Post magazine – 9 October 2014

In this issue, insurers have conceded they need to work harder to build customer trust in the sector, citing a public survey that placed the industry behind retail banks and financial advisers as “a wake‑up call”.

A report by PWC, entitled How financial services lost its mojo – and how to regain it, showed 27% of customers trusted insurance providers, while 32% trusted retail banks and 28% trusted financial advisers.

Also in the news, a delay to the implementation of Flood Re has been described as “inevitable” by market insiders, with interim chief executive Tom Woolgrove admitting a Q4 2015 date is now more likely; insurers have branded the Credit Hire Organisation’s proposed introduction of an electronic claims portal “a peripheral issue” that fails to address the cost of credit hire; and insurers fear revised whiplash reforms “will change absolutely nothing”.

QBE Europe’s Matthew Crane and Bluefin’s Mike Bruce are in the C-Suite. Crane  argues that better sharing of information and expertise between risk managers and business leaders will benefit everyone, while Bruce suggests the industry should not be afraid to be proactive and creative in seeking out recruits that have the raw materials necessary to thrive.

Post recently hosted the Insurance Fraud Awards 2014: we have all the winners and the best pictures from the night.

Still on the subjest of fraud, and with EU data protection legislation likely to impact insurers’ anti-fraud measures, key figures from the sector met at a Post roundtable event, in collaboration with Hill Dickinson, to discuss whether the reforms represent a critical blow to their efforts or just a bump in the road.

Callum Brodie meets Chartered Institute of Loss Adjusters' president Mike Jones. He explains how he hopes to shed loss adjusting’s image as the domain of middle-aged white men by enticing more young talent into the industry and increasing its diversity.

The sharing economy has seen enormous growth in recent years but as Mark Sands finds out, it still poses many challenges for the insurance industry – not least in terms of the vast array of risks the sector poses. Finally, with the personal injury landscape now unrecognisable from the environment in which the Rehabilitation Code was introduced 15 years ago, a much-needed update to the code is on the way. We look at what the insurance industry can expect.

Enjoy the read!