NobleOak Welcomes Royal Commission Recommendations

NobleOak welcomes the recommendations contained in the final report of the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry which was issued yesterday.

They provide a much needed step-change in the regulatory and compliance framework for the life insurance, wealth and banking industries.

Industry rebuilding trust

We believe that the many recommendations contained in the report, based on a compelling case for change, will do much to repair the breakdown in public trust in the sector as this will ultimately benefit all customers.

The importance of culture and governance were highlighted throughout Commissioner Hayne’s report. At the heart of many of the problems identified during the commission was a shift away from putting customers first and acting in their best interests by a number of industry players.

We have always maintained that the need to create shareholder value and company profits should not be to the detriment of customers.

At NobleOak we believe all life insurers have a social responsibility to protect their customers. Our culture is founded on the Ancient Druid principle of “integrity”. One of our core values is “Nobility” where we put our clients first at all times, and we always offer genuine value. We’re here to protect Australians with better cover by making Life Insurance accessible and affordable.

NobleOak supports recommendations

While we don’t believe the Hayne Report recommendations will have a major impact on the way we operate and serve our clients, we will comprehensively review all recommendations to ensure we comply with each one, including the spirit in which they are intended. Importantly, we will continue to protect Australians with products they can rely on, and also provide the very best service and support.

Code of conduct support

NobleOak also supports greater enforceability of the FSC Life Insurance Code of Practice as recommended in the report. This Code sets out the life insurance industry’s key commitments and obligations to customers with respect to service, disclosure and principles of conduct, such as being open, fair and honest.

NobleOak has been a long-standing member of the FSC and endorses the Code of Practice.

NobleOak continues to put clients first

Our philosophy of always putting our clients first underpins a satisfaction score of 95.8%. We are also proud to announce that a day before this report was released, NobleOak received the Feefo Gold Trusted Service Award for the third year in a row – for consistently delivering exceptional service, as rated by both our existing clients and potential clients.

The proposed changes contained in the Royal Commission’s final report will bring a much needed catalyst to raising the standards of the industry and help rebuild the community’s faith and trust.

We are committed to ensuring we embrace all the recommendations from this report and will continue to operate within the guiding principle of integrity in everything we do.

We are very optimistic about the future of the industry.