Our third instalment in our review of 2022 covers perhaps the most turbulent quarter of the year in which the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) began rollout of the Consumer Duty, Boris Johnson was succeeded by Liz Truss as prime minister, the nation mourned as the 70-year reign of Queen Elizabeth came to an end.
July
We spoke to so many professionals across the sector for Pride month that there was some spill-over into July.
One of the subjects of our July pieces was Marianne Cowie, strategic execution manager at Zurich, who spoke to Health & Protection about corporate attitudes towards gender presentation, getting to a good place in ensuring workplaces are LGBTQ+ inclusive and how the sector needs to up its game in attracting diverse LGBTQ+ talent into the industry.
The month also saw Boris Johnson’s controversial time as PM come to an end after some high profile resignations from his Cabinet.
In the wake of Johnson’s departure, advisers called on his successor to prioritise the introduction of tax relief for income protection plans and the removal of insurance premium tax on health insurance products.
July also saw us report on Vitality head of corporate business Gary Impett explaining that companies need to understand that people tend to be overly optimistic about their health, that they seek instant gratification and they dislike losing something twice as much as gaining it.
At end of the month, we covered the launch of the FCA’s where the regulator confirmed its Consumer Duty does not explicitly prohibit the controversial practice of loaded premiums, where premium rates are inflated to pay distributors and advisers higher commission.
However the regulator said it would be looking at subjects and issues such as this over the next year “as they come up”.
August
As the summer months continued into August, we revealed stand-up comedian, presenter and podcaster Chris Ramsey as the host the of UK Health & Protection Awards 2022.
The month also saw reports suggest then prime ministerial candidate frontrunner Liz Truss was considering merging the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and the Payments Systems Regulator (PSR) should she win the race to succeed Boris Johnson.
But advisers Health & Protection spoked to warned Truss that it was not the time to merge the country’s financial watchdogs and any proposal to do so must clearly define any benefits the move would bring.
September
In September Truss did succeed Johnson and was told by advisers to deliver on tax breaks for protection and health insurance.
Truss would also be the final prime minister to meet with the Queen upon taking up the post of Prime Minister as the month also marked the Monarch’s passing at the age of 96.
In the wake of Queen Elizabeth’s death, AIG marketing director Sue Helmont spoke to Health & Protection about meeting her as a small child.
The month was rounded out with a disaterous mini-Budget in which then chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng revealed government intended to deliver an “ambitious” deregulatory package later this autumn to “unleash the potential” of the UK financial services sector as part of its plan to drive growth across the UK economy.
And as the quarter came to an end, New York City was the venue for Health & Protection’s second international private medical insurance (IPMI) event outside the UK with the spotlight turning this time onto North America.
The roundtable brought together representatives from across the continent with experiences from around the globe.
