92 | Just Group PLC | Annual Report and Accounts 2023
GROUP AUDIT COMMITTEE REPORT continued
• assessed whether the Group Annual Report and Accounts, taken as a whole, were fair, balanced and understandable and provided the information necessary for shareholders to assess the Group’s performance, business model and strategy, and concluded that they were; and • oversaw the preparation and reviewed the Group’s 2023 Solvency II reporting including the Group-wide Solvency and Financial Condition Report (“SFCR”), the Summary Group and Solo Regular Supervisory Report and the Annual Quantitative Reporting Templates prior to submission to the Prudential Regulation Authority (“PRA”). To assist with the execution of their duties, the Committee considered reports from the Group Chief Actuary. It also reviewed reports from the external auditor on the outcomes of their half-year review and financial year end audit. The Committee encouraged the external auditor to display constructive challenge and professional scepticism that its role required throughout the year.
The Committee was pleased to advise the Board that the judgements and assumptions were appropriate and that the Group Annual Report and Accounts were fair, balanced and understandable, and provided the necessary information for shareholders to assess the Group’s position, prospects, business model and strategy. Accounting standards The new accounting standard for insurance contracts “IFRS 17” was introduced during 2023 following the successful implementation and transition from the previous standard IFRS 4. The Committee reviewed draft disclosures of IFRS 17 data in the IFRS 17 updates released in February and July 2023, and the Group Interim announcement and Group Annual Report and Accounts. The Committee also monitored the resilience of the architecture of Just’s systems solution for computation of the new IFRS 17 accounting data.
SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING JUDGEMENTS The key areas of judgement considered by the Committee in relation to the 31 December 2023 Group Annual Report and Accounts, and how these were addressed, are set out in the following table.
SIGNIFICANT JUDGEMENTS APPROACH
ACTION BY THE COMMITTEE
IFRS 17 transitional approach
In determining the transitional approach for the Group’s in-force insurance contracts on adoption of IFRS 17, an assessment of impracticability of applying the fully retrospective approach was performed. Judgement was applied in determining the approach for selection of the rate used to discount insurance contracts. This included selecting the appropriate reference portfolio of investment assets.
The Committee reviewed management’s impracticability assessment and concluded that it was appropriate to apply the fully retrospective approach only for insurance contracts written after 1 January 2021. The fair value approach will be applied to insurance contracts written prior to 2021. The Committee reviewed the methodology approach for discount rates applied on adoption of IFRS 17. The Group has elected to calculate discount rates based on a top-down approach using a reference portfolio of the actual investments backing the insurance contracts net of reinsurance and also on allowance for deductions for credit risk. On policy inception the contractual service margin (“CSM”) is calculated based on the yields from a reference portfolio of the current target portfolio mix in accordance with the investment strategy. Interest is accreted on the CSM using a weighted average discount rate curve. The Committee reviewed the methodology approach for determination of coverage units on adoption of IFRS 17. The Group weights coverage units across different phases on contracts using the probability of the policy being in force in each time period. Coverage units are based on annuity payments for pensioners and investment returns for deferred DB scheme members. The Committee has reviewed the assessment by management. It agreed that the calibrated risk adjustment was appropriate. The risk adjustment applies a 70% level of confidence that the longevity, expense and insurance contract specific operational risks will be covered by the liabilities when viewed over the lifetime of the contracts. The Committee noted that for illiquid assets such as commercial mortgages, infrastructure loans and long income real estate, an assessment of the extent of use of unobservable inputs in the valuation is made and management has applied appropriate judgement in determining the valuation technique.
Selection of discount rate for insurance and reinsurance contracts
Determination of coverage units
Determination of coverage units for the release of CSM to profit and loss involved assessment of the pattern of delivery of insurance services over the terms of insurance contracts.
Calibration of the risk adjustment
The risk adjustment for non-financial risk is calibrated based on management’s judgement of the level of compensation that the Group requires in exchange for bearing the risk of uncertainty associated with selling insurance contracts over the policy term. For financial assets not held in an active market and where a listed price is not available, determination of the appropriate valuation method requires judgement.
Financial assets – valuation method
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