The launch of the product follows Findex’s decision to move to a fee-for-service model for all risk advice across its network.
“This new product will offer lower life insurance costs to our clients ranging from moderate savings to as much as 30 per cent, with the actual quantum depending on individual client circumstances,” Findex chief of adviser services Michael Wilkins said.
“These commission-free policies will involve a net premium expense and an annual transparent, administrative service fee.”
Mr Wilkins said Findex had been looking for “suitable partners with responsible insurers” to create an insurance product with no built in commission for several years.
“[This was planned] well ahead of the Trowbridge review of the life industry because we were concerned about the futility of high commission products in that they simply encourage churn,” he said.
“We welcomed the Trowbridge Report but have always believed in aiming higher by seeking a 100 per cent commission-free model.
“We are delighted that product developers such as BT have been able to create a product that is consistent with our philosophy,” he said.
Findex plans to extend the range of providers in the coming months once negotiations are complete with other life insurance companies.
The life insurance product will be recommended across the group’s Centric Wealth and Financial Index businesses and will be rolled out across the entire group later in the year once “appropriate systems are in place”.
Let the real churning start now for the “innovative”
And I wonder how many perfectly good risk policies will be Re placed now that these advisers can offer a cheaper premium than what clients are already paying? and the churning continues, sorry to sound cynical but can see that standing out like a saw thumb
Strangely enough, BT Life already had this functionality with the ability to remove all commission and replace with an administration service fee. Sounds like marketing hype to me with the client worse off. If you wiped out all commissions on a level commission basis with BT Life you would have a much better outcome than Findex’s version which offers discounts ranging from “moderate savings to as much as 30%”
Just goes to show “fee based” selling of insurance won’t stop churning. How much does findex earn as a dealer group for volume pumped into their own products churned from other insurers? Buyer beware.