AXA prepared for new industry changes

AXA is prepared for upcoming regulatory changes and will be unaffected by changes to adviser remuneration, while also providing an assistance framework to help advisers prepare for changes, the company said.

AXA will have all of its advice businesses completely fee-for-service by 1 July 2010, according to the national advice and licensing manager of AXA’s general manager of advice and licensing, Simon Wallace.

“The changes would be in how a payment was presented rather than the amount, so rather than basing payments as a percentage of funds under advice, the hourly rate per client would be calculated based on a client's needs, and based on the advice and the services the client receives,” Wallace said.

“The pricing by and large in AXA networks is determined as a mix of the cost to the business to provide the service and the value of the service,” he said.

The company has been working towards a change in fee structure for three years, and has provided extensive assistance to practices to help them prepare for upcoming changes, according to AXA general manager of network development Paul Williams.

AXA will also be involved in a consultation process with the Government in order to prepare for a shift away from volume rebates by the Government’s 1 July 2012 deadline, he said.

“We’re doing a lot to help advisers prepare for the changes,” Williams said. “We completed a readiness survey of AXA advisers earlier this year and the results were very positive.”

The Future Ready survey was conducted in February and March and was completed by 368 advice businesses, he said.

Issues identified in the survey that advisers wanted assistance with included the client value proposition and value of advice, marketing advice, documenting advice, paying for advice and education. AXA is providing ongoing support and education to address all of these issues, Williams said.

This support includes an expanded suite of marketing materials and an online document system that would allow practices to easily customise content and apply their brand, colours and style, updated tools and documents to enable the advice process to be consistent with new charging guidelines, a national training system to help advisers use the fee-for-service payment system and new charging structures, which would include EFTPOS facilities within practices, and assistance for advisers to complete training programs to improve their educational standards.

Williams did not predict an increase in advisers leaving the industry in the manner seen following the introduction of the Financial Services Reform Act in 2004-05.