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Group insurance needs defined approach
Group insurance product developers should not simply copy retail product developers by adding “bells and whistles” to group vanilla type insurance products, according to the AIA chief distribution and marketing officer, Damien Mu.
Speaking at an Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) luncheon in Melbourne, Mu hit out at the industry's tendency to add features to insurance products “for the sake of adding them on” at the expense of the rest of the super fund membership.
“We are seeing the convergence between group and retail insurance in the last few years ... and what I call the 'retailisation' of group insurance with bells and whistles,” Mu said.
“We need to make sure that we are not just adding on things for the sake of adding things on, and looking to address the specific needs of one individual at the expense of the rest of the membership,” he said.
Mu warned that proper research needed to be conducted to understand the cost involved of product development.
“We all know when it comes to super funds, we make small changes to products that can have significant [impacts on the cost] of systems, cost of processes and resources, cost of disclosure,” he said.
“We need to innovate, but let’s make sure that we are adding true value to the group insurance offering and not just try copy what’s happening in other areas,” he added.
AUTHOR
Mike Taylor
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