"The reality is, there is a large amount of people that, as of today, don't find it easy to deal with the products, how we sell them and how we present them, even how we describe them."

The FSC research aims to answer questions around whether consumers understand insurance products and whether finding objective advice is problematic.

Neilson said he expects the research findings, compiled through talks with insurance company members and consumer focus groups, "to challenge our business model."

Neilson also defended the decision not seek the views of advisers or adviser bodies in the investigation.

"This wasn't a matter of how we sell it [insurance], this is a matter of how the public perceive what we sell and how it meets their needs," he said.

However, he said advisers would be brought into the conversation once the research report has been completed.

"After we've got that [the finished report] we'll go back to the other groups and start talking about that. What I'm planning to do is talk to a number of the agent broker organisations through their conferences over the next four to five months about these issues."

He said the FSC intended to talk to "every one of the distribution channels" about the research findings to help ascertain "how we can take advantage of it and what is the potential."