CMS comment on Constitutional Court Judgement
The Council for Medical Schemes (CMS) has noted the Constitutional Court judgement on the appeal matter brought by Genesis Medical Scheme against the Registrar of Medical Schemes and the CMS. The Constitutional Court’s ruling, in favour of Genesis Medical Scheme, that funds in medical scheme members’ personal medical savings accounts (PMSA) can be treated as […]
FIA Annual Award Winners
We would like to add our congratulations to the following providers who were voted tops in terms of product, relationship and service to the country’s financial advisors and insurance brokers. Short Term Insurer of the Year – Personal Lines: Santam Short Term Insurer of the Year – Commercial: Renasa Short Term Insurer of the Year […]
Hindsight and Objectivity
The recent Molate determination, in which Discovery Life was held liable for losses incurred after the death of a life assured, again raises the issue of objectivity with the benefit of hindsight. Background The complainant made an enquiry regarding life cover at one of the Virgin Active Health Clubs. This enquiry led to the call […]
The Goldilocks Theory of Fintech
A recent article in Thinkadvisor, an American publication for financial advisors, discusses what I believe is a critical concern for us: When is enough too much, or too little? Below are some excerpts from the article. “Remember the Goldilocks fable? The infamous invader came across porridge that was too hot, porridge that was too cold, […]
Extension of submission of Financial Statements
On Monday we reminded subscribers of the 30 June deadline for the submission of financial statements where their financial year ended on 28 February. Subsequently, we received a number of enquiries about applying for an extension of this deadline. The FSB website states the following: 1. Extensions An application for an extension to submit financial statements can […]
Too many cooks
The phrase “Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me your ear” was not uttered by Vincent van Gogh after the painful self-inflicted loss of his hearing appendage. A recent FAIS Ombud determination reminded me of this speech by Marc Anthony in Julius Caesar, another of the Bard’s classic plays. From the Ombud case, it is evident that […]
Old Mutual Hacked
Last week was not a good one for the 172-year old Assurer. News of a rather embarrassing Ombud determination was followed by the news that unauthorised access was gained to some of its client data. “Old Mutual detected unauthorised entry to one of our systems, which has led to some personal customer information being accessed.” […]
AON Opts for Suitebox
Global professional services firm Aon collaborated with global software provider SuiteBox to roll out its digital workspace technology to its Australian adviser network, to streamline their advice process and provide improved client experience. “Aon has had a client first philosophy for some time now. Leveraging technology such as SuiteBox’s video conferencing platform is the next […]
Three new Appeals against Ombud findings
The latest hearings schedule of the FSB Appeal board contains details of three appeals against decisions made by the FAIS Ombud in 2016 which are to be heard in June 2017. The Wallace determination 24 June 2016 A representative of Momentum referred a client to a broker who invested the client’s funds in a Sharemax scheme. […]
RDR feedback from the UK
On Tuesday, David Ferguson, founder and chief executive of Nucleus Financial Group in the UK, speaking at the Sanlam i3 Summit, said RDR and all the associated legislation introduced in the UK in 2012 have really been about driving value for money. RiskSA reports on this as follows: “The winners have been those who cared […]