Everything you need to know about what we've been discussing on Protection Forum so far this year

Attended by a large number of advisers, as well as insurers and other industry professionals, our aim is that through the forum we can collectively drive improvements to products, processes, standards and ultimately, consumer outcomes. As we move into the second quarter of the year, we take the opportunity today to look back on the first three forum meetings of the year and recap the important and varied topics discussed.

If you’d like to register to attend the next forum (taking place in May), advisers can sign up for their free ticket here.

JANUARY SESSION 1: CONSUMER DUTY 

In the first session of our January Protection Forum we returned to the FCA’s Consumer Duty, with presentations from Johnny Timpson and Stacey Reeve, examining what impact the regulations will have on protection advisers.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

JANUARY SESSION 2: ELECTRONIC GPRS 

The second session of our January forum focused on an equally important topic for advisers: electronic GPRs. We heard from David Mead of advice firm FutureProof and the PDG, explaining what initiatives the industry is taking to improve uptake of e-GPRs and what more insurers and advisers can do.

Part 1

Part 2

FEBRUARY SESSION 1: CONSUMER UNDERSTANDING OF INCOME PROTECTION 

Income protection remains an undersold product alongside life and CI, but is it partly that consumers simply don’t understand it, or when they do purchase it they’re not buying what they expect. The language around IP can be confusing, with different terms thrown around to describe different products.

Part 1

Part 2

FEBRUARY SESSION 2: IMPROVING PROTECTION COMMUNICATIONS 

The second session in our February forum continued some of the themes from the first session and focused on the language and methods of communicating and marketing protection products to consumers. We heard some excellent insights from insurers such as LV= on the their efforts to simplify product literature, as well as invaluable insights from advisers on how they communicate with clients.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

MARCH SESSION 1: UNDERSTANDING THE MYRIAD OF PROTECTION PRODUCTS ON THE MARKET 

There are perhaps now more protection products that ever, all designed to meet different consumer needs. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but how do advisers navigate an increasingly complex market and identify the correct solution for their clients. In this session we heard from a panel of expert advisers, sharing their thoughts on the subject.

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MARCH SESSION 2: COMMUNICATING UNDERWRITING PROCESSES AND OUTCOMES 

The second session of our March forum returned to the subject of language and communications, but this time focused on underwriting. Specifically we heard from three experts on what efforts the industry has gone to to improve underwriting language and the explanation of decisions to clients, and what more work is still needed. This is essential listening/reading for any adviser wishing to better understand how they should handle the underwriting process with their clients.

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