Wealth accumulation changes insurance needs

Brokers need to do a better job of tracking the wealth accumulation of longstanding clients, suggests one industry veteran, arguing those efforts open up untapped opportunities

Brokers need to do a better job of tracking the wealth accumulation of longstanding clients, suggests one industry veteran, arguing those efforts open up untapped opportunities.

“It is important to look across the entire insurance base,” says Paul Johnstone, senior VP Chubb Personal Insurance, Chubb Insurance Company of Canada, “and see which customers are graduating into that sector of high-net-worth client. It is important to check values – maybe a home that hasn’t been checked for years needs to be re-evaluated, as changes or renovations may have increased the value.”

Just as those brokers in the P&C space are looking at clients to better assess if a policy is sufficient to cover new assets like fine art, wine and jewellery collections, those in the life space need to ask clients questions if their policies truly reflect the needs of their beneficiaries.

And being proactive in opening that discussion is an opportunity to engage with the consumer, he says, while positioning themselves as a quality insurance expert.

In addition to the life policy, those clients that have entered a higher tax bracket usually enjoy travelling more, including purchasing foreign vacation properties, which can open a discussion on travel insurance.

“It goes without saying that when you are wealthy you are going to travel more,” Johnstone told LHP. “And they tend to travel to exotic locations, so the policy needs to be able to cover in terms of liability and content.

“Brokers really need to understand the insureds’ needs,” he says. “What do they have out there? What are they insured for? Where are do the liabilities lie? All exposures need to be discussed and analyzed.”
 
 

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