Dr Sally Phillips

Macquarie Life is supporting the National Stroke Foundation to raise awareness of stroke risk through sponsorship of the Stroke Solidarity String across Australia.

The Stroke Solidarity String is an indigo string worn on the wrist, symbolising the connection between all people touched by stroke, the flow of blood and the healthy function of the brain and body. To mark the launch of the Stroke Solidarity String on Wednesday 2 April, the National Stroke Foundation is also holding Australia’s Biggest Blood Pressure Check at sites around Australia.

As part of the campaign, the National Stroke Foundation and Macquarie Life are calling on advisers to help their clients understand stroke risk and the importance of taking steps to be financially protected.

Macquarie Life’s Head of Underwriting and Claims, Dr Sally Phillips, has seen the financial impacts of stroke in practice and she believes advisers can play an important role in educating clients on  how to financially safeguard themselves against major health events.

“While we sometimes think about the physical and emotional effects of a serious illness on our lives or our family, we don’t always think about the financial impact until it is too late,’’ Dr Phillips said.

“It is important that, as a community, we build awareness of stroke and educate on prevention, but also that advisers explain the wide-reaching financial considerations and encourage their clients to take precautions as part of the financial planning process.”

The cost of stroke per person varies widely and treatment costs can be considerable. For those that require some form of ongoing care, family members may need to give up work in order to look after them.

“Although this is the payout nobody ever wants to need, it is very important that stroke survivors and their families are able to focus on the critical aspects of care and recovery, without worrying about financial issues. It is therefore important for advisers to help ensure clients have the correct type and level of insurance in place to help safeguard against these issues,” said Dr Phillips.

National Stroke Foundation Chief Executive Officer, Dr Erin Lalor, said stroke is Australia’s second biggest cause of death, yet most people do not really understand what it is or how to prevent it.

“A stroke occurs every 10 minutes and one in six people will have a stroke in their lifetime, but there is not enough conversation about stroke and only half of us know the signs to look out for,” said Dr Lalor.

“High blood pressure is the highest and most modifiable risk factor so getting that checked is an excellent starting point, but follow that up with advice from your doctor on areas such as smoking, drinking and medical conditions like diabetes, heart issues or high cholesterol.

“We are asking the community to ‘unite to fight stroke’ by wearing a Stroke Solidarity String this April. It is the international symbol of stroke awareness.”

Stroke Solidarity Strings will be available to purchase at all Chemmart Pharmacies (during April) or  at fightstroke.com.au. Australia’s Biggest Blood Pressure Check will take place on Wednesday 2 April, with free blood pressure checks to be provided at Chemmart Pharmacies nationally and key city sites. To find the blood pressure check closest to you, visit strokefoundation.com.au or
chemmart.com.au

Stroke is a blood clot or bleed on the brain that starves brain cells of oxygen and causes part of the brain to die. Prompt medical attention is required to restore blood flow and prevent sections of the brain from dying and causing disabilities. In 2012, over 420,000 Australians were living with the effects of stroke and the number of survivors is set to grow to 709,000 by 2032¹.

1. Deloitte Access Economics – The economic impact of stroke in Australia, 2013

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Macquarie Life was recognised by being awarded all three of the Association of Financial Advisers’  2013 Client Service Team Awards, achieving Underwriting Team of the Year, Claims Team of the Year and Business Support Services/BDM Team of the Year, at the event yesterday evening.

Importantly, each of these awards are voted on and decided by advisers, who took part in research conducted by Beddoes Institute.

Sally Phillips, Head of Underwriting and Claims for Macquarie Life, said she is  delighted the business has been recognised through the awards, which are decided by the advisers.

“We are truly honoured to win these awards, which demonstrate that our continued efforts across  underwriting, claims management and business development are recognised by the financial advisers who are so important to our business.

“We value the strong relationships we have developed with advisers and understand the important  role we have in supporting them in their relationships with their clients, through providing innovative  products and outstanding service throughout their entire experience with us.

“We look forward to continuing our collaborative relationship with advisers. We believe that our  ongoing focus on listening to their needs and acting on their feedback will enable us to keep  delivering the best outcomes for them and our mutual clients.”

Brad Fox, AFA CEO said: “We introduced the three service quality awards last year in conjunction with riskinfo and the Beddoes Institute to recognise adviser experiences in  dealing with the claims, underwriting and business development teams. Our congratulations to Macquarie Life on a job well done – a clean sweep is a significant achievement.”

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• 

  Life insurance focus eased but still important.

  Adviser focus on life insurance has fallen back from its peak in 2012, but remains a key area.

• Insurance business is even more concentrated, and AMP now tops primary relationships.
• Good BDM support is key for retention and acquisition.

Adviser focus on life insurance has fallen back from its peak in 2012, but remains a key area of their businesses

Following the recovery in investor sentiment and increasing flows to growth assets, adviser focus on life insurance has come back slightly from its peak in 2012, according to a new report released last week from leading wealth researcher Investment Trends.

The July 2013 Investment Trends Planner Risk Report is an in-depth study of Australian financial planners and their usage of insurance. The study is based on a survey of 1,159 financial planners concluded in July 2013.

The amount of client time spent on talking about insurance needs by planners fell slightly to 18%, after reaching the highest level recorded in the seven years of this study last year (20% of client time).

“The volatility in the markets that lasted most of 2011 and 2012 had driven planners to focus on increasing the role of insurance advice within their businesses, but the return in confidence earlier this year has meant planners were able to write a lot more non-risk business this year,” said Investment Trends Senior Analyst Recep Peker. “An outcome of this is that they are again spending the normal amount of time talking to clients about their insurance needs.”

“Despite this, those who write risk estimate they have written 5% more in annualised risk premiums in the last year than we recorded in the previous study, and remain optimistic predicting future growth (as they have for several years).”

The Future of Financial Advice (FoFA) reforms may also be a catalyst for planners to write more risk business, with 23% of planners saying they plan to provide more life insurance advice as a result of FoFA.

Insurance business has become even more concentrated, and AMP tops primary relationships

Insurer relationships are changing rapidly, with 29% of planners saying they reduced usage of an insurer in the last 12 months and 35% saying they stopped using an insurer (8% did both).

Those who have been leaving their insurer don’t necessarily start using another insurance provider, which is evidenced in the average number of insurers used by planners declining from 3.8 each to 3.4 each.

“This has resulted in the greater concentration of risk businesses written,” said Peker. “Planners write 64% of premiums through their most-used insurance provider, up from 61% in 2012 and 54% just five years ago.”

“It has become even more crucial to be a planner’s most-used insurance provider.”

AMP and AIA posted strong gains in primary market shares. The top five insurance providers by number of primary planner relationships are now:

1. AMP
2. OnePath/ANZ
3. AIA Australia
4. TAL
5. BT Life

Platforms are becoming more important in the insurance market

The proportion of these risk premiums written on platforms is on the up, with planners writing 39% of new risk business via a master trust or wrap platform. This is up from 34% of premiums just last year, and up from almost zero ten years ago.

“The reason this is so significant is because the concentration of risk business is even greater among advisers using platforms, partly due to the limited range of insurers available on most platforms,” said Peker. “This means insurers without a platform will need a more compelling proposition to compete.”

Having multiple insurance providers available on platforms could help drive more insurance business to platforms.

“The main factor inhibiting more risk businesses on platforms is the limited range of insurers on offer, and indeed planners continue to ask for choice of insurer on platforms, most often because they believe this allows them to provide the best deal for the client.”

Good BDM support is key to retention and acquisition

“Satisfaction is crucial in the insurance space, as business is not very sticky and planners can easily stop writing new business on an insurance provider,” said Peker. “That’s why there is a very strong relationship between satisfaction and switching behaviour.”

“Relative to their market share, insurers with lower overall satisfaction ratings from their users experience a higher proportion of planners leaving or switching to other insurers.”

Planners’ satisfaction with their insurers remained high, but fell slightly from the levels achieved in 2012. The top three insurance providers by overall planner satisfaction in 2013 were:

1. TAL
2. Zurich
3. Macquarie Life

Satisfaction with insurers increased the most with business development support, but part of this increase is driven by switching to insurers with better support.

“Good BDM support is a hygiene factor, crucial for both retention and acquisition,” said Peker. “Poor support is a key factor that has caused planners to stop using an insurance provider, and good BDM support is the top selection driver for becoming a planner’s most-used insurer.”

“Although providers now score well for business development support at an industry level, they cannot let service levels falter.”

“Beyond this, planners are demanding further enhancements to underwriting and technology, and these areas will continue to be key battlegrounds for insurance providers over the next year,” said Peker.

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