A travel insurance company admitted that it did discriminate on the basis of the age of a semi-retired scholar and charged him higher fees after he reached the age of 70.
But the insurance company is adamant that it has violated the Anti-Discrimination Act.
Dr. (Bill Metcalf), 73, sued Cerberus Special Risks and Suresave Insurance for age discrimination before the Queensland Civil and Administrative Court.
In mid-2016, Dr. Mekafu, a former university research methodologist, asked a Brisbane travel agency to book standard travel insurance for his four-week trip to Italy. But he was shocked to find that the charge had risen to 596 yuan-almost twice the amount he had paid in the same period a year earlier-when he was 69.
"when I asked each other, I was told that the price had risen sharply because I had just turned 70." Dr. Mecafu said.
He found that insurers could apply for exemption from age discrimination, but only if they could support it with accurate actuarial or statistical data.
In his submission to the court, Dr Mekafu and his statisticians pointed out that insurers did not have enough data to justify the price increase. But it took nearly two years to settle the case.
But Dr Mecafu won a partial victory and insurers were asked to review their policies and procedures by Sept. 30.
They agreed to ensure that there would be no age discrimination against clients "unless permitted by law."
They also agreed that the data summaries they provided were not sufficient to justify them and agreed to pay him $7,000 to cover the costs.
"if people like me don't stand up, no one will stand up." Mecafu said.
Since then, he has found that a travel insurance company charges only 10% more for 70-year-olds, and bathrooms urge older travelers to buy more than the three to find the best deal.
As soon as they reach the age of 70, some insurance companies raise prices by 300 yuan and 700 yuan, Dr. Mecafu said.
Mecafu said insurance companies could legally discriminate against age, which provided them with "a huge cash cow."
He and his statisticians rejected data from insurance companies in the case, saying their failure to show age was an important factor in explaining the price rise.
Other factors, such as the length and destination of overseas travel, should also be taken into account, he said.