Jonathan Chua

It seems that the recent speech by the Managing Director of MAS has triggered a strong response from the industry. I guess it is because he mentioned points that will have a significant impact to the industry like raising the entry criteria from the current 4 'O' levels to keep up with current education trends and removing commission based sales to fee based structure. Some opinions I heard include: - "Oh no, it is going to mean more exams and paperwork." - "It simply will not work! Customers will not pay a fee. They have been so used to receiving free advice." In my opinion, raising the entry criteria is only keeping up with the current education standards. Most of the population is at least a diploma holder. At least, it will make the industry seem a little more professional as this point is often poked fun at with comments like "If you only have 4 O levels and cannot find a job, just go and be an insurance or property agent."....

U.S. insurance consumers want their insurers to offer more personalized service and reward customer loyalty, according to Ernst & Young’s Global Consumer Insurance Survey 2012.The survey also finds that consumers of life/annuity and property/casualty policies are willing to buy multiple products from the same carrier if they are tailored to meet their individual needs, and that Millennials believe the strength and health of an insurer’s brand is more important than the price of the insurance product. Ernst & Young surveyed more than 24,000 consumers of insurance products in 23 countries across seven global regions, making this body of research one of the largest surveys of consumer attitudes about the insurance industry ever conducted. We designed this survey to be far-reaching, to touch across geographies and demographics, and as a way to help insurers contend with one of their biggest challenges: anticipating their customers’ needs and devising ways to serv...