Top 10 Policy Discovery Tips & Tricks (Part 1)

Policy Discovery is a pain. 

We all know it. 

But we live with it because we can’t do great Financial Planning work without the information on our client’s current assets and policies. 

Let’s face it though, the system is broken. 

In fact, it’s worse than broken—it’s structurally conflicted because… 

1. Providers have little incentive to share information. They know that when an Adviser requests details about an existing policy, there’s a strong likelihood they’re about to lose the business.
    
2. Even if they wanted to provide the information, they likely lack the in-house expertise to extract it from the outdated computer system it resides on. Chances are, they’re a consolidator backed by private equity, with a business model focused on holding onto ongoing charges for as long as possible while minimising spending on customer service.
    
3. They’re still dependent on a wet signature because of points 1 and 2 above.Complicating the process of obtaining information because they have to check it against the signature on a proposal form signed in 1991. 

The simple fact is Advisers and Providers are thrown together in a forced relationship that has less chance of harmony than when the kleptomaniac married the police informant. 

However, experienced advisers soon learn the dark arts of Policy Discovery – and I’ve spent more than my fair share of time wrestling information out of providers to not have learned a few tips and tricks along the way. 

So, over the next two weeks, I’ll be sharing my top strategies to make the Policy Discovery Process easier. Watch the video here to get started.