The voice of your profession THEJOURNAL · 32-33 India Praveen Gupta outlines the crucial...

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THE JOURNAL February/March 2013 www.cii.co.uk/journal THE VOICE OF YOUR PROFESSION CREDIT WHERE IT’S DUE HOW FIRMS CAN TAP INTO TRADE CREDIT PROTECTING THE PUBLIC INTEREST THE CII’S PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS BOARD French connection AXA CHAIRMAN HENRI DE CASTRIES ON WHY INSURERS MUST ADAPT TO THE NEW WORLD ORDER

Transcript of The voice of your profession THEJOURNAL · 32-33 India Praveen Gupta outlines the crucial...

Page 1: The voice of your profession THEJOURNAL · 32-33 India Praveen Gupta outlines the crucial difference between sales and service, and offers a five-point plan for creating a better

THEJOURNALFebruary/March 2013 www.cii.co.uk/journal

The voice of your profession

Credit where

it’s dueHow firms

can tap into trade credit

ProteCting the PubliC interest

tHe cii’s professional standards Board

French connectionAxA chAirmAn henri de cAstries on why insurers must adapt to the new world order

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February/March 2013 THE JOURNALwww.ci i .co.uk

CONTENTSFebruary/March 2013

NEWS & COMMENT4 President’s letterAs the Aldermanbury Declaration turns three, your president looks back at what has been achieved

6-10 News National news from the CII

11 International newsA look at the CII presence across the world

12-13 Regional newsNews from the local institutes

REGULARS14 Editor’s inbox and comment

16-17 The interview – Henri de Castries, Axa

18 Discover Risk Following a successful National Apprenticeship Week in March, the CII reveals what the profession is doing to get in on the act

21 Chartered profile – AgeasAdam Clarke of Ageas tells us how achieving Chartered status fits with his firm’s existing learning and development programmes

26 Local institute profile – AberdeenAberdeen Institute president Debbie Mitchell talks to the Journal

The Chartered Insurance Institute 20 AldermanburyLondon, EC2V 7HYTel: (020) 8989 8464Fax: (020) 8530 3052

Chief executive: Dr Alexander Scott

Should you wish to send your views, please email:[email protected]

The Journal is the official magazine of the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII). Views expressed by contributors or advertisers are not necessarily those of the CII or the editorial team. The CII will accept no responsibility for any loss occasioned to any person acting or refraining from action as a result of the material included in this publication. The Journal is online at www.cii.co.uk/journal (members and subscribers only)

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34 4028-30 Hot topic – Home workingWith rail fares rising and job opportunities shrinking, it is no wonder increasing numbers of UK workers are choosing to set up their own businesses from home

36-37 Institutes in action – CPD masterclassThe Manchester Institute is leading the way with its CPD masterclass

42 Legal caseworkThe High Court has surprised many by ruling firms in receipt of an FOS award can still claim through the courts

43 Study room - A-Z High net worth

44-45 Professional development – Product recall Hardly a day has gone by in the last few weeks without news of another development in the food scandal across Europe

46-48 Roll of honour CII members that have achieved professional distinction in recent months

49 CII blogWith an exam to study for in April and a new gym membership to make use of, Peter Molloy wonders if he could combine the two…

50 Study room – Q&A

Editorial enquiries: [email protected] 7417 4763

For advertising opportunities contact:Jacob Quagliozzi on020 7417 4793or [email protected]

Design: Redactive Media Group17 Britton StreetLondon, EC1M 5TPTel: (020) 7880 6200

ISSN 0957 4883© 2013 Chartered Insurance Institute. Average total net circulation 76,000

FEATURES22-23 Trade creditA stumbling economy has led to a rise in businesses needing trade credit insurance. Sam Barrett looks at how firms can tap into this growing market

24-25 ExaminationsHaving recently completed the new CII Level 7 Certificate in London Market Insurance Specialisation, Ben Baker explains why he would happily do it all over again

32-33 IndiaPraveen Gupta outlines the crucial difference between sales and service, and offers a five-point plan for creating a better delivery proposition

34-35 Behind the scenesKin Ly shadows insurance surveyor Lucy Chittenden as she performs an assessment of West End theatre, the Trafalgar Studios

39 Life and pensionsStephen Lowe discusses the results of the UK’s largest research study into consumer attitudes towards housing equity withdrawal and the steps needed to make it a viable option for retirees

40-41 Professional Standards BoardFeaturing the work of the CII’s professional standards board

Co

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GET

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cii.co.uk/chartered

Brokers have a duty of care to provide the best advice to their clients. But true professionals don’t do things because they have to, they do things because they want to. We pursued Chartered status because it’s a clear mark of integrity and professionalism and assures clients that we’re putting their needs first.

Stuart Williams, ACIIChartered Insurance BrokerDirector, Cowens Survival Capability

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T his March sees the three-year anniversary of the launch of the Aldermanbury Declaration, so it is appropriate that we look at what has been achieved so far and how far the initiative, and the industry, have come.

It was back in May 2009 that the Professionalism Task Force held its first meeting, with the aim of looking at ways

the market could adopt more professional standards and, as a result, instil greater confidence among our customers, with the government and, indeed, the regulator.

Out of that task force came the Aldermanbury Declaration, conceived and designed to provide both a starting point and target to achieve that greater professionalism we all wanted to see. Remember, this was not long after the financial meltdown of 2008, so consumer and government faith in financial services had never been lower.

We had to act and we did. This was not a CII initiative but a market one, supported and guided by the CII. This aspect was absolutely vital as, without market-wide support, it stood little chance of success. So what, if anything, has been achieved and have we made any real progress towards achieving our goal of improving the general image of general insurance?

Strong supportThe first question we need to ask is whether the declaration received support. On the insurer side, to date there have been 30 signatories, including nine of the 10 leading insurers, which is an excellent achievement. As for brokers, 163 have signed up so far, which, when you bear in mind that many of the brokers that have committed have offices across the country, is again a brilliant result.

Would I have liked to see more insurers and brokers sign up? Of course I would and everyone who cares about our market would share that sentiment. I would love to see any business operating in insurance to have achieved the professional standards demanded by the declaration but that is not going to happen overnight. Ultimately, the standards as

AmAndA BlAnc

PRESIDENT’S LETTER

laid out by the declaration will become the entry point for anyone hoping to operate in insurance and we have made a great start in achieving that.

To have so many businesses signed up already is very encouraging but to sign up is one thing; to actually work towards meeting those standards is something else entirely. Again, the statistics are very encouraging.

Making the gradeOf the 30 insurers that have signed up, 57% have confirmed in writing that they already meet the standards. Of the 163 broker signatories, 61% have already reached their goal, with a further 10% set to do so by December. To have 60% of insurers and brokers that signed the declaration meeting the standards now and a further 10% confirming they will meet them by the end of the year is a huge success and they should be congratulated for the investment and commitment they have made.

But what of the rest? What you need to remember is that many insurers and brokers have chosen to attain Chartered status for their firms and in doing so are deemed to have met the standards of the declaration. In total there are 144 Chartered firms – 22 Chartered Insurers and 122 Chartered Insurance Brokers. Chartered firms include some of the largest and most influential insurers and brokers and between them employ 25,000 staff.

The market is clearly headed towards a more professional future. When we launched the Aldermanbury Declaration three years ago, there was really no telling how the market would react and whether it would embrace the initiative. But looking at where we have come over those three years, it is clear the market has done more than adopt the declaration. Between them the Aldermanbury Declaration and Chartered status have become the standards to which all good insurance businesses aspire and there will come a time, I am convinced, when what seems like a huge effort and achievement now, will be the basic expectation of those operating in insurance. To all those who have met the standards – well done, you are at the vanguard. And to all those who have yet to get there – the rest of us are waiting.

As the Aldermanbury Declaration turns three, your president looks back at what has been achieved

COMMENT

cii.co.uk/chartered

We’re Chartered because we believe in everything it stands for. Our commitment to developing the highest levels of technical skills and expertise is at the core of our business vision in an ever more competitive and commoditised market. When business partners and clients see that we are Chartered, they know that we are making that vision a practical reality.

Neil Clutterbuck, ACIIChartered Insurer Director, Underwriting and TechnicalAllianz Commercial

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The CII has expanded its international presence in 2013 by introducing a number of new international-only qualifications, including the Award in Investment Planning, the Award in Bancassurance and the Award in Customer Service in Insurance.

These are planned to address the previous shortfall of internationally recognised entry-level qualifications. With an increasingly mobile global workforce, access to qualifications applicable on an international level is increasingly important.

The Award in Bancassurance is a banking-focused variant of the Award in Financial Planning, targeted largely at advisers in the South East Asian banking sector, while the Award in Investment Planning is designed as the next step for anyone holding the Award in Financial Planning or the Award in Bancassurance to develop and demonstrate their knowledge of investment products. The Award in Customer Service in Insurance is aimed at those working in customer-facing roles, helping to build the skills and knowledge required.

As with existing international qualifications,

these new awards will only be available outside of the UK.

The CII is also introducing the Certificate in Insurance and Financial Services, offering a dedicated study pathway for candidates outside the UK that provide financial advice and also act as insurance agents. The certificate is awarded upon completion of certain international award qualifications.

More than 14% of the CII’s membership is based outside the UK, across 150 countries. International growth is a key part of the CII’s strategy and it continues to build a local presence in India, the Middle East and the Far East.

Mark Greenwood, regional director – Asia and Middle East – at the CII, said: “The CII has been working hard to enhance its international offering to better meet these evolving needs through the provision of relevant qualifications tailored specifically for local markets internationally. This is particularly relevant at the entry level where previously there was a dearth of internationally recognised qualifications.”

The first examination sittings for these three new qualifications will take place in April 2013.

The CII has launched study texts in ebook format to allow members and students quick, convenient access to revision information via their portable electronic devices.

CII ebook study texts are compatible with the majority of portable electronic devices, including Android Windows tablets/smartphones, Kindle and iPad/iPhone. Ebooks can also be viewed on desktop and laptop computers.

Ebook study texts give learners access to all the benefits of the printed CII study text, including the same enrolment period, updates and access to RevisionMate (the CII’s online study tool) where available, while reducing paper use.

There are also a number of useful features, such as annotation tools, easy navigation, quick web link access, in-built

ciigroup@linkedin

twitter.com/#ciigroup

youtube.com/ciimedia

Texts go electronicdictionary and read-aloud. The latter is available on the majority of devices, allowing the student to listen and learn at the same time.

Niall Boyd, head of product marketing at the CII, said: “The launch of the CII’s ebook study texts is a major step forward for the professional body in terms of members’ access to study material and reflects the growing popularity of digital content over printed material. It also responds to the evolution in consumers’ preferred method of study

in recent years, as tablets and smartphones have taken off in a big way.

“We took members’ lifestyles and study habits into consideration while developing this format – for example, an ebook study text is handy for someone commuting or travelling and needing fast access to

course information. We hope that those studying for CII

qualifications will get a lot of value out of these

new ebooks.” Other benefits include

no postage fees and fast delivery (same day if purchased before 16.00 Monday to Friday). ● For more

information visit www.cii.co.uk/

ebooks

CII expands international offering for 2013

LinkedIn

Current discussions include:● 35 hours CPD – I know it’s only February...

is anyone else panicking that they might not complete the required 35 hours of CPD? All tips welcome.

● Anyone studying for the advance insurance broking 930? I’m looking for a revision/assignment partner as I haven’t started yet for the April exam.

● R02 – Algebra. Does anyone know the weighting (or the amount of questions) likely to be asked on chapters 4 and 9 of R02?

● Are we seeing more people from outside the industry, at mid to senior level, considering a career change into insurance?

From the CII Twitterati…

@AXADavidW Looking forward to @AXA_Broker Tony Hutchins lecture on flood today at @CIIGroup London Lecture in Lloyd's Library, VERY topical subject

@DeloitteUK_FS Busy in The Great Hall with @CIIGroup and @MarketforceIns for first #barbon13 lecture

@melissakidd Looking forward to going to Luton later to run a Networking Skills Talk for the @CIIGroup #networking

@AnnuityKath @Chrisatengage: Enjoyed @JonEverill @CIIGroup talk on will clients pay for fee based financial advice - trust & value agreed. V good

@EC3view Talented London Market Practitioners Selected for @CIIGroup New Generation Programme http://bit.ly/XIblzZ

CII LinkedIn Group → 11,930 members#CIIGroup Twitter → 3,206 followers

J o i n t h e d e b at e to d ay !

Last year the CII launched a recruitment campaign to attract and appoint diversity champions from the local institutes (LIs) to work with the CII.

These champions have been appointed to raise awareness of diversity issues, prevent anti-discriminatory practices and improve inclusiveness at the CII and the LIs.

Erik Johnson, diversity champion for London and co-chair of Link – LGBT Insurance Network, said: “I volunteered to take on the role of diversity champion to help make sure the Insurance Institute of London gets the most out of its diverse membership and to attract the best talent to the insurance sector.”

In the past, diversity has been an overlooked aspect of professionalism deemed not as important as technical subjects within the insurance and financial services industry. However, diversity awareness is an intrinsic part of good ethical practice, which members of a professional body should promote.

The diversity champions have been chosen as part of the CII’s ongoing commitment to ethics and diversity good practice and will work alongside the CII’s Diversity Action Group and the CII Professional Standards Board. Together these groups ensure that the CII, as a whole, take a holistic view of diversity and professionalism.

Tim Allen, diversity champion for the North West, said: “I applied for one of the regional diversity champion roles as I feel that everyone needs to have voice or be heard. Being a diversity champion allows me to take ownership of this in my local area. Every single one of our members has their own views, opinions and needs and I am proud to have been given the chance to ensure that no one is excluded.”● For more information on equality and diversity, see the CII’s equality and diversity guide: http://bit.ly/WTpQlk● To find out more about the LI diversity champions, or if you are interested in the role, please contact: [email protected]

Diversity challengeFollowing the UK’s largest research study into consumer attitudes towards retirement and housing equity withdrawal, the CII has published its latest Thinkpiece – Hitting a home run in retirement: The unlocked potential for housing equity in later-life income planning.

Written by Stephen Lowe, group external affairs and customer insight director at Just Retirement, the report tackles the issue of paying for retirement as today’s retirees look forward to longer lives than ever before. The challenge is how to pay for those extra years, particularly at a time when state support is under pressure and pension returns are being squeezed.

In a country with high levels of home ownership among older people, housing equity withdrawal is one potential solution to the

problem of pension income shortfalls. Mr Lowe discusses the steps needed to make housing equity withdrawal a viable option for current and future generations of retirees.

The study found the majority (79%) of respondents will draw their income from the state pension. A further 44% also have a private pension/annuity, and/or 39% a final salary pension. However, 33% have neither of these additional sources of pension. Only 36% have savings and investments for an income in retirement. Overall, 33% only have the state pension to rely on for pension income. They do not have a final salary or private pension.

The report concluded: “Central and local government, the financial services industry and

the third sector need to work together to find ways to increase the understanding of people aged 50 and upwards of the financial challenges and choices facing them in later life.

“The financial services industry must help empower consumers to make informed decisions and develop the products and services that meet people’s needs. Releasing higher percentages of equity, reducing upfront charges and giving people the ability to ring-fence value in their property either for inheritance or long-term care purposes are examples of areas for potential innovation.”● For more, see: www.cii.co.uk/media/4189915/tp93_lowe_equity_release_4feb2013.pdf and the article on p39 for an extract of the full report.

BIBA aiming to meet the growth challengeEric Galbraith, chief executive of the British Insurance Brokers' Association (BIBA), has committed the trade body to focus on promoting growth for itself and its members during 2013. ‘Meeting the growth challenge’ has been chosen as the theme of its conference as well as the title of its latest manifesto, which lists 16 objectives under three main headings: meeting customers’ needs; managing risks and supporting jobs; and growth and promoting fairer regulation.

The annual conference and exhibition, which this year is returning to ExCeL London on the 15-16 May, will feature the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) Martin Wheatley, Nick Robinson, Hilary Devey, David Miliband MP and Sir Chris Hoy MBE as keynote speakers.

Mr Wheatley, chief executive designate of the FCA, will give the opening address on the first day, while Ms Devey, multi-millionaire boss of Pall-Ex and star of the BBC’s Dragon’s Den, will speak in the afternoon.

On the Thursday, Mr Miliband will open, while Mr Hoy, Britain’s greatest Olympian, will close the conference.

During the two days, there will be a series of eight seminar sessions on a diverse range of subjects, including the growth of telematics, brokers’ PI and effective SME strategies, through to leadership, online brand loyalty and creating high performance cultures.

The CII will be supporting the BIBA conference with a stand in the exhibition hall and CII general insurance brokers and intermediary members can get free admission to the conference.* ● More details on BIBA’s 2013 manifesto and on the conference programme can be found at: www.biba.org.uk

*Applies to general insurance brokers and intermediaries authorised and registered by the FSA/FCA, who sell the product(s) of one or more insurance companies.

Hitting a home run in retirement

FOR THE RECORDNEWS

FOR THE RECORDNEWS

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Breach of the CII code of ethicsKulothungan Sivarajah aCII,CertCII(mP), Chartered insurance practitioner, of London, UK

mr Sivarajah was convicted of the criminal offence of driving while under the influence of alcohol in 2012, a breach of the CII code of ethics.

as the member made full and voluntary disclosure, the CII preliminary screener made a determination that the sanction be limited to a reprimand.

This was endorsed by the disciplinary committee under disciplinary rule nine.

Where the disciplinary panel has decided to publish details of a disciplinary case ascribed (ie where an individual has been named), every care has been taken to identify members correctly. Please contact the CII if there is any doubt about the identity of a member who may have been the subject of disciplinary proceedings and in relation to whom a report has been published.

d i S C i P L i n a R y M a t t e R S

FOR THE RECORDNEWS

c h a r T e r e D

B Richard Boddy

gary Brotherton

C andrew Chapman

D Ross Dessent

g Nicholas gowdridge

H Dean Henson

J Shaun Jackson

L Brian Lochhead

Sarah Lyons

m Christopher martin

Thomas mathieson

Ruhel miah

Tichafa muromo

N Christopher Newberry

P Duncan Paterson

Stuart Pearson

marcello Pietrocola

Katie Pusey

S Nirushan Samarasinghe

andrew Shiner

T Stuart Taylor

michael Taylor-West

Richard Toogood

W andrew Whitman

Clive Wicks

a Joshua abiero

Felix afrifa

B Thomas Bailey

amy Bates

Jennifer Bebli

alan Bint

mark Boucher

James Brady

Louise Brown

C Joshua Cheong

Stephen Convery

D Oliver Delvos

Patrick Denning

Udayakumar Devaraju

alan Dobie

apputhantri Don Surath Chandima

Helen Donegan

Hugh Drummond

e Rory egan

michael ehioze-ediae

mohamad el Daqaq

F Jeremy Fall

manannaidelage Fonseka

mark Fozzard

g anne gardiner

Ian goff

H Thomas Hanley

Paul Harris

Deborah Hayward Rayner

Ian Humphries

alexander Hyett

J Patricia Jameson

J Jayasekera

K Natalie Kabban

Takondwa Kadama

Charley Kamundi

KmS Karunanayake

Sumith Karunaratne

Wayne Kennedy

Kodwo Koomson

L annette Lee

Wee Lim

Brendan Little

Helen Longland

m Innocent matsikidze

N mihail Nikolov

O David O’Flynn

Natasha Oldknow

Diane O’Neill

P michael Parker

mirihanakankanamalage Perera

mark Philpott

mark Potts

adam Pursey

R Papia Rahman

Simon Richards

Carly Richards

Victoria Rollo

Ravishwanath Rookmoneea

S michael Saroglou

Samuel Sarpong

mark Scholfield

Benjamin Shannon

Paul Simpson

Thomas Simpson

avinash Singaraju

Chitraj Singh

Praveen Sinha

antoinette Staudt

David Steele

gamkanda Sudath Sriyananda

ali Sulley

Kapu Sumanathunga

Chinama Sumbwe

Dilan Sumithraarachchi

T Sylvia Tetteh

Shaikh Thaika

Omarkhan Tleugabilov

azura Toop

eileen Tucker

V Bhaskar Vedula

W gregory Walker

mark Wilding

a abdulhalim ajarmeh

Nasser alboussayes

B Liew Boon Tat

Stephen Bolster

michael Bullock

D Peter Dennis

g Karen gooch

Brian greaves

Ian griffin

H michael Hallam

m Joseph manning

Jeremy mullen

N Bernie Niland

Rosina Nkansah

R Cannane Ramalingam

S Pauline Shanley

Sunder Singh

Richard Stockley

Congratulations to the following

CII members who became Chartered Insurers, Chartered

Insurance Brokers and Chartered Insurance Practitioners during 1 December 2012 –

30 January 2013

Insurer Broker

Practitioner

The public requires a much greater understanding of the world’s emerging risks – while insurance professionals need to constantly update their knowledge and expertise to respond to future threats. These are the key findings of the CII’s final Centenary Future Risk report.

Among its conclusions, the report – Future Risk: Insuring for a Stronger World – recommends educating consumers so their risk perceptions align more closely with that of risk experts. This shared awareness would minimise the impact of potential hazards while empowering the public to influence government policy.

The report – the sixth and last in the series – contains findings from two major international surveys into the risk perceptions of the public and risk experts. Respondents were asked to rank a list of risks in terms of relative

Crucial role for insurance profession

likelihood and relative impact. The survey results highlight a

possible divergence in how the public and insurance professionals perceive risks. For example, CII members in the UK perceive terrorism and cyber attack as relatively high impact, high likelihood events, while the public fears overpopulation, an energy crisis and income inequality.

Report six also sets out one last scenario on the future, based on previous reports in the series, presented as a utopian vision from a fictional international affairs magazine in the year 2030.

David Thomson, director of policy and public affairs at the CII, said: “This final report in the CII’s Future Risk series is the culmination of a year’s worth of research, debate and intellectual argument spanning many different disciplines and considering a large number of diverse and complex risks.

The full report is available at: www.cii.co.uk/knowledge/policy-and-public-affairs/articles/future-risk-insuring-for-a-stronger-world/23489

ONLINE ///

“Getting risk perception right is an important part of ensuring appropriate action by governments and policymakers to prioritise certain kinds of risks at a local, national and international level. Given that public risk perceptions can fundamentally guide policy, these two international surveys are a useful way of shedding light on the views of the public as well as risk experts.

“According to the report, the profession – as specialists in the field and actively engaged in assessing risk every day – must help shape the risk perceptions of consumers and provide guidance on which risks are the most urgent.”

Take your career to the next level ....

call 020 3178 6095or visit www.insightrec.co.uk

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P o L i C y a n d P U b L i C a f f a i R S U P d a t eEOIPA programme 2012-2014 The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) has published its multi-annual work programme for 2012-2014. The programme outlines EIOPA’s activities during 2012 and its plans for 2013-2014, including:● Continuing work on Solvency II (regulatory and supervisory);● Consumer protection and financial innovation;● Establishing and conducting sectoral training programmes for European insurance and occupational pensions;

● Stress-testing of the insurance and occupations pension sectors.https://eiopa.europa.eu/fileadmin/tx_dam/files/work-programme/MAWP/EIOPA_MAWP.pdf

FSA publishes guidance to help firms avoid poorly managed incentive schemes that drive mis-sellingThe UK’s Financial Services Authority (FSA) has published final guidance that will help financial firms avoid creating and operating incentives schemes that drive

mis-selling. The guidance applies to all firms that deal with consumers and have sales staff or advisers who are part of an incentive scheme. www.fsa.gov.uk/library/policy/final_guides/2013/fg1301

OFT launches workplace pensions market study The UK’s Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has launched a market study to examine whether defined contribution workplace pension schemes are set up to deliver the best value for money for savers. The market for these pensions is

going through a period of significant change, which will see an expected rise in the value of annual contributions of around £11bn by 2018. The OFT has decided to take a forward look now to see whether competition will work in the best interests of these savers to deliver low cost, high quality pension schemes. The market study will focus on value for money and the size of pension pot savers end up with at retirement. www.oft.gov.uk/news-and-updates/press/2013/06-13#.UQe-1qzcCN9

The Bahrain Institute of Banking & Finance (BIBF), in collaboration with the Royal Center, UAE, an insurance training and consultancy firm, hosted an awards ceremony in Dubai in December to honour the second group of ACII graduates in the Arabic language.

The event, held at the Towers Rotana Hotel, was hosted in the presence of: Fareed Lutfi, secretary general of the Emirates Insurance Association, UAE; Nader Saeed Al Mandeel, director of the insurance supervision directorate at the Central Bank of Bahrain; the BIBF insurance team; and Royal Center executives.

Mr Al Ajmi, assistant director and head of the centre for insurance at the BIBF, said: “The ACII designation qualification provides a superior understanding of insurance practice for today’s industry professionals. This qualification is a comprehensive evaluation of an individual’s market knowledge and understanding. While the regional industry continuously demands professionals with strong technical and overall

applications skills, we have worked very closely with Royal Center to meet this industry requirement in the UAE and Saudi Arabia.”

Mohaideb Al Mohaideb, chairman of Royal Center, commented: “From 19 inaugural graduates in 2011 to an improved number of 29 in 2012 is very encouraging. It gives me great pride to lead the enthusiastic team that has now produced 48 ACII graduates in Arabic during the past two years.”

The efforts towards developing the Arabic ACII programme in association with the CII commenced at the BIBF in the year 1995, primarily to help non-English language speakers attain this globally-acclaimed designation qualification. Royal Center has been the focal point for this programme in the UAE since 2005. Since then, BIBF has offered more than 140 insurance courses at Royal Center to nearly 425 candidates. In excess of 100 of these have completed the CII’s Diploma in Insurance (Dip CII).

Second annual Arabic Acii graduation ceremony held in Dubai

► The Journal is always looking for international news from across the ‘cii World’. if you have any stories you think might be relevant please send them to the editor, Michelle Worvell, at: [email protected]

FOR THE RECORDiNtErNAtioNAl NEWS

Demand for a new report on business interruption (BI) has suggested there was a gap in the market, according to the Institute of London (IIL).

Together with the Chartered Institute of Loss Adjusters (CILA), the IIL launched Business Interruption policy wordings – challenges highlighted by claims experience late last year. The report follows the BI wording review initial report in May 2010 and is part of an ongoing review of business interruption wordings.

Damian Glynn, chairman of the CILA business interruption special interest group, explained: “This report addresses topics identified by the BI community and the CILA. We do not propose prescriptive new wording, nor do we want to throw the baby out with the bathwater. We believe that most of the existing BI wording works, most of the time. But we do want to highlight those areas where we think some clarification would help.”

The objective of the report has remained unaltered throughout – to avoid similar claims giving rise to different outcomes depending on a particular interpretation of a policy wording.

“Clarity and contract certainty, where consistency in the claims response can be seen, is what we have tried to achieve,” continued Mr Glynn.

“This report is not a finite undertaking,” he said. “New circumstances and the changing face of the economy, both locally and globally, will demand an ongoing review process. New risks, which existing wordings may struggle to easily accommodate, will undoubtedly present themselves. This is something that has been clear for the last few years and it is likely to continue.” ● The book can either be bought in hard copy from: www.store.iilondon.co.uk or downloaded for free from www.cila.co.uk/publication/ebooks

Business interruption study proving popular

Top of the classNichola Howard has been named the 2012 UK winner of the Crawford & Company-sponsored prize, awarded annually to the best UK student completing the CII’s Advanced Diploma examinations. 

Ms Howard works for William Russell as an international claims manager and recorded an outstanding exam performance, achieving 10 distinctions. She completed her Advanced Diploma with no fails or exemptions and was elected to Associateship in April 2011.

The award was presented by Clive Nicholls, client services director at Crawford & Company UK. Ms Howard said: “I was delighted to receive the Crawford Rose Bowl. The support of William Russell and in particular the support from my mentor Tim Coyne was a key factor in me achieving this award.”

The presentation was also attended by: Tim Coyne, William Russell; Tim Briault FCII, senior & examinations assessor; Julie Robson ACII, chairman of the qualifications, examinations and assessments committee; and Paul Turner, CII director of educational standards; along with members of the CII’s examinations department.

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FOR THE RECORDNEWS

Venturing into the Vietnamese marketThe Vietnam insurance market has grown significantly in the past five years, both in terms of the number of insurers and total premium written. However, the profession is facing some challenges in attracting the right calibre of staff to cope with this growing market.

In response, FIRST Vietnam was set up in 2011 by a group of professionals that understand the market. The group’s top priority is to provide technical training for insurers and to improve market expertise.

At the same time, the CII was also looking for opportunities to broaden its services in Vietnam. Hence, the two organisations, have come to an agreement to co-operate on an insurance training service, in which FIRST Vietnam is the sole representative of the CII in Vietnam.

Feedback from the market has been extremely positive, allowing the two organisations to launch the first face-to-face class for certificate modules this May, in time to prepare for the first exam in June. The course modules include: the Award in General Insurance; the Award in Bancassurance; and the Award in Customer Service in Insurance.

One of the strengths of the co-operation is that, while CII has the international standard and reputation, FIRST Vietnam has strong local knowledge. FIRST Vietnam has just completed a translation of the CII Award in General Insurance course book and is in the process of completing the necessary registration.

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West Midlands Insurance Institute hands out awardsThe sold out inaugural West Midlands Insurance Institutes Awards lunch, sponsored by Ace European Group, took place in November 2012 at the exclusive Marco Pierre White’s restaurant in The Cube, Birmingham.

The aim of the event was to emphasise professionalism, reputation and ethical practice within the region as well as to raise funds for The Insurance Charities.

Jersey members get the lowdown on new cPD schemeThe New Year saw the formal introduction of the CII’s new continuing professional development (CPD) scheme, with qualified members now required to record any professional development activity in hours rather than the previously used credits system. This change was one of a handful of alterations designed to make the process of undertaking and recording CPD activity easier for members, in addition to bringing the CII’s scheme in line with other professions such as law and accountancy.

As part of the launch of the revamped scheme, CII staff members have been travelling across the UK to deliver presentations that explain the changes to members and outline how the new CPD requirements can be met through a mix of structured and unstructured activity. Sam Roberts, area marketing manager, CII, presented one of these sessions to members of the Insurance Institute of Jersey in January and reported that he had been delighted with the response of members to the new scheme.

“Having presented to the members in Jersey and at a number of other local institute events in recent months, it has been particularly encouraging to see members embrace the new scheme,” he commented. “Feedback has been very positive, with many members reporting that the new hours-based system is far easier to understand than the old credits-based scheme. The online CPD tool, which members can use free of charge to log their learning activities, has also sparked a lot of interest, given that it provides a quick and simple way of monitoring how much CPD activity they have undertaken across the year.”● For more information on the new scheme and the CPD requirements of qualified members, visit: www.cii.co.uk/cpd

Local Institute AGM notices – have your sayAll local institutes across the UK hold their annual general meeting (AGM) in March, April or May.

Numerous decisions are taken at the AGMs, including the election of a president and deputy president for the following presidential year.

Voting is by you, the member, and you are entitled to be present to have your say, giving you a voice and helping shape the way your local institute is run. Please ensure you check your local institute website for notice of its AGM.

If you are interested in being involved with your local institute council then please do not hesitate to get in touch with your local institute president – local institutes are always on the lookout for individuals who want to get involved and help give something back to our profession. www.cii.co.uk/membership/local-and-global

The Insurance Institute of Bristol’s (IIB) first educational event of 2013 saw more than 75 members attend an evening lecture hosted by legal firm CMS Cameron McKenna at the start of February. Several members of the firm’s insurance and financial services team presented an insightful look at the way in which the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) deals with complaints against financial services companies which have not been able to be resolved through an organisation’s standard procedures.

The session allowed members to gain a first-hand understanding of the FOS’s procedures and

Bristol members update their knowledge on the Financial Ombudsman Service

Manchester Institute gets snap happy! The Manchester Insurance Institute’s events committee will be running a photography competition throughout 2013 asking members to submit, on a monthly basis, their iconic images of Manchester.

Each month, a winning photograph of iconic Manchester will be chosen to appear in the institute’s 2014 charity calendar, along with the name of the person who took the photo and their place of work.

The competition started last year, with two iconic images already being chosen for the next year’s calendar. Congratulations to Bill Rigby and Peter Taylor, both from Willis, for the winning entries for November and December.

The deadline for entries is the last day of each corresponding month, the final month being October 2013. Calendars will go on sale in November of 2013, with all profits going to charity.

If you are a budding photographer and would like to enter, please send your photograph to [email protected]. There is no cost to enter and the winner from each month will receive a copy of the calendar along with the status of having their name in print.

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FOR THE RECORDrEGioNAl NEWS

FOR THE RECORDrEGioNAl NEWS

Following the success of events hosted by the Insurance Institutes of Bristol and Manchester, the Insurance Institute of Cardiff will become the first Welsh host of a joint event with Career Academies in March. The half-day event will see members and industry professionals engage with around 60 students from across Wales to promote the virtues of a career in insurance and financial services.

Promoting career opportunities within the profession is high on the agenda for the Cardiff Institute, which has already attended a careers fair hosted by Cardiff University prior to

Christmas. The Career Academies event will see young professionals talk to students about their own career experiences, in addition to providing students with the chance to compete with their classmates in the CII’s Discover Risk and Discover Fortunes sessions. The interactive games have proved a huge success since their launch two years ago and offer students a chance to use their analytical and communications skills to determine a series of risk and finance based scenarios.

Commenting on the forthcoming event, Rhodri Cooper, president of the Insurance Institute of Cardiff,

said: “One of my main objectives during my presidential term was to help promote the profession and the range of interesting careers available within it. I, like so many of my colleagues and peers, fell into the industry without any real understanding of the job satisfaction and variation it offers on a day-to-day basis. Events such as this will hopefully raise awareness of the profession with young students and encourage them to seriously consider insurance or financial services as a career when they finish their studies.”● To learn more about Career Academies, visit: www.careeracademies.org.uk

Insurance Institute of Cardiff to run first Career Academies event in Wales

More than 180 guests attended from within the region (which encompasses the local insurance institutes of Birmingham, Coventry, Shropshire and Mid Wales, Stoke-on-Trent and Stratford-upon-Avon) and further afield.

A high calibre of entries was received, with a shortlist of finalists being selected by a panel of judges.

A champagne reception was hosted prior to the meal with

music provided by a string quartet.

Former TV presenter Arti Halai introduced the awards, which were then presented by representatives of each of the award sponsors.

● The Training and Development award went to Allianz Insurance● The Claims Initiative award was won by Zurich Insurance ● The Commercial Broker of the Year was awarded to Heartland (Midlands)● Fresh Insurance scooped the Personal Lines Broker of the Year award ● The Service Provider of the Year award was presented to Nice 1 ● The Presidents’ Award went to Peter Maskell (CEO of BHSF Group) for his leadership, dedication and service and was accepted in his absence by his wife, Julia Maskell. Mr Maskell is affectionately known locally as ‘The Godfather’ of the Birmingham Insurance Institute (BII) and has spent many years supporting the BII, the West Midlands as a region and the CII.

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the most common pitfalls that organisations face when dealing with this independent public body. The presenters also clarified the jurisdictional power held by the FOS, highlighting the firm’s own experiences of handling cases for their clients.

Following the formal presentations, members enjoyed drinks and canapés during a relaxed networking session with fellow members and representatives of CMS Cameron McKenna. This is the first of four planned seminars the IIB will host in conjunction with the legal firm this year.

Paul Timmins, IIB president, commented: “The excellent

attendance at this evening’s first educational event of the year demonstrates there is a huge appetite from Bristol members to develop their professional knowledge and undertake CPD activity. With members needing to be fully aware of the legal and corporate responsibilities involved with their own roles, I am delighted the IIB has joined forces with CMS Cameron McKenna to run what promises to be a series of interesting seminars over the coming months.”● Details of forthcoming IIB events can be seen at: www.cii.co.uk/bristol

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MICHELLE WORVELL

EDITOR’S INBOX

L E T T E R S

For this edition of the magazine, Ben Baker, head of professional standards at the London Market Association (LMA) spoke to us about completing the new Certificate in London Market Insurance Specialisation.

The certificate was developed in partnership with the LMA as an advanced level qualification, specifically designed for those working in the London Market. It is achieved by passing one unit – (991) London Market insurance specialisation – which is assessed by dissertation. Candidates submit a 10,000-11,000 word dissertation, on a topic of their choosing that is relevant to the London Market, with 18 months to complete this from the time of enrolment.

Ben has shown a huge amount of dedication and commitment in completing the new certificate and I am sure that many of you who are in the midst of studying, will be able to empathise with him when it comes to juggling your every day working life and your CII exams.

The Journal is a great believer in advocacy – in hearing from the members about their own experiences. This is why we run a regular blog at the back of the magazine where you can hear all about the experiences of HSB Engineering Insurance’s Peter Molloy, as he studies hard for an exam in April.

We have also been getting a large amount of traffic on our social media channels relating to studying. On our Twitter group (@CIIGroup) we actively encourage members to tweet about their own successes or of those within their company. While on LinkedIn, we have a huge community of nearly 11,000, who are often looking for advice tips on their latest area of study.

If you can help your fellow members in any way – and many of you already do – I would encourage you to join The CII LinkedIn group and share your expertise.

As always I am very happy to hear your comments, or any article ideas for the magazine so please contact me on: [email protected].

EMAIL ///

The CII’s LinkedIn Group has more than 11,900 members. Last month, they responded to the question: “I am interested in where the ACII sits in comparison with other qualifications, eg degree level, or other professional qualifications such as accountancy or law. Can I have some views please?”

I have a degree and ACII so have some insight into this. From my experience in the 1990s, I would say that the level of academic rigour is roughly equivalent to an A-level.

Any degree you earn from the CII is much more useful if you are seeking employment in the insurance industry. I have a Master’s in Health Insurance from UGA and a Bachelor’s in International Finance from the same school. Neither degree was as useful as the knowledge I have gathered so far by trying to obtain my Cert CII. I believe that, although ACII is tough to get, it is worth the money and the time. I have been broking for the past 15 years and I sadly find out every day that I should have gone for the CII degrees earlier in my career. Maybe I shouldn’t have gone even for a Master’s degree and should have shot for ACII instead.

Working for a large insurer, I know the CII exams at all levels have become more important than any other qualifications. For example, to apply for a role at a higher grade, the employee needs to be at the

appropriate level in the CII exams. If I am to be accepted at the next grade I need to have completed, or be working towards completion of, the ACII – so I wish I had started it earlier. I would definitely recommend the ACII and to start it as early on in your career as you can.

For grads and those at the start of their career then a degree is a degree, a pre-requisite that shows you have a proven ability to manage academic rigour and is effectively a door-opener that you are unlikely to garner an interview without. The further you progress your career within the life/general insurance arena then the more important and relevant the CII qualification becomes. It becomes almost a necessity at the more senior end of the market. The ability to pick the areas of focus that ally with your role makes it far more relevant than a degree. For senior positions I prefer to work with a candidate that has achieved their ACII alongside their day job over a candidate with a great degree from 10+ years ago.

I would be interested to know how many contributors hold honours degrees. I comment from my own experience and that of some of my fellow degree intake to the industry at the time. We found obtaining ACII to be less taxing than our degrees. Certainly, at the time I qualified, each ACII subject seemed to be somewhere between O-Level and A-Level. Maybe this or

degrees have changed in recent years? The CII is a good educational body and has fantastic resources of people and material, but I doubt the ACII is degree-equivalent.

I agree with the other replies, in respects to an insurance qualification equating to a degree level in other subjects and would add that a professional qualification in insurance is less versatile than a professional qualification in law or accountancy. A specific insurance qualification other than aspects of risk management is useful mostly – but not exclusively of course – only within the insurance business itself and that’s fine if you know for sure now that insurance is going to be your life’s work – whereas law is appropriate within many other business spheres as indeed is accountancy.

Broadly speaking an ACII is equal to a degree. Given this you can expect it to be relatively taxing though the CII has made significant improvements in recent years to ensure that the subjects and how they are tested are more relevant to you job than ever before. It is worth pointing out that all CII exams are written, marked and moderated by practitioners – your peers. We are lucky to have the support of over 500 subject matter experts. These individuals also help create the study materials and learning aids that candidates use.

► The Journal is delighted to recieve letters on any topic please email the editor at: [email protected].

EDITOR’S INBOXMICHELLE WORVELL

Contact one of our specialist consultants for general career advice or any recruitment needs on the following numbers: London: 08435 235250 | Birmingham: 08453 701007 | Bristol: 08453 701015 | Manchester: 08432 897279

IDEX Consulting specialise in the recruitment and selection of experienced insurance personnel across the UK. A selection of our current vacancies are as follows:

Please visit www.idexconsulting.com/jobs to see a full list of all of our current opportunities.

Our business has many years of specialist recruitment experience in the General Insurance and Financial Services sectors: which we’ve been sharing in our blog.We’ve been offering insight into topics like learning new skills, the latest legislation, issues affecting the sector globally and interview techniques. So if you’re serious about developing your career or fi nding new talent, come on over and join the debate, we welcome your input.

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WANT TO STAYAHEAD IN THEMARKET?

Do you want to keep up-to-date with the very latest industry news and information?Please sign up for our weekly Newsletter by e-mailing your details to [email protected]

Broker Development ManagerHome based covering Northern Home Counties/Essex Salary dependent on experienceA new MGA is looking to recruit an experienced BDM to their successful team in the UK. Due to expansion this established business is looking for an additional recruit to assist in the development of their UK book of business. Excellent opportunity for someone who ideally lives in the northern Home Counties to join a entrepreneurial organisation in the UK insurance market. You will already have strong broker relationships, signifi cant development experience and looking for an opportunity to progress.

[email protected] J6719

Construction Account ExecutiveLondon £50,000A developing Global broker is looking to increase their footprint in London within their existing Construction business. You will have vast knowledge of the local market and a good understanding of the business in the region with the ability to manage, lead and develop business opportunities in this vibrant sector. An excellent package is on offer for the appropriate individual coupled with a high bonus and benefi t system. Excellent client relationships and market knowledge is required for this role as well as a thorough understanding of the Construction Insurance market.

[email protected] J5787

Corporate Account Handler Birmingham to £40,000, plus bonusA Corporate Account Handler required for an expanding brand name broker. Proven experience of managing national / international client accounts paying commissions of £15,000+ is required to be considered for this sought after career opportunity.

[email protected]

Corporate Account ExecutiveBirmingham to £75,000 plus car & bonusAn accomplished Corporate Account Executive is required to look after a book of blue chip clients. There is a excellent support network of senior handlers and brokers to assist in retaining the business. Excellent career prospects and bonuses on offer.

[email protected]

Claims Team LeaderLeicestershire to £30,000Our client is looking for an experienced Team Leader to join their expanding team. You will be leading a small team, managing work fl ow processes and ensuring that an excellent level of service is provided to policy holders. Previous claims / insurance experience is essential.

[email protected] J6698

Business AnalystBirmingham to £35,000Our client is seeking an experienced Business Analyst to join their team based in Birmingham. Ideally you will have experience from working within the insurance industry and have a good understanding of IT project management disciplines and the end to end project lifestyle.

[email protected] J6727

Commercial Account Handlers Birmingham / Midlands £20,000 - £30,000We are currently working with several high profi le brokers who are looking for Commercial Account Handlers. The fi rst is at SME level, dealing with cases paying up c£7,000 GWP while the other is dealing with larger risks upwards of £10,000 GWP. You should have a solid track record dealing with a broad range of commercial risks and ben keen to progress your career.

[email protected]

Development UnderwriterBirmingham £50,000 plus car allowance & generous bonusA brand name niche insurer is seeking a commercial insurance development underwriter with a solid property and liability background. A proven track record in new business underwriting and managing broker relationships is required, and in return an excellent bonus structure, as well as the possibility of progressing into an underwriting management role is on offer for the right individual.

[email protected] J6090

Corporate Account Executive/DirectorManchester/North West £40k-£60k + Bonus + Package.An award winning international insurance broker is looking for an Account Executive/Director with experience of corporate business, to service and grow a book of existing clients in Manchester. Experience of cases worth c£20k fee/commission income and above, as well as clients from retail, manufacturing, property, construction, food or sciences will be benefi cial as will exposure to Risk Management programs.

[email protected] J6728

Development UnderwriterManchester/North West £35k-£55k + Bonus + Package.A specialist insurer with a strong regional presence is looking to appoint an experienced underwriter in Manchester to help drive commerciality and market share. Focussing on mid-market/corporate cases you will require strong technical and development skills as well as the aptitude to play a big part in team strategy, training and mentoring.

[email protected] J6619

HNW Insurance Executive London to £35,000 + car allowanceA well-known broker is seeking a Sales Executive to generate new business in the High Net Worth arena; working from a home-base and reporting into the London offi ce. Applicants must have Private Clients’ sales experience, ideally across Household and Motor.

[email protected] J6726

Wholesale Development Manager London to £50,000An innovative and forward thinking insurance broker is looking to develop their broker network across the UK. They are keen to appoint a sales driven individual, ideally from a wholesale background and with exposure to Motor Fleet to maximise business from existing accounts and bring new brokers on board.

[email protected] J6674

IDEX FP.indd 1 21/02/2013 16:41

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HENRI DE CASTRIES | The INTeRVIeW

ordinaryFrom the French Treasury Department to current chairman of Axa, Henri de Castries has seen most things. Here, he tells Michelle Worvell why the extraordinary times we are living in offer extraordinary opportunities

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Henri de Castries starts his career in the French Finance Ministry Inspection Office, auditing government agencies from 1980 to 1984. In 1984, he joins the French Treasury Department, where, in 1986, he plays an active role in several privatisations before being appointed to oversee foreign exchange markets and balance of payments for the Treasury.

In 1989, Mr de castries joins axa’s corporate finance division. In 1991 he is named corporate secretary, in charge of the legal aspects of the reorganisation and merger of compagnie du Midi with, and into, the axa Group.

In 1996, he plays an active role both in preparing the uaP merger and in managing the subsequent integration of the two groups. In 1997, he is appointed chairman of The equitable companies (which later became axa Financial).

Mr de castries is chairman of the axa management board from May 2000 to april 2010. Since april 2010, following a modification of the corporate governance structure, he is chairman and chief executive officer of axa.

he sits on the board of the association pour l’aide aux jeunes infirmes, an organisation dedicated to helping disabled youth, and is chairman of axa hearts in action, axa’s volunteer community outreach program.

BIOGRAPHY

How do you see the current state of the economy?Global economic conditions are improving; we hear encouraging signals from a large spectrum of companies, confirming that the soft patch that had engulfed the global economy at the end of last year is coming to an end. uS companies have, to a large extent, repaired their balance sheets, the fiscal cliff has been avoided, so far, and growth in china is robust, stable and incrementally fuelled by domestic demand.

How do you view the state of the eurozone in particular?One year ago, the eurozone was under significant threat. Since then, a lot of progress has been made and the commitment of the ecb has convinced the market that the euro is here to stay. Southern european countries have made impressive efforts to restore competitiveness and fiscal sustainability. however, it is key that these commitments are sustained and that countries that have not undertaken structural reforms do so, to avoid dangerous economic and fiscal divergences within the eurozone.

Where does the insurance industry fit in this?Welfare states are faced with high pressure to reduce their deficits and the priority should be to cut public spending, whereas growth in europe must be supported by long-term investment. In this respect, insurers have a key role to play: as we are managing the assets of our clients over a long period of time, we must match those assets with long-term liabilities, which makes us the structural long-term investing agent in our economies.

How important is it for insurers to adapt?Our environment has changed deeply in recent years. We have seen the emergence of higher market volatility, new types of risks in both P&c (linked to climate change) and L&S (linked to longevity, the need for more protection), as well as opportunities offered by new markets and geographies. Insurers have to adapt their offering and risk appetite to this changing environment in order to grasp new growth levers.

at the same time, it is all the more important that our supervisors look at us through this new lens as well: the way insurers are regulated must reflect the reality of our economic and financial environment.

How can insurers help other sectors?as I said, insurers are structural long-term investors: we support the economies in general, through our partnerships with corporate clients

and also through our investments in asset classes such as corporate bonds and equities, as well as supporting states through government bonds.

Are you worried that Solvency II is still not agreed?No one denies the importance of regulation. regulation is the best way to ensure that insurers serve their mission: being able to protect and serve their clients in the long term.

Solvency II, in its principles, is aiming at regulating the sector through an economic approach of risks, which the industry fully supports. What is less comforting, however, is the way Solvency II is being designed and implemented: a one-year horizon and stringent capital requirements, notwithstanding the postponement of the implementation for another couple of years, are all factors that cast a shadow on the sector, increasing the risk of divergence between states in the implementation phase, and damaging the level playing field between europe and the uS. This will certainly not contribute to the sector re-rating.

Can the industry be doing anything about this?Let me be clear: the european insurance industry is unanimously willing to implement Solvency II on an acceptable basis for all players. We are at the disposal of the other stakeholders, be it the supervisors, national authorities or european bodies, to find the most satisfactory outcome to the Solvency II negotiations, as we have always been. The recent long-term guarantee impact assessment is a unique opportunity to bring concrete elements into the debate.

Are there new threats/challenges that insurers must deal with?changes in clients’ needs and behaviours are, in my opinion, the biggest long-term challenges for insurers. as bookshops and travel agencies have adapted to survive the e-economy revolution, insurers must redefine their business model and culture towards digital and multi-access. This is a long journey but I believe axa is well positioned to benefit from this great opportunity.

A life less Are you optimistic for the future?We are living in extraordinary times, when millions of human beings are moving from poverty to prosperity thanks to their participations in the global market economy and when scientific and technological innovations are progressing faster than ever. although challenges such as climate change and ageing societies in the Western world are daunting, it would not be reasonable to be pessimistic.

Moreover, the fundamentals of our business have never been more relevant: the emergence of a middle-class in some areas of the world, the increasing pension gap, the need for protection and guarantees, the profound changes in customers’ needs are all creating tremendous growth opportunities for the insurance sector as a whole, while the increased volatility of the world will also benefit diversified players such as axa. So, yes, I am positive for the future.

“...the fundamentals of our business have never been more relevant...”

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AD

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Following a successful National Apprenticeship Week in March, The Journal reveals what our profession is doing to get in on the act

DiscOvER Risk | Apprenticeships

that will be starting to offer apprenticeships this year – watch the press for further details.

Insight daychaucer, which started its apprenticeship programme in the second half of 2012, plans to hold an insight day in March at its city of London office to encourage more students to consider apprenticeships as a good alternative to university.

The firm also actively supports the cII’s own Discover risk events at schools in London and the South east. Jo herrington, chaucer’s learning and development manager, explained the value of reaching out through face-to-face events.

“We know that more students are interested in alternatives to university, but may not be aware of the opportunities that insurance offers. We can tell students about real jobs on offer in the city after they have completed their a-levels, as well as helping to promote the insurance industry.”

caspar bartington, the cII’s relationship manager for education, recently gave a keynote speech at an independent school in the Midlands where students and parents alike are keen to understand the opportunities in the profession for a-Level school leavers.

“Slowly but surely schools and students are aware that apprenticeships are not a

reachIng new heIghts

national apprenticeship Week (NaW) featured heavily in the uK media in the middle of

March. It ran across the country, and companies from all areas of the market joined in the fun with case studies, open days and good news stories for those outside the sector.

apprenticeship statistics run a year in arrears, so we know there were more than 500,000 apprenticeship starts in 2011/2012, a 12% increase over the previous year.

While starts containing cII qualifications played a very small part in this, we are moving rapidly in the right direction. In fact, the growth on last year’s starts with cII qualifications in them was more than 30%. There are several major brands

Other companies that built on their apprenticeship numbers in 2012 include: ageas, aon, bluefin, rIaS and Swinton.

In all, there were more than 150 companies that developed their staff through apprenticeships, and the majority of these staff members are new starters, which is also great news for the sector.

If you are new to such schemes, you can request our guide to apprenticeships, which explains how the programmes work. The Discover team can also explain how they can help you make links with your local schools and colleges, to build your own talent pipeline.

“Slowly but surely schoolsand students are aware thatapprenticeships are not asecond-best option”

All you need to do is email: [email protected]

OnLIne ///

Apprenticeships

rebecca hill and James bowyer, chaucer apprentices

second-best option. It does take longer in schools that are geared towards league tables and universities. Many students and teachers didn’t know that an apprenticeship can lead to a degree – at a much lower cost than three or four years of full-time university study.”

university applications fell for the second year running in england, as more people thought twice about the value of a degree, given the cost of around £50,000 for a three-year programme.

government incentivesThere is more good news for SMes looking to recruit apprentices for the first time, as the government committed to extend its incentive payment of £1,500 for companies employing an apprentice for the first time.

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broker ASSESS is so easy to use that no-one need worry about compliance.

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Building for the futureWhy did you decide to go for Chartered status?As a leading insurer in the UK, and one that had already committed to the Aldermanbury Declaration, Ageas was keen to demonstrate its professionalism in the industry.

We already had an excellent graduate training scheme and a strong learning and development framework in our underwriting academy, so going for Chartered status was the logical next step to further enhance our reputation, not only as an insurer, but as an employer too.

Our locations can sometimes make recruitment of senior professionals difficult, so it is important to grow our own talent and nurture the capabilities of people already in our business. I am a firm believer that good people plus good processes equals superior performance. And in recent years, this has been evidenced by greater internal progression and promotions into management or senior technical roles, than external appointments.

Explain the process you went throughOur underwriting forum, a staff representative body formed two years to govern the underwriting academy, discussed the value and opportunities that being Chartered would provide to our employees and the business. Once the forum had agreed to progress the initiative, we sought buy-in from our senior management committee. There was obviously a significant financial investment to consider as well as additional time and resource, so we set about making sure our long-term development plan complemented our Chartered requirements.

We developed a new learning and development framework back in 2009, with a view to enhancing the skills, qualifications and knowledge of our people. The underwriting academy, as it became known, was consequently built into the overall blueprint to

support our journey to becoming a Chartered insurer and to provide a platform for continued professional development.

The project was approved at all levels and a project manager was responsible for making sure we met the required milestones in the planned period. The project manager worked with our senior management team and the learning and development team to collate the evidence that would demonstrate our ability to meet the obligatory and discretionary criteria needed to achieve Chartered insurer status.

What was the most challenging aspect about becoming Chartered?As a business, we had agreed that we wanted 100% of our customer-facing staff to acquire Chartered status, rather than the 90% that is officially required. The sheer number of employees involved in the process presented its own complications. The administration logistics were probably the most labour intensive.

We started by assessing which current members of staff were Chartered members in their own right and transferring their membership over to the company membership – which all sounds quite straightforward until you realise that everyone’s membership expires at different times.

How did you educate your staff and clients about the importance of gaining Chartered status?The underwriting forum was the ideal group to control three-way communications between the senior management team, underwriting employees and the rest of the business. We used various platforms such as online systems (to upload professional development logs), employee briefings and specialised forums.

We also developed a communications plan, which included articles in our in-house newsletter and on the intranet, and we issued a brief to our broker account executives that are out meeting clients everyday. This plan is

adam clarke

still underway and is being constantly updated and extended. For example, our focus now is on educating the underwriting teams in how to use the CII continuous professional development log. By having a formal communication structure in place, we have been able to cascade communication very effectively, in partnership, with the learning and development team.

Although a separate initiative, the underwriting academy helps to reinforce the Chartered message, as a bespoke, tailored, development tool that concentrates on our core technical and behavioural competencies and culture as well as helping to promote professionalism within the business.

Will you offer any additional benefits or services to Chartered brokers?We are currently looking into this and investigating how we can differentiate ourselves in the market and add value to our network of brokers.

What advice would you give to any other broker or insurer that was considering Chartered status?This is not a quick win – it is all about building for future capability. Make sure you have a suitable long-term strategy and objective so you can build the right structure to develop your people and your business.

cHARTEREd pROfiLE | AGEAS

The Journal spoke to Adam Clarke of Ageas about how achieving Chartered status fits with his firm’s existing learning and development programmes

Members onlyBranded products now available

To celebrate our centenary the CII has launched a new range of branded products, exclusively available for members.

Browse or order online at www.cii.co.uk/centenarymerchandise

CII_Merch_Ads_HP_AW.indd 1 15/02/2012 09:47

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INsURANcE | Trade crediT

With January seeing a number of high street names, including hMV, blockbuster and Jessops, going into administration, there

can be little doubt that the uK economy is far from recovery. but, while this uncertainty presents challenges for businesses, it creates real opportunities for the trade credit insurance market.

The product, which enables a company to protect itself from non-payment by customers, also provides a number of benefits that are particularly relevant in uncertain times. Trevor byrne, senior marketing manager at coface, explains: “companies may be looking for new markets, either in the uK or for export, to support business growth. a credit insurer can provide information on the credit worthiness of potential customers, helping them avoid the poor risks.”

as well as offering this insight, trade credit insurance can also help businesses when they are looking for finance. With banks cautious about lending, trade credit can give them the security that, should a customer default, the insurer will pay out instead. “If a company offers 60-day credit terms, as much as one sixth of their annual income could be owed at any one time,” explains Mike holley, chief executive officer at equinox Global. “This can make a significant difference to their chances of survival and the banks are well aware of this.”

being able to provide this security is particularly important in the uK where so many businesses are in the service sector. Often this can mean they have no material assets that can be used as security so they struggle to arrange competitive lending. being able to demonstrate they have reduced the risk of bad debt can give banks the confidence to lend to them.

Market dataas a result of these benefits, trade credit insurance is becoming much more commonplace. rob Michael, head of business

Credit Where it’s due A stumbling economy has led to a rise in businesses needing trade credit insurance. Sam Barrett looks at how firms can tap into this growing market

Opportunity knocksWith businesses looking to expand into new markets or secure financing to enable growth, there are plenty of opportunities for brokers in this market. but trade credit can be complex, so forming a partnership with a specialist broker is often recommended. Mr holley says all the large brokers have trade credit divisions in house that will support sales, or a broker could link up with one of the trade credit insurance brokers specialising in this area. “It is getting easier for brokers as the multi-line insurers come into the market and make it a more mainstream product but it still requires specialist knowledge,” he adds. “If a broker does want to move into this area I’d recommend hiring a specialist.”

Insurers are keen to support this growth too and can provide assistance to those looking to enter the market. Stuart James, global head of trade credit at ace Group, says: “We’ve seen several niche brokers with fantastic opportunities in this market. Where this is the case we can help them develop this area, attending meetings with them and helping with presentations.”

With this support, although the uK economy may still have a bumpy ride to recovery, prospects are looking good for the trade credit insurance market.

ewa rose, divisional managing director, trade credit at Markel International, sums up the market sentiment. “There’s never been as much capacity for writing trade credit business. There are up to 40 markets writing some form of cover,” she says. “a more buoyant economy would be helpful but it’s looking very positive.”

There’s certainly been plenty of activity in the market, with a number of new players helping to drive competition. among those that have entered the market since the credit crunch are Markel International, which launched in april 2010; equinox Global, which entered the market in November 2010; and Nexus Group, which launched its new Lloyd’s managing general agency, Nexus cIFS, this January.

New products have also been launched. although the market has been dominated by the whole turnover cover providers – coface, euler hermes and atradius, who between them have a market share of around 80% – the latest products have focused on more flexible solutions.

These launches include a top up commercial credit insurance facility, creditFlex, from Qbe, which is designed to supplement the whole turnover cover provided by a primary insurer. In addition, euler hermes responded to the growing popularity of excess of loss products, bringing out a plan in 2012 through a new specialist underwriting team based in London.

Will clark, head of uK trade credit at aIG, says the emergence of more flexible offerings reflects the variety of businesses looking for cover. “Some businesses will look for whole turnover cover while others might have a solid credit department in-house and simply want to use an excess of loss policy to protect them from a catastrophic risk. We’ve also seen increased interest in non-cancellable limits as these give a higher degree of security,” he explains. “Policies can be structured to fit the requirements of every business.”

With no two businesses the same, the trade credit insurance market has developed to provide cover for every trading pattern and appetite for risk. among the products available are:

● Whole turnover – the company insures all or the vast majority of its customer base. This protects the company but, as all customers are covered rather than those where there is a higher risk of default, it also benefits the insurer, allowing them to offer competitive premiums and cover higher risk customers. The insurer will also

monitor the risk across the customer base, providing insight into the risk they present. ● Excess of loss cover – enables a company to cover itself against catastrophic risk. This means it is often suited to larger organisations that have their own credit control procedures in house and are happy to take on some of the risk themselves.

Policies can also be structured to cover specific customers, for example, the largest or the top 10, or to cover trade with a particular country or region.

Trade crediT insurance – whaT’s available?

development for aon Trade credit uK, says: “risk management is much more on the board agenda these days. Finance directors are becoming increasingly aware of trade credit insurance.”

his view is supported by the latest figures from the association of british Insurers. These show that at the end of 2011, there were 10,202 policies in place and the insured turnover had increased to £313bn, up from £240bn the previous year. Of this business, 54% is domestic – with the other 46% export and non-uK.

but, while the level of sales supported by the product may have increased, there has been a fall in the gross written premium. This has fallen steadily since 2009, when it peaked at £358m, and was £315m at the end of 2011.

Mr Michael says this fall indicates that pricing is becoming increasingly attractive for companies looking to protect their books. although rates hardened following 2008 and stayed that way for at least 12 months, they started to fall back again in 2010. “rates are similar to the pre-crisis level,” he explains. “underwriters are still nervous about providing cover in some sectors, for instance retail and construction, although even here cover is available. It’s a very competitive market and there is a lot more interest and appetite to provide solutions.”

trade credit developmentsThe market is ready for the demand, with insurers keen to court the renewed interest. Im

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Having recently completed the new CII Level 7 Certificate in London Market Insurance Specialisation, Ben Baker explains why, rather than being put off his

studies, he would happily do it all over again

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Getting startedbefore I could even begin my research I had to prepare a formal proposal paper for the cII moderation panel, explaining the subject and its benefits to both me and the LMa. Getting the title of the research project absolutely right was essential and it took me longer to refine the proposal than I expected. The overall proposal exercise was thought-provoking and I quickly realised that if the cII moderation panel was to accept my research, it was not simply a case of listing topics to discuss but a true working document clearly setting out the goals and objectives of the research was needed.

This exercise was vital. It allowed me to get to grips with the subject, determine what the research should be really about, why it was necessary and, most importantly, it helped me decide how I would conduct my work. Without a clear, well-argued proposal, which was effectively

my map, I would not have been able to achieve a worthwhile piece of work, which would, hopefully, be of benefit to the market as a whole.

The next thing I needed to do was find a mentor. I was fortunate that Terry hayday, then head of professional standards at the LMa, agreed to fill this role. he gave me every encouragement and provided valuable support in guiding me through the exercise. Professor Derek atkins of the cass business School was appointed as my guide, and provided further support.

I had begun with the idea that writing this dissertation would be a lonely business as I had studied for my Mba across four years with the Open university and came from a background of distance learning. I was completely wrong. Once immersed in the research, I seemed to be speaking to everybody about anything to do with wordings and soon realised that I was in danger of becoming a wordings bore. I also discovered how easy it is to stray from the subject in hand and become distracted by something that might look more interesting but is unrelated. Luckily my support team kept me focused and I returned to the path.

Planning the researchI decided that right from the start I had to focus my research on conducting interviews with key people in the London insurance market. I realised I had to obtain a balanced and realistic view about the subject and try to be aware of prejudices

Developed in partnership with the LMa, this is an advanced level qualification, specifically designed for those working in the London Market.

The certificate is achieved by passing one unit – (991) London Market insurance specialisation – which is assessed by dissertation. candidates submit a 10,000-11,000 word dissertation, on a topic of their choosing that is relevant to the London Market, with 18 months to complete this from the time of enrolment.

The Certificate in London Market Insurance Specialisation allows members to:● create learning matched precisely to their job role, responsibilities and aspirations;● Develop their knowledge of issues particularly relevant to London Market practitioners;● Gain real understanding of a key chosen topic through in-depth research and analysis, with potential to add business

benefits for their employer;● Indicate to their employer, clients and peer group their commitment to professional development, helping members achieve their career ambitions.

upon completion, individuals will also be awarded 50 advanced Diploma level credits, which can be used to count towards completion of other cII insurance qualifications, such as the Diploma and advanced Diploma in Insurance. The credits awarded are placed at Level 7 in the Qualification and credit Framework (QcF).

entry onto the London Market dissertation is limited because of the amount of work involved in assessing and accepting proposals and marking and moderating completed dissertations, all of which will be undertaken by educational experts and experienced London Market practitioners. Prospective candidates can register their interest via the online form on the cII website.

CertifiCate in London Market insuranCe speCiaLisation – the faCts

and biased opinions. I selected my interviewees from a wide spectrum of disciplines as I wanted to establish what was really thought about the importance of getting insurance contract wordings right and how reputations could be damaged.

I structured my interviews around 30 minutes and five key questions, which I used as the basis of the research. I soon found that, after I had met the first cohort on my list, I was being referred to people I had not met before but, who, at the end of the day, were vital in giving me a deep insight into the issues at stake. What really surprised me was the depth of feeling about contract wordings and this confirmed the professionalism alive in the London insurance marketplace. by the time I had finished, I had interviewed 34 insurance experts including underwriters, brokers, lawyers, wordings professionals and senior market executives.

This highlighted another aspect of how a research project can widen your network and confirmed that if you are prepared to ask the right questions of the right people, they will do their utmost to help you. They all know who they are and I am very grateful to all of them for their enthusiasm, support and time.

Writing the dissertationIt was suggested, early in my work, that I should not leave the writing of the 10,000 words to

the last minute. I am so glad that I heeded this advice. you have to beware that by the time you have completed your interview transcripts (not included in the word count – and mine came to nearly 8,000 words alone) and you have added the appendices (all 19 of them in my case) you are talking about a large piece of work. I measured it and it came to nearly five inches thick.

I made myself write the interview notes as soon after the discussion as possible and I mapped out the research paper early on and filled in the sections as I went. This also gave me the flexibility to adapt where necessary and delete the areas where I had lost my way entirely.

The resultI lived through the experience and passed with a distinction and 50 credits towards the acII. I found the whole exercise to be fascinating and rewarding. I met new people in the process, refined my writing skills and experienced a real sense of achievement. The dissertation will be published in due course, so you will be able to judge the result yourself.

I would thoroughly recommend anyone who is studying for the acII to embark upon Level 7. I would quite happily do it again.

Ben Baker is head of professional standards at the LMA

“I would thoroughly recommend anyone who is studying for the AC II to embark upon Level 7”

loveLabour of

ben baker

When I was asked to write a 10,000 word exemplar dissertation for the new cII Level 7 certificate in London Market Insurance

Specialisation, on a subject of my choice and directly relevant to my work at the Lloyd’s Market association (LMa) and the Lloyd’s insurance market, I felt somewhat daunted, particularly as I was given 18 weeks to complete it in addition to my day job! (candidates will have 18 months to complete the task in total.) Little did I know, however, that I was on the brink of a valuable and enriching experience that would open up my chosen research subject in ways that I could not have imagined.

The title of my dissertation was – Fit for purpose at Lloyd’s: enhancing reputation through the design and delivery of an

educational programme for wordings. I chose this area of research as I had already been asked to look at how training and guidance could be given to young practitioners in respect of insurance contract wordings. Tom bolt, director of performance management at Lloyd’s, had run a series of presentations entitled: If only I’d known… wordings pitfalls. It was attended by more than 300 people and had to be run three times so, clearly, here was a subject in which there was no lack of interest.

It is widely agreed that getting the insurance contract wording right is fundamental to the reputation of Lloyd’s and all those who operate in the London Market. Many had already voiced their concerns about the mixed levels of understanding and expertise and it was generally agreed that a structured approach to understanding the fundamentals was urgently needed.

ExAMINATIONS | London Market

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LOCAL INSTITUTE PROFILE | ABERDEEN

What is your main focus or theme for 2013?Education is the driver this year. The maintenance of relevant and worthwhile continuous professional development (CPD) is at the top of the list of what our members need from us and it is our intention to provide this as far as possible. We intend to continue to consult with members to ensure we provide the level of education they want in the area where there is a demand.

Tell us about your major initiatives for this yearOur main initiative is to encourage membership involvement with the local institute, whether that is attending events or becoming involved with the local council. We aim to achieve this by providing events that will be supported by members, thus increasing a desire for further interaction.

What events do you have planned this year for your members? We have run successful quiz nights and ten pin bowling events for many years and as if it “ain’t broke, we shan’t fix it”, so these will continue. However, it has been suggested that we may wish to cater for the more mature members of our Institute and therefore plan to run a wine tasting event. This has been surprisingly well received – there seems to be something about wine and insurance types that makes a perfect match!

In addition, we intend to provide a varied programme of CPD events, focusing on the broker community, where the majority of our members work. Again, after listening to our membership we will be exploring the role of the expert witness, as well as looking at soft skills, which have been largely ignored in recent years.

successAberdeen Institute president Debbie Mitchell tells The Journal why the ‘best annual dinner on the circuit’ is just one of many events her region has to be proud of

What are the characteristics of a good institute?A committed council, enthusiastic membership and an excellent CII area marketing manager are vital, but most importantly one that seeks and listens to the views of its membership.

How do you encourage members to interact with your institute?The easy answer is, by giving them what they want, but it is also giving them an institute they can be proud of, and one that is relevant to their needs. However, we have found a sternly worded email from the president does the trick just as well.

What has been your best initiative?Probably turning the annual dinner from an “I’ll go if I have to” event to a must-attend. Our members are proud of the fact we have “the best dinner on the circuit” (modesty forbids me giving the appropriate credit for this quote) and the fact we can attract more than 300 guests given the size of our Institute demonstrates this fact.

What does professionalism mean to you? It’s taking pride in the work you do, and the profession you work in – and ensuring that you do everything in your power to promote the good that is done in your profession.

Explain the positive ways in which the CII and your institute work togetherWe are blessed with our area marketing manager, David Irvine, who has worked tirelessly to ensure that we work together to both our advantages. The networking conference, and other initiatives to bring the local institutes together, have been invaluable in allowing us to share good practices and ultimately improve the offering for the local membership. As an institute, we are committed to making good on the benefits membership of the CII offers and as such it is essential that we continue to work together to ensure our continued success.

L o c a L I n s t I t u t e s :INstItutE: Insurance Institute of AberdeenFoRmAtIoN DAtE: 1911AREAs covERED: Aberdeen and the north east of ScotlandPREsIDENt: Debbie MitchellNumBER oF mEmBERs: 507 mEmBERs oN thE couNcIl: 10sPEcIAl gRouPs oN couNcIl: None

Open up the world of risk to the professionals of tomorrow.

Help us promote our world to today’s learners.

Email [email protected] to play your part.

InstItutIonaLIsed

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HOT TOPIC | HOME WORKING

work carried out at home is going to be low-risk, office-type work. Of the work equipment used at home, you are only responsible for the equipment you supply.

“If your staff work at home doing activities such as working with adhesives or soldering, you will need to consider the particular risks involved in these activities. For example, you will need to check that any equipment you supply to your staff is in good condition and that they have the correct personal protective equipment (PPe) if needed.”

Insurance issuesThe repercussions for employers and their insurances are only just beginning to surface as people recognise the new risks such work poses. For example, are the premises safe, both from a health & safety perspective and also from a general security view? What about data security? What about public liability issues? What about fidelity?

There are various risk reduction measures being used. For example, some companies block email after hours and tell customers that staff will be unable to respond until they are back at their desks. This works for office-based staff but not for those who need to work from home. Many government sites require staff to log on in specific ways, while the judiciary, for

New uK government figures show the number of self-employed people is rising. between July and September last year, the numbers rose to 4.2 million, up 2.8% year-on-year.

enterprise Nation claims 5.4 million brits are now working from home, while a survey from Microsoft suggests british workers perform the equivalent of 33 days’ overtime from home every year. More than half the employees surveyed said they work on days off to meet deadlines.

Meanwhile, the government is pushing for all employees to have the right to flexible working – either in terms of hours worked or in location. It plans to legislate on this during 2013, with a view to implementing new rules next year. all of which adds up to a picture of increasing numbers of us working from home – at least for part of the time.

What’s behind this shift?Technology is driving a lot of this change. With superfast broadband being promised by 2015 for 90% of the country, workers will be able to work comfortably from home. companies, for example, will no longer have to rely on large call centres but instead will be able use workers based in their homes, all answering calls from a central system.

The state of the economy is also contributing to the growth. The Institute of consulting claims the market for freelancers grew 12% in 2012 – a sign that companies remain reluctant to take on expensive full-time staff in uncertain economic times.

Those made redundant may also be finding it tough to find a new job and instead choose to quit the rat race and do it for themselves, starting their own business at home. The Federation of Small businesses claims some 85,000 additional people are becoming self-employed each year.

The Tuc has found the pattern varies by location and even by age. It says around one in five workers over the age of 55 regularly works from home, while only 8.6% of those under 35 will work from home. In terms of location, around one in six workers in the South West (16.4%) regularly works from home, compared to just one in 10 workers in the North West (10.2%).

home workers are split into two categories – those working for themselves and those working for others. The health & Safety executive has published guidelines for employers of home workers. It says: “a lot of

“a lot of these services are being dealt with by home workers,” says Mr corbould-Warren, “however this creates new risks for the business. If someone is working on a shift basis from home, there is nothing to stop them from having two or three jobs at the same time. The employers may know nothing about each other.

“It raises real concerns around fidelity and theft. There is a lot less rapport and less loyalty. businesses need to think carefully about the risks of, say, having someone handling their cash while at home, or holding credit card details. at a call centre there may well be a ban on pencils and paper to prevent credit card numbers being copied – but can anyone enforce that on a home worker?”

Mr corbould-Warren warns working from home on a self-employed basis is not without risk either. both employed and self-employed are exposed to cyber risks, for example. both groups run the risk of being victims of a cyber attack and, without an IT team on hand, it may take longer to resolve any issues.

an association of risk and Insurance Managers survey showed 65% of SMes do not safeguard their data, while Datamonitor research claims 40% of all targeted attacks are against SMes, says Mr corbould-Warren.

It is not all gloom and doom though. The use of home workers may actually reduce a firm’s exposure to business interruption risks. Spreading staff locations is likely to reduce the risk of a flood or fire devastating premises and bringing the whole business to a halt. Some businesses may be able to do away with large premises altogether, with corresponding savings on property insurance. Saving on such insurances may help offset the spend in other areas – such as fidelity guarantee insurance.

Playing catch upFor the insurance profession though, this is the moment to wake up to the existence of all these businesses – and their risks. Mr corbould-Warren explains: “as a profession we are behind the curve on this trend. There has been a tendency to treat home workers as ↘

With rail fares rising and job opportunities shrinking, it is no wonder increasing numbers of UK workers are choosing to set up their own businesses from home. However, many are operating without insurance, as Liz Booth reports, presenting some good opportunities for the profession

Out Of small acOrNs…

“More than half the employees surveyed said they work on days off to meet deadlines”

example, works on intranets inaccessible on mobile phones.

however, whatever the systems, they are unlikely to be 100% watertight. russell corbould-Warren, head of SMe underwriting at Zurich, says: “We are seeing many more people choosing to work from home. after all, if technology allows it, why wouldn’t you work from home rather than slog through the crowds into the city and your office?”

When it comes to insuring these home-workers, there are often issues, he warns. “Too often employees working from home get wrapped up by default in the overall insurance package but they need separate consideration.

“For example, how does the employer take on the responsibility of managing health & safety risks? how do they handle the sense of isolation home workers often suffer from? how do they engage these employees to motivate them? Firms may need to reconsider how they look after staff, being more aware of new sources of stress.”

he says problems have stemmed from the growing trend of byOD (bring your own devices) too. “It seems a good idea – let employees use their own devices and you don’t need to buy expensive phones or computers. but what happens when that employee leaves and takes their equipment (with all the sensitive data on board)?Il

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I “What happens when the vital computer breaks down? It is rarely covered under the business policy because it is not an owned asset. Many businesses are crossing a line that they have no idea about.”

While shiftwork generally has been falling back in the uK as it moves from

manufacturing to service industries, a new pattern has been emerging – the 24/7 economy. consumers want answers and availability on their terms. combine that with the trend towards globalisation and it is no wonder firms need more staff to cover 24/7 issues.

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small businesses – we have often considered them in the same light as a small high street shop of office, just with a different badge on the product, but they present complex risks with bespoke needs.

“There is a huge opportunity for both insurers and brokers to serve this growing market. It is not a market that can be easily commoditised. Too often, there has been a temptation to look at this market, see the premium levels are low and therefore decide it should be commoditised and not brokered. however, it should be brokered, whether face-to-face or online. There are commonalties that help make this worthwhile.”

research from axa has flagged up a number of issues – including that of under-insurance. The survey found 16% (more than 850,000) of home workers employ one or more people yet only 3% (around 150,000) have employer’s liability insurance. Meanwhile, just 14% (approx 750,000)

For more on these issues visit: http://newsroom.axa.co.uk/media-releases/2013/over-3mstar-homeworkers-potentially-operating-illegally,-warns-axa-business-insurance

ONlINE ///

HOT TOPIC | HOME WORKING TESCO BANK | CasE study

of home workers surveyed say they have business car insurance yet 66% (more than 3.5m) use their cars for business purposes.

axa is also warning people to inform their home contents provider if they are working from home or they could risk invalidating their policy, while for the 10% of home workers who meet clients in their home, or the 30% who visit clients’ premises, axa advises public liability insurance should be considered. Meanwhile, only 8% have professional indemnity insurance to cover themselves for legal liability in the event of providing customers with poor advice.

David Williams, managing director, underwriting, at axa, acknowledges: “There is a lot to consider when starting your own business and insurance is probably pretty low down the list. but there is a huge concern about the consequences.

“If you are just starting out and take someone on, they slip on the doorstep and sue you. If you are not insured, it may well put the business under before it has really even started. These small start-ups can become the big businesses of the future and they need protecting.”

Waking upMr Williams is adamant that the insurance profession has a real role to play in supporting these micro-businesses and encouraging development. “Some of these businesses are so small they have slipped under the radar but increasingly they are subject to the same rules and regulations and the need for insurance is just as great as for a larger operation.”

he recognises that some of the fault lies with insurers. “When these businesses are so very small, we almost don’t know they exist,” he says. “but I think we have woken up to a degree and are beginning to react. More people are forming these super-micro operations and they are building into a body of people we cannot ignore – 5.4 million people working from home equates to 10% of the population. It is time awareness was raised.”

Like Mr corbould-Warren, Mr Williams fears companies are not considering all the risks of employing home-based staff. “They may think they have got completely independent people on board,” he says, “however, if they work mainly for one company then that company becomes responsible for tax and national insurance issues.

“This was a particular concern in the construction market a few years ago when there was debate about contractors and sub-contractors. It is the same for other sectors and companies need to be sure about whether the home worker will be considered their employee or not.”

and it is not just about tax, warns Mr Williams, who says that if firms have control over what the person is doing, then they also have a health and safety responsibility.

however, there is a positive message for brokers, who have a huge opportunity to service this sector, says Mr Williams. Like Mr corbould-Warren, he believes it is not easy to commoditise this market because of the variety of people and circumstances.

“It is a case of simple and complex,” he says. “The insurances are straightforward so brokers will need to handle this business efficiently to make it profitable, but they are also complex because no two risks are entirely identical, which gives brokers an opportunity to add value.”

The other key message is, he says, taking the long term view. “It is a bit like the banks being eager to win students over while they are at university. They know that if they can capture them young, the students are likely to stay with the bank for a long time because of inertia.

“In the same way, brokers can win the loyalty of these small businesses too – and remember these businesses may not all stay so small. Some of the country’s largest businesses emerged out of the last recession and there is no reason why some of these tiny acorns may not grow into oaks in the coming years.”

“There is a huge opportunity for both insurers and brokers to serve this growingmarket."

When Tesco bank took the decision to bring the sales and service area of its motor and home insurance business in-house, it

recognised that all its new employees would need to develop their specialist knowledge and skillset to help deliver what matters most to its customers.

a number of people employed for the new contact centres in Glasgow and Newcastle were put through their paces in Tesco bank’s in-house training programme to develop their customer service skills and product knowledge. but Tesco was also committed to supporting its workforce in studying for an insurance qualification.

In 2010, Tesco bank invested in the cII’s award for Foundation Insurance Test (FIT) as it recognised that this programme would provide its employees with a good understanding of key insurance topics in a single course.

actionTo fast track employees to gain their FIT qualifications with the ultimate goal of having the most qualified workforce within the insurance industry.

ProcessTesco bank supported its employees by providing each person with: a copy of the FIT study text, access to revisionMate, cII membership and the FIT exam. It also invested in an in-house test centre so that employees could take their examinations in the comfort of familiar surroundings.

The first FIT exams were taken at the end of March 2011. Within 18 months 40% of staff had successfully passed their FIT exam. To recognise their achievements, Tesco bank held

As part of a commitment to have the most qualified workforce in the industry, Tesco Bank has partnered with the CII to provide its motor and home insurance staff with recognised training. The Journal looks at how it was done…

EvEry littlE hElps

award ceremonies to present employees with their completion certificates.

2012 certificate programmeThe success of the FIT programme raised the appetite for learning and development within the workforce. by November 2011, employees who had passed their FIT exams were encouraged to continue with their studies and go on to achieve the cII’s certificate in Insurance.

at the same time, Tesco bank’s insurance operations director, bill raynal, delighted by the success of the FIT programme, asked the cII to create a suitable programme for Tesco bank’s employees to secure cert cII qualifications within a 12-month period.

The structure of the certificate programme gives employees 12 weeks to complete each unit and allows a month’s break between units. half-day face-to-face technical training sessions are provided in weeks one, three, six and nine, with a revision day in week 11 and an examination in week 12.

criteria for joining the certificate programme included passing the cII’s FIT examination and employees themselves contributing a small sum towards the cost of each phase of the programme. This ‘deposit’ is refunded when the employee passes the examination.

The certificate programme was launched in april 2012. In the first phase, employees complete subjects in their core discipline –

subject number of exams taken

number of exams passed

tesco pass rate

IF5 MOtOR 126 108 85.7%

IF6 HOusEHOld 24 24 100%Tesco employees’ success rate in phase one with the national average pass rate for 2011.

c o m p a n y f a c t b o x

either IF5 Motor Products or IF6 household Products. Phase two of the certificate programme is now underway and phase three allows candidates to select their preferred certificate unit from the cII framework. all phases of the programme will be complete in the second quarter of 2013.

Outcome● More than 340 employees have achieved the award in Foundation Insurance Test;● exam success in certificate programme to date exceeds national average for 2011;● Staff retention and motivation benefits;● enhanced career opportunities for employees;● employees are equipped with the knowledge, skills and confidence to deliver what matters most to customers;● cost-effective training programme providing a roadmap to becoming cII qualified;● Programme underpins improved technical competence standards;● creates a pool of engaged, talented and qualified people further equipping them for future leadership roles.

Tesco bank has an ambition to have the most qualified workforce in the insurance industry – it has embarked on this journey. The framework to develop foundation and core knowledge cII qualifications within its workforce is in place and delivering outstanding results.

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● 4.2 million self-employed● 5.4 million working from home ● Freelance market growing 12% per year● Just 3% of home workers have

employers liability insurance● Just 14% of home workers have

business motor cover.

Insurances to discuss:● employers’ liability● Motor insurance● contents insurance● buildings insurance● Public liability● Professional indemnity● Product liability● Goods in transit

Key numbers

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THiNkpiEcE | IndIa

Distribution and delivery tend to be used as synonyms, not only in our profession but across the financial services sector. as a matter of fact, distribution dominates in terms of usage and

application. however innocuous it may seem, there are some serious implications we ought not to ignore. Many of the woes in financial services emanate from an over-emphasis on distribution. Developing markets in the earlier stages of evolving their financial markets, but in a hurry to embrace financial inclusion, need to tread cautiously.

When health insurance was in a nascent stage in India, there was no cashless settlement and no third-party administrator. This was indeed a service with a golden touch: the common thread in whatever was done was service rather than pure transaction. Long before the broker arrived and other forms of professional intermediation evolved, it was this quiet agent or salesperson who could get almost anything done. In other words, an almost indispensable part of your financial risk management value chain because of the power of the value proposition: ‘always there for you’.

Distribution is not equal to deliveryThe rapid growth of the retail segment in India, which coincided with the disintegration of the family, the erosion of primary healthcare and arrival of the middle class, boosted demand

Back to servicePraveen Gupta outlines the crucial difference between sales and service, and offers a five-point plan for creating a better delivery proposition

for both health and motor insurance. Opening up the Indian insurance market to private insurers only fuelled competition and quick growth, bringing price competition. however, service remained a low priority and was not a differentiator.

here is a lesson for developing markets, particularly those on a growth trajectory with their financial services evolving without many checks and balances. Their regulatory environment is raw, with scant attention to policyholder protection. ‘Treating customers Fairly’ is still off the radar and there is a tendency to ignore the experiences of developed economies. at best, we imitate Im

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the channels but disregard the readiness and suitability of local conditions. unfortunately, owing to growth opportunities, sales become a dominant mode, leading to the spurt in distribution. Delivery tends to suffer. While best practice is hard to find, poor practice is not. There is also very little sensitivity to the varying needs of various segments at different levels of economic evolution.

The great dividehaving sold you a policy – or any financial product for that matter – the focus of a financial services entity is to move on to the next sale. The back office is faceless,

notoriously prone to staffing churn, and diverse in unacceptable ways. The customer is a king or queen of no consequence. This can never lead to a true fulfilment. be it retail, commercial, or corporate in nature, disillusionment has been most pronounced in the areas of health insurance and unit-linked insurance plans.

almost all of us in this market have received calls from bank call centres pitching the products and services of their bancassurance partners. In India these days, the most aggressively sold is the unit-linked insurance plan (uLIP). you are urged to invest in this product, despite all of its proven flaws. It turns out to be one of the most mis-sold products in the market. If you challenged the caller, he or she would talk about their sales targets and the associated financial incentive. So the goal was to sell more and more uLIPs, regardless of whether it had any utility for the buyer.

It is not just the sales arms fighting to the finish. The rest of the organisation tends to be anarchic too. It is underwriting versus claims versus marketing versus operations versus geographic entities. If you are not being treated as a company’s customer, the brand is already diluted or contaminated in your eyes.

Delivery on the other hand is service-driven. It is about sustaining relationships and it comes down to the bottom line. unfortunately, and increasingly, the

insurance business is configured as a sales organisation where behaviour and personality mutate into something inherently contradictory. To remain viable in terms of costs, sales and service should go hand in hand. In emerging economies, this embeds a bad DNa into the evolutionary cycle of the financial services architecture.

Any solutions in sight?It may sound simplistic, but we quickly need to find ways to merge distribution into a variety of delivery models. One approach may be to evolve a better delivery proposition embracing this five-point strategy:

1. Move away from the point-of-sale obsession by developing longer-term strategies;

2. Make servicing client needs an essential part of your KPIs and base incentives on customer satisfaction rather than customer acquisition;

3. Segment each socio-economic class separately, instead of taking a one-size-fits-all approach – the product needs and solutions for varying classes are bound to be different;

4. ensure that what has been promised is delivered (eg contract certainty, price, fair treatment); and

5. ensure that your entire organisation works as a single entity with a common purpose,

rather than as the sum total of its parts. This will eliminate issues such as channel conflict and inter-departmental disconnect.

Following this strategy will perhaps bring in self-regulation and minimise the amount of formal regulatory intervention and micro-management. In addition, at the very evolutionary level where financial inclusion is all, the seller will also be delivering, and be more responsible.

The insurance business needs to think hard about where it is heading. It cannot afford to be naïve in interchanging distribution for delivery. It must not allow itself to be conditioned as a sales industry. The point of sale mindset needs to be reconfigured since, in choosing the current way, we have already invited upon ourselves the risk of unintended consequences. before this risk becomes perilous enough to threaten our raison d’être, let us bring back the indispensability of service that we all seem to be missing in the world of financial supermarkets or one-stop-shops.

The consequences for developing markets are far more serious, as they are still in development. Moreover, each segment of society depending on the maturity level of the financial evolution ought to follow a deserving treatment. If the course correction is made early enough, they need not embed the blunders in their products and processes. In turn, this will insulate their financial services from the systemic vulnerabilities that are triggered by the incentivisation of the distribution system. Distribution is a necessary evil, but it must be kept reigned in to allow the larger cause of delivery to take the lead.

This article is based on a longer essay published as a chartered insurance institute Thinkpiece in November 2012. To view the full article go to: http://bitly/UT2Mm2

Praveen Gupta, FCII, Chartered Insurer, managing director and CEO, Raheja QBE General Insurance Company, Mumbai

“Before this risk becomes perilous enough to threaten our raison d’etre, let us bring back the indispensability of service that we all seem to be missing in the world”

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BEHiNd THE ScENES | Insurance surveyor

heads back stage at some of the country’s top venues. In an hour shadowing her on a job at one of London’s many West end theatres, the Trafalgar Studios, it was clear insurance surveyors provide added value.

The survey included a valuation of the building and a full assessment of the fire, theft and water damage risks potentially facing the theatre, assisted by the theatre manager and accompanied by ecclesiastical’s broker Steve Moore, of bluefin. The survey included access to the hidden, behind-the-scenes areas – beneath the stage of the award-winning yes, Prime Minster play for instance, and the ceiling void from which pieces of scenery are flown

EyEs, Ears… and a long rulErKin Ly shadows insurance surveyor Lucy Chittenden as she performs an assessment of West End theatre, the Trafalgar Studios

onto the set, as well as the innocuous rooftops of the pre-Second World War building.

The survey begins from the top – the roof. The procedure is to identify its construction and, as Ms chittenden examines the area, she says it is really important to note every detail to ensure the underwriter can provide the right insurance cover: “I’ll pass all the technical information back to the underwriter and construction is really important with regards to that,” she explains, noting down the fibreglass on the roof.

When we reach the auditorium, the line of questioning shifts to a detailed account of the decorative panels that run right down the building – remnants from the Whitehall Theatre, as the building was known until 2004.

It is essential to thoroughly assess the make up of any decorative areas, Ms chittenden explains: “because if there was a problem here, then all of this would have to be rebuilt so that it looks exactly the same. We use modern methods and techniques to do this. I need to know what the decorative area is made of, how large it is, Im

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whether it is painted, and so on – this also forms part of the overall valuation.”

beneath the stage we find a narrow space used for storage, currently housing sound and lighting equipment along with other props. “are portable heaters used here?” and “how many people access and use this area?” are among a number of questions asked to assess the fire hazard of an area typically deemed as vulnerable to fire, as well as health and safety problems.

The zapperThe most revealing part of the job, however, is the use of a traditional wooden ruler to measure the dimensions of the building.

armed with the 50-metre long ruler and a laser ruler known in the industry as ‘the zapper’, Ms chittenden spends the next two to three hours measuring the width, length and depth of the Trafalgar Studios.

“at the end of the day, you can be presented with a report from the client but if you haven’t seen the building or met the people, you don’t know how it is being managed. That’s the key thing – how well is it risk managed? unless you’ve met the people then you don’t really know – all you have are pieces of paper.

“I basically come to a place to be the eyes and ears of an underwriter,” says Ms chittenden. and after shadowing her around the theatre, it was quite obvious how and why a surveyor’s report helps underwriters write business more effectively.

It is easy to piece together an insurance team. you have your insurer, your underwriter and your broker – in basic terms. but we rarely hear mention of insurance surveyors, the missing piece of the jigsaw performing a role described by

some as the “eyes and ears of an underwriter”.The reason some might view surveying as

mundane may be because few acknowledge their impact, says Lucy chittenden, risk services surveyor at ecclesiastical. her role differs slightly from the average surveyor. She has access to some of england’s centuries-old heritage buildings, climbs the heights of churches built in elizabethan england; and

“I basically come to a place to be the eyes and ears of an underwriter”

From top left:The use of a traditional wooden ruler to measure the dimensions of the buildingchecking all the details are correct is essentiala space used for storage, currently housing sound and lighting equipment could pose a riskThe survey begins from the top – the roofIt is essential to thoroughly assess the make up of any decorative areas

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outcome, but which may not have been specifically designed to meet their development needs. This might include reading a trade publication that is part of your normal day-to-day activities, rather than specifically reading it to meet a specific learning need.

Details of the new scheme, including transitional arrangements for those members who have commenced CPD on the existing credit-based scheme, can be viewed in the guidance documents online at: www.cii.co.uk/cpd.

INsTITUTEs IN AcTION | CPD MASTERCLASS

come along. but this may change in the future.”The first cPD masterclass was held on

31 January at the Museum of Science and Industry in central Manchester. The free event provided members and non-members with two hours’ structured cPD if relevant to their professional development needs. The masterclass was so successful that it was fully booked with a maximum of 200 attendees.

Ms cartridge believes its success was down to a number of factors, such as the fact it was free to attend and gave members two hours of structured cPD. The timing, at the start of the New year, also gave attendees an opportunity to kick start their cPD for 2013.

The cPD masterclass was opened and hosted by MII deputy president barry Thompson, who introduced the first speaker, cII president amanda blanc, who spoke about the importance of professional development.

Mr Gillan then explained the background to the launch of the event and the importance of cPD before cII area marketing manager, David Irvine, hosted a session on how the new cPD hours system works.

The event continued with a 10-minute session from Ms cartridge on how the MII could help members with their cPD before a coffee break and a session on ‘achieving your

potential’ from motivational speaker Martin robert-hall.

The entire programme lasted two hours and concluded with a networking session in a local public house, for those who wanted to continue.

Feedback from the event has been very positive so far so at this early stage Ms cartridge hopes that the masterclass will become an annual occurrence.

“I do like the idea of starting the year with everyone getting into gear with cPD as it helps members plan their cPD for the year ahead,” she says. “We are also looking at other events and whether we do a joint conference with the Personal Finance Society. We also have a bIba event that we are involved in later in the year.”

Busy year aheadThe masterclass is just the start of a packed programme, which the institute has managed to get sponsored for the year by Legal cost Negotiators. This has allowed the institute to upscale its programme and employ media companies to make the events even more attractive to members.

Ms cartridge says it was not difficult to gain a sponsor, and that they thought it was great value for money: “They are allowed to put their banners up at the cPD events, put their logos

ManchestercPD is any activity that is relevant to a qualified member’s ongoing professional development. This may be an activity that develops your career, helps to keep your knowledge up to date or simply supports your role as a professional.

In July 2012, the CII launched a new CPD scheme, which switches from a credit-based format to hours-based. Qualified members are now required to complete 35 hours of CPD, including a minimum 21 hours of structured CPD, in a 12-month period. 

Structured CPD is the undertaking of any formal learning activity designed to meet a specific learning outcome (this is what an individual is expected to know, understand or do as a result of his or her learning). An example would be attending one of our local institute technical lectures or training courses.

Unstructured CPD is any activity an individual considers has met a learning

What is continuing professional development (cpd)?

on the bottom of cPD emails and hand out freebies. We do limit what they can do but their exposure is still huge.

“We started the annual programme with four breakfast briefings and eight lunchtime events but it may increase. We have an event coming up on the Disclosure act and, as of last week, we were fully booked – a total of 150 bookings in just 48 hours. as a result of its popularity we are sourcing a new venue in the hope of increasing the capacity to 250 people.”

Other institutes looking to mirror Manchester’s success need enthusiastic committee members who are able to focus on the need in the marketplace, according to Ms cartridge.

“I would also try and provide the events for free and see if they could be sponsored – whether it was just the masterclass or the whole cPD programme. I would sell the sponsorship on the fact it helps the organisation as well as individuals and is a cost effective way to complement their own training and development.

“If anyone wants to speak to Manchester about how they went about their cPD masterclass or cPD programme we are happy to meet with them to help their members.”

As CII members get used to the new hours-based CPD system, Michelle Worvell reveals how the Manchester Insurance Institute has been leading the way with its highly successful CPD masterclass

Pass masters of

t here is no denying continuing professional development, or cPD as it is more commonly known, is hugely important as it ensures you continue to be competent in your profession. While the ultimate outcome of

well-planned cPD is that it can help safeguard both the public and the professional.

With this in mind, the Manchester Insurance Institute (MII) has always had cPD high on its agenda, and for a number of years has had a specific committee dedicated to such development to ensure members are kept up to date with changing developments.

Past president Karen cartridge, who became chair of a revamped cPD committee in May last year, liaised with current MII president David Gillan to set out the vision the institute had for a 2013 cPD programme. Top of the agenda was a new type of cPD event – a cPD masterclass – which would help to highlight the change from

points-based to hours-based recording that took place in the summer of 2012.

“Dave thought it would be really good if we could start the year with a masterclass of some sort,” explains Ms cartridge. “We already hold numerous lunchtime lectures and breakfast seminars but thought it would be good if we could start with something a little bit different in the New year.

“We came up the idea of having a cPD Masterclass that would last a couple of hours, to explain the new cPD structure but also to make it quite light and entertaining and motivational as well.”

Down to businessThe cPD committee, which has 15 members, went straight to work on the concept. In the past, the committee had focused on ensuring it had lunchtime lectures on technical subjects and soft skills. events had not always gone

according to plan and Ms cartridge admits the breakfast seminars were not as popular as they would have liked, due to lack of promotion on the part of the institute.

“Now there has been a huge turnaround and we are actually struggling to accommodate everyone into the cPD events. at the moment, we are in the middle of switching some of the cPD venues as we just can’t get places that are big enough to cope with demand.

“The masterclass was sold out straight away. a breakfast seminar

on the Jackson reform became two sessions because members were complaining that they couldn’t get in to the first session. In addition, we also have two separate cPD sessions running next week, on two different topics, in two different areas of Manchester. That was a first for us.”

Good valueall MII’s cPD events are open to members and non-members and aim to help attendees complete the 35 hours of cPD required by the cII. Ms cartridge believes the events are really good value and hugely beneficial to members.

“It’s a big way in which we can support them in obtaining their 35 hours,” says Ms cartridge. “Non-members don’t pay to attend either. It is not something we have had to think about in the past as we could afford to let non-members

The venue for the masterclass

Members are welcomed to the event by Karen Cartridge (left)

Feedback from the cPD masterclass:● “Barry was excellent at linking all the speakers”● “A great event, well done!”● “Martin Robert-Hall was excellent”● “Impressive event”● “Amanda Blanc and deputy president

were FAB”

The event was fully booked with 200 attendees

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equity in their property valued at around £750bn.To get a far deeper understanding of the

thinking of homeowners aged from 55 upwards, some already retired and across a range of wealth bands, we commissioned independent research in 2012 to produce a report: The role of housing equity in retirement planning.

The role of housing equityIn the run-up to retirement, expectations of future income levels are far too optimistic. Those with more than a year to retirement expected an annual income of £17k but those at retirement were achieving just £10k.

Although half of those approaching retirement expected to be financially ‘comfortable’ initially, only one-third thought they would still be comfortable in 10 years’ time.

Many people are willing to explore how they could top-up their retirement income to an acceptable level by accessing the value in their homes but equity release was poorly understood and subject to many misconceptions.

Improving consumer outcomesThe report also reinforces the urgent need to find ways to help the growing numbers facing a financial struggle in retirement.

Policymakers need to provide certainty

T he post-War ‘baby boom’ generation is heading into retirement in record numbers but not all can expect a comfortable retirement as an estimated 6.25 million people, aged over 50, have no pension

plan in place and may end up relying solely on the state pension.

The majority (79%) will draw their income from this pension. A further 44% also have a private pension/annuity, and/or 39% a final salary pension. However, 33% have neither of these additional sources of pension and only 36% have savings and investments for an income in retirement.

Financing a comfortable retirement is becoming increasingly difficult for government and individuals and longevity gains means that any savings have to last longer than ever before.

Those at retirement now are also facing tough choices about whether to keep on working or to give up knowing they face an income shortfall that is only likely to get worse in time.

Yet during their working lives many of these baby boomers have enjoyed strong returns from one asset class – property. It is estimated that 79% of people aged over 55 own their own homes and that homeowners aged 65 and over hold

about where the balance of responsibility will lie between the individual and government when it comes to meeting the costs of later life. Government leadership and guidance are needed on what options may be safely considered.

The financial services industry must help empower consumers to make informed decisions and develop services that meet people’s needs. Releasing higher percentages of equity, reducing upfront charges and giving people the ability to ring-fence value in their property either for inheritance or long-term care purposes are examples of areas for potential innovation.

The importance of high quality financial adviceCustomers wishing to use equity release solutions from Equity Release Council members are supported by a strong triple lock regime: high standards of regulation by the Financial Services Authority – a mandatory requirement to use professionally qualified advisers – and a requirement to obtain independent legal advice. The multivariate nature of financial planning within the retirement years amplifies the need, role and benefits of the professional adviser.

Intermediaries are aware of the opportunities – in a recent insurance company poll – nearly nine in 10 (88%) said equity release is relevant to their clients’ retirement planning. But significant numbers are not prepared to meet that need with fewer than 40% having the relevant qualifications – of which fewer than one in four regularly provide guidance – and a further 19% having a referral relationship in place.

Professional financial planners have a crucial role in helping consumers make the most of the housing equity withdrawal opportunities. Advisers need to ensure that the value tied up in the home is at the heart of the retirement planning process from an early stage, whether for income, inheritance or care purposes.

Not everybody will need or want to downsize or use an equity release plan. Of the 7.5 million pensioners living in homes they own, our research revealed 8% might be quite/very interested in using equity release – equal to 600,000 potential clients. The reality is that longer lives mean people will have to think more carefully than ever about how to deploy their finite assets in the years ahead.  

Stephen Lowe, group external affairs and customer insight director, Just Retirement

ONLINE ///

The full report including the data, related news and links is available at: www.ERresearchcentre.org

Hitting a Home run in retirement

Stephen Lowe discusses the results of the UK’s largest research study into consumer attitudes

towards housing equity withdrawal and the steps needed to make it a viable option for retirees

LIFE AND PENSIONS | Equity rElEasE

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Commercial Account Handler West Midlands to £30,000 My client is an established insurance broker based in West Midlands and they are seeking experienced commercial account handlers to manage and build relationships with a portfolio of clients for both their renewal and on-going insurance needs. You will be responsible for the day to day servicing of clients, working with the Account Executive on existing clients and development of new business. In addition support junior staff by being a technical refer point on larger/complex risks. Candidates must have a commercial insurance background, ability to negotiate with insurers and be able to work within a busy and friendly team environment. Ref AM436

Account Handler Birmingham to £25,000A local provincial broker seeks an experienced Commercial Account Handler to join their expanding commercial team. You will work closely with your own Account Executive as well as playing a key part within the team of handlers. This position involves handling both new business and renewals. The book has a varied client portfolio across all trades, but with a slight bias towards construction. Main Tasks include MTA’s, inputting of new business and handling new business quotations, working with the Account Executive on renewals strategy, insurer meetings and accounts management. Ref AM502

South East and South WestSimon McGill 01452 615205

EPL Claims Handler Croydon to £42,000We are seeking an Employers Practices Liability Claims Adjuster, controlling from fi rst notice to ultimate resolution of a challenging workload of employment liability claims. The role will include coverage, legal liability and quantum analysis in addition to regular contact with clients, brokers and lawyers. The role will incorporate collaboration with the UK, European and Global claims team. The successful candidate will have proven claims handling experience (EPL claims experience essential) and will also have strong communication skills, both written and verbal and be articulate and confi dent in a meeting. Ref SEM277

Commercial Underwriting Market Talent Bristol £30 - £55kAspects are continuing to recruit for Bristol based commercial underwriters in a number of businesses across technical, trading and account management roles. We are looking for technical and broker development underwriters with a strong trading history in the South West and South Wales market across a variety of classes to include SME, Property, Commercial, Corporate and Fleet. We are working with prominent insurers with ambitious plans for the UK market and providing strong market salaries, excellent benefi ts and further career opportunities. Ref SEM477

New Business Producers South West/UK £40 - £60k (Year One)We are working with multi-site regional brokers to assist them with their growth with additional account executives. This represents a real opportunity for a talented individual to develop and drive the commercial business forward, whilst receiving marketing and broking support. Business focus is across the SME and corporate being £2k-£20k fee income depending upon your own market space and connections. This is a hybrid position and once business has been won you will maintain for renewal the following year. We need a proven track record within general insurance and business production, excellent communication and presentation skills and negotiation and infl uencing skills. Ref SEM275

Motor Claims ControllerGloucester £40,000Great new opening with this UK insurer to manage, lead, control and administer a key operation within the Claims Department in accordance with company philosophy, providing an effi cient and quality service to internal and external customers and to be responsible for recruitment, discipline and training of all staff in the department. This will include identifying training needs. Candidates need to show proven leadership skills within an environment of 50+FTE. Experience of Team Management, including performance management, training and development, problem solving and decision making within either an insurance claims or insurance call/contact centre is required along with effective communication skills with both internal and external customers and staff and a degree or equivalent insurance qualifi cation. Ref SEM261

Aspects FP.indd 1 22/02/2013 11:08

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PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS BOARD | Protecting the Public interest

The creation of the Parliamentary banking commission to look at standards in banking in the wake of the LIbOr scandal; the Leveson inquiry into media standards; and the recent parliamentary expenses

scandals are but a few of the most recent issues that raise the importance of standards in public and business life.

Protecting the Public interestIn the first of a series of articles about the structures that underpin the insurance sector’s journey to maintain and improve the profession, we feature the work of the CII’s Professional Standards Board

The link between these and other challenges in public trust is the call for independent and transparent oversight of professions. Insurance is already well placed for this challenge. The insurance profession’s governance has evolved over the years and, unlike banking for example, has well established and robust self-regulation with proper oversight and disciplinary process with appropriate sanctions. Over the years

● David McIntosh QC (Hon)Independent non-exec chair

● Teresa Hunter Lay representative

● Sue Lewis Lay representative

● James Morris Lay representative

● Nicola Mullany Lay representative

● Professor Charles Munn Lay representative

● Jackie Wells Lay representative

● Jonathan Bush ACII, Chartered insurance broker Practitioner representative

● Edward Grant FPFS, Chartered financial planner Practitioner representative

● Tom McGrath CBE, FCII, Chartered insurance broker Practitioner representative

The PSb plays a vital role in acting as the the voice of the public overseeing the development of the profession. It is a key cog to reinforce and enhance the purpose of the royal charter, to promote the public interest and to provide public trust and confidence in the profession.

Composition of the psBThe role of the professional standards board (PSB) is to:● Develop policy and standards for cII members, including professional conduct and trust, discipline, ethics and competence;● Develop appropriate policy and standards for the cII’s governance including accountability, diversity, consumer representation and transparency;● Monitor and review these standards;● communicate the standards to the members and committees; and● Promote professionalism and the adoption of high standards within the

industry, with government, with regulators and, most importantly, to consumers.

The PSb is always chaired by an independent figure and that role is currently held by eminent lawyer David McIntosh Qc (hons), himself a previous president of the Law Society. It also comprises a mix of senior practitioners and lay representatives. It has a majority of lay representation and membership is chosen in line with the Nolan principles. The current representation is set out in box two. The PSb also has a diversity sub-group chaired by Liz coyle, a chartered insurer.

Role of the pRofessional standaRds BoaRd

“The PSB has evolved to be at the leading edge for professional standards oversight of the financial services sector. Something that should be prized and celebrated by the insurance sector” David McIntosh QC (Hon)

cherished, and the highest standards of ethical behaviour are pursued.

Modern professional bodies need to demonstrate to the wider public that there is good governance in place to guide this work and ensure it meets the famous challenge of George bernard Shaw that “all professions are conspiracies against the laity”.

The cII’s commitment to higher standards is achieved through a broad spread of services, including membership, qualifications, continuing professional development and a code of ethics guiding professional behaviour. but all of these must be governed by a robust set of processes that are seen to be, and are, acting in the public interest. We have independent disciplinary machinery in place to oversee the policing of the code of ethics – a disciplinary and an appeals committee are in place to see this happens. both are independently chaired by practising lawyers.

The cII ensured there was a further lock in place when it established a professional standards board more than a decade ago to oversee our professional standards framework. The first independent chairman of the PSb was the eminent Lord hunt, a veteran champion of robust self-regulation of the professions. The role of the PSb is set out in the box above.

In the next edition we will cover the code of ethics and the disciplinary and appeals process that underpins the code.

the cII has developed its code of ethics, disciplinary processes, mandatory cPD and awarding body standards overseen by an independently led Professional Standards board (PSb).

This has ensured that the insurance sector remains at the “leading edge of professional standards” according to David McIntosh, the PSb’s current independent chairman.

The insurance sector can be proud of Illu

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the progress made but must continue to evolve to meet future public interest challenges. Protecting the public interest is central to the cII’s purpose, as the charter states, and maintaining and improving public confidence and trust in the financial services market will be achieved only by creating a genuinely global profession where the best interests of the public are to the fore, ongoing learning and expertise are

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AD

LEGAL CASE WORK | Financial Ombudsman service THE A-Z Of | HigH net wOrtH

The ABC OF… hIGh NeT WORTh

S T U D Y Z O N E▼

In the high net worth (hNW) arena, people look for more than a one-size-fits-all insurance product and service. We are providing insurance solutions for customers with very specific requirements but who lead busy, time-poor lives. understanding their needs and expectations is key to providing bespoke insurance solutions and the associated service that is a prerequisite of this specialist area.

What is a HNW individual?being a hNW client is as much about lifestyle as it is about affluence. In broad terms though, this type of customer will have anything upwards of £100,000 of contents, which could include items of fine art and collectables. This figure stretches to the ultra high net worth client, whose assets may go well beyond this level, with Premiership footballers, oil tycoons and successful entrepreneurs all bringing their unique challenges to our underwriting brains.

A high net worth lifestyle The challenge in this profession is to create insurances that properly protect clients with very diverse lifestyles. a hNW policy might need to cover uK and overseas property, rental property, jewellery, art and multiple high value cars. a combination of a good

Very few of these people are benefiting from the service and expertise of a broker, and fewer still are with a specialist high net worth insurer. banks, composite insurers, consumer brands and direct writers all offer high net worth customers standard insurance policies, which often fail to recognise their specialist needs and may not deliver when they make a claim. It is here we can add most value and really help customers to protect themselves better.

Excellence in customer service along with providing sophisticated insurances comes a need for impeccable service. customers rightly demand simplicity, flexibility and certainty, and this must be delivered at all times during their relationship with their broker and insurer. This is an easy thing to promise but a

understanding of an individual’s lifestyle,

experience of the risks associated with a specific portfolio and the skills to soundly assess risk generally, all enable us to provide the right insurance product at the right price to the right client. FleXible underwriting, close ties with your brokers and an ability to empathise with your customers are all essential skills for the hNW underwriter.

As a target for the insurance industry The good news for specialist brokers and insurers is that this market is largely untapped. There are probably half a million high net worth individuals in the uK, with many younger professionals pushing into this space and looking for bespoke products and a high level of customer service to reflect their changing lifestyles.

great challenge to deliver, and the profession must raise its game to meet changing consumer demands.

Drive more business through the broker channel To grow the numbers buying insurance through specialist hNW brokers means brand building and investing in high quality marketing and consumer insight. using this to then develop products our customers want to buy and delivering them in the way they want to buy them ensures we will tap into the current and next generation of hNW clients and offer them insurances and services that mean we will be looking after them long into the future.

Giving more through additional servicesSpecialist insurance is also about giving the customer more – more certainty, more value and more choice. additional services, product enhancements and specialist advice are key requirements. To enter – and be successful in – this market you need to be prepared to offer a product and a level of service that is as much about enhancing a lifestyle as it is about replacing an asset and this is what makes high net worth insurance such an exciting place to be.

Justin Gott is head of art and private client at Hiscox

A...for AffluenceB...for Brokers C...for CarsD...for DriveE...for ExpectationsF...for fine artG...for Great challengeH...for High net worthI...for InsightJ...for JewelleryK...for Key requirementsL...for LifestyleM...for Market

N...for NeedsO...for OverseasP...for Property Q...for QualityR...for RisksS...for SpecialistT...for TravelU...for Ultra high net worthV...for VIPW...for WiredX...for fleXibleY...for Younger professionalsZ...for Zermatt

K N O w i N g Y O U r A - Z . . .

Justin Gott, insurance specialist with hiscox, explores the world of the high net worth area

the complainants that they may not be able to enforce any amount above the statutory maximum through the courts. The complainants accepted the award and the firm paid only the statutory maximum but not the recommended element of the compensation. The complainants accepted payment of the award, but then brought court proceedings for the remainder of the recommended compensation.

at first instance, the claim was struck out, following the decision in an earlier high court case (Andrews vs SBJ Benefit Consultants), which had decided that where

the subject matter of a FOS complaint was the same as that of the court claim, the complainants’ claims had merged and so could only be brought in one forum (the so-called doctrine of merger). having accepted an award from the FOS, the complainants in Andrews could not therefore bring a claim through the courts. This had been the established position and had given much needed legal certainty to insurers and financial firms.

however, the high court in clark decided that the subject matter of the complaint and the claim were not the same because the FOS dealt with complaints and not legal causes of action. Therefore the doctrine of merger did not apply. The judge considered that the acceptance of the FOS award as being “final and binding” only designated the end of the FOS process. he also said that, in his view, the statutory framework for the FOS allowed a complainant to obtain a FOS award in order to meet some of the legal costs of bringing a subsequent court action. This would allow complainants to use the FOS process to build up a war chest to pursue the firm through the courts. No doubt insurers and other firms will be watching the appeal closely.

Simon Clarke is a partner, Hywel Jenkins is a senior associate and Ajay Malhotra is an associate in the Dispute Resolution Division of Herbert Smith Freehills

Playing the claim gameThe High Court has surprised many by ruling firms in receipt of an FOS award can still claim through the courts. A trio of experts from Herbert Smith Freehills looks at the implications for insurers

 In a decision that will surprise many insurers and other financial institutions, the english high court ruled in December 2012 that parties which had accepted a Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) award for the statutory maximum amount (set at £150,000

since January 2012) can also bring a claim through the courts to recover the remainder of their alleged loss. The firm in question is seeking permission to appeal the decision to the court of appeal (this application is to be heard in March 2013).

If the decision is upheld on appeal, the FOS and the courts would be seen as sequential, not alternative, processes. Due to the frequent issues associated with quantifying loss in financial disputes, the FOS may adopt a cautious stance and dismiss potentially high value claims without considering their merits (on the basis that they are better dealt with by the courts). however, if the FOS opts to accept such complaints, this could result in a duplication of cases being heard in both forums.

however, until the legal uncertainty of the decision is resolved on appeal, it would be very risky for eligible complainants with claims well in excess of £150,000 to accept a FOS award in the expectation that they can claim the balance in court, given that the court of appeal may well overturn this decision.

Test caseIn Clark vs In Focus Asset Management & Tax Solutions, the complainants complained to the FOS that inappropriate financial advice given to them by an IFa had caused them loss. The FOS found in favour of the complainants and awarded them the statutory maximum award (then £100,000; now increased to £150,000). The FOS also made a non-binding recommendation that the firm pay the remainder of the compensation derived from its formula, but informed

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Why this matters

If CLARK IS UPHELD BY THE COURT Of APPEAL→ Higher value claims more likely to use fOS in first instance→ Claimants may seek to adduce successful fOS

determinations in support of court claim→ Potential for conflicting decisions→ fOS decides complaint by fair and reasonable yardstick→ Courts apply relevant legal principles and precedent→ fOS and courts may quantify loss differently→ fOS may dismiss complaints that are, or may be, for sums

over its statutory maximum award→ Increased costs for insurers as higher likelihood of some

pay-out in larger value claims; and duplication of defence costs.

If CLARK IS OVERRULED BY THE COURT Of APPEAL→ Claimants have to choose between accepting a fOS

award or bringing a court claim→ Claims worth less than £150,000 likely to go to fOS→ Claims worth around £150,000 or more likely to

bring a court claim→ Legal certainty for insurers.

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Neighbourly burgers

PROfEssiONAL dEvELOPmENT | PRODUCT RECALL

S T U D Y Z O N E▼

Dickinson, agrees: “Product liability and contaminated products insurance policies are unlikely to be triggered by horse or pork contamination so long as the food supplied is ‘safe’.

“Thanks to the scale of public outrage and the imposition of strict liability by the Consumer Protection Act 1987, those involved in food production and supply are unlikely to be so lucky. Retailers and brand owners will calculate their losses and look to their suppliers for compensation, without being required to prove negligence.”

Global food chainHowever, Ms Rochester says globalisation does bring some challenges. “At the core of the scandal for underwriters is the question of ‘meat traceability’. There is growing unease among product liability insurers of suppliers and distributors in the UK, who have woken up to the very real prospect of having underwritten a far larger risk than may have been taken into account in the premium calculation.”

Likely future implications for insurers, she says, include:● A proposed new regime requiring systematic testing in every EU country (on top of anything already required by individual member states), which should help to avoid future problems;● The ability to insist on more onerous pre-inception disclosure concerning the nature of supply chain relationships;● Justification for increased premiums to cover the additional risk or the cost of improved due diligence;● Increased interest in contaminated products insurance, and product liability and recall cover (the high profile case involving benzene in Bacardi Breezers saw a similar spike in interest);● More requests for policies to be extended to provide cover in respect of any ‘loss of use’ to third party property caused by products; and● Potential challenges by insureds in the face of decisions not to provide cover.

“In summary,” Ms Rochester says, “it seems that insurers will have limited (if any) exposure to claims arising out of the scandal, but they will reap the benefits of increased awareness of the need for cover combined with a willingness to pay for it.”

Keith Wise, head of major loss at loss adjusters Garwyn, says, however: “The first thing you have to bear in mind is that no-one expects this to happen to them. Everyone assumes they haven’t done anything wrong and it is always a big surprise.”

First it was reports of horse meat in burgers, then pork in Halal food fed to UK prisoners and, finally, it was the much wider story of horse meat being passed off as beef in products

across Europe. At the time of writing, the story involves some 35 countries and it is clear there is more detail to emerge.

Politicians have been talking of “international conspiracies” while health

call” to the food sector. However, he stressed that the problem was a loss of consumer trust and confidence, not a food safety issue.

And therein lies a potential problem for anyone hoping to reclaim some of the costs incurred to date from an insurance policy.

Product recall products are designed to help with the growing trend of recalls across Europe, from food to pharmaceuticals and children’s toys. Increasing regulation means retailers have to be much swifter about withdrawing any products that potentially pose harm, while also ensuring any such event is well publicised.

Insurers at AIG sum it up. “Once embroiled in a product recall situation the costs, direct and indirect, to manufacturers, retailers or wholesalers can be enormous. Public/products liability will address the effects of injury or damage caused, but the impact may be much wider. Recovering stock, transport, overtime, repair or replacement and subsequent loss of reputation and profit can cause deep financial damage.”

However, a product recall claim requires a bodily injury trigger before any payout. David Eynon, a director at Manchester Underwriting, says: “Product recall insurance is becoming more commonplace, not least because buyers are more aware that it is ultimately a balance sheet problem.” At the moment few recall insurance policies cover the insured for loss of profit. Mr Eynon explains it is hard to identify exactly what proportion of any losses is directly attributable to the loss, which is why few insurers would consider such wordings.

“Our policy, for example,” he says, “provides some crisis management via a public relations machine to help reduce the risk of financial loss and damage to the brand overall.

He stresses: “This is not a liability policy either so, again, it is hard to split out the loss of profit element.” Put that together with the way in which food producers work and he says it is more obvious why they are concerned with loss of brand image.

“Take a company like Innocent,” he says. “When it launched, its smoothies were not produced by the company. It asked a manufacturer to put together the product and then arranged the packaging – Innocent was really all about marketing and brand.” This approach to food is more and more commonplace, which is why demand for product recall cover is about the loss of image.

The horse meat scandal is an interesting case, he says, because the food is basically ‘safe’. Fleur Rochester, a partner at Hill

features and benefits● Pre-incident recall planning consultancy is included (fees are commensurate to the premium amount);● Covers the direct costs of a recall, including laboratory product testing, reverse distribution, destruction and disposal of faulty stock, addition human resources, repair or replacement and redistribution;● Covers additional business costs post-recall arising directly from the event;● Brand protection through crisis management consultancy expertise;● Cover in the face of threatened or actual malicious attacks.

Cover● Costs of the recall;● Costs of replacing the defective product;● Consultants’ and advisors’ costs;● Loss of gross profit;● Product extortion costs; ● Defence costs;● Brand rehabilitation costs; ● Third party recall and replacement cost.Source: AIG

Product recall defined

He also says it would be wrong to underestimate the power of the large retailers to refill empty shelves extremely quickly and to lure customers back as fast too. “How they handle themselves is key but they have all had problems in the past and recovered from them.”

As Mr Wise notes, this case is all about food but product recall issues can affect any form of manufacturing and the risks escalate the more mixed the product is and the more people that are involved. “Just one component has to fail,” he warns, “and there can be a major problem throughout the chain. You can have a ton of product but if just one gram of contaminated goods are used then the whole ton is defective.”

Regarding the horse meat scandal, Mr Wise says the situation has been complicated by the number of players involved and their many jurisdictions, but he adds that so much is manufactured globally, this is no real surprise – except perhaps to the consumers who may have previously had no idea their beef burgers will have travelled through five or six countries before reaching their plate.

Hardly a day has gone by in the last few weeks without news of another development in the food scandal across Europe. Liz Booth looks at where the insurance profession standsToTal Recall

professionals have been trying to allay fears of any health risks. Meanwhile the whole affair has woken up the general public to the increasingly complex and lengthy chain along which their food will have travelled before reaching the supermarket shelves.

Wake-up callRetailers have been bearing the brunt of the fall-out to date. UK retailers have responded in

various different ways, with some saying they were not to blame but at the same time clearing their shelves of a wide range of meat products, while others have been quick to say they are clear of problems. Across Europe, too, retailers have been following the same pattern, clearing shelves and having products tested.

Chris Elliot, professor of food safety at Queen’s University, Belfast, told the BBC the latest revelations were a “massive wake-up

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Natasha OldknowDiane O’NeillHrishikesh Oturkar

P Stephanie ParkerGemma PearceStuart PearsonHelen PellsJoseph PennyfatherChamindri PereraMirihanakankanamalage PereraChris PerryCarrie PhangMark PhilpottMarcello PietrocolaEdward PikeMark PottsIan PreciousSamuel PritchardHeather PughAdam PurseyKatie Pusey

R Cannane RamalingamKumud RanjanRuth ReaneyCarly RichardsZoe RichardsChristopher RileyAlistair RobsonDavid RodwayRavishwanath RookmoneeaDavid RuddockPeter Ryder

S Sajiv PDorothy SalifuDebra SamuelsLuke SandersHarpreet SandhuHayley SanganAlexander SarafoglouMichael SaroglouSamuel SarpongRebecca SaundersSimon ScantleburyCatherine SchaalVanessa SchneiderMark ScholfieldMargaret ScottChase Scott-PearsonLouise SculthorpeAnita SeahHami Seyed KhalkhaliPauline ShanleyBenjamin ShannonAndrew ShepherdMuhammed SiddiquiAndrew SimPaul SimpsonThomas SimpsonAvinash SingarajuSunder SinghStuart SmailNatika SmiklePhilip SmithSara SoaresWenny SoebiyantoAmin SoofiJonathon SpenceA SrinivasanOlga StefurakHolly StirkRichard StockleyMark StopherLucy StrakerJennifer StyleGamkanda Sudath SriyanandaSamantha SultanaKapu SumanathungaDilan Sumithraarachchi

T Charles TambalaYan TanStuart TaylorTrevor TaylorMichael Taylor-WestSylvia TettehShaikh ThaikaStephen Tillie

A Benjamin AlcockF Simon FoxG Frederick GardenH Robert HodgsonL Tsz LeeP James PillingerS Ellis Smith

Roy SmithT Kirsty Tyler

A Angie AbdillaJoshua AbieroNikhil AbrahamSolomon AdamuJoanne AddyJames AdleyMarwan AffakiFelix AfrifaEmmanuel AgyapongNasser AlboussayesPhilip AlcockEdward AldwinckleFarwah Ali KhanAnuj AmarAnn-Marian Anane-BrobbeyStewart ArchdaleMurtaza AshrafGareth AtkinsMarie Attungue

B Rachel BabbsAndre BacknerAlec BakerAlexander BarkerRoss BarlowAmy BatesPaul BeckSharon BeestonDavid BellEtienne BenderDavid BenskinChristopher BentonNishant BhardwajAlan BintAlice BlakeImogen BlandRichard BoddyDavid BolgerStephen BolsterChris BoonDominique BorgHolly BoucherAlison BoydJames BradyNeil BridgeAntje BrodaSanchez BrooksAndrew BrownLouise BrownHarold BuchananMichael BullockDavid BurridgeRussell BurrowsRobert BurtonZara ButlerAlex ByrneDaniel Byrne

C Nicholas CallaghanSarah CameronKenneth CarmichaelLance CarterPierre-Louis ChabertChristopher ChadwickMian ChanAndrew ChapmanStephanie CharmanWeng CheongChin Yuen SanChristos ChiotisAustern ChirwaBo ChungDavid ClarkPaul Clarke

Congratulations tothe following reCently eleCted Cii members

1 D e c e m b e r 2 0 1 2 – 3 0 J a n u a r y 2 0 1 3fCii Stephen Convery

David CooperGinevra CortiJohn CowellJoanna CoxPhilip CraskeKeith CroftDarren CroninNichole Cross

D Christian DalySharon D’ArcySuherman DarmawanRyan DaviesMichael DavisThomas DavisRachel De CourcyIsabelle De St AntoineDaisy DeanusPeter DennisChintak DesaiUdayakumar DevarajuGaurav DhayalkarLong DoApputhantri Don Surath ChandimaCarla DuguidJessica DunfordMatthew Durcan

E David EdwardsRory EganMichael Ehioze-EdiaeMohamad El DaqaqMark ElliottLakshmi ErukkamPaul EvansRichard Everall

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J Claire Jackson

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K Zubure KabiebayorTakondwa KadamaIrjumin KalimCharley KamundiEray KaratepeKMS KarunanayakeSumith KarunaratneJames KeenanWayne KennedyJennifer KentSteven KentZoe KerswillSanjay KhareAlana KielnarFoong Kim LeongGladwell KimaniGillian KingBetty KiongoJames KirbyLuther KisangaDaniel KoepferKodwo KoomsonAnil Kumar

L Matthew LaddsJohanna LaneThomas Langley-PooleLau Hui LinWai LawJames LawleyShane LawlorEdward Le FlufyAnnette LeeAdrian LeonardNicholas LeppardWee LimBrendan LittleRichard LordRebecca LoveHui Lye

M Robbie MacDonaldNicholas MacfarlaneAndrew MackayFiona MantonJoji MathaiThomas MathiesonInnocent MatsikidzeHelen MaundersTatenda MberiJohn MbuguaMary McAuliffeCliodhna McCaulBarry McCutcheonJames McDonaghCharlotte McFarnellRebecca McGrathJennifer McKenzieAnkit MehtaRuhel MiahTony MirandaMuhammad MirzaSarah MorrisonOscar MoseleyJeremy MullenNicholas MurgatroydTichafa MuromoAnna Mwango

N Christopher NewberrySteven NgHoang NguyenMihail NikolovBernie NilandRosina NkansahJonathan NoakeAnnelie NobleFrancis Nzwili

O Eugene O’CallaghanDavid O’FlynnPeter O’Keeffe

Bryce TitmanOmarkhan TleugabilovKerry TraynorEileen TuckerAivaras TumenasMarc Tyler

U Gamuchirai UsaiV Gaurav Vaidya

Sapna VaruBhaskar VedulaTania Ving Tai CheungChirag Vyas

W Gregory WalkerSanny WangPeninnah WangombeThomas WedlakeKim WhalleyLucy WhiteRachael WhitfordMark WildingSydonie WilliamsJohn WillisAlexander WilmotStephanie WindsorHermione WintertonJustin WongBeverley WoodsHenry WoollastonShung WuSam Wylie

Y Venkata YenumulaPaul Young

Z Bilal ZafarSara ZamberlanZhang Shaoyu

A Mohamed Abd Alla Musa AliOlga AbramovaReem Abu SnainehGeoffrey AdamsShardul AdmaneNancy AduseiMaebh AhernRohbaan AhmadJack AinsleyMatthew AitkenAma AkudeMona Al NateiRichard AllanJonathan AllardJames AllchorneLouise AllenAbdullah AlmaghrabiAbdulkarim AlmeajelKhaled AlmutlaqJames AncliffeHenry AngJustine ArcherDavid AstleyAman AthwalMark AtkinsonEfua Atta-QuaysonRobin AveryNajma Awez

B Scott BadcockEsther Baffour-AwuahJuliet BaileyTalvir BainsKatie BallHelen BamfordClaire BarkerBenjamin BarnabyJoanne BarrySally BarryOsman BashirJohn BatthMartin BeanGeorge BeattieRachel BeckettKylie BeckinghamEmma BennettTerry BennionCosmas BenzaFabio BerardiSally BevanMarina BezyazychnayaCaroline BiddleCatherine BinghamJustine BlackLesley BlackAdam BlackerBenjamin BlackieStephen BridgeSheraley BridgemanIan BrightwellPaul BrittonOlivia BromleyLucy BrooksLuke BrownLynette BrownJudith BrownleeMarc Buckham

Laura BurchDonna BurnsElliot BurtonCathy ButlerPaul ButtonKyu Byun

C James CallenderMaureen CartlidgeMelissa ChaayaAndrew ChamberlainYvette ChambersKwong ChangVictoria ChappellCheryl ChewCollins ChibweSarah Ching Siew HanCarol ChinyanduraMarie ChundooEdward ClarkKate ClarkMichael ClarkJodie ClaxtonPhilippa ClistBilli CobleyClaire CohenDavid ColemanGordon ColvilleAnna ConnollyAndrew CornforthFiona CorryGeorgina CottonJames CrawfordNatasha CrawleyLisa CrouchAlistair CruickshankEdward CullenIsaac CumberSarah CurpheyStephen CutlerDaniel Czesnikowski

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E Benjamin EdisSomaya El RahmanRichard EldridgeNicholas ElkingtonBeneditta EnweremaduChristopher EvansPaul EvansRichard Excell

F Benjamin FaerestrandSarah FairbairnEamon FallonGeorge FarrowChristopher FeeneyTerry FisherKillian FitzgeraldGaye FlexenYvonne FlitschNeil FlowersWing FongHysinth FonsecaCatherine FordTimothy FoulgerBrendan FoxSamuel FoxErnest FrimpongMaxwell FrimpongCatherine FrostRobert FrostPaul FullerPaula Fuller

G Andrew GallowayMaheshwar GanesanMark GardinerPaul GarveyJames GaskinJames GeldartThomas GeorgeJamie GilbertGurjit GillJatinder-Singh GillMichael Gillen

ROLL OF HONOUR | CII MEMBERS

S T u D y Z O n e

Sripriya KesavanMunawar KhawajaAli KhawjaElie KhouzamiJohn KieltyPaul KielyWilliam KierNancy KilanyAndrea KilgannonSara KillensJames KingMargaret KinsellaNicola KinseyAlice KirbyAnastasiya KisliakLouis KitchenerCarol KiwanukaNina KlauserPavlos KleanthousMichael KlingerAnil KolathuKristian KolsakerJeffrey KorantengRama KorubilliEsinam KporkuRajlaxmi KrishnadasRose KuagbelaHitesh KumarNaren KumarWinston Kuti-George

L Mayuri LadEniola LamboPaul LaryeaRob LatimerCheng LauJane LawrenceRachel LawsSimone Le GoffAnthony Le SueurWayne LeechElton LeungEmily LewisRobert LewisGerard LeydenEmily LiYen LimDavid LittleHelen LittleDavid LongworthJoshua LovedaleMark LowdenCathryn Lowe

M Colin MackenzieMary MackenzieDerek MacleanAlex MacLennanLee-Anne MaguireTarek MajaliKumail MakiCallum MaloneMatthew MaloneSenthil ManoharanMagdalena MareJohn MarsdenAndrew MarshJonathan MarshToby MarshallPhilippa MasonMutinta MaswabiIrene MayberryMartin MbuguaPeter McCabeRoisin McCannyToni McCoyMark McDonachAndrew McDonnellMary McGettiganLucy McGinnMartin McGurkIain McLachlanToby McNamaraLinda McVeighKinjan MehtaVaibhavi MehtaAdam MeliaGerard MercerJill MetherellParesh MhatreAdam MillershipDeborah MinterRaj MistriSteven MitchellSamantha MonkAlec MooreChristopher MorrisJoanna MorrisonJonathan MossJeremy MoultonLaila MousaDamira MullinaNader MuradOlusade MureleHolly MurphyMatthew Murphy

Louise GillespieAlison GillilandDavid GillionThomas GirulisMonika GladyszArthur GoddardMatthew GoddardAlison GomersallJavier GonzalezJoanne GoodwinMatthew GoodwinOwen GoughPaul GrahamTim GrahamEmma GrayLara GreenEmma GregoryIngrida GrigaliunaiteEdward GriggJohn GrimesOliver GuestMichael GurrieVijay Guttula

H Matthew HaganVictoria HaizelLynesh HalaiAndrew HaleMarcus HallNatalie HallDaniel HallasJill HancockPeterson HandjajaSheena HardingJames HarmerJason HarriesKristina HarriesWilliam HarrisonSophie HartSuhad HashimErman HassanAlasdair HaswellCiara HatherleyIan HattonMiriam HavergalLee HayesRichard HaywardJoanne HeadyCharlotte HenryMarie HerminetteEmma HewettRosa HextallLisa HiscockBecky HobsonRebecca HodgsonRebecca HopeJonathon HopperCharlotte HornsbyBenjamin HouseDanny HudsonRose HudsonSamuel HudsonPaul HughesZhao HuiAsif HussainNurul HussainPaul Hutchinson

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U Christian UkabamFelix UkaegbuMathew UndengeSamuel UptonThomas Upton

V Radhika V KrishnanPoojan VaidyaJagadapi Vamsi KrishnaJake van BeeverVeerle Van den BrandeJames VanneckBradley VaughanSally VennMichelle VennardQueralt Vila CanalUna VilgerteMansi Vyas

W Ernest WaithakaBen WakehamRoss WalfordMichael WalkerSally WatermanSebastian WeaverTeresa WebbAndrew WellsRachel WellsHazel WestHenry Weston-Simons

Sarah WestwoodDavid WhelanLauren WhiteheadAnn WickersGemma WickershamChristopher WickhamNicholas WilbrahamKaren WilkesRobert WillarsDuncan WillcocksLinda WillettAnthony WilliamsCarey WilliamsGraham WilliamsSimone WilliamsStephen WillisMark WilsonChristina WingroveRaymond WongJonathon WoodKirsty WoodDarren WoodfieldPeter WoolgarAdam WrightKen WrightLisa WrightSihao WuNicola Wynn

Y Ayse YazirYaw YeboahAmy YoungRebecca YoungSteven Young

Z Chua Zhi XiangMingliang Zhuang

A Eldar AbbaszadaWilliam AbbottAmer AbdelHadiMohammed Abdul HasanMichelle AbramHelen AdamsPaula AdderleyDavid Adu-BrobbeyAnas AhmadSaleem AhmedOlubunmi Ahmed SalawudeenJoanna AitkenMutasem Al JaloudiMohammed Al-BualiHasan Al-HasaniMatthew AllanJonny AllenJill AlmondDavid AmosLorraine AmosSamuel AmpofoJames AnscombeAdu AprakuThanisa AreephongsaMark ArmstrongJasmine ArnoldMuhammad ArshadLuca ArtesaniDarrell Atkins

B Mirza BaigCarly BainDaniel BainAlexander BairdGrant BakerScott BakerSandra BalcerzykSamantha BallLee BanksSimon BannardSiobhan BarlowJordan BarnardHelen BarnesAdam BarnhillIsabel BarrettHugo BashallCraig BaxterAndrew BeachamMichele BeadleGary BealeJames BeanHannah BearmanNicholas BeasleyJennifer BeattieMatthew BeckDarren BeckinsaleChristopher BedfordChristopher BeechDavid BeeneyMatt BeimcikJessica Belfield-WatersMatthew BellAstrid BennettBenjamin BennettGabriella BertoloGeorge BesantMarie-Claire Bessada

Paul BestSunil BhattSukhdeep BhattiMeera BhayroInderjeet BhogalChantelle BidwellRachel BigginJoshua BillsberryEmily BirrellMargaret Boama-SecuSvetlana BogdanovaChristopher BoggisSam BoltonRebecca BonnettEmily BonsallClaire BorderCatherine BoultScott BoultonCraig BowlerGeoff BownLucy BradfordAbigail BrearyStephen BrindleChristopher BrindleyBen BristoweSharon BrockOlivia BrocklehurstDavid BroderickKatie BrookeNicola BrooksBrendan BuckleySuna BullDenise BurtonSteven BurtonJay BushDamian ButlerHenry ButlerChristopher Buyers

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Cert Cii

aCii

dip Cii

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C David CrowleyBridget CullumThomas Cullum

D Mackenzie DallasHarriet DalyNaida DamirovaPaul DarbyChristopher DarkKimberley DarkesLara DarmaninClaire DavenportHayley DaviesHelen DaviesNina DaviesGreg DavisAlessandra DaweRoshin DawsonAlexia De Lecaros-AquisePriscilla De LeonardoHemanthi De SilvaSophie DeaconTanja DeaneAnnabel DeavilleRachael DenmanSarah DennessRufus DennisKaty-May DentonAmit DesaiKirk DevonaldGavin DicksonAnna DimondDawn DingleJosh DixonElaine DobbinsKatie DobinsonKenrica DominguezJim DonovanAndrew DooleyJulie DoveChloe DowieNiall DuffyHannah DunstoneCharlie DupontSusan Dutton

E Emily EarlAlexandra EdgeBrigid EdmundsTom EgglestoneGerard El-KhouryJoanna ElphickHermione ElwesBenjamin EurellLaura EvangelidouJeremy EvansVanessa EvansCalum Ewen

F Nicholas FallonGraham FaragherAdam FarrAngela FarrellAlison FarrugiaStephen FaulknerTheresa FawkesNicholas FennerHelen FergusonRosalie FernandesAntonio Fernandez SuarezEmma FieldMatthew FinchGearoid FinnertyGregory FitzgeraldRobert FlaxmanDaniel FlemingVicki FlemingLeo FlindallChristopher FoaleZoe FoenanderJames FooteMatthew ForemanSarah ForshawJeremy ForsterDaniel FosterElliot FoxClaire Froggatt

G Maria-Elena GaleaRichard GallimoreAnthony GardinerSuzanne GardinerChloe GardnerAnna GarenbergRory GarrattSarah GarrettKevin GarveyTrudi GarwoodTomais GaughanRoss GemmellBenedict GilbertDavid Gilding

Lisa GillespieJoanne GillettCharlotte GinsbergMark GlanvilleJane GlueStevie GoddardAlex GodwinRebecca GoldingKatherine GoodwinSusan GoodwinFarirai GoraIvan GordeyevDeniece GordonCalum GosneyAdam GossGeorge GrantEmma GravesCharlotte GraySara GreenmanAnna GregoryLiam GriffinPatricia GudzelakAlex GuerinMark Gurteen

H Robert HaismanJames HamletJemma HammondMark HankinBenedict HannahAlexandra HardhamTom HargreavesLuke HarkinJulian HarrisBen HarrisonFrancesca HarrisonVivienne HarrisonKatriona HartMary HartEmma HeathJessica HendersonSam HennessyAmy HenryGary HerdDennis HetheringtonAngela HibbertMelissa HibbertAnthony HigginsIan HigginsLucy HigginsGavin HillRhianne HillCharlotte HindleyAdam HockeyLeanne HoggNicola HollandHenry HollingdaleMike HoodlessLaura HopkinsGeoffrey Hore-FazanRosie HorrodPatrick HowardJosh HoyMatthew HubbardJill HudsonSam HuggettEmma HughesPhoebe HuntLaurence HunterLuke HurrenAkbar HussainNicholas HutsonDaniel HydenMichaela Hyman

I Sharif IshaqueSarah IsmailLuqmaan IssaCharlotte Ivey

J Jessica JamesMatthew JamesDavid JohnsonMax JohnsonStephan JohnsonThomas JohnstonHelen JonesNicholas JonesSimon JonesSamuel JordanThea JordanMaria Juravle

K Kondwani KamuloniSunil KariaJack KeatingsNathan KeeleyBrian KeevilMichael KeighreyDavid KelmanMark KelseyFiona KennedySteven KeysAlastair KiddBen King

Emily KingMatthew KingRebecca KintreaPaul KirkhamColin KirkpatrickRachel KnightRobert KnipeIvan Kovachev

L Laura LaceyJoanne LackDesmond Lam Kuo SinMichael LampardKate LawLetitia Le MoignanMitchell Le TissierJeremiah LeeNicholas LeeWinsome LeeKarl LemonConrad LennardEmma Leslie-MillerAdam LesterHei LeungAlexander LewisPaul LewisElise Lewis-HarropLauren LilleySapphire LinstrumDorota LipniackiVictoria Lishman-PeatPhui-ling LokeNeil LoughranNicholas LoweThomas Luff

M Lucy MacCallumRoseanna MacDonaldKaren MacintoshStuart MackayLeiane MacLeodJosephat MadafiThomas MallindineSarah ManbyHugo ManningYvonne MannionRachel MarksHoward MarsdenLuke MarsdenEmma MarshLesley MarshallAndrew MartinLisa MartinManinder MarwaySatpal MarwayChris MastersBen MatthewsPaul McCarnPaul McCarronJeananne McCarthyTimothy McCoshSean McCrumColin McDiarmidJoanne McDiarmidKevin McFarlandSimon McGurkOliver McKenzieEmma McKeownMark McLarenRowan McLeanMelissa McLeodThomas McLoughlinAlexander McManusCarol McShaneLouisa MeadOrkhan MehdiyevGrahame MerchantNorma MerlehanNatasha MeyrickZixia MiaoEmma MichaelJohn MilneJennifer MitchellJohn MitchellMohammed MohammedAndreea MoldovanVioletta Montes TapiaStephen MooreAnn MorganKirsty MorganStacey MowbrayPaul MuchalAsim MuhammadFaisal MukatiClare MullenUsman Munir AhmedAbigail MunslowAlexander MurdenJanet MurfinOwen MurfittMartin MurphyFaye MurrayBenard Muteti

Cert Cii

ROLL OF HONOUR | CII MEMBERS

S T u D y Z O n e▼

Ozmond MuwaniriN Sukhveer Nahal

Christopher NahraPrabharani NandakumarAdrian NewtonReece NichollsKatharine NieropGareth Nutter

O Eleanor OakesIan O’BrienPeter OddieAbiodun OgunshakinVincent O’HaraOmowale Olatunde-AgbejaKarina OldfieldMichelle OliveiraGareth OliverLiam O’MearaClaire O’NeillPaul OnslowJohn OnuminyaJamie OsborneKadi OsborneNicola OsborneKaren O’Sullivan

P Deepak PalaAnthony PalazzoRoshni PankhaniaGus ParkJessica ParkRachel ParkDebbie ParkerEleanor ParrDonna PattersonKelly PaxmanPatrick PellegriniJames PenfoldJohn PeregrineDaniel PerkinsAmylouise PhalpJoanna PhilpottIsabelle PierreEmma PlushMegan PocockAndrina PoliusAaron PoltorakJacqueline PooleChi PoonBen PopplestoneTom PotterSimon PoundJaswinder PowarRobert PriaulxKim PriceSteven Pring

Q Neal QuahAndrew Quick

R Sameer RafiqBhikhu RajaMechery RajeshOla RajiJames RamirezCelso RaposoCaroline RawleyTarique RayaniRodrigo RayesWilliam RaynalJames ReadAndrew ReadingMichael ReddinBianca ReddyCraig RedmondRebecca ReedWilliam ReesEmily ReidJohn ReidShona ReidDaniel RicciJessica RichardsonLianne RichesLauren RidleySteven RidoutJonathan RileyMaureen RobbChristian RobertsNia RobertsVictoria RobertsStuart RobertsonMatthew RobinsonDavid RobsonLeomer RocafortWilliam RockliffeAndrew RoeCraig RogersAlan RosePaolo RossiRoyce RossiterSamuel RounceViv RousselCharlie RowleyRachael Ruddy

I’m really starting to see the benefits of studying for my CII examinations now and am amazed how much it is helping me with more of an understanding of my day-to-day work.

Recently, I have been working closely with our corporate underwriting department on a project and am feeling like quite the expert using the knowledge I have gained by studying for my underwriting practice exam. I don’t know if my colleagues would agree, but it’s making me feel like an expert anyway! My studies so far are also helping me with other areas of the business and understanding how everything fits together. For example, I have a much better understanding of risk acceptance criteria and why, and on what basis, risks are evaluated and accepted – it’s amazing how gaining further knowledge can not only increase your confidence but also make the job seem much more rewarding.

I’ve joined a new gym recently and am trying to fit in the time to exercise as well as study. I have even considered taking my books along with me, but somehow I can’t see this idea working... especially in the pool! All in all though, studying for the CII hasn’t taken over my life – yes, I have had to be disciplined with my studies and assignments and it would be foolish for me to suggest you don’t need to show this level of commitment to pass. But as I always say – with my busy lifestyle, if I can do it – anyone can.

so, as I said in my last blog, HSB Engineering Insurance is on the move. We are all packed up and ready to go now, just waiting for the removal van to arrive so we can pack the kettle and

make our way to our lovely new offices in the centre of Manchester. Of course, this poses a whole new dilemma for me – where do I find my study hideaway? I have been assured there will be plenty of touch-down points and quiet rooms at the new office, so with more exams looming I am hoping the hit the ground (and the study books) running.

On the subject of change, the continuous assessment option the CII provides has recently changed. Being the creature of habit that I am – as regular readers of my blog would be aware – I was a bit apprehensive at first as I had got quite used to the previous system. But now I have my head around the new process I am finding it much easier to submit my coursework online and the valuable feedback I have come to rely on from the tutor now comes through much quicker.

I have another exam looming in April so am using all my spare time to study for that and, once that one is out of the way, there is another one just around the corner (well, October actually but time does fly when you are having fun)!

in the rhythmI’ve found quite a rhythm with my studying now and actually enjoy sitting down and getting my nose stuck in to a CII book. As I start to see the light at the end of the CII tunnel I wonder what I am going to do once my exams are all over and I have free time on my hands – I guess our move to Manchester will give me options on places to visit in my lunch hour.

“I have another exam looming in April so

am using all my spare time to study for that”

CII | BLOG

With an exam to study for in April and a new gym

membership to make use of, Peter Molloy wonders if he

could combine the two…

HOw abOuT waTerprOOf STuDy bOOkS?

CIIBlog

PHOTOGRAPHY: AndREw PARkER

Helen RudorfPaula RuslingLaura RussellOrion RussellGail RutherfordSharon Rymill

S Dorianne Saliba BonelloOsman SallehAnna SalvatorelliHenry SandersonJagjit SandhuJonathan SargentAmy SatchellVijayaasri SathiamoorthyMaxim SatskovDenise SaundersonAndrew SavageNatasha SavageSusan SavageKevin SaxtonWilliam ScarfeGail ScottKate SearleNicholas SearstonMark SeatonDany SeifeddineJean SeindeJames SeniorCarla SenraEmma SercombePeter SewellSamantha ShawKarim ShehataSheeraz SheikhColin ShepherdPhilip SheridanPatrick SheriffGeorge SherriffVictoria ShiptonPaul ShirleyIan ShrimplinClaire SiddallShane SimmondsDaniel SimmonsHolly SimpsonBen SlatteryNatasha SlawsonAdam SmithFrances SmithJosh SmithLauren SmithRichard SmithRosina SmithMark SoffletJayne SpaldingCathryn SpinksHenry SprattBen SquiresQuentin StantonKarin StaubRobert SteadmanJack SteelElaine StelliniHeidi StevensonLuke StevensonLucy StewardAdam StokesOliver StoneDaniel StonerAlexander StrongAmber SucklingEmily SuddabyChien-Kai SunKarin SundbergDhilen SuratiMichael SwainsburyNicola SwannMatthew SymesDaniel Syms

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W Carl WadeNathan WaiteSophie WalkerThomas WalkerJoanne WallisPaul WallisJanis WaltonNathan WatsonSpencer WatsonHenry WattsColin WaudeTerry WayLucy WebbMatthew WeirJustine WelchLaurens WesselsDavid WestMark WestVictoria WestonJulie WestwoodKatarina WestwoodJohn WhanPeter WhitakerAlison WhiteDavid WhiteJames WhiteLaura WhitePaul WhiteRyan WhiteStephen WhiteTrudi WhiteVictoria WhiteJames WhitehouseJustin WhithamRobert WiddowfieldAjita WijesunderePeter WilkieSheryl WilkinsRachel WilkinsonAlex WilliamsAmy WilliamsEsther WilliamsJames WilliamsKay WilliamsLisa WilliamsHenry WilsonLaura WilsonKaryn WiltonTim WiltshireBen WimbledonChristopher WinchLucien WindsorDanny WinstonePatrick WiseRobbie WoodburnWilliam WoodfordSamantha WoodmanseySue WoodnuttElla WriterBenjamin WyattLeon Wyatt

Y Jennifer YaoEmma YeomansonNicholas YoungHui YowJenny Yu Ka Yin

Z Yimin Zhou

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STUDY ROOM | Q&A

Author EDwARD MURRAY

This seT of quesTions, courTesy of online cii Training package insurance assess, will TesT your knowledge of key insurance Topics. The answers are aT The BoTToM…

The Big TenS T U D Y Z O N E

Question 1: Which condition in a home contents insurance policy gives the insurer the right to call on other insurers similarly liable to pay part of a claim?A arbitration condition □B contribution condition □C reasonable precautions condition □D Subrogation condition □

Question 2: The amount paid to settle a total loss claim under a marine insurance policy is normally based upon?A The market value of the property at the time of the loss □B The insured value of the property □C The replacement value of the property at the time of the loss □d The replacement value of the property at the time of the loss less a suitable deduction for betterment □

Question 3: Which of these statements correctly describes a feature of the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS)?A The maximum award the FOS can make to an aggrieved policyholder is £48,000 □B The FOS will deal with complaints from any policyholder, whether individual or corporate □C FOS findings are binding on both insurer and complainant □D The FOS can make a decision in favour of a customer even if they have no valid legal case □

Q&AQuestion 4: In which of these ways does the claim handling process for a vehicle theft claim differ from the handling process for a total loss damage claim?A The new replacement vehicle option does not apply in the case of theft claims □B If a stolen vehicle is subsequently recovered, the salvage belongs to the insured □C There is normally a waiting period before a theft claim is paid, to allow for possible recovery of the stolen car □d There is normally an exclusion period after inception of the policy before a theft claim can be made □

Question 5: What requirement must normally be met before a claim is covered under a commercial theft policy?A There must have been forcible and violent entry to the premises □B There must have been forcible and violent exit from the premises □C There must have been forcible and violent entry to Or exit from the premises □d There must have been forcible and violent entry to aND exit from the premises □

Question 6: A facility with their insurers means Dalton Brokers operate in the role of a coverholder. What facility will this be?A a reinsurance treaty □b a broker lineslip □c a co-insurance panel □d a binding authority □

Question 7: What is the normal profile of the ‘maturity’ stage of the product life cycle?A high promotion costs; rapidly increasing sales □b rapid market acceptance; little if any profit □c Sales growth slows, profits are realised □d Sales and profits decline as the product loses appeal and increased marketing costs are incurred to maintain market share □

Question 8: Which of these is an ‘implied’ claims condition that will take effect irrespective of whether it is stated in the policy?A The insured must take all reasonable steps to minimise the loss or damage □B The insured must notify the loss or damage to the insurer within 30 days □c any dispute over the amount to be paid will be referred to independent arbitration □d The insurer is entitled to pay only a pro-rata proportion of any loss when dual insurance applied □

Question 9: In contract terms, what distinguishes a bond from an insurance policy?A a bond is a simple contract □b a bond is issued under seal □c a bond is not legally enforceable □d a bond is open-ended and does not run for a specified term □

Question 10: Keynesian economists believe that ‘demand-pull’ inflation is caused by?A a strong demand for labour □b Demand exceeding supply □c Monetarist policies □d a lack of demand for a country’s exports □

A N S W E R S

1–3 POOr 6–9 VErY GOOD3–6 GOOD 9-10 EXCELLENT

YOUr ―>SCOrE

1b. The contribution (or other insurance) condition enables the insurer to call on other insurers that are similarly liable for a claim to pay part of it.

2b. Most marine insurance policies are issued on a ‘valued’ basis. There is an identifiable insured value, which is agreed at the start, and this is unaffected by subsequent market price variation.

3d. The FOS can hear complaints from individual

customers and small firms (micro-enterprises, charities and trusts below a defined size). The maximum binding award they can make against an insurer is £150,000 (increased from the previous £100,000 limit, for complaints after 1 January 2012). Its decision is binding on the insurer but not on the complainant, who still has the right to take civil court action if they are not satisfied with the FOS decision. a key

element of the FOS scheme is that the ombudsmen can make decisions in favour of a customer, even where they have no legal case, the aim being to ensure that customers are treated fairly.

4c. Many stolen vehicles are recovered within a short time and it is customary for insurers to wait for up to six weeks before settling the claim to allow for this possibility.

5c. a commercial theft policy normally requires there to have been forcible and violent entry to or exit from the premises for cover to apply.

6d. a binding authority is an agreement under which a coverholder has a delegated authority to underwrite business and issue contract documentation (e.g. a certificate of insurance) on behalf of an insurer.

7c. The four stages of the product life cycle are: introduction; growth; maturity; and decline. During the maturity stage, sales growth slows down because most of the potential buyers have been reached. The costs of introduction and growth have been incurred and profits can be realised.

8a. Implied duties are unwritten duties imposed by common law. For example, this requires the insured to take all reasonable

steps to minimise their loss as if they were uninsured.

9b. bonds are speciality contracts issued under seal (i.e. they are deeds which must be formally signed and witnessed). Insurance policies are classed as simple contracts and do not have to be issued in this way. 

10b. Demand-pull inflation is caused by demand rising in a situation where supply cannot rise in line.

Question 1: Question 2: Question 3:Question 4:Question 5:Question 6:Question 7:Question 8:Question 9:Question 10:

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• Terrorism UnderwriterTo £60,000 + Benefi ts Package – City of LondonThis opportunity is with a well regarded Lloyd’s Syndicate. You will support the Terrorism Class Underwriter with the continued development and underwriting of this expanding Terrorism account. Current experience working in a Terrorism or Political Violence Underwriting or Broking role in the London Market is required.Contact: [email protected] - London RefCII480958X

• Operations ManagerTo CHF 105,000 / £75,000 – SwitzerlandAn opportunity has arisen for an Operations Manager to join a Specialty Insurer based in Liechtenstein. You will need to have experience in non-life general insurance industry, an understanding of the european market, insurance contracts and policy cycle. Excellent Germand and English is essential.Contact: [email protected] - London Ref:CII481478AH

• Energy/Marine Reinsurance Underwriter – Rio de JaneiroTo £70,000 + Expat Package – BRAZILInfl uential reinsurer in Brazil developing its local, regional and global operations. A market leader, looking for underwriters with min of 5 years experience in Marine and Energy Reinsurance. Knowledge of facultative and treaty is desirable, as is fi eld inspection experience. Portuguese lessons provided.Contact: [email protected] - London Ref:CII481284CL

• Casualty Claims ManagerTo £ 75,000 + Car Allowance & Bonus – London / SouthThis progressive Management role with a leading Insurer involves selecting and managing TPA’s, overseeing complex UK direct EL, PL claims, projects, strategy but most of all leadership of the Casualty team. Candidates must be ACII qualifi ed, of graduate calibre and with an Insurer background.Contact: [email protected] - London Ref:CII480947B

• Head of Offi ce - Commercial/Corporate Broker£75,000 - £100,000 + Benefi ts – Sussex/Surrey/KentAn exciting opportunity to head up a well established general insurance broking offi ce based in the Southern home counties. You will need to be a highly effective general (property, liability, commercial combined, corporate and SME) Insurance broking business manager with a proven record of achievement, together with the vision and capability to create and implement a growth strategy.Contact: [email protected] - London Ref:CII481226CD

• Engineering UnderwriterTo £70,000 + Benefi ts – LondonMajor insurer seeks an underwriter to handle facultative reinsurance and direct insurance. The appointee can target business up to 500m USD and look at all offers within their mandate (to an agreed individual capacity). Previous London based CAR/EAR experience is essential along with an existing broker network.Contact: [email protected] - London Ref:CII481292J

• PI Underwriter/Assistant UnderwriterTo £90,000 + Benefi ts – City of LondonLloyd’s Syndicate requires a Lloyd’s based PI underwriter/assistant underwriter to play a pivotal role in assisting with the expansion with a book of UK and International business. Focusing on all PI professions you will underwrite new and renewal business. Fantastic exposure!Contact: [email protected] - London Ref:CII481438DH

• Senior Liability UnderwriterTo £50,000 (Will Offer Relocation Package) – SurreyThis is a Head offi ce role where you will be involved in; handling referrals from regional offi ces, auditing branches and project based work. The successful applicant will have outstanding technical underwriting skills and studying towards the ACII. The role offers genuine career progression opportunities.Contact: [email protected] - London Ref:CII481003CG

• Lloyd’s Syndicate GraduateTo £27,000 + Benefi ts – City of London2:1 Numerical Graduate with 6 months minimum London Market experience, eagerness to study the ACII and work for a top syndicate, building a broad skill set to utilise longterm in the underwriting arena. Managing risk data, aggregates, operational service standards and MI underwriting reports to get the foundations to then move into an underwriting team.Contact: [email protected] - London Ref:CII481157A

• Compliance Graduate Assistant - InsuranceTo £28,000 + Benefi ts – City of LondonFantastic opportunity for a graduate to carve a career in compliance. Great training, professional exam support and lots of involvement day one in Global compliance and regulatory projects, communicating at a high level through the business. Minimum 6 months London Market experience essential with exposure to FSA, Lloyd’s regulations or Contract Certainty.Contact: [email protected] - London Ref:CII481249V

• Business Analyst£50,000 - £70,000 DOE + Bonus & Benefi ts – City of LondonExtensive experience as a Business Analyst within the London market, you will have a background in gathering business requirements from various business operations & IT stakeholders. My client is a leading Lloyd’s name & they are seeking a confi dent communicator to join their team.Contact: [email protected] - London Ref:CII48321NM

• Reinsurance Technical AccountantTo £37,000 + Benefi ts – SurreyYou will be responsible for a portfolio of Clients ensuring that any Client data is in line with treaty terms and conditions along with production of reinsurance accounts and resolving claims. Previous life reinsurance treaty experience required along with Excel and Access skills.Contact: [email protected] - London Ref:CII475807WN

• Reinsurance Business AnalystTo £50,000 + Benefi ts – LondonJoining our Client’s Operations team this is an opportunity for an experienced Business Analyst or Systems Analyst with some team leading experience. You will require an understanding of Life Reinsurance products combined with advanced IT skills, specifi cally mapping, and Access, Excel and SQL experience.Contact: [email protected] - London Ref:CII480807WN

• Junior Risk AdviserTo £28,000 + Car & Benefi ts, home based – YorkshireTrainee Risk Adviser required for leading global Insurer to undertake inspections of customer premises, evaluate risks, make and agree risk improvements and prepare reports as required. Candidates must have commercial underwriting experience and preferably be studying towards ACII.Contact: [email protected] - Leeds Ref:CII481369SR

• Development UnderwriterTo £35,000 + Car & Benefi ts – LeedsLeading Insurer seeks an experienced Development Underwriter with experience of dealing with and further developing new and existing business. Focusing on property and casualty lines, the successful candidate should have proven development skills with excellent technical ability.Contact: [email protected] - Leeds Ref:CII481009SR

• Property Claims Team Leader£ Negotiable + Benefi ts – ManchesterLeading name requires an experienced claims team leader to make an immediate impact within the business. You will manage a team of Domestic Claims Handlers ensuring that morale is high, service levels are met as well as being a technical referral point.Contact: [email protected] -Manchester Ref:CII476013RP

• Account ExecutiveTo £80,000 + Car, Bonus & Benefi ts – Northern RegionWe seek an experienced account executive with a proven track record, strong client relationships and the drive to win. The business is well funded, profi table and positioned for expansion. The performance related earnings potential will motivate the best.Contact: [email protected] - Manchester Ref:CII481479SH

• Operations & Business Change (Underwriting)To £90,000 + Excellent Package – MidlandsIn an underwriting environment that is going through a transformation programme this role, which is part of the senior management team, will manage operational excellence and drive change to deliver success. You will have responsibility for the day to day leadership at two sitesContact: [email protected] - Birmingham Ref:CII481317CAC

• Motor Claims Manager - Senior Mgt Team £ Competitive Salary & Benefi ts – BristolA multi-site Motor Claims Manager with a leading insurance company which combines operational and technical claims experience. Leading a team of up to 30 technical motor claims staff the purpose of the role will be drive the motor claims service and optimise cost performance.Contact: [email protected] - Bristol Ref:CII481255CAC

• Claims Process and Business ChangeTo £40,000 + Leading Benefi ts – GloucesterA role internally leading process review teams and managing business change. You will contribute to the planning and delivery of the Claims and Operations Operating plan which will directly involve leading or supporting identifi ed projects, planning, delivery and tracking of benefi ts.Contact: [email protected] - Bristol Ref:CII481380CAC

• Niche Lines New Business UnderwriterTo £60,000 + Benefi ts/Car – MidlandsA unique opportunity for a underwriter with a passion for developing and writing new business who has niche market sector knowledge and contacts. This underwriting role will involve developing new lines of business, underwriting risks and driving account growth.Contact: [email protected] - Birmingham Ref:CII481390CAC

• Professional Indemnity Claims ExecTo £60,000 + Benefi ts – BirminghamA leading UK Broker seeks a Professional Indemnity executive to join their expanding offi ce and manage both technical claims aspects as well as client liaisons. You must be technically adept in Professional Indemnity claims ideally with a legal background, this will then progress into a management role.Contact: [email protected] - Birmingham Ref:CII480119RJC

• Senior Account Executive£40,000 - £50,000 + Bonus, Car & Benefi ts – South MidlandsAn outstanding opportunity to join a global, market leading insurance broker. The primary function of the role will be to manage top level relationships with large corporate clients to ensure ongoing renewals as well as account growth.Contact: [email protected] - Birmingham Ref:CII480267BHL

For details on the positions below and others in General & Financial Services Insurance accross the UK, in London and Internationally please visit www.ipsgroup.co.uk

[email protected]

Tel: 020 7481 8111Southampton

[email protected]: 023 8048 8799

[email protected]

Tel: 0118 951 9595

Hong [email protected]

Tel: +852 3189 7050Shanghai

[email protected]: +86 21 2206 2882

[email protected]

Tel: +65 6223 1023

[email protected]: 0121 616 6096

[email protected]: 0117 370 2472

[email protected]: 0113 202 1577

[email protected]

Tel: 0161 233 8222

CII Journal.01.03.13.indd 1 19/02/2013 10:42

Page 27: The voice of your profession THEJOURNAL · 32-33 India Praveen Gupta outlines the crucial difference between sales and service, and offers a five-point plan for creating a better

cii.co.uk/chartered

Chartered status helps us to attract and retain the best people because it demonstrates the investment we make in them as well as in the business. It also opens doors to other companies who want to deal with a Chartered organisation as it differentiates us from those insurers with no comparable evidence of their professional status.

Stuart Payne, BA (Hons), ACII, ACILAChartered InsurerVice President, UK/Ire Underwriting Service CentreChubb Insurance Company of Europe SE