Austbrokers steps up life advice offerings with Australian Unity partnership
24 October 2022
AUB-owned Austbrokers is aiming to grow its life business after securing a partnership with Australian Unity Personal Financial Services...
Life Insurance
FPA finalises awards contenders
24 October 2022
The Financial Planning Association has shortlisted the contenders for its annual awards recognising high standards of professionalism and quality of advice provided to clients...
Adviser pays for 'incorrectly' advising client had life insurance
17 October 2022
The Australian Financial Complaints Authority has ruled a financial planning firm “incorrectly” informed a client who was diagnosed with cancer that he had life insurance through his superannuation fund, causing him to miss out on critical cover...
ASIC bans Queensland adviser
17 October 2022
Queensland-based Totem Wealth Director James Carlos Reynolds has been permanently banned from providing financial services, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission announced...
'Sufficiently deep' liquid assets limit insurers' derivative exposure risks: Fitch
17 October 2022
Fitch Ratings says life insurers in the Asia Pacific, including Australia, have “sufficiently deep” liquid assets to cover derivative exposures...
Challenger names chief executive to head new customer division
17 October 2022
Investment management firm Challenger has appointed Mandy Mannix as Chief Executive Customer, effective November 2...
TAL plans session to help advisers communicate with grieving clients
17 October 2022
TAL will run a panel session this month for financial advisers who want to understand better how they can communicate with grieving clients...
New life peak body picks banking strategist as CEO
10 October 2022
The Council of Australian Life Insurers has appointed Christine Cupitt as the new peak body’s first CEO...
Integrity Life seals group income protection agreement with Coverforce
10 October 2022
Integrity Life has signed an agreement with Coverforce to be the life insurance provider of its Group Income Protection products...
Budget wish list: planners want compo scheme tweaks, levy freeze extension
10 October 2022
The Financial Planning Association has again pushed for changes to the proposed Compensation Scheme of Last Resort in its pre-Budget submission...
NZ conduct reviews lead to $132 million in customer remediation to date
10 October 2022
New Zealand life insurers and banks have paid about $NZ150 million in customer remediation, the result of Conduct and Culture reviews commenced by the Financial Markets Authority and Reserve Bank of New Zealand between 2018 and 2019...
FPA creates advice value index in push to highlight financial planning benefits
10 October 2022
The Financial Planning Association has launched an advice satisfaction index, stepping up its push to raise awareness of the “quality of life” for advised Australians...
Majority of NZ advice providers meet licence paperwork deadline
10 October 2022
About 86% of New Zealand financial advice providers have either started or completed applications for full licences that will allow them to continue operating when their transitional permit expires next year, the Financial Markets Authority says...
NZ advice body hosts World Financial Planning Day
10 October 2022
Financial Advice New Zealand has stepped up efforts to highlight the value of financial planning, publishing a series of informative guides for consumers to help them get started...
Advisers, planners support Quality of Advice Review paper proposals
03 October 2022
The Financial Planning Association and other peak bodies representing the advice profession have come out mostly in support of the Quality of Advice Review consultation paper...
Code compliance committee flags under-reporting concern
03 October 2022
Life Insurance Code of Practice subscribers may not be fully reporting significant breaches after the 2021/22 year registered 33% fewer non-compliance cases, the code compliance committee says...
No recovery likely in adviser numbers, new report says
03 October 2022
Adviser numbers declined by 38% in the last three years, from 26,500 in 2019 to 16,671 this year, according to a report from financial services industry researcher Rainmaker Information...
Financial planners concerned over Treasury proposal for 'experienced' advisers
03 October 2022
Financial planners say they do not support a Treasury proposal to introduce an “experienced” pathway for advisers, cautioning the recommendation may not achieve its intended aim of easing the cost of providing advice...
AIA to pay $616,000 penalty for false, misleading representations
03 October 2022
AIA will pay a pecuniary penalty of $NZ700,000 for false and/or misleading representations it made to affected customers in New Zealand, after the insurer filed a court notice last year admitting “all the facts and causes of action alleged” in proceedings taken by the Financial Markets Authority...
MLC gives advisers access to Vivo
03 October 2022
MLC Life has announced that its Vivo health and wellness service will be open to financial advisers to address increased reports of stress from industry professionals...