Speaking on the sidelines at its 4490 Summit, AIA Australia and New Zealand chief executive Damien Mu told Risk Adviser that it’s important for risk advisers to be able to have a conversation with clients about their broader financial needs, such as health insurance or investments.
But he added that he hopes that risk advisers can continue to be exclusively focused on risk.
“I think life risk specialisation is really important because that’s an important component of any financial protection plan, but if we were to dilute that focus I think that would be an unintended outcome that would have detrimental impact to society as a whole,” Mr Mu said.
“But if life can be the core proposition with other services and products attached to that, I think it’s a win-win for the client and the adviser.”
Mr Mu also said he thinks more insurers will follow in creating combined health and life insurance offerings for customers.
“I think it’s going to be a trend in the future. We’ve got to make it easier for people … and be able to have a relationship with customers early on in their life and not when something bad happens,” he said.
“In other parts of the world, life and health are combined. You can get your life and health insurance from the one place, and you’re treated as the one customer, and it makes it nice and easy.”
Earlier this month, AIA Australia revealed the non-aligned licensees that will take part in the pilot phase of the myOwn brand.
Dealer groups Bombora Advice, Synchron, Aon, Sentry Group, Sentinel Private Wealth and Integrity Financial Planners will take part in the initial three-month launch, starting from 10 July.
So just to clarify, the FSC have done everything they can to destroy specialist life insurance advice, and now their solution is to “Become general advisers to survive (and flog our new health insurance too!)”
By telling Life Insurance advisers to become general advisers, they are pretty much admitting they have destroyed the profession.
Gee, what a coincidence – Damien suggests Life Insurance advisers should also provide advice on Health Insurance, around the same time AIA launch Health Insurance… What are the odds?
How can advisers even think about advising on one insurers health insurance without adequate checks against other health insurers or the clients current cover. Easy way to get sued!
Thanks Damien, I needed a laugh. What a crock.
There is a reason that risk advisers don’t do investments and super. Otherwise we would be general practitioners not life risk specialists. And as for health insurance, what’s next, general house/car insurance and mortgages?
With a bit of luck we can all transition to another area of income or career and leave the disgraceful FSC cartel to reap what they have sown!
This will fail Damien for these reasons. Risk advisers compare insurers products to find the right fit for a customers needs. Are you saying your health insurance is going to be the best option for every client? Why would advisers take the risk of selling it otherwise? Will AIA be taking the risk of getting sued if it isn’t better for the customer?
Also due to what you and the other insurers have done through the LIF there will not be many risk advisers left to sell it and financial planners will not risk selling it either.
You say you think risk specialists are important but you and the other members of the FSC have just decimated the risk specialist.
So when will we get answers to these questions Damien. 1 Does our Professional Indemnity insurance cover health ins advice. 2 Do we need training , and who pays (CPD points ?) 3 Does our AFSL take a clip. 4 Will ASIC look for disclosure of health ins commissions in our wonderful 30 page new SOA, even though the Corps Act does not control health Ins. 5 What side deals have you done with the AFSLs signed so far.
When exactly were you planning to explain all of this. And when exactly were you going to tell us great unwashed that BASIC HOSPITAL health insurance, unlike retail life insurance, is not, and cannot be, individually underwritten ( except for pregnancy ) , unlike retail LIFE insurance. That’s a huge difference !!!
Advisers don’t matter to insurance companies. There’ll always be another new adviser coming along to join the industry. Financial Planning isn’t the same as what clients perceive financial planning to be which is more about how they manage their money.
But risk advice is a necessary adjunct to family protection for lifestyle and asset protection and risk advisers should be given due and proper consideration.
However they can enhance their role by including other services such as helping clients with money management. In light of the coming changes to commission and FFS now is the best time to start looking at the options available, especially those which compliment risk advice.
Here here. They are the ones that stood by silently rubbing their hands together at the though of how much money they will make in the back of longer claw back provisions and lower up fronts, and now they pretend to be looking out for us so we can keep them profitable. They are a joke. Simple as that
Are these fat cat CEO’s and FSC cartel members for real? “We want you to have conversations about other areas but still specialise in risk”!! Reality check time Damien. You and the other FSC cartel members have ensured that its not going to be profitable to write risk in the future so why do you think we would do it?? Oh and most of your risk specialist are not going to make the education standards or will not bother due to the unprofitable bit (again) so you and your future bonuses are screwed both ways.