Further to our earlier article on Peer-to-peer insurance there is this report on a German system for sharing smaller risks in groups of friends. At this level peer-to-peer functions like shared funding of higher excess levels. Link.

Mark Graves, who runs a successful mortgage brokerage in the UK has become - to quote mortgagestrategy.co.uk, a "protection preacher." He thinks that it is a terrible idea to sell a loan without adequate insurance. The article is a powerful reminder why insurance should be part of the home loans sales process. Link.

Do insurance advisers use social media networks? Yes, they do. In the US this has been adopted faster than it has here, so this survey data is like a look into the near future as more of our advisers follow their clients online.

Which social networks are most useful? LinkedIn appears to be the winner for business-to-business relationships but Facebook leads for developing new clients and enhancing existing client relationships - usually because that is a network which will be shared by family.

More data here: Link.

Australian Money Marketing has this article on the issues of switching insurance policies. Link.

Emma Harding at Chapman Tripp calls for a reasonableness standard. Link.

Funeral plans, which on the spectrum from pure insurance to pure investment sit pretty close to investment, are used to help people allocate a specific fund to cover funeral expenses and keep that clear of other assets. As such they find some adoption not just amongst those with few financial resources, but can also be found alongside sizable investment funds because of the dedicated nature of the product. For your information the following providers offer funeral cover:

• CIGNA
• Credit Union Insurance
• Dorchester Life
• Fidelity Life
• Greenwich Life
• Partners Life
• Pinnacle Life
• Sovereign

We are considering rating these products and offering them for comparison on www.quotemonster.co.nz. However, rest assured that the head-to-head comparisons and business insurance will come first.

The semi-monthly survey of Quotemonster users comes with the usual health warning: opt-in online surveys are not really reliable at all, we get hundreds of responses but perhaps all those that think all the insurers have just the same underwriting didn't vote? Actually, I think not.

 

The Economist tracks in charts how football (soccer, that is) has grown from its birthplace to cover the globe. Link.

David Chaplin has done a new report into KiwiSaver, in his words:

"Many people have opinions on KiwiSaver today, very few possess the facts.
 
This report 'Six years on the road' by noted financial services journalist, David Chaplin, aims to add a little more information to the mix.
 
Based on a forensic examination of the annual reports and financial statements of 38 KiwiSaver schemes over the year to March 13, the study - which follows on from last year's 'Now we are five' publication - provides a detailed view of KiwiSaver trends across metrics including funds under management, membership, fees, returns and transfers between schemes.
 
This year, too, a new measurement compares schemes across the proportion of 'non contributing members', which became a regulatory reporting requirement for the first time over 2012/13 period.
 
The report is available free by download here."

The Reserve Bank has today released a consultation document: Insurance solvency standards: financial reinsurance.  The Reserve Bank announcement says:

"The consultation document contains an exposure draft of proposed changes to the solvency standard for life insurance business in respect of reinsurance.  The intent of the proposal is to ensure that all liabilities implicit within reinsurance arrangements are appropriately accounted for in the solvency standard.  It is intended that the proposed changes be implemented following a transition period."

Submissions close on 9 December 2013. Link.