Vicki Heslop reflects on Covéa's approach to Consumer Duty

Consumer Duty Regulations – A major milestone achieved

Happily, our Board gave us approval for our Consumer Duty compliance in June this year.  The FCA’s approach towards implementation is ‘top down’ making the Board ultimately accountable. Like all companies, we’re required to have a non-executive director to support the CEO with Consumer Duty compliance, so it was great getting their thumbs up.  

It’s fair to say that implementation has gone pretty smoothly. A lot of that’s been because we took the decision to create a customer-centric culture at Covéa over ten years ago, and we haven’t deviated from that commitment.   

As the new regulations are designed to make customer service an integral part of the company’s culture there was commonality with what we were already doing, so it’s felt more like a natural evolution rather than a major new regime. 

That said, the project has been an epic undertaking. For every function within the business, we’ve had to introduce new measures, documentation, produce evidence and create MI reports. It’s been extensive and ongoing taking thousands of hours to complete.  

Beyond our own business, we’ve also worked with our supply chains, approved repairer network, brokers, and business partners to ensure everyone involved in the customer experience are working towards the same goal. This has included hosting networking events, face to face meetings, giving presentations, support, and guidance. It’s been a positive experience and well received, especially by smaller firms who don’t always have the same level of resources. 

So, what’s changed? A colleague remarked ‘I feel the process has been like taking an exam where you get marks for showing your workings’.  As their comment implies, a lot has been about gathering evidence to show we are compliant. Beyond this, tangible outcomes are harder to pinpoint. 

In the wider market, certainly, one significant aspect is that awareness and attitudes have shifted. How companies deliver positive outcomes for customers is now a major talking point, which will ultimately translate into behavioural change, moving the industry closer towards the end game, which is to make insurance better for consumers.  

I’ve no doubt we’ll start to see more changes in 2024 as companies go through the process analysing their full customer journey to identify customer pain points and find ways to fix them. But it will take time and there’s a considerable way to go until the market gets to where it needs to be.  

Authored by Covéa