Life Assurance Accounting and the Sandilands Report

Synopsis

The paper considers the possible application of the system of Current Cost Accounting proposed by the Inflation Accounting Committee (the Sandilands Committee) to the accounts of life assurance funds and pension funds. The author concludes that, while it is practicable and possibly desirable that the method of valuing assets leading to Revenue Account and Balance Sheet should conform with generally accepted accounting principles and be capable of independent audit, the nature of funds securing long term financial obligations is such that a complete accounting picture is only possible if the system is converted to a system of Present Value Accounting by the actuary in his Report. In the second part of the paper, the author makes suggestions regarding the presentation of results by the actuary.