InsureTalk 10 – what the experts said…

The 10th instalment of CN&CO’s InsureTalk franchise, headline sponsored by CIB, took place on 25 March 2021, drawing over 1 000 attendees. The aim of the series is to educate, inform and entertain the South African insurance fraternity and earn them CPD hours in the process.

SHA’s Nonnie Mhlungu was, once again, a commensurate and vibrant host.

Belhassen Tonat of Munich Re was the first speaker. He opened with the following stat: The cost to the local insurance industry of the pandemic and lockdown is in the region of R30-50 bn, mostly around BI – more than 10 times the cost of the Knysna fires. We have seen unemployment increase by 3 to 5 million people in the past 12 months.

He did some basic actuarial maths to calculate the required premium for a typical BI policy under Covid circumstances and most delegates agreed it was unaffordable. He then discussed various outbreaks over the past 100 years and unpacked some interesting facts and opinions about the current pandemic and posed the question – “How do we make pandemics insurable?”

Thokozile Mahlangu of the IISA discussed the myriad ways insurance professionals can be awarded CPD hours – including attendance at InsureTalk, which earned delegates 2.5 hours.

Francois de Wet of Wamly discussed the profile of job seekers and how they interact and ultimately, engage with their employers. Covid has impacted talent in two ways, he said. It highlighted gaps and disjointedness between organisational practices and how the world has evolved (where we have not kept up). Secondly it disrupted talent pools and access to skills.

The problem is that “recruiting great people sucks”. It’s hard to find good people – the war for talent is as real as ever. Only 30% of companies are able to fill a vacant role within 30 days. The others take anywhere from one to four months. Organisations in SA spend on average R57 250 in screening costs just to fill a vacant position.

Francois then discussed ways to remain relevant and sustainable – and attractive as a potential employer – by digitising candidate screening and selection methods.

Did you follow the recipe for Thai green curry, presented by Chef Gary from So Yum in Hyde Park? If not, you can rewatch it in the YouTube video below. Or just go down there and order it off the menu – it’s delicious!

Almero Oosthuizen from EasyEquities discussed the results of the company’s insurance survey among its investor customers. But why would an investment company be interested in insurance? Mostly it’s about life assurance protecting customers’ assets. Surprisingly 42% of EasyEquities customers, who are mostly younger than 35, hold life insurance.

A good place to spend your money is on encouraging your current customers to get their friends and family to sign up, he said.

Interestingly, almost 80% of respondents said they were either satisfied or very satisfied with their current insurance provider. Less than 5% are dissatisfied or very dissatisfied.

We may not even count Covid as one of the top five disruptors in the next 10 years, said Graeme Codrington, whose talk, Tomorrow’s world today – The forces shaping the world, and how we should respond, was sponsored by CIB.

Among other things, he spoke about home shopping, on-demand video screening, the digital revolution, the shift in geo-politics (which Covid is accelerating), climate change – strap in… the 2020s are going to be one hell of a ride! It’s time to change your mindset to help you to adjust to the forces that are set to disrupt the next decade.

Tony van Niekerk spoke about fake news in his regular media slot. You shouldn’t believe everything you read, he said – you need to think for yourself. Ask yourself what the agenda of that particular piece is. Does it pick on your emotions? He also discussed his process for sifting through the fake news as editor of COVER magazine.

In case you missed it, or if you’d like to watch any of the presentations again, check out the video below: