Chatswood serves the life and health insurance sector in New Zealand with market intelligence, data, and bespoke consulting services. Some of these are provided in conjunction with Quality Product Research Limited - a subsidiary that brings you Quotemonster.
We believe that good decisions are more likely to occur when we have good information about the market environment in which we operate. Intuitive leaps and creative decisions are always required, of course, but the more they are based on a firm foundation of observation, the better they tend to be.
Fidelity Life announce mortgage cover enhancements
Fidelity Life has announced enhancements to their Monthly mortgage repayment cover and Mortgage Protection Cover.
Fidelity Life has enhanced their Monthly mortgage repayment cover and Mortgage Protection Cover. From 20 June, the insurer is lifting the offsets thresholds for these covers from $5,000 to $7,500, providing greater certainty at claim time for customers with high incomes or large mortgages.
In addition, customers can choose to base their cover on 115% of their rent payments.
Chief Commercial Officer Bronwyn Kirwan says
“These enhancements deliver more support and security for customers, whether that’s through keeping more money in their pockets before offsets start to apply, or offering greater support for renters. By providing more options, we aim to help more New Zealanders get the cover that works for them.”
More news:
AIA webinar 'Selling Offer of Terms' 26 June
Finance Minister confirms new Pharmac funding policy will be announced soon
Steve Wright identifies areas where FAPs and advisers need to improve
Steve Wright has examined the FMA’s FAP monitoring report and gone through the findings to highlight areas advisers and FAPs need to keep their eyes on.
While the FMA was for the most part happy with the results of their monitoring visits to around 60 FAPs, they did highlight a number of gaps where improvement is needed. In particular, the FMA identified ‘tick-box’ approaches to compliance as a root cause of some of these gaps.
Some areas that were identified as needing improvement were proper oversight of advice; identifying and working to close knowledge gaps; a considered approach to continuing professional development (CPD) with the identified learning achieved and recorded; some situations where the advice given was ‘unsatisfactory’; consideration of clients’ future needs.
More daily news:
mySolutions webinar 'Camilla Tumai, Bizcap Offering' 26 June
Pinnacle Life has been shortlisted for the 2024 Best Places to Work Awards
Southern Cross Healthcare supports Bowel Cancer New Zealand’s awareness campaign
Southern Cross Healthcare organises volunteer beach cleanups
Tony Vidler discusses the importance of an individual brand
TAP introduce the TAP Adviser Steering Committee
The US surgeon general seeks tobacco-like warning labels on social media platforms
Jon-Paul Hale critiques insurers' use of “MedSafe indicated” wording in policies
Jon-Paul Hale critiques insurers' use of 'MedSafe indicated' wording in policies, saying if clinicians and customers were more aware of what the wording meant they may change their treatment plans.
Jon-Paul Hale critiques insurers' use of 'MedSafe indicated' wording in policies, saying if clinicians and customers were more aware of what the wording meant they may change their treatment plans to ensure that coverage extends to the use of the medicine.
In policy wordings, “MedSafe indicated” can significantly limit access to treatment; where MedSafe guidelines include "indicated first-line treatment", this means the medication is only authorised for use as the first treatment. Hale suggests that clients consider any mediations with ‘first-line’ indications may wish to be treated with these medications first, as insurers are unlikely to approve them for later use.
What may surprise you is that many, many, medicines are prescribed that are outside Medsafe indications. Some are prescribed even though the medicine is unapproved for any purpose in New Zealand. Several insurers will not cover medicines that are unapproved. Obtaining a Medsafe approval for the use of a medicine can be time consuming and expensive. We are a small market and some disorders are rare. That means that while it may be economically viable to gain approvals in the United States and Europe, sometimes the New Zealand market may be too small for these companies to consider seeking approval economically viable, especially when some medical professionals will still prescribe an unapproved medicine.
At Quality Product Research Limited we are committed to ensuring that research scores are descriptive of these differences, which are increasingly important. There is a review of the non-PHARMAC coverage item in our health / medical insurance research which is being consulted on right now. If you would like to participate in the review please contact us. Results of the review will be announced at our forthcoming national roadshow which runs from 23 July to 29 August. Register for the roadshow, at a venue near you, here.
References:
Medsafe – about and role: https://www.medsafe.govt.nz/other/about.asp
Medsafe – use of Unapproved Medicines and Unapproved Use of Medicines: https://medsafe.govt.nz/profs/riss/unapp.asp#need
More daily news:
Partners Life campaign top in the 2023 Global Effie Rankings - insurance category
AIA recognised as one of the most diverse insurance companies
AM Best withdraws ratings for Accuro
Philip Macalister discusses research on areas advisers can improve in
Retirement Commissioner proposes 15 recommendations aimed at enhancing KiwiSaver
The FSC continues to call for review into KiwiSaver settings
Health New Zealand orders hiring freeze on all non-frontline roles
Legal and regulatory update for the life and health insurance sector
New guides to help people understand Climate-related Disclosures; APRA release new digital prudential framework; FMA publish auditor regulation and oversight plan; reappointment of RBNZ Chair; feedback sought on Financial Advice Code; FMA spotlight KiwiSaver fund types; Minister of Commerce & Consumer Affairs May diary released.
19 Jun 2024 - The Financial Markets Authority and the External Reporting Board have jointly produced a set of guides designed to help people understand the Climate-related Disclosures (CRD) regime and the information being provided in climate statements which are now starting to be published by climate reporting entities. https://financialmarketsauthority.cmail20.com/t/r-l-tdgjjx-btuitpxk-y/
19 Jun 2024 - The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) has announced the release of the new digital prudential framework in the form of the "Prudential Handbook". The Handbook brings all APRA's prudential standards, guidance and supporting information into one place; presents them in a digital format that can be easily navigated and searched; and caters to a range of different users across regulated industries and in the broader community. https://www.apra.gov.au/news-and-publications/apra-releases-new-digital-prudential-handbook
20 Jun 2024 - The Financial Markets Authority has published its Auditor Regulation and Oversight Plan 2024-2027. The plan sets out how the FMA aims to improve the audit quality of Financial Markets Conduct reporting entities. https://www.fma.govt.nz/news/all-releases/media-releases/fma-publishes-auditor-regulation-and-oversight-plan-2024-2027/
20 Jun 2024 - Professor Neil Quigley has been reappointed as Chair of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand Board for a further term of two years, until 30 June 2026. https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/reserve-bank-chair-reappointed
21 Jun 2024 - The Financial Advice Code Committee is seeking feedback on proposed amendments to the standards of competence, knowledge, and skill in the Financial Advice Code. https://financialadvicecode.govt.nz/2024/06/21/update-21-june-2024-consultation-on-financial-advice-competence-knowledge-and-skill/
24 Jun 2024 - The FMA's new ‘Spotlight’ series looks at the different kinds of KiwiSaver funds and explores how they work. https://www.fma.govt.nz/library/articles/spotlight-on-conservative-funds/
24 Jun 2024 - Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Hon Andrew Bayly May 2024 diary released with the following potential financial services sector related meeting noted:
2 May 2024 – MEET: FMA (FMA officials)
7 May 2024 – MEET: Commerce Commission Board
10 May 2024 – MEET: Institute of Financial Professionals NZ (Board members)
10 May 2024 –MEET: Kiwisaver Stakeholders Roundtable Lunch
16 May 2024 – ATTEND: Institute of Finance Professionals NZ Awards Dinner
17 May 2024 -CALL: Retirement Commissioner (Jane Wrightson)
22 May 2024 – MEET: External Reporting Board (Alex Burton, Michele Embling)
23 May 2024 – MEET: Commerce Commission (Commerce Commission Officials)
Quotemonster Information Security Bulletin – Phishing Scams become more sophisticated
This information security bulletin is all about recent phishing attempts and what to do if you suspect you’ve fallen victim to phishing.
This is our seventh information security bulletin, all about the recent phishing attempts and what to do if you suspect you’ve fallen victim to phishing.
New phishing campaigns impacting New Zealanders
Recently there has been a surge in compromised accounts being used to send phishing emails from trusted or known contacts. These emails are being sent using Microsoft OneDrive/SharePoint sharing invitations and redirecting users to malicious websites.
If you click the link in a file sharing invitation email and are directed to a login page, make sure to check if the domain in the address bar matches the expected account login page (e.g. login.microsoftonline.com or login.live.com) before entering your information. Check this every time!
Just getting the email doesn’t put you at risk, but if you click the link or enter any information, your risk increases. You could be affected if you have you have provided login details and/or two-factor authentication codes to unfamiliar domain. Check for any unfamiliar logins, which may be from an odd location or an unknown device; and make sure to check for any unfamiliar email rules, which could delete, move, mark as read or forward messages.
What is phishing?
Phishing is a type of email scam where the sender attempts to get you to provide them with personal information, especially financial details. Often the sender will pretend to be a trustworthy organisation, like a bank or a government agency. Phishing emails will ask you to either click a link and enter personal information, open an attachment in the email, or buy a gift card or voucher.
These emails often look legitimate, using the same design and logos as the company or organisation they’re pretending to be. While it used to be relatively easy to spot a phishing email due to spelling errors or poor grammar, these scams are a lot more sophisticated now and will often use the same tone of language as the organisation they are purporting to be.
How do I spot a phishing email?
Reputable companies and organisations will never ask you to provide personal information by email – any email you get that does this is a huge red flag.
Double check the sender’s email address to see if it looks legitimate. Companies like banks won’t have email addresses that end in gmail.com or hotmail.com.
Be wary of any unexpected emails.
Any anomalies in the email’s tone, language or signature that differ from the sender’s usual style could point to a phishing email.
Check where links lead by hovering your mouse over the link to see what the domain is – often a suspicious link will point to an address which isn’t related to the content of the email or the wording on the link.
What happens if I open the attachment?
Opening an attachment from a phishing email allows the sender to infect your computer with malware – malicious software. Malware can allow the senders to access your personal information without you knowing. Malware can spread through your programs and files, corrupting them and slowing down your computer or causing your computer to stop working. If you have malware on your computer, you are more vulnerable to other attacks, like ransomware.
What do I do if I receive a suspected phishing email?
If you suspect you have received a phishing email, do not click any links or open any attachments, these are typically in the form of payment requests or remittances. Contact the supposed sender through a different communication channel (e.g. call through to their contact centre – making sure to get their phone number from their website, not from details in the email) to verify whether the email is authentic or not. Report the email to your IT department and/or relevant authority (e.g. CERT NZ).
Want to know more?
CERT NZ is regularly updated with the latest scams targeting New Zealanders, you can view their alerts here https://www.cert.govt.nz/individuals/alerts/
We also highly recommend signing up to Cert NZ’s regular email updates by clicking on the ‘Subscribe to updates’ button at the top of every page on their website.
We are here to help! You can email us to ask for copies of past security bulletins. You can also review our outsource provider statement at the bottom right-hand corner of every page on the site at www.quotemonster.co.nz. More information about relevant certifications, policies, and procedures will be shared in future information security bulletins. We recommend you keep these with other compliance documents.
Please contact us on 09 480 6071 or at info@quotemonster.co.nz if you have any concerns or questions.
Stay vigilant and safe.
ISB 07-202406
Take your Business Statement of Advice (SoA) to the next level!
Take your Business Statement of Advice (SoA) to the next level and join us on Tuesday, 2 July 2024 11:00 am-12:00 pm as Aneel, our AdviceTech Lead demonstrates how to produce a business SoA supported with pricing and research on lump sum and Key Person Cover.
Take your Business Statement of Advice (SoA) to the next level and join us on Tuesday, 2 July 2024 11:00 am-12:00 pm as Aneel, our AdviceTech Lead demonstrates how to produce a business SoA supported with pricing and research on lump sum and Key Person Cover.
The next products on our radar are Rural Cover and Business Expenses, so keep an eye out for more information on this.
If you would like to register yourself or are interested in a personalised session for your organisation, please send us an email on aneel.ravji@qpresearch.co.nz
We look forward to seeing you there!
Setting up two-factor authentication
At Quotemonster, accounts need to be set up with two-factor authentication (2FA) - this adds an additional layer of security and reduces the risk of unauthorised access to your account by requiring a second verification step. This video will take you through how to set up 2FA using mobile or email.
Legal and regulatory update for the life and health insurance sector
APRA releases prudential practice guide; FMA publishes info for smaller firms on fair conduct programmes and applying for CoFI licence; RBNZ release updated design proposals for their business expectations survey; XRB launch Standards Navigator.
13 Jun 2024 - The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) has released its finalised prudential practice guide to help banks, insurers and superannuation trustees strengthen their management of operational risk and improve business continuity planning. https://www.apra.gov.au/news-and-publications/apra-finalises-cross-industry-guidance-on-operational-resilience
14 Jun 2024 - The Financial Markets Authority has published an information sheet specifically for smaller firms to assist in establishing and maintaining a Fair Conduct Programme (FCP) and applying for a Financial Institution (CoFI) licence. https://www.fma.govt.nz/news/all-releases/media-releases/fma-provides-additional-support-to-smaller-firms-for-cofi-licensing/
17 Jun 2024 - The Reserve Bank of New Zealand has released Tara-ā-Umanga Business Expectations Survey: Design proposals following consultation and pilot, which outlines lessons learnt and resulting design proposals for their new Business Expectations Survey, BES, Tara-ā-Umanga. Changes include making the survey shorter and quicker for businesses to fill in; questions will focus on inflation expectations, wages, and unemployment; they will survey businesses in the primary industry; and they will not include very small businesses (those with fewer than 6 employees). https://www.rbnz.govt.nz/statistics/surveys/expectations-survey-information-for-survey-participants/business-expectations-survey-design-and-development
18 Jun 2024 - The External Reporting Board has launched the XRB Standards Navigator, which takes static PDF versions of XRB standards and presents them in a more accessible, dynamic and user- friendly format. https://standards.xrb.govt.nz/standards-navigator/
Explore New Research and RegTech at the Quotemonster Roadshow
We are thrilled to invite you to the Quotemonster Roadshow 2024! We have two new regtech tools to help keep you safe, some major new research to highlight, more than 175 legacy contracts researched, and much, much more.
We are thrilled to invite you to the Quotemonster Roadshow 2024! We have two new regtech tools to help keep you safe, some major new research to highlight, more than 175 legacy contracts researched, and much, much more.
What’s in it for you?
Access new research: Check out 200+ updated products researched including: the latest business insurance research, group health insurance research, and legacy products
Stay safe with new Regtech: Discover how Checkmonster, Premium History Reports, and Company reports can keep SOAs compliant
Expanded offer: Explore how to tackle new opportunities with business insurance SOAs and details on staying compliant while advising on existing business
What’s coming: We’re kiwi-owned and kiwi-based so it’s only natural we branch out and give you a sneak peek at Kiwimonster
Join us at a location near you to gain continuing professional development credits, learn how to save time in creating effective comparisons and recommendations, and drive your business forward.
Last year more than 700 advisers joined us for the roadshow with exclusive access to our speaker panel and lots of time to discuss the ins and outs of using research and our other tools to make powerful and robust recommendations.
Click on the link below to register for your town.
Click here to see all venues and dates.
We look forward to seeing you there!
AIA releases data on claims by age bracket
AIA has released information on claims by age bracket – counter to what is often seen in the media about elderly people having the highest health costs, the age bracket that had the most claims in 2023 was those aged 50 – 59.
AIA has released information on claims by age bracket – counter to what is often seen in the media about elderly people having the highest health costs, the age bracket that had the most claims in 2023 was those aged 50 – 59. This age group was paid out more than $197 million in 2023 out of $734.8 million in total claims.
Those aged 60 – 69, while still making up a large proportion of total claims, had a total of more than $139 million in claims paid out, with $65.55 million being on life policies, while those aged 70 and over claimed just $71 million, with $50.52 million being against life policies. The lower level of claims of those aged over 70 could be due to people reducing or dropping their cover as they get older and no longer have dependants to consider or mortgages to pay off.
It comes as no surprise that those aged 20 – 29 had a low level of claims, with only $2.6 million paid in claims against life policies and $7.7 million paid on health policies in this age bracket.
More daily news:
Insurance Business Mag highlights ways AI can impact health insurance
MAS asks Members to vote on a special resolution at the AGM
mySolutions webinar 'Gregor Mansfield, FINLIFE' 19 June
Partners Life webinar 'licensing and advice obligations' 18 & 19 June
The FSC is holding a CRD Series session on 19 June