QBE discriminated against depressed woman

Insurance giant QBE has been ordered to pay after a tribunal found it discriminated against a mentally-ill woman.

QBE insurance group has announced a new boss of its North American operations. (AAP)

A young woman has won her fight against insurance giant QBE after it refused to pay the costs of her trip after she was struck down with depression.

The Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal on Friday found QBE had contravened equal opportunity laws by excluding mental illness from its travel insurance policies.

The company has been ordered to pay 21-year-old Ella Ingram almost $20,000 for the cost of cancelling a trip to New York as a result of her depression, as well as $15,000 for hurt and humiliation.