STAFF PAPER ON AUTHORISED FINANCIAL ADVISER COMPETENCE

When I read your title it brought to mind an idea I’ve had for a few years. Rather than commoditising life/personal insurance, perhaps we should be working towards modularising it? Clients often have cover in an old obsolete policy that they can’t move from because of recent health issues. They really like a competitor insurer’s “Specific Injury Benefit” but can’t move their cover to benefit from it. Buying it as a standalone benefit can be expensive when you add on policy fees. When clients can buy different coverage from multiple insurers, they must navigate the differing policy numbers, policy wordings, and ways each insurer operates. Getting a handle on exactly what they're covered for at any time can be time-consuming for them, or their adviser. Life advisers could run something akin to an investment wrap account provided by a central organisation. Insurers become true manufacturers of great cover options, not at the policy level but at the individual benefit level. Rather than launch a new policy, they can launch a new, improved Non-Pharmac drug coverage or a new sick leave benefit that pays a pre-determined amount if an insured is off work for more than two weeks. The insurance wrap account would charge a policy fee that might differ if multiple coverages exist from different insurers. All policy wording, descriptions, communication and invoicing are generated at the wrap tool level, with major input from each insurer, ensuring uniformity of description with clear and concise, simple language. Insurers would stop charging policy fees, as all communications would be generated at the wrap account level. Clients would receive the same kind of communication no matter which insurer is writing to them. Clients and their advisers could log in at any time to see exactly what they are and aren’t covered for. One-off communications that are very specific to an individual client would be handled the same way MyIR sends letters to taxpayers. The client's medical records could be connected to the account. If they ever want to add a new benefit to their coverage, they simply tap ‘apply’. The tool pre-populates their last disclosure and allows them to check this against their medical records to see if anything new should be added. Insurers, with the client’s express approval, could get access to the medical information without a Kinnect-type arrangement. Commission payments could be handled at the wrap account level. Insurers would devote their time to developing the best benefits. Advisers would be empowered to provide comprehensive, truly holistic advice for their clients. Clients would win with the right coverage, better understanding and lower costs. Just a thought… maybe something for next century?

Always good to have more competitors in the life,TPD and trauma space. Chris, I hope you've streamlined some of the underwriting processes. When I submitted an application in the early stages of your development a couple of years ago the underwriting team contacted the client directly about a loading without any reference to me. They also quoted the loaded premium fortnightly when the client applied for monthly premiums. She, of course, agreed because the premiums seemed so low. We managed to get the cover cancelled only after I discovered what had happened. How will CoFi feel about you offering bundled discounts to new clients but not to existing clients?

One area we are very proactive about is reviewing excesses on health insurance policies. Most of our clients have health insurance and a huge number are over 60. During every review period, we pay special attention to the premiums and excesses of our older clients. They may not be complaining, but when we see that increasing their excess by $1,000 would lower their annual premiums by $2,000, we alert them to this. Although this might hurt our business cashflow in the short-term, it is doing the right thing for our clients. We're also likely to still have them as clients when they're 85.

Tony Alexander has been proven famously wrong with his advice and predictions made regarding the future direction of interest rates. Mortgage advisers with long memories will recall during the GFC that Tony’s advice to borrowers was to fix for 5 years because he said interest rates would reach double figures. We all know how that worked out for the people who took his advice with many subsequently up for horrendous break costs to exit long term fixed rate agreements. None of these economists have a crystal ball and I think advisers are a little bit sick and tired now of these individuals not been held to account when their advice ends up disadvantaging people. P.S. any economist who trusts land agents to tell them about the current state of the housing market is ingenuous.

Given his track record Tony Alexander offering borrowers any advice around interest rates makes for a good Tui billboard.