IFACare has argued for LTC insurance sales to be regulated since we started in 1996 and, from Octobe...
IFACare has argued for LTC insurance sales to be regulated since we started in 1996 and, from October 2004, they will be. Until then, all we had was a 1995 ABI Code of Practice that was regarded by some people as being too soft on insurers. We needed a new code with stronger consumer protection today. The new ABI Code gives us that.
Under the Code, insurers will treat LTC insurance as though it were regulated and will also look to see whether we are competent to sell cover. Membership of the Insurance Ombudsman Service, membership of an organisation such as IFACare and passing the Chartered Institute of Insurers' G80 AFPC examination are singled out as evidence of competence, although none are mandatory.
Should advisers bother? We have an ageing population and, from age 65, men have a one in five and women a one in three chance of needing LTC before they die. Can you afford not to advise your older clients on care fees planning ' especially as care typically costs £20,000 a year or more and is means-tested?
In France, over a million people have LTC insurance; here the figure is 35,000. To close that gap we need clients ' and their families to trust us more. To achieve this we need strong regulation.
Roll on 2004; until then, the new ABI Code is a positive step forward that should benefit an IFA community that is uniquely placed to offer advice that is increasingly needed.
