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Major insurers may have had a tough time of it lately, but Steadfast CEO Robert Kelly certainly wasn’t going easy on them earlier this week, when he called out questionable behaviour from the big firms.
“The Royal Commission was an epiphany – we had great legislation, we had great times, but the industry became complacent, it looked at profit and didn’t look at the consumer,” said Kelly.
“On the other hand, in this division, while profit is important to us because that’s how we open the door, we have to look at the consumer every day,” he continued. “We don’t get to sit in an exulted position where we don’t consider the consumer because if we don’t consider the consumer, if we don’t act for them, we don’t have a business anymore.”
Kelly added that he believes a number of insurers lost sight of the importance of the customer, looking instead to profit and turnover, rather than what’s fair – however, he said the Hayne inquiry has helped illuminate the fair and valuable service that’s long been offered by brokers.
“I’m pleased with the Royal Commission and I’m pleased with the position we’ve got in the Royal Commission, so it was a good start for us,” he said.
Kelly also noted that the questions raised in the Royal Commission around distribution and remuneration were also a result of actions taken by insurers.
“I am reminded that the issues that went before the Royal Commission were distribution channels, which insurers actually put in place, and remuneration structures, which insurers put in place, and policies, which insurers put in place – not that brokers put in place,” he said.
While several senior figures from insurance firms pledged their support for both the broker channel and the end consumer, Kelly was quick to point out some contradictions in their claims.
“I like how they get up here and say they support us, while they’re out there advertising direct and trying to take our business off us as well,” he said.
