General Insurance Code of Practice Training
By Kirti Joshi and James McGuire
As a part of Debt Recoveries Australia’s ongoing commitment to improvement, their clientele and the greater community, our team recently undertook additional training provided by the
Australian and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance (ANZIIF) regarding the recent updates to the General Insurance Code of Practice. The Code was formally launched in early 2020, with all Code signatories to be compliant by 1 July, 2021.
The code sets out the standards that general insurers must meet when providing services to their customers, such as being open, fair and honest.
It also sets out timeframes for insurers to respond to claims, complaints and requests for information from customers.
The Code covers many aspects of a customer’s relationship with their insurer, from buying insurance to making a claim, to providing options to those experiencing financial hardship, to the process for those who wish to make a complaint.
As noted by Kirti Joshi, the Debt Recoveries Australia Senior Account Executive who coordinated the training with ANZIIF and our teams, the training was mainly focusing on caring for vulnerable customers. Considering the current situation of COVID it was much needed for our staff to be more aware and to be more compassionate towards the vulnerable third parties. There can be third parties facing financial hardship and having difficulty meeting their financial obligations in such situations, recognizing triggers of financial hardship, and offering them a suitable solution at the same time managing the conversation with empathy and confidence is required.
What is Vulnerability :
The code reflects society’s awareness of complex social issues faced by vulnerable members of our community. The needs of the most vulnerable are diverse and affect them in a varied way.
The vulnerability can be classified into the following ways:
- Age
- Disability
- Mental health conditions
- Physical health conditions
- Language and Literacy barries
- Domestic violence
- Cultural background
- Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander status
- Remote Location
- Financial Distress
Learning from the training :
- Recognize the triggers to hardship
- Identify those in our community who may be more vulnerable
- Refer customers experiencing vulnerability to appropriate specialist support services
- Use a conversation flow structure and the principles of respectful communication to manage your conversations with empathy and confidence.
It even included – Leader guide for supporting conversation with vulnerable staff.
The learning solution helped us understand our obligations under the Code in relation to supporting vulnerable customers. It also provided practical techniques so that one can identify and help these customers with empathy and confidence.
There were videos where customers/staff shared their experience which definitely helped us to relate and learn from real-life examples.
I hope this will help to make your business or company more profitable and help with the day-to-day paying of bills and getting your bills paid more quickly. Give me a call if you need any more help, or if you are ready to outsource some of your hard to collect debts. You may contact me on Debt Recoveries Australia at 1300 799 511. You may also email me at email@debtrecoveries.com.au or Skype at debtrecoveries.
Email: email@debtrecoveries.com.au
Call Us: +61 1300 799 511