Expert insight, analysis and commentary across the entire protection industry.
by ProtectionReview 12/06/12
Advice - is it worth it? Despite the fact there are good value, affordable, simple, transparent Protection products out there, it still doesn’t look like sales are taking off. Might this have something to do with consumer awareness and lack of trust? But how can consumers access the advice they need and who will pay for it? And in the process how is freedom of consumer access and choice, balanced alongside consumer protection and redress - and all at an affordable cost? Well no one can say now that there is no money in advice, for earlier this month…
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by ProtectionReview 31/05/12
The progress of insurance contract law reform is picking up pace. In March 2012 Parliament approved the Act which will put “proportionate” claims outcomes in black and white on the legislation book. The start date for the application of the Consumer Insurance (Disclosure and Representations) Act 2012 is likely to be in about a year. Will the ABI Code be adjusted in any way to match the law? Another change possibly looms which could have an impact on life insurers. In December 2011 the Law Commission published a Consultation Paper which recommends that insurers also be able to sue the…
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by ProtectionReview 22/05/12
IN THIS DIGITAL AGE DO WE NEED A FRESH LOOK AT SEGMENTATION? We may need to take a fresh look at the way we think about customer behaviour and segmentation. It’s important to do this anyway, but it’s arguably essential to do so now for three reasons: 1. The digital world in general, and social media in particular, are already having a big impact on how consumers source information and make decisions. 2. The economic realities and perceptions for the baby boomers, Generation X and Generation Y are markedly different. 3. A quotation attributed to Mark Twain…
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by ProtectionReview 08/05/12
PMI premiums inflation – are we getting the whole picture? A recent industry media article addressed the problem the PMI industry has with maintaining affordable and sustainable premiums, placing the blame firmly on the doorstep of medical inflation which is running at a rate of 9% to 10% - much higher than general inflation. Medical inflation has always been a problem for the industry, but I believe there is another major factor involved, to which insurers seem to turn a blind eye. Many large broker firms and networks are using the ‘holy grail’ of the internet to generate…
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by ProtectionReview 01/05/12
CAKE FIRST, ICING SECOND I think the moment may have slightly passed, but this is my first Protection Review blog since we all first heard about the idea of an annual National Protection Awareness Day – so this is my first opportunity to share my feelings on the subject. They are, in a word, mixed. It’s difficult to be against an idea intended to raise the profile of protection – and in a strong, successful consumer market it might make good sense as the icing on the consumer awareness cake. But in the continuing absence of anything much in the…
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