Added value services providers have raised concerns that insurer charges for such offerings could pose a greater risk to the long term health of customers.
Spiralling demand for these services was a key theme of Health & Protection’s September added value services analysis, while how insurers are coping with resulting capacity concerns also took centre stage in a separate analysis last month.
And during Income Protection Action Week, Vicky Churcher, chairwoman at the Income Protection Task Force, asked panellists, with some insurers charging for these additional services, whether they thought this will become more prevalent.
Jury’s still out
Steve Casey, marketing director at Square Health, said he thought the jury was still out on this.
“There have been examples in the past where providers have tried to offer additional services and charged for them and they failed for a variety of some very, very good reasons,” Casey said.
“I’m actually going to sit on the fence on that one and say the jury’s out.”
Fallout for customer and insurer
Fellow panellist Christine Husbands, commercial director at RedArc, agreed, but had a warning for insurers.
“I’m also on the fence,” Husbands said.
“What concerns me is where insurers do charge, some people will not pay for it and when they really need it, it’s not there,” she added.
“At what can be a very vulnerable time, they haven’t got access to these things so it’s affecting the outcomes for the customers.
“But it’s also affecting the insurer because they’ve got more people not getting help early and potentially becoming more unwell.
“So I think it’s got a bigger impact than just ‘pay’ or ‘not pay’. It’s what’s the impact on the customer?”
While Dave Marcus, director, European client management at Teladoc, said he thought there could be a place for charging, he maintained hope these services would remain part of the insurance protection purview.
“It’s such a strong component of insurance now,” Marcus explained.
“Whether it’s critical illness, income protection, life cover, I think it would be a real shame if suddenly people had to pay for these services that allow advisers to win more business, retain more business, have a story.
“We have all probably worked between us over 100 years. How often do we hear advisers struggle to get the message across or they don’t have the time?
“And you’ve got a suite of services that tells interesting stories, that adds value, that protects families, that you might never claim on your protection policy, but there is so much benefit.
“So I hope they remain integral and absolutely part of the journey with insurance protection.”