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The value of value-added services

Journalist: Jaskeet Briah, COVER Magazine

ended 22. May 2024

I’m putting together a feature for COVER Magazine on the engagement of value-added services that are available as part of individual protection insurance policies.

For the piece, I am looking to speak to a protection adviser on how to improve the awareness/take-up of the services that customers use the least, so policyholders can get the most value out of their policy.

3 responses from the Newspage community

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Editor
Samuel Mather-Holgate
Independent Financial Adviser at Mather and Murray Financial
An increasing ubiquitous benefit accompanying protection policies is remote GP access. Many clients don’t know about or use the service, but with waiting lists to see your local GP at record times, this really is an invaluable benefit that all policy holders, and sometimes their families, can benefit from. We make all of our clients aware of the service and the significant benefit it can add, our clients love it.
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Editor
Michelle Lawson
Director at Lawson Financial
These services are valuable if people remember they have them. Policies have become so complex and also competitive with different providers wanting to be different with their offering. To this end, majority of contact is at the initial point of purchase and then goes on the back burner until the time of need.
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Scott Taylor-Barr
Principal Adviser at Barnsdale Financial Management
One of the biggest issues with the use and understanding of value-added-benefits, to my mind at least, is that at point of sale there is little or no time to go through them with clients in any great detail, given all the other aspects that regulation stipulates we have to cover in the application process. I have found that by approaching value-added-benefits afterwards has more impact, so we ensure we raise the profile of these aspects of the clients new plans after the policies are on-risk, with reminders each year to coincide with them receiving the annual statements from their insurers. This not only allows the client to re-engage with the benefits of the plan they have, but allows them to see it has a value to them beyond the main insured events, that they can make use of more frequently, which in turn helps with policy retention and reduces lapses.