Expert insight, analysis and commentary across the entire protection industry.
by ProtectionReview 23/01/12
January – the month of Janus, the Roman god who had one face on the back of his head looking at the year past, and one face looking forward to the future. For many, it’s the season for introspection, “new year; new you”, and resolving to do things differently. And for the protection industry, that may be truer in 2012 than ever before. Looking back at 2011, Greek intransigence put the Eurozone on a precipice, and has likely pushed the economy backwards. This is probably the most significant event for financial services in general, and will continue to be…
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by ProtectionReview 23/01/12
With all the changes going on in welfare reform and with income protection appearing to be one of the early targets for the simple products initiative, things should be looking up for this under-sold product….but only if the industry feels it can be confident of a profitable return. One of the key financial issues in producing a profitable return is the duration of claim and the impact this has on reserves – longer than expected durations are bad news for a portfolio. With all this in mind, it was good to attend a meeting covering the latest research in this…
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by ProtectionReview 13/01/12
Is PR a form of marketing, or is marketing a form of PR? In the knowledge that we’ll never get everyone to agree let’s begin with the premise that PR is a form of marketing. After all, that’s what all the books tell us. But, the ‘public’ is everyone and ‘relations’ are everything. So shouldn’t it be the other way around? I’ve thought this for many years. I’ve also thought that not every marketing manager out there ‘gets’ PR while many PRs get marketing. The issue becomes ever more valid with the development of social media.…
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by ProtectionReview 03/01/12
One of the biggest issues to be addressed in 2012, in a year when many other changes are likely to be afoot, is how the EU Gender Directive will impact on protection. From December 21 2012, the use of risk factors based on gender in connection with insurance premiums and benefits will officially become incompatible with the principle of equal treatment for men and women under European law. The rule of unisex premiums and benefits will apply. So, what does all this mean for our industry and, specifically, for protection? On 22 December the European Commission published its guidelines on…
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by ProtectionReview 07/12/11
Sickness Absence Review David Frost CBE and Dame Carol Black were commissioned by DWP and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills(BIS) to carry out an independent review of the UK’s sickness absence system. The recommendations to introduce an Independent Assessment Service, a reduction in public sector absence, a job brokering service for long-term sickness absence cases and the proposal to abolish the 13-week assessment phase for ESA have their merits but we think there are some omissions and potential problems with the review’s conclusions. There is nothing on the role of (regular) health professionals in signposting…
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