Fidelity Life is wrapping up its nationwide roadshow for advisers this week, where it showcased a range of updates, new policy features, changes in underwriting and adviser support tools. Fidelity also provided an overview of claims paid in the last year, highlighting that 93% of all of its claims were accepted and paid between July 2021 – June 2022.
Among its key improvements, Fidelity Life has entered into a partnership with CancerAid and Teladoc Health to bring a new benefit – Cancer companion – to its Trauma cover customers from October 2022. This will include a cancer coach, access to a second medical opinion, and mental health support. It will be available to eligible Trauma customers with a cancer diagnosis, regardless of whether or not their claim was accepted.
It has also increased its underwriting limits for its life and total permanent disability insurance, as well as changing various questionnaire requirements to make the process simpler. Fidelity Life will be providing advisers with a refreshed underwriting guide reflecting these changes, along with a new calculator for insurable income for self-employed customers.
Fidelity Life also detailed the various support tools available to help advisers grow their businesses. Head of solutions and services Trecia Brown (pictured, left) noted that attracting new talent is particularly high on the radar for many businesses, and programmes like Career Connect has been developed to help new advisers hit the ground running.
“Initiatives like the Adviser Council are all about giving a voice to the adviser community, and providing them with a way to let us know whether we are on track,” Brown said. “Career Connect is a direct response to advisers telling us that there’s a need more industry entrants, which is something I’ve heard very often throughout these roadshows. Everything we do is based around feedback from our adviser channel, and I think it’s really important that we make a difference where we can.”
“The industry has changed a lot from a regulatory and compliance perspective, and advisers have had to change the way they service their customers,” head of distribution Mel Beattie (pictured, right) added. “They’re required support through that process, and we’re always there to help throughout periods of change.”
Over the next 12 months, Fidelity Life will be focused on helping advisers through the aftermath of licensing. This includes support in talent retention, new ways of working, and ongoing professional development.
“Our focus will really be around supporting advisers to give good advice,” said Brown. “We talk about good conduct and customer outcomes, so it’ll be all about bringing that together. Customer expectations have changed, so we’ll look at how we can position ourselves to ensure that customers are looked after, and that the adviser channel is there to support them in turn.”
Beattie concluded: “COVID forced us to connect with people in various different ways. That’s actually given us a great opportunity to support more advisers and more customers through different models. For us, it’s about understanding new ways of working and supporting advisers with whatever they choose to do.”
Fidelity Life’s Unplugged adviser roadshow has been running 13 events, including across Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Hamilton, Tauranga and Palmerston North, and concludes on 3 November in Whangarei.
