Costs the Group incurs to 
configure, customise and maintain access to providers’ application software are recognised as operating 
expenses when incurred and in accordance with contracted terms.

Goodwill (i.e. assets with an indefinite useful life) generated as a result of business acquisition is initially 
measured as the excess of the purchase consideration over the fair value of the net identifiable assets 
and liabilities acquired. Goodwill is not subject to amortisation but is tested for impairment annually or 
more frequently where there are indicators of impairment.

Critical accounting estimates and judgements 

The customer relationships asset predominantly consists of customer relationship assets with a useful 
life equivalent to the customer base’s expected lifespan of ten years with the exception of one asset 
(acquired in 2021) with an additional non-compete component that has a contracted useful life of 
five years.

Where applicable the estimated capitalised cost related to the customer relationships asset has been 
apportioned between the two asset components by valuing the non-compete at the differential in net 
present value of the asset from improved customer retention over the non-compete period, pro-rated 
over the full asset value. 

b.  Impairment testing

An impairment charge is recognised in profit or loss when the carrying value of the asset, or cash-generating 
unit (CGU), exceeds the calculated recoverable amount.

(i)  Software and customer relationships
Software and customer relationships are reviewed at each reporting date by determining whether there is an 
indication that the carrying values may be impaired. If an indication exists, the asset is tested for impairment. 
A loss is recognised for the amount by which the carrying value exceeds the asset’s recoverable value.

There were no indications of impairment during the year and therefore these assets were not tested for 
impairment (2022: no indications).

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6.2   Intangible assets (continued)

b.  Impairment testing (continued)

6.3		 Leases

a.  Amounts recognised in the balance sheet

Critical accounting estimates and judgements 

The recoverable amount for software and customer relationships is determined by reference to a value 
in use calculation based on (i) cash flow forecasts that combine past experience with future expectations 
based on prevailing and anticipated market factors; and (ii) a discount rate that appropriately reflects the 
time value of money and the specific risks associated with the assets. 

Value-in-use calculations involve the use of accounting estimates and assumptions to determine 
the projected net cash flows, which are discounted using an appropriate discount rate to reflect 
current market assessment of the risks associated with the assets. An impairment charge for capitalised 
software is incurred where there is evidence that the economic performance of the asset is not as 
intended by management. Customer relationships represent the present value of future benefits 
expected to arise from existing customer relationships. The assumptions for the useful life are based 
on historical information. 

(i)  Right-of-use assets

30 September 2023

Composition:

Cost

Accumulated depreciation

Right-of-use assets

Reconciliation:

Opening balance

Depreciation

Additions

Disposals

Revaluations

(ii)  Goodwill
Goodwill is deemed to have an indefinite useful life and is tested annually for impairment or more frequently 
where there is an indication that the carrying value may not be recoverable.

Net foreign exchange movements

Assets reclassified as held for sale

Right-of-use assets

Goodwill is allocated to cash generating units (CGUs) based on the expected synergies arising from the 
acquisition giving rise to goodwill. Tower’s goodwill is allocated to the New Zealand general insurance CGU.

Tower undertook an annual impairment review and no loss has been recognised in 2023 as a result (2022: nil).

Critical accounting estimates and judgements 

The recoverable amount of the New Zealand general insurance business is assessed by determining 
its value in use by discounting the future cash flows generated from the continuing use of the CGU . 
A discount rate of 13.1% was used in the calculation (2022: 14.5%). The cash flows are based on Board-
approved management plans and forecasted profits for FY24 - FY26 (2022: FY23 - FY25). The projected 
cash flows are determined based on past performance and management’s expectations for market 
developments with a terminal growth rate of 2.5% (2022: 3%). 

The overall valuation is sensitive to a range of assumptions including management’s forecasted profits, 
the discount rate and the terminal growth rate. Reasonable changes to these assumptions will not result 
in an impairment.

30 September 2022

Composition:

Cost

Accumulated depreciation

Right-of-use assets

Reconciliation:

Opening balance

Depreciation

Additions

Disposals

Revaluations

Net foreign exchange movements

Assets reclassified as held for sale

Right-of-use assets

OFFICE SPACE  
$000

MOTOR VEHICLES 
$000

30,267 

(7,063)

23,204 

23,326 

(4,209)

4,162 

 – 

(204)

239 

(110)

23,204 

26,977 

(3,651)

23,326 

25,569 

(2,702)

438 

(37)

968 

(347)

(563)

23,326 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

8 

(3)

 – 

(5)

 – 

 – 

 – 

 – 

TOTAL  
$000

30,267 

(7,063)

23,204 

23,326 

(4,209)

4,162 

 – 

(204)

239 

(110)

23,204 

26,977 

(3,651)

23,326 

25,577 

(2,705)

438 

(42)

968 

(347)

(563)

23,326 

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6.3   Leases (continued)

a.   Amounts recognised in the balance sheet (continued)

Recognition	and	measurement

Right-of-use	assets are recognised when Tower has the right to use the corresponding assets. Right-
of-use assets are measured at cost comprising the initial measurement of the lease liability adjusted for 
any lease payments made at or before the commencement date less any lease incentives received; and 
indirect costs; and restoration costs. Right-of-use assets are generally depreciated over the shorter of the 
asset’s useful life and the lease term on a straight line basis. 

(ii)  Lease liabilities

Composition:

Current

Non-current

Lease liabilities

Due within 1 year

Due within 1 to 2 years

Due within 2 to 5 years

Due after 5 years

Discount

Lease liabilities

2023 
$000

2022 
$000

5,477 

27,138 

32,615 

5,477 

5,921 

12,483 

11,865 

(3,131)

32,615 

6,237 

28,817 

35,054 

6,237 

4,440 

11,990 

15,876 

(3,489)

35,054 

Recognition	and	measurement

Lease liabilities are recognised at the date Tower has the right to use the corresponding asset. 
Lease liabilities are initially measured as the present value of expected lease payments under lease 
arrangements. Lease liability will include any option to extend where it is reasonably certain that the 
option will be exercised. The lease payments are discounted using the incremental borrowing rate as 
the interest rate in the lease cannot be readily determined. The incremental borrowing rate is the rate 
of interest that Tower would have to pay to borrow over a similar term, and with a similar security, the 
funds necessary to obtain an asset of a similar value to the right-of-use asset in a similar economic 
environment. Tower’s incremental borrowing rate is based on bonds issued by financial institutions 
with similar credit rating and maturity profile. Incremental borrowing rates used during the year ranged 
between 1.9% and 5.9% (2022: between 1.9% and 5.0%). 

Subsequent repayments are split between principal and interest cost where the finance cost represents 
the time value of money and is charged to the profit or loss over the lease period. The discount rate 
applied is unchanged from that applied at the initial recognition of the lease, unless there are material 
changes to the lease.  

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6.3   Leases (continued)

7	 Tax

b.  Amounts recognised in the consolidated statement of comprehensive income

This section provides information on Tower’s tax expense during the year and its position at balance date.

CLASSIFICATION

Depreciation and impairment

Underwriting expense

Interest expense

Gain on disposal

Lease expense

Finance costs

Other Income

2023 
$000

(4,027)

(920)

–

(4,947)

2022 
$000

(2,518)

(890)

5 

(3,403)

All amounts in this note exclude discontinued operations, consistent with other profit or loss disclosures.

c.  Amounts recognised in the consolidated statement of cash flows

7.1		 Tax	expense

Composition

Current tax 

Deferred tax

Adjustments in respect of prior years

Tax expense

Total cash outflow for lease principal payments for continuing operations

(6,845)

(5,852)

2023 
$000

2022 
$000

Tax expense from continuing operations

Tax (benefit)/expense from discontinued operations

Reconciliation	of	prima	facie	tax	to	income	tax	expense

Profit before tax from continuing operations

(Loss)/profit before tax from discontinued operations

Profit before taxation 

Prima facie tax expense at 28% (2022: 28%)

Adjustments in respect of prior years

Tax effect of non-deductible expenses and non-taxable 
income

Foreign tax credits written off

Other

Tax expense

2023 
$000

1,459 

546 

1,153 

3,158 

5,085 

(1,927)

2023 
$000

7,437 

(5,507)

1,930 

540 

1,153 

679 

492 

294 

3,158 

2022 
$000

1,159 

6,593 

292 

8,044 

7,483 

561 

2022 
$000

24,976 

1,923 

26,899 

7,532 

293 

(732)

371 

580 

8,044 

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7.1  Tax expense (continued)

Recognition	and	measurement

Tax	expense is calculated on the basis of the applicable tax rates that have been enacted or 
substantively enacted at the end of the reporting period in the jurisdictions Tower operates in. There 
have been no tax rate changes during the year in these jurisdictions. Current tax expense relates to tax 
payable for the current financial reporting period while deferred tax will be payable in future periods. 

7.2		 Current	tax

a.  Current tax asset

Excess tax payments related to prior periods*

Excess tax payments related to current period**

Current tax assets

2023 
$000

12,038 

879 

12,917 

2022 
$000

12,038 

1,031 

13,069 

7.3		 Deferred	tax	

a.  Deferred tax asset

Composition

Tax losses recognised

Software, property, plant and equipment

Leases

Provisions and accruals

Recognised in profit or loss

Impact through other comprehensive income

Recognised in comprehensive profit or loss

Set-off of deferred tax liabilities pursuant to NZ IAS 12

Deferred tax asset

Deferred tax asset from continuing operations

Deferred tax asset from discontinued operations

*  Expected to be recovered from 2025 as per the Board-approved operational plan for 2024 to 2026.

**  Excess tax payment made in the Pacific Islands during the reporting period.

Reconciliation of movements

b.  Current tax liability

The current tax liability balance of $198k (2022: $136k) relates to taxes payable to offshore tax authorities in the 
Pacific Islands.

Opening balance

Movements recognised in profit or loss

Deferred tax asset pre NZ IAS 12 set off

Recognition	and	measurement

Overpayment of tax in the current and prior periods is recognised as a current tax asset. Current tax 
assets are measured at the amount expected to be recovered from the taxation authorities, using the tax 
rates and tax laws that have been enacted or substantively enacted by the end of the reporting period.

2023 
$000

29,411 

181 

501 

3,206 

33,299 

 – 

33,299 

(18,276)

15,023 

14,971 

52 

2023 
$000

31,315 

1,984 

33,299 

2022 
$000

23,716 

1,989 

352 

5,258 

31,315 

 – 

31,315 

(7,278)

24,037 

23,893 

144 

2022 
$000

31,488 

(173)

31,315 

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7.3   Deferred tax (continued)

b.  Deferred tax liability

Composition

Deferred acquisition costs

Customer relationships

Software, property, plant and equipment

Other*

Recognised in profit or loss

Asset revaluation

Recognised in comprehensive profit or loss

Set-off of deferred tax liabilities pursuant to NZ IAS 12

Deferred tax liability

*   Primarily relates to deferred tax items in the Pacific islands.

Reconciliation of movements

Opening balance

Movements recognised in other comprehensive income

Movements recognised in profit or loss

Deferred tax liability pre NZ IAS 12 set off

2023 
$000

(7,829)

(5,001)

(5,447)

(47)

(18,324)

–

(18,324)

18,276 

(48)

2023 
$000

(16,084)

290 

(2,530)

(18,324)

2022 
$000

(7,016)

(4,412)

(4,163)

(203)

(15,794)

(290)

(16,084)

7,278 

(8,806)

2022 
$000

(9,813)

148 

(6,419)

(16,084)

Recognition	and	measurement

Deferred	tax is income tax which is expected to be payable or recoverable in the future as a result of 
the unwinding of temporary differences. These arise from differences in the recognition of assets and 
liabilities for financial reporting and from the filing of income tax returns. Deferred tax is recognised on all 
temporary differences, other than those arising from (i) goodwill or (ii) from the initial recognition of assets 
and liabilities in a transaction (other than in a business combination) that affects neither the accounting 
nor taxable profit or loss.

At the reporting date, the Group has recognised a deferred tax asset in respect of its unused tax losses of 
$105.0m (2022: $84.7m). 

Deferred tax is calculated at the tax rates that are expected to apply to the year when the liability is 
settled or the asset realised, based on tax rates and tax laws that have been enacted or substantively 
enacted at balance date.

Deferred tax assets and liabilities are offset when there is a legally enforceable right to set off current 
tax assets against current tax liabilities and when they relate to income taxes levied by the same taxation 
authority and the Group intends to settle its current tax assets and liabilities on a net basis. 

Critical accounting estimates and judgements 

Deferred tax assets are recognised for all unused tax losses to the extent it is probable that taxable 
profits will be available against which the losses can be utilised. Significant management judgement 
is required to determine the amount of deferred tax assets that can be recognised based on the likely 
timing and quantum of future taxable profits. Management expects the tax losses to be utilised within the 
foreseeable future.

This assessment is completed on the basis of Board-approved management plans and forecasted 
profits for Tower Limited and subsidiaries. Tower’s ability to utilise these tax losses depends on the future 
profitability, shareholder continuity and no major change in Tower’s business. The enactment of the new 
business continuity test in the Income Tax Act 2007 on 30 March 2021 for carrying forward tax losses 
means that Tower is able to carry forward its tax losses even if there is a significant shareholding change, 
as long as the business continuity test is met.

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7.4		 Imputation	credits

8	 Other	information

The Group imputation credit account reflects the imputation credits held by the Company as the representative 
member of the Group.

This section includes additional disclosures which are required by financial reporting standards.

Imputation credits available for use in subsequent reporting periods

2023 
$000

271

2022 
$000

271

8.1		 Notes	to	the	consolidated	statement	of	cash	flow

Composition

Cash at bank

Deposits at call*

Cash and cash equivalents

2023 
$000

42,068 

21,941 

64,009 

2022 
$000

54,422 

30,080 

84,502 

*  The average interest rate at 30 September 2023 for deposits at call is 4.65% (2022: 2.89%).

Tower operates in countries in the Pacific Islands that are subject to foreign exchange restrictions, which may 
restrict the ability for immediate use of cash by the parent or other subsidiaries. As at 30 September 2023, this 
included NZD 8.9m held in Papua New Guinea following the sale of the disposal group (2022: nil). This cash is 
not currently available for use by the Group.

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8.1   Notes to the consolidated statement of cash flow (continued)

8.2		 Related	party	disclosures

Reconciliation	of	profit	for	the	year	to	cash	flows	 
from	operating	activities

Note

2023 
$000

2022 
$000

Tower considers key management personnel to consist of the Board of Directors, Chief Executive Officer and 
executive leadership team. Information regarding individual director and executive compensation is provided in 
the Corporate Governance section of the annual report.

(Loss)/profit after taxation

Adjusted for non-cash items

Depreciation of property, plant and equipment

Depreciation and disposals of right-of-use assets

Amortisation of intangible assets

Financing costs

Fair value (gains)/losses on financial assets

Change in deferred tax

Adjusted for investing activities

Gain on disposal of property, plant and equipment

Gain on disposal of discontinued operation

Impairment loss recognised for disposal group

Adjusted for movements in working capital 

Change in receivables

Change in payables

Change in taxation

6.1

6.3

6.2

8.4

8.4

Net cash inflow from operating activities

Net cash inflow from operating activities from continuing operations

Net cash outflow from operating activities from discontinued operations

(1,228)

18,855 

1,914 

4,209 

17,327 

928 

(1,757)

125 

(1,243)

(2,165)

563 

(184,698)

174,860 

1,128 

9,963 

25,107 

(15,144)

2,287 

2,518 

14,723 

909 

5,337 

6,466 

(16)

 – 

 – 

(30,574)

39,661 

(382)

59,784 

64,200 

(4,416)

Salaries and other short term employee benefits

Long term benefits

Termination benefits

Director fees

2023 
$000

5,511 

536 

–

613 

2022 
$000

4,466 

773 

748 

676 

Related party remuneration

 6,660 

6,663 

Tower insurance products are available to all key management personnel on the same terms as available to 
other employees. In addition, Tower purchases indemnity insurance for all directors both past and present 
covering liabilities and legal expenses incurred whilst in office.

The Board has decided to implement a share-based long-term incentive plan with effect from 7 December 
2022. Refer note 8.5.

During the year ended 30 September 2022, Tower Limited acquired the minority shareholding of National 
Pacific Insurance Limited. Refer note 5.1.

Definition

Key	management	personnel are those persons having authority and responsibility for planning, directing 
and controlling the activities of the entity, directly or indirectly, including any director (whether executive 
or otherwise) of that entity.

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8.3		 Auditor’s	remuneration

8.4		 Assets	and	liabilities	held	for	sale

Audit of financial statements*

Other assurance services**

Total fees paid to Group's auditors

Fees paid to subsidiaries' auditors different to Group auditors:

Audit of financial statements***

Auditors remuneration

2023 
$000

2022 
$000

748

67

815

15

830

612

63

675

16

691

*   Audit of financial statements includes fees for both the audit of annual financial statements and the review of the interim financial 
statements. PwC Fiji performs the audits of all overseas incorporated subsidiaries with the support of PwC New Zealand and 
other PwC network firms. $125k is paid to other PwC network firms (non New Zealand) for their audit services.

**   Other assurance services includes annual solvency return assurance and Pacific Island regulatory return audits. The other 
assurance services for the year ended 30 September 2022 were completed during the year ended 30 September 2023.

***  The audit of Tower Insurance (Vanuatu) Limited was performed by Law Partners (2022: Law Partners).

Assets and liabilities held for sale includes the Suva building and discontinued operations.

On 28 October 2022 Tower completed the sale of all of its shares in its Papua New Guinea subsidiary to Alpha 
Insurance Limited for a sale price of PGK 22 million. The activities of the subsidiary have been reported in 
the current period, and as at 30 September 2022, as a discontinued operation. Financial information on this 
disposal is set out below.

Details of the sale of the subsidiary

Cash and cash equivalents

Investments

Receivables

Current tax assets

Deferred tax assets

Deferred insurance costs

Right-of-use assets

Property, plant and equipment

Total assets at the date of disposal

Payables

Unearned premiums

Outstanding claims

Lease liabilities

Provisions

Total liabilities at the date of disposal

Net assets at the date of disposal

Cash consideration received net of disposal costs

Gain on sale before reclassification of foreign currency translation reserve

Reclassification of foreign currency translation reserve

Gain on sale 

28-OCT-22 
$000

7,070 

2,120 

2,670 

379 

130 

1,290 

452 

36 

 14,147 

254 

4,490 

1,878 

493 

53 

 7,168 

 6,979 

9,688 

 2,709 

(544)

2,165 

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8.4   Assets and liabilities held for sale (continued)

The comparatives presented in the table below include the assets and liabilities of the Papua New Guinea 
subsidiary and the Suva building. 

On 31 January 2023, Tower completed the sale of its building in Suva, for FJD 8.2 million plus VAT 
(gross of costs relating to the sale).

Assets and liabilities classified as held for sale

Details	of	the	sale	of	the	Suva	building	(before	taxation)

Cash consideration received net of disposal costs

Net book value at the date of disposal

Gain on sale of the Suva building*

Revaluation surplus transferred to retained earnings

31-JAN-23 
$000

 5,746 

4,558 

 1,188 

1,707 

* 

Included in Other income within Consolidated statement of comprehensive income. 

Select operations in Pacific where Tower has begun the process to divest its operations are classified as 
discontinued operations and are classified as held for sale as at 30 September 2023.

On 3 July 2023 Tower announced the conditional sale of its Solomon Islands business to Trans Pacific 
Assurance Limited for the sale price of around SBD 17m, subject to adjustment at the completion date for 
the sale.

At 30 September 2023, Tower was also committed to a plan to sell its Vanuatu subsidiary and was going 
through the process of locating a buyer.

All transactions are expected to be completed within a year from the reporting date.

Assets classified as held for sale

Cash and cash equivalents

Investments

Receivables**

Current tax assets

Deferred tax assets

Deferred insurance costs

Right-of-use assets

Property, plant and equipment*

Total assets classified as held for sale

Liabilities classified as held for sale

Payables**

Unearned premiums

Outstanding claims

Lease liabilities

Provisions

Total liabilities classified as held for sale

Net assets classified as held for sale

2023 
$000

1,302 

820 

8,945 

147 

52 

2,230 

110 

91 

2022 
$000

7,796 

3,580 

2,565 

315 

144 

1,335 

479 

4,597 

13,697 

 20,811 

160 

5,307 

4,025 

154 

119 

9,765 

3,932 

1,965 

4,745 

1,981 

519 

48 

 9,258 

 11,553

*   Property, plant and equipment disclosed above includes the Suva building carrying value of $4.5m. 

**   As at 30 September 2023, other members of the Tower Group owed disposal groups $3.2m (2022: disposal groups owed other 
members of the Tower Group $1.8m). The assets and liabilities from discontinued operations disclosed above are stated without 
adjustment for these intercompany transactions.

The currency translation reserve in relation to the discontinued operations as at 30 September 2023 was nil 
(2022: $2.7m).

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8.4   Assets and liabilities held for sale (continued)

Profit from discontinued operations

Gross written premium

Unearned premium movement

Gross earned premium 

Outward reinsurance premium

Movement in deferred reinsurance premium

Outward reinsurance premium expense *

Net earned premium

Claims expense

Less: Reinsurance and other recoveries revenue

Net claims expense **

Gross commission expense

Commission revenue

Net commission expense

Underwriting expense *

Underwriting (loss)/profit

Investment income

Other income

Financing and other costs

Gain on sale of the subsidiary

Impairment loss recognised for disposal group

(Loss)/profit before taxation from discontinued operations

Tax benefit/(expense)

(Loss)/profit after taxation from discontinued operations

2023 
$000

 10,313 

(344)

 9,969 

(4,438)

(25)

(4,463)

5,506 

(21,102)

11,573 

(9,529)

(986)

434 

(552)

(2,610)

(7,185)

20 

64 

(8)

2,165 

(563)

(5,507)

1,927 

(3,580)

2022 
$000

17,042 

363 

17,405 

(7,175)

(59)

(7,234)

 10,171 

(3,761)

829 

(2,932)

(1,172)

668 

(504)

(4,927)

 1,808 

68 

66 

(19)

 – 

 – 

 1,923 

(561)

 1,362 

*   Disposal groups paid fees to other members of the Tower Group of $2.6m during the financial year ended 30 September 2023 
(2022: $4.5m), relating to the provision of reinsurance, management and other services. These amounts are included within the 
reinsurance premium expense and underwriting expense lines above, and are then eliminated within continuing operations.

**   Claims expense includes $7.1m of expense incurred by the parent company under an internal reinsurance treaty with its 

Vanuatu subsidiary.

Earning	per	share

2023

2022

Basic and diluted earnings per share (cents) for discontinued operations

(0.9)

 0.3 

The currency translation differences recognised in other comprehensive income during the year ended 
30 September 2023 in relation to the discontinued operations, including reclassification adjustment, 
were nil  (2022: $1.8m).

8.5	 Tower	Long-Term	Incentive	Plan

The Group has introduced a long-term incentive plan during the year, which is intended to align the interests of 
management and shareholders. 

Recognition	and	measurement

The Tower Long-Term Incentive Plan is considered to be an equity settled scheme under NZ IFRS 2 
Share-based Payments and the vesting conditions for the scheme include both service and performance 
conditions.

The costs associated with this plan are measured at fair value at grant date and are recognised as an 
expense in profit or loss over the vesting period, with a corresponding entry to a reserve in equity. The 
estimate of the number of rights for which the service conditions are expected to be satisfied is revised 
at each reporting date, with any cumulative catch-up adjustment recognised in profit or loss in the period 
that the change in estimate occurred. Any rights not vested after the expiry date are cancelled.

The plan provides selected eligible employees with Restricted Share Rights (RSR’s), which ‘vest’ over a three-
year period, during which participants must remain employed by the Group and performance conditions must 
be met as follows.

Share Rights vest if Tower’s Total Shareholder Return (TSR) sits at or above the 50th percentile of the NZX 50 
index ranked by TSR over the same period:

(i)  Where the company TSR equals the 50th percentile TSR of the index companies over the performance 

period, 50% of the share rights will vest.

(ii)  Where the company TSR equals or exceeds the 75th percentile TSR of the index companies over the 

performance period, 100% of the share rights will vest.

(iii)  Where the company TSR over the performance period exceeds the 50th percentile TSR of the index 

companies but does not reach the 75th percentile, then between 50% and 100% of the share rights will 
vest as determined on a straight line progression basis.

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8.5   Tower Long-Term Incentive Plan (continued)

8.6	 Contingent	liabilities

During the year the following movements of rights to shares occurred in accordance with the rules of the plan:

Claims and disputes

2023

NUMBER OF SHARE 
RIGHTS	(RSR’S)

The Group is occasionally subject to claims and disputes as a commercial outcome of conducting insurance 
business. Provisions are recorded for these claims or disputes when it is probable that an outflow of resources 
will be required to settle any obligations. Best estimates are included within claims reserves for any litigation 
that has arisen in the usual course of business. 

Share Rights outstanding at the beginning of the period

Share Rights granted during the period

Share Rights forfeited during the period

Share Rights vested and settled during the period

Share Rights outstanding at the end of the period

 – 

1,946,557 

 – 

 – 

1,946,557 

The Group has no other contingent liabilities.

8.7	 Subsequent	events

On 20 November 2023 Tower announced that it will no longer offer insurance for commercial farms, which 
comprised $8.9m of Gross Written Premiums in FY23. Insurance policies for commercial farms will be 
progressively lapsed as their terms expire, over a 12 month period from 1 February 2024.

The weighted average remaining contractual life for share rights outstanding under the plan is 2.2 years.

The assessed fair value of the rights granted during the year was 23 cents. This was calculated using a Monte 
Carlo share price simulation model by Deloitte Limited. The significant inputs into the model for rights granted 
during the period are in the table below:

8.8	 Capital	commitments

As at 30 September 2023, Tower has nil capital commitments (2022: nil).

Assumptions

Share price at grant date (cents)

10 Day VWAP (cents)

Exercise Price

Option life

Risk-free rate

Expected volatility

2023

70

70

Nil

3 years

4.36%

23%

The expected price volatility is based on annualised price volatility for the four years prior to the grant date.

The total share-based payment expense during the year was $124k. 

There were no liabilities arising from share-based payment transactions at reporting date. The plan allows 
participants to request a PAYE Election, under which they may ask Tower to make payment to the IRD to settle 
their PAYE liability subject to Tower being reimbursed by the participant. Tower is not required to accept any 
participant’s request for a PAYE Election. Tower has not entered into any agreed PAYE Election arrangements 
during the year.

8.9	

	Impact	of	new	accounting	standards	and	changes	in	interpretation	
of	current	accounting	standards

New	accounting	standards

No new accounting standards were implemented during the year with a material effect on Tower.

Issued and not yet effective

The only new or revised accounting standard that is expected to have a material impact on Tower’s financial 
statements is IFRS 17.  Other new or revised accounting standards that will be mandatory in future financial 
years are not expected to have a material impact.

IFRS 17 replaces the current guidance in NZ IFRS 4 Insurance Contracts (IFRS 4), and establishes principles for 
the recognition, measurement, presentation and disclosure of insurance contracts. The standard introduces 
substantial changes in the presentation of financial statements and disclosures, introducing new balance sheet 
and income statement line items and increased disclosure requirements compared with existing reporting. 

IFRS 17 is effective for periods beginning on or after 1 January 2023. Tower will apply the standard for the 
year ending 30 September 2024, with a restated comparative period for the year ended 30 September 2023.  
Tower expects to apply the standard using the full retrospective approach for all groups of insurance and 
reinsurance contracts.

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8.9 

 Impact of new accounting standards and changes in interpretation 
of current accounting standards (continued)

Measurement model

Insurance acquisition cash flows

IFRS 17 contains three new measurement models. The general model measures insurance contracts based on 
the fulfilment cash flows (the present value of estimated future cash flows with an explicit risk adjustment for 
non-financial risk) and the contractual service margin (the unearned profit that will be recognised as services 
are provided over the coverage period). A modified version of the general model (the variable fee approach) 
is applied to insurance contracts with direct participation features, and a simplified measurement model (the 
premium allocation approach, or PAA) is permitted in certain circumstances. The PAA is similar to the current 
measurement model used for general insurance. Tower will measure all its current insurance contracts and 
reinsurance contracts using the PAA measurement model.

Under the PAA, insurance and reinsurance contracts will be aggregated together into portfolios based on the 
contracts having similar risks and being managed together, and then divided into groups based on the expected 
profitability of contracts and the periods in which the contracts are written. Insurance contracts and reinsurance 
contracts are measured separately. Under the aggregation requirements, the identification and measurement of 
contracts that are expected to be loss making will be performed at a lower granularity than the liability adequacy 
test under current accounting standards, with any loss component recognised on initial recognition.

IFRS 17 allows a choice between expensing acquisition costs related to the fulfilment cash flows immediately, 
or deferring them. Tower will defer acquisition costs and amortise them over the coverage period of the related 
insurance contracts.

Presentation and disclosure

IFRS 17 also introduces significant changes to the presentation of insurance contracts. Assets and liabilities 
related to portfolios of insurance contracts and reinsurance contracts will be shown separately on the balance 
sheet, replacing current insurance-related lines such as premium receivables, deferred insurance costs and 
unearned premiums. In the consolidated statement of comprehensive income, Tower will present income and 
expenses related to insurance contracts gross of reinsurance, which will be disclosed separately.

In addition, finance income or expense associated with insurance contracts will not be included in insurance 
service result, and will be recognised separately as insurance finance income expense. IFRS 17 permits entities 
to recognise a component of finance expense in either profit or loss or other comprehensive Income. Tower 
intends to recognise all components of finance income or expense in profit or loss.

Discounting

Transition

IFRS 17 makes changes to the way that discount rates are applied to future cash flows, with discount rates 
required to reflect the time value of money, the characteristics of the cash flows and the liquidity characteristics 
of the insurance contracts. Tower has determined that it will not discount insurance liabilities for remaining 
coverage (LRC), as the time between the provision of services and when premiums are received is not 
expected to exceed one year. The coverage period for reinsurance assets for remaining coverage (ARC) are 
expected to exceed one year, however Tower has determined it will not discount ARC as there is no significant 
financing component. Insurance and reinsurance assets and liabilities for incurred claims will be discounted to 
reflect the time value of money. Tower expects to apply the bottom-up approach in determining the discount 
rate, whereby a risk-free yield curve is adjusted through the addition of an illiquidity premium.

Risk adjustment

IFRS 17 requires a risk adjustment for non-financial risk to be applied to reflect the compensation an entity 
requires for bearing uncertainty about the amount and timing of cash flows. This differs from the risk margin 
used under IFRS 4, which reflects the inherent uncertainty in the central estimate of future claims cash 
flows. Tower is developing its framework for determining the risk adjustment and is considering a cost of 
capital approach for the calculation of assets and liabilities for incurred claims. 

Tower has a programme to assess the impact of adopting IFRS 17 and to project manage the transition to 
the new standard including system development. Tower has substantially completed all transition tasks 
which include finalising accounting policy under IFRS 17, systems development work, and adapting business 
processes to meet reporting requirements under IFRS 17.

IFRS 17 is not expected to change the underlying economics or cash flows of Tower’s business, although it 
may impact how profit emerges on a year-to-year basis, and it will change the presentation in the financial 
statements. Tower is currently in the process of assessing the financial impact of retrospectively applying the 
transition provisions in IFRS 17.

Work is currently being undertaken to develop checks, evidence and audit trails to have reasonable assurance 
over the accuracy of the initial period of application impact on the Tower’s consolidated financial statements. 
Based on assessments undertaken to date, the impact is not expected to be material.

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Independent	auditor’s	report

To the shareholders of Tower Limited

Our opinion

In our opinion, the accompanying consolidated financial statements of Tower Limited (the 
Company), including its subsidiaries (the Group), present fairly, in all material respects, the 
financial position of the Group as at 30 September 2023, its financial performance and its cash 
flows for the year then ended in accordance with New Zealand Equivalents to International 
Financial Reporting Standards (NZ IFRS) and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). 

What	we	have	audited

The Group’s consolidated financial statements comprise:

•  the consolidated balance sheet as at 30 September 2023;

•  the consolidated statement of comprehensive income for the year then ended;

•  the consolidated statement of changes in equity for the year then ended;

•  the consolidated statement of cash flows for the year then ended; and

•  the notes to the consolidated financial statements, which include significant accounting 

policies and other explanatory information.

Basis for opinion

We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (New Zealand) 
(ISAs (NZ)) and International Standards on Auditing (ISAs). Our responsibilities under those 
standards are further described in the Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the consolidated 
financial statements section of our report. 

We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a 
basis for our opinion. 

Independence

We are independent of the Group in accordance with Professional and Ethical Standard 1 
International Code of Ethics for Assurance Practitioners (including International Independence 
Standards) (New Zealand) (PES 1) issued by the New Zealand Auditing and Assurance Standards 
Board and the International Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (including International 
Independence Standards) issued by the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants 
(IESBA Code), and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these 
requirements. 

Our firm carries out other assurance services for the Group over solvency and regulatory 
insurance returns. In addition, certain partners and employees of our firm may deal with the 
Group on normal terms within the ordinary course of trading activities of the Group. The provision 
of these other services and relationships have not impaired our independence as auditor of the 
Group. 

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Independent auditor’s report (continued)

Key audit matters

Key audit matters are those matters that, in our professional judgement, were of most significance in our audit of the consolidated financial statements of the current year. These matters were 
addressed in the context of our audit of the consolidated financial statements as a whole, and in forming our opinion thereon, and we do not provide a separate opinion on these matters.

Description	of	the	key	audit	matter

How	our	audit	addressed	the	key	audit	matter

Valuation	of	outstanding	claims	(2023:	$240,597,000,	2022:	$124,531,000)

Claims data is a key input to the actuarial estimates. Accordingly, we:

We considered the valuation of outstanding claims a key audit matter as it involves an 
estimation process combined with significant judgements and assumptions, made by 
management, to estimate future cash outflows to settle claims. Outstanding claims have 
increased this year due to the large weather events experienced in Auckland and the Upper 
North Island and Cyclone Gabrielle.

The outstanding claims liability includes a central estimate of the future cash outflows 
relating to claims incurred, as at and prior to the reporting date, and the expected costs of 
handling those claims. There is uncertainty over the amount that reported claims and claims 
incurred at the reporting date but not yet reported to the Group will ultimately be settled 
at. The estimation process relies on the quality of underlying claims data and the use of 
informed estimates to determine the quantum of the ultimate loss.

Key actuarial assumptions applied in the valuation of outstanding claims (excluding 
Canterbury earthquakes) include:

•  expected future claims development proportion; 

•  claims handling expense ratios; and

•  discount rate.

Outstanding claims in relation to the Canterbury earthquakes also have a unique degree 
of uncertainty and judgement. This mainly arises due to the uncertainty as to further 
deterioration of open known claims, Earthquake Commission reporting of new claims to 
the Group which have gone over the $100,000 statutory liability cap (over cap claims), new 
litigation claims, reopening of closed claims and expected claims costs for open claims.

Changes in assumptions can lead to significant movements in the outstanding claims liability.

The outstanding claims liability includes a risk margin that allows for the inherent uncertainty 
in the central estimate of future claim cash outflows. In determining the risk margin, the 
Group makes judgements about the volatility of each class of business written and the 
correlation between different geographical locations.

Refer to note 2.4 to the consolidated financial statements.

•  evaluated the design effectiveness and tested controls over claims processing;

•  assessed a sample of claim case estimates at the year end to check that they were supported 

by an appropriate management assessment and documentation, and classified appropriately to 
relevant claim type;

•  assessed, on a sample basis, the accuracy of previous claim case estimates by comparing to the 
actual amount settled during the year and assessed the changes in the claim case estimate to 
determine whether such change was based on new information available during the year;

•  inspected a sample of claims paid during the year to confirm that they were supported by 

appropriate documentation and approved within delegated authority limits; and

•  tested the integrity of data used in the actuarial models by agreeing relevant model inputs, such as 

claims data, to source, on a sample basis.

Together with our actuarial experts, we:

•  considered the work and findings of the actuaries engaged by Tower;

•  evaluated the actuarial models and methodologies used, and any changes to them, by comparing 

with generally accepted models and methodologies applied in the sector;

•  assessed key actuarial judgements and assumptions and challenged them by comparing with 
our expectations based on Tower’s experience, our own sector knowledge and independently 
observable industry trends (where applicable);

•  tested on a sample basis, the underlying calculations in certain valuation models including the 

application of discounting; 

•  assessed the risk margin by comparing to known industry practice. In particular we focused on the 
assessed level of uncertainty in the central estimate and the inherent uncertainty in the remaining 
Canterbury earthquake claims and consistency of the risk margin with prior periods; and

•  reviewed disclosures in the financial statements for compliance with accounting standards.

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Independent auditor’s report (continued)

Description	of	the	key	audit	matter

How	our	audit	addressed	the	key	audit	matter

Valuation	of	reinsurance	recoveries	on	outstanding	claims	(2023:	$119,156,000,	
2022:	$14,080,000)

In addition to our audit procedures undertaken to assess the valuation of outstanding claims, 
we performed the following procedures:

The valuation of reinsurance recoveries on outstanding claims is a key audit matter as a 
significant reinsurance asset has been recognised in respect of the recent Auckland and 
Upper North Island weather event, as well as Cyclone Gabrielle. 

Reinsurance recoveries have an implicit dependence on the estimate of gross outstanding 
claims, which involve a high degree of management judgement and estimation uncertainty. 

The Group has multiple reinsurance arrangements and allocating the claims to relevant 
reinsurance treaties is dependent on the accuracy of underlying claims data. 

Refer to notes 2.2, 2.4 and 2.7 to the consolidated financial statements.

•  read material reinsurance agreements in place to understand the terms and conditions;

•  assessed, on a sample basis, the appropriateness of outstanding claims classification, used for 

the calculation of reinsurance recoveries;

•  tested the completeness of the claims data used in the reinsurance calculations by comparing 

it to the outstanding claims population;

•  recalculated, on sample basis, reinsurance recoveries; 

•  validated progress payments received from reinsurers in respect of the Auckland and Upper 

North Island weather event and Cyclone Gabrielle to bank; and  

•  assessed the recoverability of balances owed by reinsurers by considering their credit worthiness 
and capital strength, payment history including ageing of receivables, and considered whether 
there were any indicators of dispute.

Recoverability	of	the	deferred	tax	asset	arising	from	tax	losses	(2023:	$29,411,000,	
2022:	$23,716,000)

In considering the recoverability of the deferred tax asset arising from tax losses we performed the 
following procedures:

The majority of the Group’s deferred tax asset arises from tax losses. We considered 
recoverability of the deferred tax asset a key audit matter because utilisation of the asset is 
sensitive to the Group’s expected future profitability and sufficient continuity of the ultimate 
shareholders or business continuity.

Management judgement is involved in forecasting the timing and quantum of future taxable 
profits, which are inherently uncertain, and whether it is probable the tax losses will be 
utilised in the foreseeable future.

Refer to note 7.3 to the consolidated financial statements.

•  compared the previous management budget with actual results to assess the reliability of 

management’s forecasting;

•  considered the reasonableness of the assumptions in the year ending 30 September 2024 board 

approved operational plan on the forecast utilisation of tax losses;

•  assessed the Group’s ability to maintain sufficient continuity of the ultimate shareholders or to 
meet the business continuity test and therefore its entitlement to offset the tax losses against 
future taxable profits; and

•  determined whether it was probable (more likely than not) that the tax losses would be utilised in 

the foreseeable future.

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Independent auditor’s report (continued)

Our audit approach

Overview

Materiality

Group scoping

Key audit 
matters

Overall group materiality: $5.1 million, which represents approximately 1% 
of gross written premium from continuing and discontinued operations.

We chose gross written premium as the benchmark because, in our view, 
it is the benchmark against which the performance of the Group is most 
commonly measured by users, and is a generally accepted benchmark 
for insurance companies.

A full scope audit was performed for the Company based on its financial 
significance to the Group. Specified audit procedures were performed 
on financial statement line items of certain subsidiaries and analytical 
review procedures were performed on remaining Group entities.

As reported above, we have three key audit matters, being:

• Valuation of outstanding claims 

• Valuation of reinsurance recoveries on outstanding claims

• Recoverability of the deferred tax asset arising from tax losses

As part of designing our audit, we determined materiality and assessed the risks of material 
misstatement in the consolidated financial statements. In particular, we considered where 
management made subjective judgements; for example, in respect of significant accounting 
estimates that involved making assumptions and considering future events that are inherently 
uncertain. As in all of our audits, we also addressed the risk of management override of internal 
controls, including among other matters, consideration of whether there was evidence of bias 
that represented a risk of material misstatement due to fraud.

Materiality

The scope of our audit was influenced by our application of materiality. An audit is designed 
to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the consolidated financial statements are free 
from material misstatement. Misstatements may arise due to fraud or error. They are considered 
material if, individually or in aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the 

economic decisions of users taken on the basis of the consolidated financial statements. 

Based on our professional judgement, we determined certain quantitative thresholds for 
materiality, including the overall Group materiality for the consolidated financial statements as a 
whole as set out above. These, together with qualitative considerations, helped us to determine 
the scope of our audit, the nature, timing and extent of our audit procedures and to evaluate 
the effect of misstatements, both individually and in aggregate, on the consolidated financial 
statements as a whole.

How	we	tailored	our	group	audit	scope	

We tailored the scope of our audit in order to perform sufficient work to enable us to provide an 
opinion on the consolidated financial statements as a whole, taking into account the structure of 
the Group, the accounting processes and controls, and the industry in which the Group operates.

Other information

The Directors are responsible for the other information. The other information comprises the 
information included in the annual report, but does not include the consolidated financial 
statements and our auditor’s report thereon. 

Our opinion on the consolidated financial statements does not cover the other information and 
we do not express any form of audit opinion or assurance conclusion thereon. 

In connection with our audit of the consolidated financial statements, our responsibility is to 
read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially 
inconsistent with the consolidated financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the audit, 
or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If, based on the work we have performed on 
the other information that we obtained prior to the date of this auditor’s report, we conclude that 
there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact. We 
have nothing to report in this regard. 

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Independent auditor’s report (continued)

Responsibilities of the Directors for the consolidated financial statements 

Who	we	report	to

The Directors are responsible, on behalf of the Company, for the preparation and fair presentation 
of the consolidated financial statements in accordance with NZ IFRS and IFRS, and for such 
internal control as the Directors determine is necessary to enable the preparation of consolidated 
financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error. 

In preparing the consolidated financial statements, the Directors are responsible for assessing the 
Group’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going 
concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the Directors either intend to 
liquidate the Group or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so. 

Auditor’s	responsibilities	for	the	audit	of	the	consolidated	
financial statements 

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the consolidated financial 
statements, as a whole, are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and 
to issue an auditor’s report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of 
assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (NZ) and ISAs 
will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or 
error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be 
expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these consolidated 
financial statements. 

A further description of our responsibilities for the audit of the consolidated financial statements is 
located at the External Reporting Board’s website at:

https://www.xrb.govt.nz/assurance-standards/auditors-responsibilities/audit-report-1/

This description forms part of our auditor’s report. 

This report is made solely to the Company’s shareholders, as a body. Our audit work has been 
undertaken so that we might state those matters which we are required to state to them in an 
auditor’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept 
or assume responsibility to anyone other than the Company and the Company’s shareholders, as 
a body, for our audit work, for this report or for the opinions we have formed.

The engagement partner on the audit resulting in this independent auditor’s report is 
Karen Shires. 

For and on behalf of:

Chartered Accountants 
23 November 2023

Auckland

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Appointed Actuary’s report

23 November 2023

The Directors
Tower Limited
136 Fanshawe Street
Auckland 1010

Dear Directors

Review	of	Actuarial	Information	contained	in	the	financial	statements

As required by Section 78 of IPSA the Appointed Actuary, Geoff Atkins of Finity Consulting, 
has reviewed the actuarial information contained in, or used in the preparation of, the financial 
statements at 30 September 2023. Geoff Atkins and Finity have no relationship with or interest 
in Tower other than being a provider of actuarial services.

I prepared the actuarial valuation of liabilities remaining from the Canterbury Earthquakes and 
reviewed the actuarial valuations of insurance liabilities for the New Zealand business and the 
Pacific Islands businesses. I reviewed the other actuarial information as specified by IPSA in 
Section 77, including the solvency calculations for the financial statements.  

No limitations were placed on me in performing the review and all data and information 
requested was provided.

Nothing has come to my attention that would lead me to believe that any of the actuarial 
information contained in, or used in the preparation of, the financial statements is not appropriate.

In my opinion the company has maintained a solvency margin in excess of the minimum required 
as at 30 September 2023.

The report is being provided for the sole use of Tower for the purpose state above. It is not 
intended, nor necessarily suitable, for any other purpose and should only be relied on for the 
purpose for which it is intended.

Yours sincerely 

Geoff Atkins (Appointed Actuary)
Fellow of the New Zealand Society 
of Actuaries

Anagha Pasche
Fellow of the New Zealand 
Society of Actuaries

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CORPORATE 
GOVERNANCE 
AT TOWER

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This section of the Annual Report provides an overview 
of the corporate governance principles, policies and 
processes adopted and followed by Tower’s Board (Board) 
during the year ending 30 September 2023 (FY23).

Statutory disclosures

Diversity

Gender Diversity

For the reporting period to 30 September 2023, the Board considers that Tower’s 
corporate governance practices have materially adhered to the NZX Corporate 
Governance Code (NZX Code). Further information about the extent to which Tower has 
complied with each of the NZX Code recommendations is set out in Tower’s corporate 
governance statement, available on Tower’s website at tower.co.nz/investor-centre.

The below table provides a quantitative breakdown as to the gender composition of 
Tower’s Directors and Officers, and other employee groups as at 30 September 2023, 
compared to 30 September 2022, including subsidiaries. The Executive Leadership 
team includes the Chief Executive Officer and those employees who report directly 
to the Chief Executive Officer. The Senior Leadership Team refers to employees in 
remuneration band 8 and above. Total company figures exclude the Board of Directors, 
and include permanent and fixed term employees, and the employees of Tower’s Pacific 
Island subsidiaries:

GROUP

Board of Directors

Males

Females

Gender Diverse

Executive Leadership team 

Males

Females

Gender Diverse

Senior Leadership 

Males

Females

Gender Diverse

Employees

Males

Females

Gender Diverse

Total company 

Males

Females

Gender Diverse

Total employees

30 SEPTEMBER 2023

30 SEPTEMBER 2022

% GROUP

NUMBER

% GROUP

NUMBER

80%

20%

0%

70%

30%

0%

57%

43%

0%

35%

64%

1%

36% 

62% 

1%

4

1

0

7

3

0

23

17

0

281

513

6

311

533

6

850

80%

20%

0%

88%

12%

63%

37%

38%

62%

39%

61%

4

1

0

7

1

27

16

268

446

302

463

765

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Evaluation from the Board on Tower’s performance with respect 
to diversity and inclusion 

Tower has a diversity and inclusion policy, focussing on:

•  Gender diversity

•  Age and career progression

•  Ethnicity and Pacific and Māori inclusion 

•  LGBTIQ+ identification and inclusion

•  Accessibility 

In FY23, Tower has: 

•  provided ongoing training and education to raise employee awareness of diversity 

and inclusion initiatives and associated benefits

•  maintained merit-based recruitment and selection, development and talent 

management approaches that encourage and support diversity and inclusion 
at all levels

•  created and maintained a flexible and inclusive work environment that values 

difference and enhances business outcomes

•  monitored and maintained focus on the diversity of our workforce at senior levels 

•  embedded leadership behaviours that support its belief in the value of diversity 

and inclusion 

•  promoted workforce involvement in employee representative groups

Board and Committee Composition 

During FY23 the Board comprised the following members:

Michael Stiassny (Chair)

Graham Stuart

Marcus Nagel

Geraldine McBride (from 1 October 2023)

Blair Turnbull (from 29 March 2023 - 17 November 2023)

Warren Lee (until 30 November 2022)

Wendy Thorpe (until 29 March 2023)

Director Independence

The Board has determined, based on information provided by directors regarding 
their interests, and criteria for independence benchmarked against the RBNZ and NZX 
independence requirements, that as at 30 September 2023 Mr Stiassny, Mr Stuart, 
and Ms McBride were independent. The Board determined that Mr Nagel was not 
independent due to his relationship with Tower’s largest shareholder. 

Mr Turnbull is an executive director and is not a member of any of the Board Committees.

Board Committees

During FY23 the Board had the following Committees:

Audit Committee

Members:  Graham Stuart (Chair), Michael Stiassny, Warren Lee (until 30 November 
2022), Wendy Thorpe (until 29 March 2023), Marcus Nagel and Geraldine McBride 
(from 1 October 2022).

Risk Committee

Members:  Wendy Thorpe (Chair) (until 29 March 2023), Michael Stiassny, Graham Stuart, 
Marcus Nagel. Warren Lee (until 30 November 2022) and Geraldine McBride (from 1 
October 2022) (Acting Chair from 29 March 2023).

Remuneration and Appointments Committee

Members:  Michael Stiassny (Chair), Graham Stuart), Warren Lee (until 30 November 
2022), Wendy Thorpe (until 29 March 2023), Marcus Nagel and Geraldine McBride 
(from 1 October 2022).

Other Committees

Tower’s Board may establish Sub-Committees from time to time. In 2023, a Results 
Sub-Committee was convened on two occasions.

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Board and Committee meeting attendance

Director attendance at Board and Committee meetings held from 1 October 2022 
to 30 September 2023 is set out below:

Remuneration

Director Remuneration 

BOARD

AUDIT  
COMMITTEE

RISK 
COMMITTEE

REMUNERATION  
AND APPOINTMENTS 
COMMITTEE

RESULTS SUB-
COMMITTEE

Meetings held 

Michael Stiassny 

Graham Stuart

Warren Lee  
(until 30 November 2022)

Wendy Thorpe   
(until 29 March 2023)

Marcus Nagel

Geraldine McBride

Blair Turnbull

12

12

12

1

4

11

12

6

3

3

3

1

1

3

3

–

4

4

4

1

2

4

4

–

4

4

4

–

2

4

4

–

2

2

2

–

–

–

–

–

All members of the executive leadership team have a standing invitation to attend all 
Board meetings, although they do not always attend the entire meeting. 

The Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Risk Officer and General 
Counsel & Company Secretary attend all Audit Committee and Risk Committee 
meetings by standing invitation. 

The Chief Executive Officer, Chief Administrative Officer and General Counsel & 
Company Secretary attend all meetings of the Remuneration and Appointment 
Committee by standing invitation.

The General Counsel & Company Secretary is responsible for taking accurate minutes 
of each meeting and ensuring that Board procedures are observed. 

The Board’s approach is to remunerate directors in a manner which is fair and 
reasonable in a competitive market, having regard to the skills, knowledge and 
experience required. At the Annual Shareholders’ Meeting in February 2004 
shareholders approved a maximum payment of NZ$900,000 per annum for 
director fees.

Tower seeks external advice when reviewing Board remuneration. The Remuneration 
and Appointments Committee is responsible for assisting directors with the review 
of directors’ fees. Remuneration is considered through the lens of the Director and 
Executive Remuneration Policy to ensure that directors and executives are remunerated 
in a fair and reasonable manner, and that such remuneration is transparently 
communicated to relevant stakeholders.

Annual fees as approved by the Board with effect from 1 October 2020 are:

TOWER LIMITED BOARD/COMMITTEE FEES

Base fee – Board of directors

Audit Committee

Risk Committee

CHAIR (NZ$)

180,000

MEMBER (NZ$)

100,000

10,000

(included in base Director fee)

10,000

(included in base Director fee)

Remuneration and Appointments Committee

–

–

The total remuneration received by each director for the year ended 30 September 
2023 is set out below (NZ$, and exclusive of GST, if any):

REMUNERATION AND BENEFITS RECEIVED BY TOWER LIMITED DIRECTORS  
IN THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2023 (NZD)

Michael Stiassny

Graham Stuart

Warren Lee (retired 30 November 2022)

Wendy Thorpe (retired 29 March 2023)

Geraldine McBride

Marcus Nagel 

180,000

110,000 

16,667

55,000

100,000

100,000

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REMUNERATION AND BENEFITS RECEIVED BY TOWER SUBSIDIARY DIRECTORS  
IN THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2023

Employee remuneration

Isikeli Tikoduadua, Director Tower Insurance (Fiji) Limited 
and Tower Group Services (Fiji) Pte Limited

Barry Whiteside, Director Tower Insurance (Fiji) Limited

Ernie Gangloff, Director Tower Insurance (PNG) Limited 
(retired 28 October 2022)

18,000 Fijian Dollars

20,000 Fijian Dollars 

$16,198.63 Kina

The table below sets out the number of employees or former employees of Tower 
(excluding directors and former directors and employees of Tower’s subsidiaries) 
who received remuneration and other benefits valued at or exceeding $100,000 
received during the financial years ended 30 September 2023 and 2022. 
Remuneration includes base salary, superannuation contributions, performance 
payments and redundancy or other termination payments. The remuneration bands 
are expressed in New Zealand Dollars:

Directors of Tower Limited and its subsidiaries are reimbursed for out of pocket 
expenses incurred in the course of their activities as directors, including travel and other 
expenses. As these expenses are not in the nature of remuneration or benefits, they are 
not listed here.

No employee of Tower Limited or its subsidiaries who acts as a director of a subsidiary 
receives any remuneration for their role as a director of that subsidiary. The number 
of employees who receive remuneration of more than $100,000 is included in the 
remuneration table on this page. Auditor fees paid on behalf of Tower and its subsidiaries 
are disclosed in the financial statements.

CEO and senior executive remuneration

The Board’s approach to remunerating the Chief Executive Officer and other key 
executives is to provide market based remuneration packages comprising a blend 
of fixed and variable remuneration, with clear links between individual and company 
performance, and reward. This approach is intended to encourage Tower’s executives 
to meet Tower’s short and long term objectives. The Remuneration and Appointments 
Committee reviews the remuneration packages of the Chief Executive Officer and the 
Chief Executive Officer’s direct reports at least annually. 

The Chief Executive Officer, Mr Blair Turnbull, is remunerated through a combination 
of a base salary of $657,588, (exclusive of a 3% Kiwisaver contribution) and variable 
performance incentives including a Short Term Incentive (STI) and a Long Term Incentive 
(LTI). The maximum STI is currently $328,944 per annum based on meeting key financial 
and non-financial and operational performance measures. The maximum LTI per annum 
is currently $986,832 (total) should Tower deliver Total Shareholder Return performance 
relative to the performance of companies within the NZX50 index. 

In FY23, Mr Turnbull was not awarded a STI or LTI payment. Mr Turnbull also received 
939,840 unvested share rights pursuant to a long term incentive plan, details of which 
are included in the Corporate Governance Statement.

FROM

TO

2023

2022

FROM

TO

2023

2022

100,000

109,999

110,000

119,999

120,000

129,999

130,000

139,999

140,000

149,999

150,000

159,999

160,000

169,999

170,000

179,999

180,000

189,999

190,000

199,999

200,000

209,999

210,000

219,999

220,000

229,999

230,000

239,999

240,000

249,999

250,000

259,999

260,000

269,999

270,000

279,999

280,000

289,999

290,000

299,999

300,000

309,999

26

24

34

25

15

26

11

4

6

3

6

5

3

6

3

1

0

2

3

0

1

23

33

23

27

18

9

5

11

11

3

1

2

1

1

1

3

2

0

3

1

1

310,000

319,999

320,000

329,999

330,000

339,999

340,000

349,999

350,000

359,999

360,000

369,999

370,000

379,999

430,000

439,999

440,000

449,999

460,000

469,999

470,000

479,999

490,000

499,999

530,000

539,999

610,000

619,999

670,000

679,999

700,000

709,999

850,000

859,999

2

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

0

1

1

1

1

0

1

1

1

0

0

0

0

1

1

0

1

1

1

0

0

0

1

0

1

0

Total

220

186

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Security Holder Information

Substantial product holders (as at 30 September 2023) 

The names and holdings of Tower’s substantial product holders based on notices filed 
with Tower under the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013 as at 30 September 2023 are:

NAME

TOTAL ORDINARY SHARES

Bain Capital Credit LP, Bain Capital Investments (Europe) Limited and Dent 
Issuer Designated Activity Company

Salt Funds Management Limited

Accident Compensation Corporation

New Zealand Funds Management Limited on behalf of itself and its wholly 
owned subsidiary New Zealand Funds Superannuation Limited

Pacific International Insurance Pty Limited

67,464,858

30,479,743

36,239,113

26,615,216

22,072,615

These totals may differ from the shareholdings described in other sections on this report.

Largest shareholders (as at 30 September 2023)

The names and holdings of the 20 largest registered Tower shareholders as at 
30 September 2023 were:

UNITS

% UNITS

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

Dent Issuer Designated Activity Company

75,896,447

Citibank Nominees (New Zealand) Limited - NZCSD 

47,507,398

Accident Compensation Corporation - NZCSD 

Pacific International Insurance Pty Limited

Lennon Holdings Limited

BNP Paribas Nominees (NZ) Limited - NZCSD 

Masfen Securities Limited

HSBC Nominees (New Zealand) Limited - NZCSD 

JBWere (NZ) Nominees Limited 

34,040,321

22,072,615

16,200,000

13,858,232

13,430,197

11,714,723

7,921,421

10. HSBC Nominees (New Zealand) Limited A/C State Street - NZCSD 

7,758,895



11.

Investment Custodial Services Limited 

12.

Public Trust - NZCSD 

13.

14.

JP Morgan Chase Bank NA NZ Branch-Segregated Clients ACCT - 
NZCSD 

Tea Custodians Limited Client Property Trust Account - NZCSD 


15. BNP Paribas Nominees (NZ) Limited - NZCSD

5,415,647

4,725,000

3,778,374

2,988,997

2,536,016

16. New Zealand Depository Nominee Limited 

2,185,275

17. Hobson Wealth Custodian Limited 

1,920,963

18. HSBC Nominees A/C NZ Superannuation Fund Nominees Limited - 

1,660,618

NZCSD 

20. FNZ Custodians Limited

Totals: top 20 holders of ordinary shares 

Total remaining holders balance

1,623,315

1,493,545

278,727,999

100,755,988

20.00

12.52

8.97

5.82

4.27

3.65

3.54

3.09

2.09

2.04

1.43

1.25

1.00

0.79

0.67

0.58

0.51

0.44

0.43

0.39

73.45

26.55

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Securities held by Directors

Total voting securities

At 30 September 2023, directors, or entities related to them held relevant interests (as 
defined in the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013) in Tower Limited shares as follows:

Ordinary shares

DIRECTOR

Wongaling Pty Limited: (Geraldine McBride)

Marcus Nagel

Michael Stiassny

Graham Stuart

Blair Turnbull (retired 17 November 2023)

Director trading in Tower securities

BENEFICIAL

5,477

62

624,897

202,500

253,030

Tower’s constitution requires that its directors hold shares in the company. On 27 
February 2023, Wongaling Pty Limited disclosed its purchase of 5,477 shares in Tower 
Limited. Ms Geraldine McBride is the beneficial owner of those shares.

Shareholder analysis

Tower’s shares are quoted on both the NZX and ASX. As at 30 September 2023, 16,713 
Tower shareholders held less than A$500 of Tower shares (i.e. less than a marketable 
parcel as defined in the ASX Listing Rules), amounting to a total of 6,137,613 of the Tower 
shares on issue.

In comparison, a ‘minimum holding’ under the NZX Listing Rules means a holding of 
shares having a value of at least NZ$1,000. As at 30 September 2023, 19,447 Tower 
shareholders held less than NZ$1,000 of Tower Shares (being, a parcel size of 1,613 at 
$0.62 per share), amounting to a total of 9,316,511 of the Tower shares on issue.

ORDINARY SHARES

NUMBER OF HOLDERS

30 September 2023

379,483,987

23,566

Tower’s ordinary shares each carry a right to vote on any resolution on a poll at a meeting 
of shareholders. Holders of ordinary shares may vote at a meeting in person, or by proxy, 
representative or attorney.

The address and telephone number of the office at which the register of Tower 
securities is kept is set out in the directory at the back of this Annual Report.

Spread of Shareholders (as at 30 September 2023)

HOLDING RANGE

HOLDER COUNT

HOLDER COUNT %

HOLDING QUANTITY 
(ORDINARY SHARES)

HOLDING  
QUANTITY %

1 - 1,000

1,001 - 5,000

5,001 - 10,000

10,001 - 100,000

100,001 and over

Total

17,514

4141

672

1015

195

23,537

74.41

17.59

2.85

4.31

.82

100

6,886,493

8,498,784

4,793,747

30,899,288

328,405,675

379,483,987

1.81

2.24

1.26

8.14

86.54

100

Indemnity and insurance 

In accordance with section 162 of the Companies Act 1993 and Tower’s constitution, 
Tower has provided insurance for and indemnities to, directors and employees of Tower 
for losses from actions undertaken in the course of their duties. The insurance includes 
indemnity costs and expenses incurred to defend an action that falls outside the scope 
of the indemnity. Particulars have been entered in the Interests Register pursuant to 
section 162 of the Companies Act 1993.

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Interests register

Tower and its subsidiaries are required to maintain an interests register in which the 
particulars of certain transactions and matters involving the directors must be recorded. 
The interests register for Tower Limited is available for inspection on request by 
shareholders. Tower’s constitution provides that an ‘interested’ director may not vote on a 
matter in which he or she is interested unless the director is required to sign a certificate 
in relation to that vote pursuant to the Companies Act 1993, or the matter relates to a 
grant of an indemnity pursuant to section 162 of the Companies Act 1993.

During the year to 30 September 2023, pursuant to section 140 of the Companies Act 
1993 Tower’s directors disclosed new interests and cessations of interest as noted in the 
table below:

Geraldine McBride

Sky Network Television Limited (until 2 November 2022)

My Wave Limited

My Wave Holdings Limited

Marcus Nagel

3Arrow AG

Jarowa AG

Michael Stiassny

Bengadol Corporation Limited

Emerald Group Limited

Gadol Corporation Limited

Geffen Holdings Limited

Michael Spencer Limited

Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei Housing Trustee Limited (until 16 February 2023)

Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei Whai Rawa Limited (until 16 February 2023)

Poukawa Estate Limited

Ted Kingsway Limited

Whai Rawa GP Limited (until 16 February 2023)

Whai Rawa Kainga Development Limited (until 16 February 2023)

LPF Group Limited

MS10 Limited

Morgan HoldCo Limited

Remuera Investments Limited

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Chair

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Te Waenga Ltd

Tegel Group Holdings Ltd

New Talisman Gold Mines Ltd

2 Cheap Cars Group Limited 

Momentum Life Limited (from September 2023)

Graham Stuart

Leroy Holdings Limited

EROAD Limited

VinPro Limited

NorthWest Healthcare Properties Management Limited

Metro Performance Glass Limited (until 1 August 2023)

H4G Group Limited, trading as Vet South and VetNZ

Comhla Vet Limited

Blair Turnbull (retired 17 November 2023)

InsurtechNZ (until February 2023)

Insurance Council of New Zealand

IFSO Commission (from February 2023)

Wendy Thorpe (retired 29 March 2023)

Online Education Services Pty Limited

Epworth Foundation (Epworth Healthcare)

Australian Central Credit Union Ltd T/A People’s Choice Credit Union

Epworth Geelong Limited

Data Action 

auDA

Warren Lee (retired 30 November 2022)

MyState Limited

MyState Bank Limited

TPT Wealth Limited

MetLife Insurance Limited

MetLife General Insurance Limited

Warakirri Asset Management Limited

Warakirri Holdings Pty Limited

Flinders Investment Partners Pty Limited

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Chair

Director

Chair

Director

Co-Chair

Board member

Industry Representative

Chair

Chair

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director 

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Subsidiary Company Directors’ Interests

Specific disclosures of interest

Directors also disclosed the monetary value of dividends received during the year. 

NATURE OF INTEREST

MONETARY VALUE

Michael Stiassny

Shareholder of 694,330 
shares in Tower Limited

Graham Stuart

Shareholder of 225,000 
shares in Tower Limited

Wendy Thorpe

Shareholder of 16,250 
shares in Tower Limited

Marcus Nagel

Shareholder of 62 shares 
in Tower Limited

Warren Lee

Beneficial Shareholder of 
120,500 shares in Tower

Blair Turnbull

Shareholder of 253,030 
shares in Tower Limited

27,773

5,625

650

2

4,800

10,121

Based on a Dividend of NZ$0.04 per 
share declared on 23 November 2022

Based on a Dividend of NZ$0.04 per 
share declared on 23 November 2022

Based on a Dividend of NZ$0.04 per 
share declared on 23 November 2022

Based on a Dividend of NZ$0.04 per 
share declared on 24 November 2022

Based on a Dividend of NZ$0.04 per 
share declared on 24 November 2022

Based on a Dividend of NZ$0.04 per 
share declared on 24 November 2022

Barry Whiteside

Kontiki Finance

Pacific Catastrophe Risk Insurance Company

Bayly Trust

Fiscal Review Committee, Fijian Ministry of Finance

Isikeli Tikoduadua

Merchant Finance

Vodafone Fiji 

Fiji Commerce Commission 

iTaukei Land Trust Board 

Special Administrators for Suva City and Lami Town

USP MBA Advisory Committee 

Veilawa Rereiwasaliwa

Bank of Baroda – Fiji Operations

Angus Shelton

Shelton Contracting Limited

Ernie Gangloff1

Gangloff Consulting Limited

Gangloff Projects Limited

Pacific Training Consortium Limited

BSP Financial Group Limited

New Britain Palm Oil Limited

Highlands Pacific Limited

Business Incubation Solution Limited

BSP Finance (Fiji) Pte Limited

Institute of National Affairs Inc.

University Rugby Football Union Club

Capital Rugby Union Inc.

Director

Director

Director/Trustee

Member

Chairman

Director

Commissioner

Director

Chairman

Chairman 

Member, Local Advisory Board

Director

Managing Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

Director

President

President

Treasurer

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Blair Turnbull

Paul Johnston

Ronald Mudaliar

Blair Turnbull

Paul Johnston

Stephen Grant Ives

Ronald Mudaliar

Tower subsidiary company directors 

Directors of Tower’s subsidiary companies during the year to 30 September 2023 were:

TOWER SUBSIDIARY COMPANY DIRECTORS

Tower Services Limited 

Blair Turnbull

Paul Johnston 

Angus Shelton 

TOWER SUBSIDIARY COMPANY DIRECTORS

National Pacific Insurance (Tonga) Limited

The National Insurance Company of New Zealand Limited

Blair Turnbull

Tower Insurance (Vanuatu) Limited

Paul Johnston

Angus Shelton 

Blair Turnbull

Tower Group Services (Fiji) Pte Ltd
Previously known as National Insurance Company 
(Holdings) Pte Limited

Isikeli Tikoduadua (retired 24 April 2023)

National Pacific Insurance (American Samoa)

Blair Turnbull

Southern Pacific Insurance Company (Fiji) Limited

Blair Turnbull

Paul Johnston

Ronald Mudaliar

Veilawa Rereiwasaliwa (from 24 April 2023)

Tower Insurance (PNG) Limited 
(ceased to be a subsidiary on 28 October 2022)

Tower Insurance (Fiji) Limited

Tower Insurance (Cook Islands) Limited

National Pacific Insurance Limited

Isikeli Tikoduadua

Barry Whiteside

Paul Johnston

Ronald Mudaliar

Blair Turnbull

Isikeli Tikoduadua

Paul Johnston

Barry Whiteside

Ronald Mudaliar

Blair Turnbull

Paul Johnston

Ronald Mudaliar

Blair Turnbull

Paul Johnston

Ronald Mudaliar

Ronald Mudaliar

Paul Johnston

Blair Turnbull

Paul Johnston

Ronald Mudaliar

Ernie Gangloff

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Other matters

Donations

During the financial year ended 30 September 2023, donations made by Tower Limited, 
and its subsidiaries totalled $1,000.00.

Credit rating

The New Zealand Overseas Investment Act 2005 and related regulations determine 
certain investments in New Zealand by overseas persons. Generally, the Overseas 
Investment Office’s consent is required if an ‘overseas person’ acquires Tower shares 
or an interest in Tower shares of 25% or more of the shares on issue or, if the overseas 
person already holds 25% or more, the acquisition increases that holding.

The New Zealand Commerce Act 1986 is likely to prevent a person from acquiring Tower 
shares if the acquisition would, or would be likely to, substantially lessen competition in 
a market.

In April 2023, global rating organisation A.M. Best Company affirmed Tower Limited’s 
financial strength rating of A- (Excellent). 

Corporations Act 2001 (Australia)

Waivers

Tower is not subject to Chapters 6, 6A, 6B or 6C of the Corporations Act 2001 (Australia) 
dealing with the acquisition of shares (such as substantial holdings and takeovers).

Tower Limited did not rely on, or make any applications for, waivers from the NZX Listing 
Rules or the ASX Listing Rules in the financial year ending on 30 September 2023.

The Annual Report is signed on behalf of the Board by:

Trading Halts, Suspension, Cancellations and other Powers

A trading halt was put in place pending the release of TWR’s full year results 
announcement, which was delayed due to the file size exceeding the NZX market 
announcement platform limits. The trading halt remained in place until the release of 
TWR’s full year results.

Limits on acquisition of securities under New Zealand law

Tower undertook to the ASX, at the time it granted Tower a full listing in July 2002 to 
include the following information in its annual report. Except for the limitations detailed 
below, Tower securities are freely transferable under New Zealand law.

The New Zealand Takeovers’ Code prohibits a person (including associates) from 
increasing their shareholding to more than 20% of the voting rights in Tower except in 
accordance with the Takeovers Code. The exceptions include a full or partial takeover 
offer in accordance with the Takeovers Code, a scheme of arrangement (under the 
Companies Act 1993), an acquisition or an allotment approved by an ordinary resolution 
of shareholders, a creeping acquisition (in defined circumstances) and a compulsory 
acquisition once a shareholder owns or controls 90% or more of the voting rights in 
Tower.

Michael Stiassny 
Chair 

Graham Stuart
Director

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GRI CONTENT 
INDEX

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GRI content index

Statement of use:

Tower has reported the information cited 
in this GRI content index for the period 1 
October 2022 to 30 September 2023, in 
accordance with the GRI Standards.

GRI 1 used:

GRI 1: Foundation 2021

DISCLOSURE

LOCATION/INFORMATION

DISCLOSURE

LOCATION/INFORMATION

GRI 2: General Disclosures 2021

2-1 

Organisational details

Pg 130 Tower Directory 

2-2 

2-3 

Entities included in the 
organisation’s sustainability 
reporting

Reporting period, 
frequency and contact 
point

2-4 

Restatements of 
information

2-5 

External assurance

2-6 

Activities, value chain 
and other business 
relationships

2-7 

Employees

2-8

2-9

Workers who are not 
employees

Governance structure  
and composition

Pg 130 Tower Directory 

Tower reports sustainability information annually. This report covers 
the period 1 October 2022 – 30 September 2023. This report was 
published on 23 November, 2023. Questions about this report can be 
directed to Emily.Davies@tower.co.nz

This is Tower’s second report in accordance with the GRI Standard

External assurance approach is covered in our Corporate Governance 
Statement which can be found in this link: https://www.tower.co.nz/
investor-centre/corporate-governance/policies/

We have not sought external assurance on our sustainability 
information.

https://www.tower.co.nz/about-us/

2-10

2-11

2-12

2-13

2-14

Nomination and selection 
of the highest governance 
body

Chair of the highest 
governance body

Role of the highest 
governance body 
in overseeing the 
management of impacts

https://www.tower.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/TOWER-
Constitution.pdf 

Pg 58

Pg 49

Delegation of responsibility 
for managing impacts

The board delegates day-to-day management of the company to 
the CEO and does not currently provide for any additional specific 
delegation of ESG impacts.

Role of the highest 
governance body in 
sustainability reporting

Pg 49

2-15

Conflicts of interest

See Code of Conduct Policy in this link: https://www.tower.co.nz/
investor-centre/corporate-governance/policies/

2-16

Communication of critical 
concerns

See Corporate Governance Statement in this link: https://www.tower.
co.nz/investor-centre/corporate-governance/policies/

Tower has 897 employees across New Zealand and the Pacific, 64% 
of whom are women, 35% are men, 1% are gender diverse, non-
binary, or transgender. This is based on the 96% of staff who chose 
to disclose their gender. The numbers of permanent, temporary, 
full, and part-time employees broken down by gender and region is 
currently not available.

As at 30 September 2023, Tower had 50 contingent workers who are 
predominantly independent contractors on either direct or agency 
contracts engaged in technology or project-based work. There were 
no significant fluctuations in this number during the reporting period.

2-17

2-18

Communication of critical concerns regarding ESG topics is 
unavailable. 

Collective knowledge of 
the highest governance 
body

See Corporate Governance Statement in this link: https://www.tower.
co.nz/investor-centre/corporate-governance/policies/ 

Actions to advance the collective knowledge, skills, and experience 
of the highest governance body on sustainable development will 
continue to be undertaken in FY24.

Evaluation of the 
performance of the highest 
governance body

See Corporate Governance Statement in this link: https://www.tower.
co.nz/investor-centre/corporate-governance/policies/

Our Governance structure and composition, along with a list of 
committees of the highest governance body can be found here: 
https://www.tower.co.nz/investor-centre/corporate-governance/
the-board/

2-19

Remuneration policies

See Corporate Governance Statement in this link: https://www.tower.
co.nz/investor-centre/corporate-governance/policies/

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DISCLOSURE

LOCATION/INFORMATION

DISCLOSURE

LOCATION/INFORMATION

2-20

Process to determine 
remuneration

See Director and Executive Remuneration Policy and Remuneration 
and Appointments Committee Terms of Reference in this link:  
https://www.tower.co.nz/investor-centre/corporate-governance/
policies/

2-21 

2-22 

Annual total compensation 
ratio

Not disclosed: information on annual compensation ratio is not 
reported externally.

Statement on sustainable 
development strategy

Pg 48

2-23 

Policy commitments

Relevant policies currently in place can be found here: https://www.
tower.co.nz/investor-centre/corporate-governance/policies/

2-24

2-25

Embedding policy 
commitments

See Corporate Governance Statement in this link: https://www.tower.
co.nz/investor-centre/corporate-governance/policies/

Processes to remediate 
negative impacts

Pg 52-57
https://www.tower.co.nz/contact-us/complaints-and-compliments/ 

2-26 

Mechanisms for seeking 
advice and raising 
concerns

Remediation process for our material impacts is covered under the 
relevant topics.

See Code of Conduct Policy in this link: https://www.tower.co.nz/
investor-centre/corporate-governance/policies/

Staff are encouraged to raise concerns with their manager, or a senior 
leader. Tower’s whistle blower service provides a confidential avenue 
to report any serious concerns.

2-27

Compliance with laws 
and regulations

In FY23 Tower recorded no significant instances of non-compliance 
with laws and regulations. Accordingly, there are no fines to report.

2-28

Membership associations

Tower is a member of Insurance Council of New Zealand and is active 
in ICNZ’s Climate Change committee. Tower is also a member of the 
Sustainable Business Council. 

2-29

Approach to stakeholder 
engagement

Tower takes a collaborative approach to stakeholder engagement. 
Our company purpose and values have stakeholders at the heart, 
see pages 18 and 19. Similarly, our Southern Star drives outcomes for 
customers and our people, see ‘our vision’ page 19. Our ESG strategy 
was developed in consultation with a range of stakeholders and 
considers our impacts on various stakeholder groups.

2-30

Collective bargaining 
agreements

None

GRI 3: Material Topics 2021

3-1

3-2

3-3

Process to determine 
material topics

Pg 51

List of material topics

Pg 52-57

Management of material 
topics

See material impacts table Pg 52-57, for all. 

GRI 305: Emissions 2016

305-1 

Direct (Scope 1) GHG 
emissions

305-2

Energy indirect (Scope 2) 
GHG emissions

Pg 50 
Scope 1 emissions include distributed natural gas in New Zealand 
and vehicle fleet fuel in New Zealand and the Pacific.

FY20 chosen as the baseline year as this was the first year Tower 
measured emissions.

New Zealand emissions factors used were sourced from Ministry 
for the Environment’s (MfE) 2020 Measuring Emissions: A Guide 
for Organisations. Emissions for Pacific Island electricity use were 
sourced from emissionfactors.com and were derived from UN 2021 
and IPCC 2006.

Quantities of each greenhouse gas are converted to tonnes CO2e 
using the global warming potential from the Intergovernmental Panel 
on Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report (AR4). The 
time horizon is 100 years. Further information on methodology and 
assumptions is unavailable.

Pg 50 
Scope 2 emissions include electricity consumption from all business 
premises. See 305-1 for relevant disclosures on baseline year, 
emissions factors and methodology and assumptions.

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GRI content index

DISCLOSURE

LOCATION/INFORMATION

DISCLOSURE

LOCATION/INFORMATION

305-3

Other indirect (Scope 3) 
GHG emissions

401-3 

Parental leave

Pg 50 
Scope 3 emissions include transmission & distribution losses for 
electricity & gas, air travel, hotel stays, rental cars, taxi travel, working 
from home, paper purchased (NZ only), waste to landfill (NZ only) and 
water (NZ and some Pacific locations).

Tower recognises the extent of Scope 3 emissions is significant. We 
have chosen to declare the following emissions sources that have 
been excluded from our reporting: HFC emissions from refrigeration 
or HVAC (NZ and Pacific); employee vehicle claims NZ; transmission 
& distribution losses for Pacific electricity; waste generated in 
Pacific operations; value chain emissions from purchased goods & 
services, capital goods, transportation & distribution – upstream and 
downstream, employee commuting, use of sold products, investment 
portfolio. Tower will expand its measurement and reporting of scope 3 
emissions in FY25. See 305-1 for relevant disclosures on baseline year, 
emissions factors and methodology and assumptions.

Tower increased its parental leave offering in FY23 and expanded 
it to our teams in the Pacific. From July 2023, all Tower employees 
enjoy 16 weeks paid leave for primary carer leave (or maternity leave 
as it’s referred to in the Pacific), or four weeks paid partner’s leave for 
partners of primary carers. 

We also offer all employees compassionate leave and flexible 
working on return. Additionally, any annual leave taken on the 
employee’s return from parental leave will be paid at their usual rate. 
This is more generous than the current Holidays Act legislation and 
means take home pay is not affected when the employee takes paid 
annual leave.  

In FY23: 22 employees took parental leave (all female) versus 27 in 
FY22; 18 employees returned to work from parental leave during 
FY23 (all female); of these 16 are still employed 12 months after 
return to work (all female). 

305-5 

Reduction of GHG 
emissions

Pg 50

2016 GRI 401: Employment 2016

401-1  

New employee hires and 
employee turnover

In FY23 Tower hired 294 new employees to address growth and 
attrition. These comprised permanent, fixed term and casual new 
hires. New hires by Gender: Female: 174, Male: 92, Gender Diverse: 1, 
Non Binary: 1, Not disclosed: 26. New hires by region: New Zealand: 
140, Pacific: 154.Number and rate of new employees by age is 
currently unavailable.

Over the period employee numbers increased by 97 full-time 
equivalent staff, from 790 in FY22 to 887 in FY23, due to the 2023 
severe weather events and the development of our Customer Hub 
in Fiji.

Employee attrition was 20.4% in FY22, reflecting a softening of the 
employment market in New Zealand and our decision to expand 
our Customer Hub in Fiji, which typically experiences lower level of 
employee movement.

401-2 

Benefits provided to full-
time employees that are 
not provided to temporary 
or part-time employees

Benefits are offered to both full-time and part-time permanent 
employees. Tower benefits include Group Insurances, parental 
leave, ability to buy additional leave, birthday leave, Tower insurance 
discounts, health insurance discounts, partner discounts, eyesight 
testing, and study assistance.

Occupational health 
and safety management 
system 

See Health and Safety Policy in this link:  
https://www.tower.co.nz/investor-centre/corporate-governance/
policies/

GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety 2018

403-1 

403-2 

Hazard identification, risk 
assessment, and incident 
investigation

Tower’s H&S Management System has an incident register where 
incidents are reported. When reporting, it is mandatory that all 
incidents are assessed and each incident must have corrective 
actions identified and implemented before being closed. 
Once reported, incidents are then reviewed by the Health and Safety 
Officer who investigates any incidents with a high rating.  

Workers are encouraged to report hazards and hazardous situations 
through the H&S system. Tower’s H&S Policy is in line with New 
Zealand’s Health and Safety at Work Act 2015. All workers have 
access to the Health and Safety Policy on Tower’s intranet.   

Tower workers have access to Employee Assistance Programme EAP 
counselling sessions provided by external trained counsellors. These 
sessions are arranged by workers independently and any information 
discussed is strictly confidential between EAP and Tower employees. 
If employees choose to get health checks, these are done directly 
with General Practitioners and results are kept confidential between 
the worker and General Practitioner.  

403-3 

Occupational health 
services

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DISCLOSURE

LOCATION/INFORMATION

DISCLOSURE

LOCATION/INFORMATION

GRI 405: Diversity and Equal Opportunity 2016

405-1 

Diversity of governance 
bodies and employees

Pg 114-115

405-2  

Ratio of basic salary and 
remuneration of women 
to men

Pg 38

GRI 418: Customer Privacy 2016

418-1 

Substantiated complaints 
concerning breaches of 
customer privacy and 
losses of customer data.

In FY23 Tower recorded no substantiated complaints concerning 
breaches of customer privacy and losses of customer data.

403-4  Worker participation, 

consultation, and 
communication on 
occupational health and 
safety

403-5  Worker training on 

occupational health and 
safety

403-6 

Promotion of worker health

As per the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015, Tower has a team of 
Health and Safety representatives from across the business. These 
representatives engage and consult with workers regularly and 
report any concerns to the Health and Safety Officer and/or at the 
regular Health and Safety meeting. Tower’s H&S Management system 
is reviewed by the Health and Safety Officer annually to ensure risks 
are kept up to date.  

Tower has several Health and Safety committees that meet monthly. 
Committee members are allocated specific time each month to 
undertake their responsibilities. Their responsibilities include but 
are not limited to; office inspections, disseminating H&S updates 
from the meetings to relative teams, ensuring H&S is on the agenda 
at team meetings and promotion of health, safety and wellbeing 
education and activities.  

Tower offers training to workers who volunteer to be First Aiders, Fire 
Wardens, Mental Health First Aiders and Domestic Violence First 
Responders. Additionally, Defensive Driver training every two years is 
mandatory for all workers, where their primary employment involves 
driving. Asbestos awareness training is mandatory for Building 
Assessors. Training is provided free of charge and workers are given 
paid leave to undertake all of the above training.   

Tower supports its employees that have non-work-related accidents 
through workstation assessments to ensure they have the necessary 
equipment to undertake their job. Where a return-to-work plan is 
required, Tower will work alongside ACC to facilitate a satisfactory 
solution for the employee. Health checks in the Pacific are done 
through a local General Practitioner, and the results are confidential 
and not shared with Tower.  

Tower offers employees access to several health promotion services 
including; EAP (online and in person), discounted flu vaccinations and 
access to trained Mental Health First Aiders (online and in-person).  

Tower promotes prevention of communicable diseases in the 
Pacific through education on symptoms, prevention and treatment. 
Our Rainbow network supports education on AIDS awareness and 
prevention.  

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Tower Directory

Enquiries

For customer enquiries, call Tower on 0800 808 808 
or visit www.tower.co.nz
For investor enquires:
Telephone: +64 9 369 2000
Email: investor.relations@tower.co.nz
Website: www.tower.co.nz

Board of Directors

Michael Stiassny (Chair) 
Graham Stuart 
Marcus Nagel 
Geraldine McBride (from 1 October 2022)
Blair Turnbull (from 29 March 2023 - 17 November 2023)
Wendy Thorpe (until 29 March 2023)
Warren Lee (until 30 November 2022)
Mike Cutter (from 17 November 2023)

Chief Executive Officer

Blair Turnbull 

Company Secretary

Tania Pearson

Executive Leadership Team (at 30 September 2023)

Blair Turnbull, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer
Paul Johnston, Chief Financial Officer
Sharyn Reichstein, Chief Risk Officer
Michelle Finch, Chief Revenue, Marketing and Brand Officer
Andrew Hambleton, Chief Administrative Officer
Anna Kooperberg, Chief Customer Experience Officer (on parental leave)
Kieran Simmons, Chief Customer Experience Officer, (Acting)
Ronald Mudaliar, Chief Underwriting Officer
Steven Wilson, Chief Claims Officer

Registered Office

New Zealand 

Level 5, 136 Fanshawe Street, Auckland

PO Box 90347
Auckland
Telephone: +64 9 369 2000
Facsimile: +64 9 369 2245

Australia

c/ – PricewaterhouseCoopers Nominees (N.S.W) Pty Ltd 
PricewaterhouseCoopers Darling Park Tower 2
Level 1
201 Sussex Street
Sydney NSW 2000 Australia

Auditor

PricewaterhouseCoopers

Lawyers

MinterEllisonRuddWatts

Banker

Westpac New Zealand Limited

Company numbers

Tower Limited
(Incorporated in New Zealand)
NZ Incorporation 143050 
NZBN 9429040323299 
ARBN 645 941 028

Stock Exchanges

The Company’s ordinary shares are listed on the NZSX and the ASX. On 
Wednesday 18 May 2016, Tower’s ASX admission category changed to 
“ASX Foreign Exempt Listing”.

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Registrar

New Zealand

Computershare Investor Services Limited
Level 2, 159 Hurstmere Road
Takapuna, Auckland
Private Bag 92119
Auckland 1142

Freephone within New Zealand: 0800 222 065
Telephone New Zealand: +64 9 488 8777

Australia

Computershare Investor Services Pty Limited
Yarra Falls, 452 Johnston Street
Abbotsford VIC 3067
GPO Box 3329
Melbourne Vic 3000

Freephone within Australia: 1800 501 366
Telephone Australia: +61 3 9415 4083

Email: enquiry@computershare.co.nz 
Website: www.computershare.com/nz

Shareholders can also manage your holdings 
electronically by using Computershare’s secure website 
www.investorcentre.com/nz

This website enables holders to view balances, change 
addresses, view payment and tax information and 
update payment instructions and report options.

Tower recommends shareholders elect to have any 
payments direct credited to their nominated bank 
account in New Zealand or Australia to minimise the risk 
of fraud and misplacement of cheques.

We also encourage shareholders to receive investor 
communications electronically, as delivery of our 
communications to you is faster and it is better 
for the environment. All you need to do is log in 
to www.investorcentre.com/nz and update your 
‘Communication Preference’ to enable us to send all your 
investor correspondence electronically where possible.

Please quote your CSN number or shareholder number 
when contacting Computershare.

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ANNUAL REPORT 20232023 in review

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Our strategy

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Consolidated financial statements

Corporate governance

GRI content index 

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insightcreative.co.nz  TOW005

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