Trust me, I'm an insurance professional

We may have entered a brand new decade but one thing that hasn’t changed is the simple fact that building loyalty and trust are key pillars of a positive customer experience in the insurance industry. But you'd be forgiven for thinking that it's not much more than words given the spotlight on the behaviour, culture and actions of some in the industry. 

So we should be welcoming the regulator’s intervention in the first few days of 2020 with its call for firms to do more to tackle an “unhealthy” culture and address a lack of diversity and inclusion (D&I), with the threat of possible action for those failing to meet its expectations. Things can and will change but it's not hard to imagine what customers must be thinking when they read and hear about unacceptable attitudes and behaviour of the companies they trust to support them and their business. If we are trying to build or nurture a positive relationship with our customers it is important to “show as well as tell” when it comes to gaining and maintaining their trust. Building relationships and trust were topics and talking points at the many press interviews and the various international events that the Full Circle team attended last year and will no doubt continue in 2020.

The global industry faces a number of prevailing issues and challenges beyond diversity and inclusion; climate change, dynamic the growing upswing in some rates, the evolving distribution landscape, the turnaround of Lloyd's, the 'B' word (Brexit in case you need reminding) and tackling emerging risks. But without trust...where would we be in addressing many if not all of these? Of course, insurance is not the only industry to face scrutiny over its behaviour and matters of D&I, but archaic actions and attitudes won't help convince customers that the industry can be trusted to act with honesty, integrity and in the interests for all communities.