Everyday Australians need the essential services our industry provides in times of crisis. Beyond that, they are also looking for reassurance – on how to protect themselves and their families – from trusted and knowledgeable partners.
That’s where the combination of your personal and expert advise, alongside the reassurance of Zurich as a trusted, Swiss-backed global insurer (who is chaperoning clients in many nations through this challenge) has power. Together, we are uniquely positioned to guide and educate our clients through the tremendous health, financial and social challenges that the Coronavirus (COVID-19) is presenting.
If you have clients who are experiencing financial hardship at the moment, please in the first instance refer to the policy terms and conditions, both Zurich and OnePath suites have policy options that could provide some relief.
I wanted to ensure you know that we have taken steps to protect our team, so we can continue to be there for you and your business when you need us most. And whilst we may not be able to come and see you in person, our Business Development team are well equipped to support you via phone or even face-to-face via a virtual meeting.
We also have a number of tools and resources available designed to support your transition you and your business in the digital age:
- A Digital Support Pack to help you connect with clients - digitally. This includes training, technology guides and tips to maximise connection
- We recently launched our Virtual Office Webinar series with specialists sharing tips and insights for effective communication and influencing through digital mediums. We have two more and you can register via this link.
- We are also launching _Zone in early April, which is a great online education program, designed to guide you through the professional development you need as an adviser to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow. So while you are working remotely, you can tick off your CPD online. Please see our article in this edition.
- While no-one can control financial markets, we can control how we react to them. With retirees and pre-retirees most likely to feel the financial and physical burden of COVID-19, we wanted to ensure you are supported in these conversations. Please see the commentary and insights from our Head of Savings and Investments, Matthew Drennan.
We will keep adding to this support as the situation continues to unfold, so please connect and let us know how we can best support you further.
In this edition of Adviser News, we have details of our product and pricing updates which come into effect from April 1. This includes our adherence to APRA’s sustainability measures for individual disability income insurance. To ensure we are managing our risk appropriately, all applications will be sent to our underwriting teams for processing, so please bear with us as you may experience longer than usual delays as we work through your applications.
We also made the decision this month to postpone our first combined national adviser conference. We were amazed at our registration numbers and were looking forward to seeing you all face to face. We have begun the process of looking at new dates and we can’t wait reschedule once it is safe to do so and share the inspiring content we have lined up.
Finally, as many of you know, wellness is a topic I am very passionate about. In times of stress and change you may experience yourself or deal with people who are going through a difficult time.
We will always champion advice, but for it to thrive, we need a mentally strong and healthy community. We will step up our efforts over the coming months to provide you with more articles, resources, tools and videos that offer practical advice and tips that you can use, implement and share with your advice community.
Finally, our products, pricing and service will continue to deliver the quality and choice and commitment that you and your clients expect from Zurich. We want to work with you and your clients in partnership during this challenging time.
A huge thank you from everyone at Zurich and OnePath for all that you are doing.
Please continue to submit your business through to our teams who will be giving every case a personal and expert touch.