RiskinfoNZ Weekly News Summary RiskinfoNZ

Financial advisers from across the country are expected to descend on Christchurch in September to attend Financial Advice NZ’s two-day Ignite conference.
Ignite is being held at the Christchurch Convention Centre and among those confirmed to take part include optimist Chris Riddell and financial adviser, best-selling author and podcaster Victoria Devine. - Dee-Vine – among many others....

Cigna has updated the occupation classes it uses in its online quote tool. A new field has been created so advisers can indicate whether the customer’s occupation is E (eligible), U (uninsurable), or IC (requires individual consideration for disability benefits).
The firm’s Chief Operating Officer Debbie Eyre says the update is part of a raft of changes to be announced by the firm. She will provide more details during a Cigna Live event to be held on 28 April.
And staying with Cigna...
The firm's offering new clients who purchase an insurance policy with the Cigna two months' free cover. The offer runs until 30 June and applies to Cigna’s assurance extra, business assurance, business extra, and agribusiness extra policies issued before 31 August 2022.
Compliance refinery
A FAP director support programme has been launched by Compliance Refinery in conjunction with governance specialists Faraday & Company.
Melanie Purdey, Compliance Refinery’s course facilitator, says directors of FAPs or authorised bodies are facing more scrutiny as part of the FMA's FAP licensing guidelines, and that many directors may not fully understand their licence obligations.
Purdey says Compliance Refinery's director support programme is designed to ensure directors have the knowledge and skills to meet the requirements of the full licencing regime.

Strategi
Industry training firm Strategi and the FMA are holding a free webinar on Thursday 7 April for financial advice providers who have not yet submitted their application for a full FAP licence.
Strategi says that by attending the webinar, FAPs and their owners and managers will better understand what is required and be provided with practical next steps to obtain their full FAP licence.
Southern Cross Healthcare’s has appointed Chris White as its new CEO, White has been sitting in the top chair for a few months as interim CEO.
White began with Southern Cross on the insurance side of the business in 2017. From there, he moved across to its healthcare division as Chief Operating Officer, and then to interim CEO in October last year.
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News for financial advisers in New Zealand
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Speaking during an FSC webinar that attracted more than 600 viewers, the FMA's recently appointed CEO Samantha Barrass announced the publication of an updated draft Conduct Guide for industry consultation.
She also said there will be substantial change at the organisation over the next few years, building new capabilities, and employing new staff with different areas of expertise.
Actuality - Barrass
How insurers take Covid-19 vaccination status into account when setting life and health premiums is fraught with issues, write lawyers Andrew Horne and Olivia de Pont of law firm Minter Ellison Rudd Watts.
They say rating risk based on vaccination status is not a straightforward exercise as lapsed vaccination status and natural herd immunity may need to be considered.
Partners Life has released a 'how to' video (below) explaining how financial advisers should use the latest additions to its My Underwriting Manager system – namely the Client Access to Personal Statement (CAPS) feature.
The updated version of My Underwriting Manager allows advisers working with the firm to send their clients a secure link to complete their personal statement, in their own time, and on their own device.
The company also says ANZ's chief financial officer Stewart Taylor is to join the firm as its CFO – but no start date has been announced.

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News for financial advisers
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Growing your advisory business by book acquisition could mean biting off more than you can chew.
Strategi's Dave Greenslade cautions business owners not to buy a book that is so large it would be hard to contact all the new clients within 12 months.
He says the FMA expects the purchaser to undertake due diligence to ascertain the quality of the client advice records within one year of purchase.
A new advertising code came in on 1 March that means all financial advertising needs to demonstrates a high standard of social responsibility.
The code means financial advertisements should disclose all relevant information, including social media, emails, TV, radio and other platforms
Lawyers at Dentons, Kensington, Swan say the principle of social responsibility is in the spirit of the Advertising Standards Authority code and you don't have to break the rules to breach it.
Financial advisers working with Cigna are being asked to complete online courses and meet declaration requirements via its Adviser Training Hub.
Requirements include annual product recertification and declarations to help advisers stay ahead of their compliance obligations.
Cigna has a new online My Score Card tool that's connected to MBIE’s Financial Service Provider Register.
A client review call centre is being launched by The Adviser Platform to help reduce the load on busy advisers.
The company's Ryan Edwards says the service, to be launched 1 April, will demonstrate to the regulators that an adequate level of servicing is being provided to clients and improve client retention.
Fidelity Life has launched a podcast covering the key elements of its Building Better Business modules.
Each of the company’s podcasts is around four minutes long and covers topics such as complaint handling, communication, and business plans.
A new report from PWC highlights recruitment, regulations, and crime as being among the key challenges faced by New Zealand insurers.
The 15-page report – Exploring the Insurance Industry’s Top Risks – identifies a rising level of anxiety about cybercrime and the new financial conduct regime.

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Fidelity Life has completed its purchase of Westpac's life insurance business having got the nod from the regulators. The insurer now has a 17% share of the life market in New Zealand.
Details of the purchase were first released by Fidelity Life in July 2021 when it said it would acquire Westpac Life from Westpac Group for NZ$400m, and will also into a 15-year life insurance distribution arrangement with Westpac NZ.
Fidelity Life’s largest shareholder the NZ Super Fund and new investor Nigh – Tahoo - Ngāi Tahu Holdings will fund the majority of the acquisition.

The latest industry snapshot from the FSC shows life insurance covers increased by 92,000 to 4.2 million during 2021.
The data snapshot also shows the sector paid out $308 million in claims in the last quarter of 2021 and that 96% of claims made over the same period were paid.
We have a new poll running this week asking about your work-related stress levels – cast your vote...
Kiwis who act on professional financial advice are better prepared for retirement and more comfortable making big financial decisions than unadvised Kiwis, according to a new report from Financial Advice NZ.
Its Better Behaviours report shows that across every age band, advised Kiwis feel they have a better understanding of how much money they will need in retirement.
Across the board, quality financial advice has given Kiwis the tools to think about their finances in a pro-active way, says Katrina Shanks.

Asteron Life is extending the Best Doctors telehealth service to its customers with trauma recovery and cancer cover.
The service, which provides access to an international network of medical specialists and local GPs, is already available to the company’s clients with disability insurance as well as eligible insurance advisers.
And staying with best Doctors, AIA NZ is extending the Best Doctors service to financial advisers who have a relationship with the firm.
A draft version of the Insurance Contract Bill has been released for consultation by MBIE.
If made into law, the bill would introduce a range of changes that MBIE says will make insurance contracts easier to understand and fairer to consumers. However, industry feedback is being sought prior to the draft Bill has its first reading in parliament.
The value of locum advisers to help maintain business continuity when a member of the financial adviser team is away will be debated during a financial services council webinar on March 11.
Discussing the issues, risks, and solutions will be a panel made up of representatives from insurer Partners Life, law firm Dentons Kensington Swann, and Rose-will Consulting.
Financial Advice NZ launched its own financial adviser locum scheme in November last 2021.
According to Stats NZ data 1.45 million New Zealanders are paying almost $2 billion a year for private heath insurance. The country’s population sits at 5.2 million. In the last quarter of 2021 more than $386 million was paid out by health insurers, with women aged under 64 having higher value claims than men. From age 65 men claimed more than women during the same period.

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