Assessor Resource

FNSIBK402A
Provide personal advice in general insurance broking products and services (Tier 2)

Assessment tool

Version 1.0
Issue Date: May 2024


For those brokers seeking to meet ASIC training standards:

Personal advice is defined by ASIC in its regulatory guide relating to the conduct and training of financial service product advisers. This unit requires the application of skills and knowledge to identify where the consumer is seeking advice based on their personal needs rather than general product advice and to follow the appropriate steps to provide this level of tailored advice. It also requires clarification of the broker's role in providing this service.

Tier 2 products are defined by ASIC as general insurance products other than personal sickness and accident. These products:

Do not have any investment component

Are subject to standard terms and conditions except for previously disclosed variations

Are of a limited life (e.g. 12 months);

Travel insurance products, including where the product covers losses rising due to sickness or accident while travelling; and

Consumer credit insurance, including where the product covers consumer credit liabilities that cannot be paid due to sickness or accident.

This unit satisfies the ASIC skills requirements for brokers at the Tier 2 adviser level providing personal insurance advice when combined with the following broking specific unit:

FNSIBK403A Implement an agreed insurance program for a broking client

For those broker dealing with business clients, the unit is undertaken in conjunction with:

FNSIBK401A Research and analyse client and industry information for a broking risk assessment

This unit applies to insurance broking roles and may be applied within organisations of various sizes and across a range of customer bases.

This unit is designed for insurance brokers advising retail and wholesale consumers and current clients in standard general insurance products.

The broker advisory process involves reviewing a current insurance program to determine gaps, or scope of the existing policy coverage in order to develop an appropriate insurance plan for the consumer/client. This unit requires skills to access and review risk information and apply knowledge of insurance products to identify and advise on changes to an insurance program with a new business or renewal client.

This unit is applicable to individuals working within insurance broking enterprises and in broking adviser job roles subject to licensing regulation by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). It covers the functions undertaken by an insurance broker providing personal advice in Tier 2 general insurance.

Conditions relating to ASIC training requirements and accreditation should be obtained from ASIC.

You may want to include more information here about the target group and the purpose of the assessments (eg formative, summative, recognition)

Employability Skills

This unit contains employability skills.



Evidence Required

List the assessment methods to be used and the context and resources required for assessment. Copy and paste the relevant sections from the evidence guide below and then re-write these in plain English.

The Evidence Guide provides advice on assessment and must be read in conjunction with the performance criteria, required skills and knowledge, range statement and the Assessment Guidelines for the Training Package.

Overview of assessment

Critical aspects for assessment and evidence required to demonstrate competency in this unit

Evidence of the ability to:

apply core and specialist knowledge of standard general insurance

maintain currency of knowledge of general insurance products and be able to apply their knowledge in practical situations to tailor specific advice to the client

interpret available information about a client's risk needs and products and apply discretion and judgement in developing an appropriate solution.

Context of and specific resources for assessment

Assessment must ensure:

competency is demonstrated in the context of the work environment and conditions specified in the range statement either in a relevant workplace or a closely simulated work environment

access to and the use of a range of common office equipment, technology, software and consumables

access to organisation records

access to organisational policies and procedures.

Method of assessment

A range of assessment methods should be used to assess practical skills and knowledge. The following examples, in combination, are appropriate for this unit:

evaluating an integrated activity, which combines the elements of competency for the unit, or a cluster of related units of competency

observing processes and procedures in workplaces

verbal or written questioning on underpinning knowledge and skills

evaluating samples of work

accessing and validating third party reports

setting and reviewing workplace projects and business simulations or scenarios.

Guidance information for assessment

Submission Requirements

List each assessment task's title, type (eg project, observation/demonstration, essay, assingnment, checklist) and due date here

Assessment task 1: [title]      Due date:

(add new lines for each of the assessment tasks)

Assessment Tasks

Copy and paste from the following data to produce each assessment task. Write these in plain English and spell out how, when and where the task is to be carried out, under what conditions, and what resources are needed. Include guidelines about how well the candidate has to perform a task for it to be judged satisfactory.

Required skills

communication skills to:

determine and confirm information, using questioning and active listening techniques

liaise with others, share information, listen and understand

present information to clients and insurers

question clients to gather information and negotiate to obtain agreed outcomes

use language and concepts appropriate to cultural differences

numeracy and IT skills to:

perform calculations and use statistics to determine insurance coverage

collect data and analyse to identify client needs

use computer applications (word processing, spreadsheet, database, specific purpose computer systems) to assist in achieving required outcomes

access and update records electronically

access web-based information services

literacy skills to read and interpret documentation from a variety of sources and record and consolidate related information

product research and analysis skills for accessing and interpreting relevant information to formulate recommendations

effective interpersonal skills

organisational skills, including the ability to plan and sequence work

risk analysis skills

Required knowledge

core insurance knowledge:

operation of insurance markets: definition of an insurance product, characteristics and participants of the Australian insurance market, the roles played by intermediaries

insurance products: types of insurance general insurance and risk insurance products, conditions, inclusions and exclusions, levels of coverage of risk transfer products, pricing

taxation: awareness of taxation issues in relation to the products

advisory functions:

the role of the broke/representative/adviser

participants in the advisory services market

range of services provided

profile and financial information of the client

appropriateness of a risk assessment

legal environment - disclosure and compliance:

the role of the broker/representative/adviser

relevant legal principles (e.g. Corporations Act, Financial Services Reform Act (FSRA), Trade Practices Act)

the relationship between ethics and regulatory requirements (e.g. good faith, utmost good faith)

full disclosure of remuneration/fees and any other conflicts of interest which may influence the adviser's recommendation

Insurance brokers industry code of practice and organisational codes of conduct

internal and external (FOS) complaints resolution procedures

ASIC guidelines on adviser conduct and training

specialist general insurance knowledge:

types of general insurance products/policies

standard cover (and deviations)

policy wordings

taxes and charges

insurance claims

premium rating/risk selection

reporting

product development

underwriting

specialist knowledge on insurance broking products and services

terms and conditions of retail general insurance products used by the organisation

legislative and organisational compliance requirements in relation to advice:

relevant legislation affecting the provision of general and personal advice e.g. ASIC Regulatory Guide 175 (RG 147) on conduct and disclosure

the role of different advisers within the organisation

organisation policy and guidelines related to the provision of general advice

details of relevant marketing and disclosure documents, including product disclosure statements and marketing brochures on the relevant products

The range statement relates to the unit of competency as a whole. It allows for different work environments and situations that may affect performance. Bold italicised wording, if used in the performance criteria, is detailed below. Essential operating conditions that may be present with training and assessment (depending on the work situation, needs of the candidate, accessibility of the item, and local industry and regional contexts) may also be included.

Level of insurance broking advice may include:

extent of the client's enquiry

financial literacy of the client

the complexity of the advice requested.

Disclosure documents may include:

financial services guide

product disclosure statement

statement of advice.

Client's objectives and goals may include:

business needs

expectations of product coverage

insurer security.

Risk assessment process might include:

checklists

specialist risk reports

surveys.

Scaled and suitable advice may include:

has a specific definition in the ASIC guidelines on disclosure and conduct of advisers in its regulatory guides

Restricted words may include:

impartial

independent

unbiased.

Copy and paste from the following performance criteria to create an observation checklist for each task. When you have finished writing your assessment tool every one of these must have been addressed, preferably several times in a variety of contexts. To ensure this occurs download the assessment matrix for the unit; enter each assessment task as a column header and place check marks against each performance criteria that task addresses.

Observation Checklist

Tasks to be observed according to workplace/college/TAFE policy and procedures, relevant legislation and Codes of Practice Yes No Comments/feedback
A range of communication and interpersonal skills are used to establish the knowledge level of client and clarify the level of insurance broking advice to be provided 
Broker authorisation to deal with the client's needs is established and referral to appropriate adviser for higher level/specialist advice made, if required 
Enquiries are responded to by explaining the range of general insurance products and broking services available and their relevant fee and charging methodology 
Role of the broker and the licensee/principal responsible for the adviser's conduct is advised to the client 
Client is informed of the brokerage procedures for complaints handling 
Regulations, codes and procedures set out in organisation compliance manuals for the personal advice process are complied with including delivery of appropriate disclosure documents 
A range of communication and interpersonal skills are used to establish client objectives and goals 
Appropriate risk assessment processes and tools are used to collect relevant personal, financial and business details 
All information from the client risk assessment process is analysed 
The need for specialist advice or client industry information is sought if required to address issues that professional judgement indicates may require further consideration 
Records of risks assessed and actions taken are checked to ensure information is current and comprehensive 
Required insurance program and/or products are fully identified using an appropriate checklist 
Clients are consulted throughout the analysis for further clarification where necessary 
Follow-up questioning is undertaken to ensure that the client understood earlier questions and that information received by them is relevant and complete 
Current insurance program is compared with the checklist and new and additional risks identified so that discrepancies are clear 
Available options are identified and assessed using information from risk analysis 
Relevant product research is conducted 
Advice for presentation to the client is prepared in accordance with organisational policy 
Checks to ensure the advice has been scaled and suitable to the requirements of the advice situation are made 
Checks that restricted words are used appropriately in the delivery of advice are made 
Checks are made that the reasoning behind the advice and any conflicts of interest that affect the advice have been disclosed 
Features of the advice are explained to the client in a clear and unambiguous way 
Relevant details, terms and conditions of the underlying products/services are explained to the client 
Requirements to put the recommended program into effect are explained to the client 
Client is provided with written supporting documentation and guided through the key aspects of the documentation 
Advice from the client on required changes is sought without delay 
Client declarations as required by underwriter are obtained 
Terms for the client requirements are obtained 
Terms required for renewal and change of client's insurance are clarified with insurers 
Outcomes of negotiation with insurers are advised to client to enable an informed decision to be made 
Options that specify benefits and disadvantages are clarified for the client based on application of broker's industry knowledge 
Justified recommendations are presented and clarified in accordance with organisational and regulatory requirements for provision of advice 
Client instructions are obtained to enable precise action to be taken 

Forms

Assessment Cover Sheet

FNSIBK402A - Provide personal advice in general insurance broking products and services (Tier 2)
Assessment task 1: [title]

Student name:

Student ID:

I declare that the assessment tasks submitted for this unit are my own work.

Student signature:

Result: Competent Not yet competent

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Assessor name:

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Assessment Record Sheet

FNSIBK402A - Provide personal advice in general insurance broking products and services (Tier 2)

Student name:

Student ID:

Assessment task 1: [title] Result: Competent Not yet competent

(add lines for each task)

Feedback to student:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Overall assessment result: Competent Not yet competent

Assessor name:

Signature:

Date:

Student signature:

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