Aug 11, 2020 | Ethics CE, News
Just in time for your September 30th RIBO CE requirements, this new course is accredited for 1 RIBO Management CE and 1 RIBO Ethics CE Credit.
Guidance on the Fair Treatment of Customers
Part 1
Introduction
This course has been created using the document Guidance: Conduct of Insurance Business and Fair Treatment of Customers issued by the Canadian Council of Insurance Regulators (CCIR) and the Canadian Insurance Services Regulatory Organizations (CISRO).
This is the first of two parts. Guidance on Fair Treatment of Customers addresses the creation of the Guidance document, its purpose and scope, as well as an explanation of the document’s impact on five key areas of the industry’s activity. The course includes quizzes that allow participants to assess their understanding of the course material
Course Content
Includes the following topics:
Definitions of terminology used in the Guidance document
The issuing organizations (CCIR and CCRRA)
The purpose and origins of the Guidance document
Scope of the expectations
Implications for conduct of business
Implications for fair treatment of customers
Implications for business culture
Implications for relationships between Insurers and Intermediaries
Implications for relationships with Regulatory Authorities
Learning Objectives
Successful participants of the course will:
- Understand the purpose and scope of the Guidance document
- Be familiar with the nature and history of the organizations that created it
- Be able to explain the way the conduct of insurance business is supervised
- Know the importance of acting in compliance with the laws, regulations and guidelines to which representatives are subject
- Know what constitute regulatory obligations of representatives
- Know the function and scope of the role of intermediaries
- Understand the importance of providing Customers with timely, clear and adequate information
- Know the particular meaning of terms used in the Guidance document
- Know what constitutes acting with due skill, care and diligence
- Be acquainted with the risks that could result in unfair treatment of the client
- Be able to describe the expectations for relationships with regulators
- Understand the importance of protecting the privacy of Customer information
- Possess the vocabulary, the understanding and the knowledge-base for explaining and discussing the issues around the Guidance document on the Conduct of Insurance Business and Fair Treatment of Customers.
Part 2
Introduction
This is the second section of The Guidance Course which deals with the joint release by the Canadian Council of Insurance Regulators (CCIR) and the Canadian Insurance Services Regulatory Organizations (CISRO) concerning the conduct of insurance business and fair treatment of customers. Part 1 of the course dealt with the creation of the document, its purpose and scope, as well as aspects of the insurance business discussed in the document.
Part 2 of the course deals with the Customer Outcomes the industry hopes to achieve, as well as the specific attitudes and practices on the part of industry representatives which will accomplish these goals. There are twelve distinct outcomes articulated and for each of these outcomes there are behaviors which can be observed and monitored.
There are quizzes provided which will assist participants in checking their understanding of the material.
Course Content:
Topics covered in the course include the following areas of customer outcomes and the expectations for the conduct of representatives in each:
- Governance and Business Culture
- Conflicts of Interest
- Outsourcing
- Design of Insurance Product
- Distribution Strategies
- Disclosure to Customer
- Product Promotion
- Advice
- Disclosure to Policyholder
- Claims Handling and Settlement
- Complaints Handling and Dispute Resolution
- Protection of Personal Information
Learning Objectives:
Successful participants of the course will:
- Understand that overall responsibility for fair treatment of Customers is at the level of the board and/or senior management, who design, approve, implement and monitor adherence to policies and procedures aimed at ensuring that Customers are treated fairly.
- See the importance of relevant staff being trained to deliver appropriate outcomes in terms of fair treatment of Customers.
- Be aware of the role played by remuneration, reward strategies and evaluation in achieving fair treatment of Customers.
- Know the areas of risk for potential conflicts of interest as Intermediaries interact with both Customers and Insurers
- Understand issues around responsibility and monitoring of outsourcing
- Gain a heightened sense of the factors at play in relationships between Insurers and Intermediaries
- Become knowledgeable about the ethical issues around product design
- Understand the importance of representatives having adequate product knowledge in order to enable customers to make an informed decision about the proposed product.
- Be clear about the limitations and responsibilities around providing various types of “advice” to customers
- Be knowledgeable about issues surrounding disclosure of information in terms of changes in the policy or the customer’s needs
- Be aware of the expectations for representatives to handle claims settlement according to all the best practices listed in the guidance document with regard to fair treatment of customers
- Be knowledgeable about the expectations for representatives in their handling of complaints and dispute resolution
- Be familiar with the Guidance document’s creation and purpose
- Possess the vocabulary, the understanding and the knowledge-base for explaining and discussing the issues addressed in the Guidance document
Aug 5, 2020 | FP CE, News
FP Canada’s CE requirements go beyond maintaining technical competence. They are designed to support the maintenance and ongoing professional development required to continue meeting client needs. CE requirements include the following category: Professional Responsibility
The Professional Responsibility requirement is designed to support and enhance your understanding of your professional and ethical duties and to provide approaches for identifying and addressing common ethical dilemmas and challenges. Qualifying CE requires practical application of the principles and rules in the FP Canada Standards Council Standards of Professional Responsibility to ethical dilemmas that financial planners commonly encounter. CE should include the use of scenarios and/or practical examples to illustrate the situations. CE activities that focus on direct knowledge or rote recall of the Standards of Professional Responsibility without demonstrated understanding and application will not qualify.
ILScorp has launched 2 new courses based on the application of the FP Standards of Professional Responsibility. Each new course has been evaluated and approved by FP Canada for Professional Responsibility CE Credits.
New Courses FP Approved for Professional Responsibility CE
Choosing ILScorp’s FP Canada’s approved courses provides you with the following benefits:
- You will be assured that the CE activities have been evaluated as meeting FP Canada’s requirements.
- You will be assured that CE activities in the category of Professional Responsibility focus on the application of FP Canada Standards Council™ Standards of Professional Responsibility.
- You will not need to assess or calculate CE credits for any CE activities approved through the CE Approval Program.
Examples of Qualifying Professional Responsibility CE:
- In-person workshop where participants consider ethical dilemmas that financial planners may encounter and how the Standards of Professional Responsibility may apply.
- Online, self-directed course where learners are asked to consider ethical dilemmas that financial planners may encounter and are asked to contemplate, through interactive online activities or assessment, how the Standards of Professional Responsibility may apply.
Examples of Non-Qualifying Professional Responsibility CE:
- In-person workshop that provides an update on the regulatory environment and outlines mutual fund and securities regulation for advisors but does not apply the Standards of Professional Responsibility to examples or scenarios of ethical dilemmas.
- Online, self-directed course that presents the Standards of Professional Responsibility but does not include a discussion regarding the application of the principles or rules to ethical dilemmas that financial planners may encounter.
STANDARDS OF PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY
Financial planning is a disciplined, multi-step process of assessing an individual’s current financial and personal circumstances against their future desired state and developing strategies that help meet their personal goals, needs and priorities in a way that aims to optimize the allocation of their resources.
Financial planning takes into account the interrelationships among relevant financial planning areas in formulating appropriate strategies. Financial planning areas include financial management, insurance and risk management, investment planning, retirement planning, tax planning, estate planning and legal aspects.
Financial planning is an ongoing process involving regular monitoring of an individual’s progress toward meeting their personal goals, needs and priorities, a re-evaluation of financial strategies in place and recommended revisions, where necessary.
FP Canada™ is a national professional body working in the public interest to foster better financial health for Canadians by certifying professional financial planners and leading the advancement of professional financial planning in Canada.FP Canada awards the internationally recognized CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® marks in Canada to those who meet, on an ongoing basis, FP Canada’s requirements for CFP® certification. These individuals have been certified to use CFP, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER and certification trademarks (collectively, the CFP Marks). The CFP Marks are symbols of professional distinction entrusted to individuals who have successfully completed a specialized program of study, standardized national examinations and financial planning work experience.
FP Canada also awards the QUALIFIED ASSOCIATE FINANCIAL PLANNER™ marks and certification in Canada. QAFP professionals are equipped to provide financial planning strategies and solutions for clients who have less complex financial planning needs.
A division of FP Canada, the FP Canada Standards Council™ establishes and enforces financial planning standards, sets the certification requirements for professional financial planners and develops and delivers certification examinations. The Standards Council ensures FP Canada certificants ― CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® professionals and QUALIFIED ASSOCIATE FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professionals― meet appropriate standards of competence and professionalism through rigorous requirements of education, examination, experience and ethics.
CFP professionals and QAFP professionals must abide by the FP Canada Standards Council™ Standards of Professional Responsibility (hereinafter referred to as the Standards of Professional Responsibility). The Standards of Professional Responsibility represents the compilation of four sets of standards (FP Canada Standards Council Code of Ethics, FP Canada Standards Council Rules of Conduct, FP Canada Standards Council Fitness Standards and FP Canada Standards Council Financial Planning Practice Standards) to which FP Canada certificants must adhere. Each set of standards serves its own distinct purpose and can be read and interpreted independently; however, since these standards represent the totality of professional responsibilities for financial planners, they are compiled in one document for ease of reference.
Throughout the Standards of Professional Responsibility, wherever “Certificant” is referred to, it should be taken to read “CFP professionals and QAFP professionals”. The entirety of the Standards of Professional Responsibility applies to both CFP professionals and QAFP professionals.
Information on lodging a complaint against a CFP professional or QAFP professional, as well as information regarding procedures followed by the FP Canada Standards Council with respect to complaints handling, investigations and hearings can be found at fpcanada.ca. To ensure you are reading the most current version of this document and each section, please visitfpcanada.ca/resources/fp-canada-standards-council-policies-procedures and download the electronic copy.
CODE OF ETHICS
FP Canada Standards Council Code of Ethics (the Code of Ethics) represents the moral mandate by which the FP Canada Standards Council (the Standards Council) assesses the conduct of Certificants. The Code of Ethics reflects the standards of ethical conduct that Certificants must demand of themselves and their peers.
Application of the Code of Ethics
Each principle of the Code of Ethics presents the expected behaviours of all Certificants. Each principle is followed by a directive and description that clearly defines the standards of appropriate conduct. The Code of Ethics is designed to guide Certificants in their practice and to serve as a primary reference for the Standards Council in investigating complaints against
Jul 20, 2020 | News
Understanding that stress exists in life/work is NOT enough to conquer it.
By taking a deeper look at the types of stress, the sources of stress and the levels of stress, you can create meaningful change and reduce and prevent the negative impacts of stress.
We can help!
As a member of ILScorp, we are offering you and your group complimentary Stress Quotient on-line assessments plus group reports and a summary analysis on 7 key stress sources.
After assessing seven key stress sources, you’ll know which one is causing the most stress, and you’ll have prompts for how to address it.
You’ll also have the option to schedule a personal debrief via telephone with a certified trainer to discuss assessment results and receive actionable feedback and solutions for reducing stress in your workplace.
Packages for up to 30 people are complimentary till July 31, 2020.
Includes individual Stress Quotient on-line Assessments, Group Report and Summary Analysis on 7 key Stress Sources
Tackling the causes of stress in individuals and organizations leads to higher performance, fewer missed days and, most importantly, reinforces you truly care for your employees.
Start diagnosing stress and begin creating a healthier, more productive workplace.
More Info
Apr 20, 2020 | News
Michael Baker, MBA
Qube Investment Management
When purchasing a home, a typical insurance product provided by your lender is mortgage life insurance. This insurance will pay the remaining balance of your mortgage should you pass away before fulling paying down your mortgage. By paying off your mortgage with life insurance, you often remove the most significant debt burden a surviving loved one may have.
Many homeowners will purchase the lender’s mortgage life insurance but fail to consider the alternative of buying an equal value term insurance policy. Each type of policy has its benefits, and it is essential to find which is best for your circumstance.
Let’s examine the different benefits between lender mortgage life insurance to term life insurance using a family with a $500,000 home and $400,000 mortgage insurance need who are amortizing the mortgage over 25 years. Their ages are both 34, and they are in good health.
Coverage
Lender Insurance: The coverage for mortgage insurance will decrease as you pay down the principal owing to your home. The policy would begin with $400,000 coverage and reduce to 0 over the 25-year amortization period. The reasoning behind this is that the policy is used to pay off your house, so the coverage should reduce with the loan balance.
Term Life Insurance: Over the specified term period for your insurance, the coverage remains constant even as your mortgage loan declines. If the family took out a joint first to die Term 25 policy for $400,000 in coverage, this would remain constant throughout the entire 25-year amortization of their mortgage. If a spouse passed at year 20 with 5 years remaining on the mortgage, they could pay the outstanding balance on their mortgage and keep the difference between the mortgage balance and insurance payout.
Qualifying Terms
Lender Insurance: When applying for the lender insurance, rather than going through individual underwriting to determine premiums, the premiums are assessed at a group level. The premiums are based on the makeup of the group as a whole, and not the homebuyers as individuals. As a result, the premiums are often higher than a healthy individual would pay outside of the group. However, the premiums may be lower than individual term insurance if the homebuyer has a health condition, habit, or activity that would rate up to their policy.
Term Life Insurance: Depending on the age and other health factors, underwriting for term insurance will generally result in lower premiums for the same amount and duration of life insurance. One of the benefits term insurance provides when compared to lender insurance is that homebuyers can shop around for the cheapest premium. The lender with the best mortgage rate may not have the best insurance rate. When buying life insurance, it is important to work with an agent who will compare different providers to find you the lowest premiums for the same coverage.
Portability and Control of Beneficiary
Lender Insurance: When taking out the insurance to pay off your mortgage, the lender becomes your beneficiary, and your policy is tied to the lender. If you have a 5-year term on your mortgage and choose to move lenders for a lower rate at renewal, you will need to apply for a new policy with your new lender. Even if your new policy is lower in coverage, the premiums may be higher than you paid previously based on the group rates.
Term Life Insurance: The beneficiary is chosen by you, in a joint first to die term policy, the beneficiary is typically the spouse. The policy is tied to the policy owners. If they choose to move or sell the property, they still have the policy. If they move homes and still have the insurance need of $400,000 the rates will remain what they were at age 34 (their attained age), the same coverage at age 39 would be higher.
Final Decision
In most circumstances Term Life insurance will cost the homebuyer less and provides much more flexibility to the policy owners. If deciding to purchase life insurance to cover a mortgage, make sure to know the options and what fits your particular situation.
Qube Investment Management Inc. (QIM) is a registered portfolio management firm (Alberta & British Columbia), offering a combination of value and ethical investment methodologies. QIM has a mission to make investments matter.
Under various registrations and incorporations, Qube has been offering investment advice for over 20 years. Qube is a growing team of professionals offering an alternative to mass-market investment products. Offering a professionally managed and disciplined investment experience with discretionary portfolio management for those seeking alternatives to mutual funds or brokerage wrap accounts. Qube has assisted business owners and executives with life insurance, pension, investment and tax planning ideas since 2000.
Apr 9, 2020 | News
Where does the Easter Bunny get his eggs?
From Eggplants!
What do you call a rabbit with fleas?
Bugs Bunny!
Happy Easter!
ILScorp offices will be closed on Good Friday ― April 10, 2020.
We’ll be back on Monday, April 13 ready to take your calls and answer your questions.
You can also register for our insurance training programs online, anytime, at ILScorp.com
How do I register or renew my subscription for online insurance courses?
To renew your subscription or register for an online course or CE Subscription simply:
- Go to www.ilscorp.com
- Do not log in – find the course or subscription you wish to purchase and click ‘Buy Now’
- If you are a returning user – enter your current username/password – click ‘Sign In’ (Do not make a new account)
- If you are a new user – create a new account and fill in all applicable information – click ‘Submit Information’
- Enter your credit card information as it appears on your billing statement
How do I access my online insurance courses once I am registered?
To access your courses simply:
- Log in with your username and password on www.ilscorp.com
- Go to ‘My Courses’ on the top tab
- Choose a course category, and a click on a course title within that category to begin taking courses
Continuing Education Course Subscriptions
View CE Subscriptions
Now is the time to get working on your mandatory CE hours and avoid the last minute rush. ILScorp’s continuing education catalogues feature hundreds of hours of accredited courses that you can complete anywhere you have an internet connection.
Mar 18, 2020 | News
As the COVID-19 outbreak continues to evolve, we want to reassure you that we’re taking precautions to keep our customers and employees safe. Most staff are now working from home to help with social isolation.
ILScorp will continue to provide online educational programs and resources, and customer support services are available via phone, email, and chat.
How to Contact Us:
We encourage emailing us so we can assist you promptly!
info@ilscorp.com
Phone lines open Monday to Friday, 8:30 am to 4:30pm PST. Wait times may be a bit longer as we have gone down to 1 line, but please leave us a message.1.800.404.2211
Or, Chat with us on our homepage www.ilscorp.com
We understand this is an uncertain time for everyone, so whether you are considering a new career in insurance, or successfully continuing your online studies, we are here to assist you as best we can.
Thank you
ILScorp.
